This morning, Bogotá’s La W Radio published an article claiming that Ultra Air is going through a serious economic crisis that will force it to suspend its scheduled operations indefinitely after Easter, repeating Viva’s situation.
Aware of the effect this could have on the market, Ultra Air was quick to deny this to La W Radio, emphasizing that, although they are no strangers to «the current situation, where different macroeconomic factors have affected the industry», the ultra low-cost airline «is backed by solid investors who believe in the company’s project and who are aware of the current challenges in the sector».
See also: JetSMART sees it almost impossible to buy VIVA
Ultra Air also stated that they have been capitalised with more than $20 million and are going through a capitalization process with national and international investors «who see a great opportunity in the Colombian market».
«We are also talking to the different actors of the Colombian government to help in the crisis that the national aviation sector is going through,» the ultra low-cost carrier’s statement continues.
«We reiterate that we continue with our operations, with safety and fair prices to continue contributing to the development of the Colombian tourism sector,» they concluded.
Ultra Air in the Colombian market
Ultra Air inaugurated its scheduled flights in February 2022, and since then has transported more than 1.8 million passengers on more than 12,000 flights, reaching an 8% share of the Colombian domestic market.
Its network reaches 10 cities in Colombia through 17 routes, where they claim that fares have been reduced by 13% on average since they started flying.
Ultra Air routes
From Bogotá (BOG) to:
- Cali (CLO); 21 weekly flights.
- Cartagena (CTG); 13 flights per week.
- Medellín/Rionegro (MDE); 36 weekly flights.
- San Andrés (ADZ); 7 weekly flights.
- Santa Marta (SMR); 15 flights per week.
From Medellín (MDE) to:
- Barranquilla (BAQ); 3 weekly flights.
- Cali (CLO); 7 weekly flights.
- Cartagena (CTG); 11 weekly flights.
- Cúcuta (CUC); 3 weekly flights.
- Montería (MTR); 4 weekly flights.
- San Andrés (ADZ); 5 weekly flights.
- Santa Marta (SMR); 9 weekly flights.
From Cali (CLO) to:
- Cartagena (CTG); 3 weekly flights.
- San Andres (ADZ); 12 flights weekly.
- Santa Marta (SMR); 3 weekly flights.
From Pereira (PEI) to:
- Cartagena (CTG); 3 flights weekly, resumes on 2 June.
- Santa Marta (SMR); 4 weekly flights.
During its first anniversary celebration, Ultra Air said that by 2023 it expects to take its fleet from six to ten Airbus A320s to carry 3 million passengers.
