American Jet announced today that they will soon begin rolling out a regional scheduled air route plan.
To achieve this, they plan to add nine aircraft seating between 50 and 100 passengers starting in early 2025, and they have opened recruitment for pilots, flight attendants, and mechanics.
We have contacted American Jet to obtain more details, such as which routes they plan to develop or the aircraft models they will incorporate, and we will update this article once they respond.
Since its inception in 1983, American Jet has grown to become the leading operator of charter flights for companies involved in mining and oil, which is why they have based aircraft in the airports of Neuquén and Mendoza. They also have bases at Jorge Newbery Aeroparque in Buenos Aires and at San Fernando Airport to serve the executive jet segment and sports delegations or events.
The airline took its first steps to enter the regular commercial aviation sector in September 2016 when it requested 13 routes in the famous Public Hearing No. 218:
- Neuquén – Comodoro Rivadavia – Río Gallegos – El Calafate – Río Grande – Ushuaia.
- Neuquén – Comodoro Rivadavia – Falkland Islands.
- Neuquén – Temuco – Santiago, Chile.
- Neuquén – Comodoro Rivadavia – Río Gallegos – Punta Arenas.
- Neuquén – Malargüe – Mendoza – San Miguel de Tucumán – Salta – Tarija.
- Neuquén – Córdoba – San Miguel de Tucumán – Santa Cruz de la Sierra.
- Neuquén – Córdoba – Resistencia – Asunción.
- Neuquén – Rosario – Puerto Iguazú.
- Neuquén – Rosario – Buenos Aires – Punta del Este.
- Neuquén – Bahía Blanca – Mar del Plata – Buenos Aires.
- Neuquén – Córdoba – Rosario – Porto Alegre.
- Neuquén – Santa Rosa – Buenos Aires.
- Neuquén – Bariloche – El Calafate – Ushuaia.
In October of the same year, they also launched a unique route between Neuquén and Temuco (Chile), taking advantage of the wave of Argentine tourists who were shopping in the neighboring country.
In mid-2019, they announced their intention to start operating scheduled flights, but the market conditions towards the end of Macri’s government and later the pandemic halted their plans. They only managed to inaugurate flights between Buenos Aires and Termas de Río Hondo in January 2020, just weeks before Argentine commercial aviation (and much of the world’s) went into suspended animation.
During the pandemic, American Jet was able to continue flying, given the essential nature of one of its main segments, mining and oil. After that dark period, they also ventured into routes like Buenos Aires – Mercedes, Corrientes (as part of package tours to the Iberá Wetlands) and Buenos Aires – Punta del Este during the 2022/2023 summer season. They also operated for Alas La Rioja, the «airline» created by that province to cover what the governor referred to as gaps in air connectivity.
Their fleet saw key additions in recent years, such as two Embraer ERJ-145 aircraft, a Learjet 60XR, and an ATR 42-600.
Thus, the fleet consists of two Swearingen SA227-AC Metro III, two Embraer ERJ-145, an ATR 42-300, an ATR 42-600, a Dornier 228-300, a Beechcraft 1900, a Learjet 60, a Learjet 31A, and a Bell 429 helicopter.
Argentina’s unresolved regional aviation issue
On several occasions, but most recently in an article published in September, we have pointed out that one of Argentina’s significant shortcomings is the development of regional aviation to serve intermediate cities.
Although the country has certain conditions that would seem to favor the establishment of regional airlines, the volatility of its economy and state policies have made this the segment that has suffered the most in recent decades, to the point where today there is no private company occupying this space.
Argentina is one of the few countries in the region that does not have a private regional airline, which is particularly notable given its geography. The large distances between secondary and tertiary cities (with 30,000 to 100,000 inhabitants) and the country’s main urban centers make it ideal to promote this segment. However, population concentration in areas without significant geographical obstacles also works against it, favoring the growth of bus services with wide schedules and comfortable offerings.
Currently, the only regional services are operated by LADE, the promotional airline of the Argentine Air Force, connecting Comodoro Rivadavia with El Calafate, Río Gallegos, Río Grande, and Ushuaia, as well as Mar del Plata with Bahía Blanca and Bariloche.
American Jet’s expansion into the regular flight segment, considering its expertise (and ability to navigate market changes), could be key to the development of a new phase in Argentina’s regional aviation.
