The Spanish carrier Iberia is strengthening its presence in the Latin American market. Iberia has just announced that it will increase its weekly flights to Buenos Aires next year. Argentina remains a key market for the airline, and as the recovery progresses, it wants to improve the connectivity in the country.
Argentina is recovering
Iberia is flying daily to Buenos Aires Ezeiza International Airport (EZE) from Madrid and four times per week from Barcelona. It is using both the Airbus A330-200 and A350-900 aircraft. The Spanish carrier hasn’t fully recovered its pre-pandemic traffic and frequency levels. A couple of years ago, Iberia was operating 109 monthly flights to Argentina, according to Cirium’s database.
Nonetheless, despite the ongoing recovery, Iberia has shown the interest it has in the Argentinian market. In December 2019, the Spanish carrier wasn’t flying between Barcelona and Buenos Aires, and now it does.
“Iberia has always bet on Argentina and, as the travel restrictions are lifted, and demand intensifies, the airline is gradually increasing the number of frequencies it has in this strategic market,” said the carrier in a statement.
Up to a few months ago, Argentina was closed for international travel. The country has slowly been opening up, although there are many challenges ahead, particularly in the regulatory and taxation system.
More frequencies next year
Next year, Iberia aims to increase the connectivity between Madrid and Buenos Aires. Therefore, starting in January’s final two weeks, the Spanish flag carrier will fly ten times per week between both capital cities.
In March, Iberia will increase the frequencies to 12 flights per week. In 2021, Iberia will celebrate its 75th anniversary flying to Latin America. The airline’s first destination in the region was Buenos Aires, where it started flying on September 22, 1946.
According to Iberia, the capacity increase will also have a pricing campaign. Tickets will be available from 625 euros, round trip.
The additional flights will be operated with Airbus A330-200 aircraft. These planes have a capacity for 288 passengers, 19 in business and 269 in tourist.
Victor Monteo, LATAM Sales director at Iberia, said,
“We want to keep on strengthening the bridge between Buenos Aires and Europe by recovering slowly but surely our pre-pandemic schedule. We are still away from those numbers, but we trust that 12 flights per week will help us dynamize the market.”
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Iberia in Latin America
The Spanish flag carrier heavily believes in the Latin American market. It is currently offering 200 weekly flights in the region, serving 17 destinations in 15 countries.
According to Cirium’s database, Iberia has 1,025 scheduled flights to Latin America & the Caribbean in December 2021. That number is still 14.7% below the pre-pandemic stats. Seat-wise, Iberia is also 18.6% below 2019 levels.
Iberia still has to resume its flights from Madrid to Medellin, Caracas, and Rio de Janeiro. On the other side, it has introduced a few flights from Barcelona to destinations like Buenos Aires, Punta Cana, and Cancun, and between Madrid and Cali.
Iberia’s main route is Madrid-Mexico City, which operates two daily flights. Madrid-Santo Domingo, in the Dominican Republic, is also a powerhouse for the Spanish carrier.
Just three routes to the Americas are above pre-pandemic stats. These are Madrid-Santo Domingo (with an 87.1% increase), Madrid-San Juan (38.5%), and Madrid-Guayaquil (18.2%).
Have you traveled with Iberia to Buenos Aires? How was the experience? Let us know in the comments below.
