Airlines Aerolíneas Argentinas and Austral confirm merger

Aerolíneas Argentinas and Austral have announced, that both airlines will merge to one flag carrier in Argentina.

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The two airlines have released a letter, in which the merger between Aerolíneas Argentinas and Austral is being confirmed. In the letter, Aerolíneas Argentinas states, that due to the COVID-19 crisis, several difficult months would be ahead and that without income many airlines in the region would disappear.

Aerolíneas Argentinas wrote: “The efforts made by the Argentine Government to keep the company running are becoming unbearable. Those efforts are in fact made by the whole society, and now society desperately needs the Government’s help to survive this pandemic that is ravaging humanity […] The Government invests in its flag carrier because this generates economic and social benefits that exceed the investment made. However, in the face of such a severe crisis, even the most profitable investments are adjusted when it comes to priorities.”

The merger allows the airlines to join forces for one main Argentinian flag carrier. This main business unit will be responsible for the provision of independent aircraft maintenance services to other companies in the industry.

Additionally, the airlines stated that they are currently working on establishing a cargo business unit, drawing on the airline´s experience with cargo flights to Shanghai. Aerolíneas Argentinas said that it has been working on this project for a long period now.

“It is necessary for the company to operate at its highest efficiency. We have achieved this in some areas, but in others, there are still inefficiencies that we have not been able to solve: a structural lack of productivity that we have been carrying for many years. We need to address this, operate with the general efficiency of the industry and adopt its best practices. This is a moral duty we all have,” the airlines wrote in the letter.

Aerolíneas Argentinas was the country´s largest airline and the flag-carrier airline. It was founded in 1949 and commenced operations a year later. Main operational hub is the Aeroparque Jorge Newbery Airport in the Greater Buenos Aires region. Aerolíneas Argentinas is member of the Sky Team alliance and operates a fleet of 10 Airbus A330s and 44 Boeing 737s.

Austral Líneas Aéreas was founded in 1957 and commenced operations a year later, too. The airline mainly operates from the same airport and flies with a fleet of 26 Embraer ERJ-190 regional aircraft.

Source © aerolinas.com.ar

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