The airport’s privatisation process has been a complex one, but now expansion and modernisation plans are well under way.
Bogotá
Efromovich also owns shares in AeroGal and TACA Airlines (merged with Avianca), both of which serve Bogotá and have helped El Dorado develop its transfer traffi c, according to Etzold. “His dream is to create a Latin America-wide airline system and this ambition has proved instrumental in helping transform Bogotá into one of the region’s fastest growing hubs,” says Etzold.
LAN’s acquisition of Aires Another big reason is the late 2008 decision by Aires, which was acquired by oneworld carrier LAN in October 2010, to reinvent itself as low-cost carrier in the mould of an Air Berlin or easyJet in Europe or Southwest in North America.
Aires is the second largest operator in Colombia, operating a fl eet of nine B737-700s, 11 Q200s and four Q400s and accounts for 15% of the total traffi c throughput at El Dorado. “You have to remember that Colombia is very mountainous, with some peaks reaching almost 6,000 metres, so travelling by air is the quickest and best way to go if you can afford it,” comments Etzold. He points out that a 700 kilometre journey between Bogotá and Cartagena on the Caribbean Coast can take 90 minutes by aircraft as opposed to at least 12 hours by road. There is no train system.
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“Aires low fares have led to an explosion of traffi c on certain domestic routes and within 18 months the airline’s fl eet grew from nothing to nine Boeing 737-700s,” he adds. “The international market has enjoyed stable growth for a number of years but Aires has totally reinvigorated the domestic market.”
In 2009, domestic traffi c accounted for 10 million people or two-thirds of the 14.9 million passengers handled in Bogotá.
New airline entrants Avianca and Copa Airlines Colombia (previously Aero República) provide Aires with its toughest competition domestically, but that will change from 2012 when new start-up AerOasis, with the support of LAN Chile, is set to enter the market with up to 15 A320s.
It will be joined by new low-cost carrier,
FAST. This carrier has announced its intention to enter the domestic market in 2011 using a fl eet of B737 or A320 aircraft.
Perception problems
Colombia is one of those countries that conjure up many different images in people’s minds, and Etzold is among the fi rst to admit that for those who haven’t been there recently, not all of those images are positive.
For this reason he is keen to point out that safety and security have improved
dramatically over the past few years. Indeed, the much-publicised violence associated with armed struggles and drug traffi cking have all but gone away now and rarely make the headlines these days.
The Colombian Tourist Offi ce recently launched an advertising campaign declaring that “the only risk, is that you will want to stay.” Did you know, for example, that Colombia has one of the most stable political systems in South America and boasts the region’s fourth largest economy?
With over 45 million people, it is also the second largest country in South America after Brazil in terms of population and a major trading point for goods travelling between North, South and Central America.
“The government has done an excellent job and Colombia is a different country these days,” enthuses Etzold. “I would compare living in Bogotá to somewhere like Barcelona. It is safe and exciting in Bogotá as long as you are careful.”
It certainly appears as if things have changed and are continuing to change for the better in Colombia. However, one thing that won’t be altering – for now anyway – is the name of the airport, which was going to be changed to that of a former politician before the country’s President ruled otherwise.
RN
www.routes-news.com
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