Avianca Brazil
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| Founded | 1998 (as OceanAir) | |||
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| Hubs | São Paulo-Guarulhos São Paulo-Congonhas |
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| Secondary hubs | Brasília | |||
| Frequent-flyer program | Programa Amigo | |||
| Airport lounge | Avianca VIP lounges | |||
| Fleet size | 26 (+10 ordered) | |||
| Destinations | 24 | |||
| Parent company | Avianca | |||
| Headquarters | São Paulo, Brazil | |||
| Key people | José Efromovich - Director-President | |||
| Website | www.avianca.com.br | |||
Avianca Brazil (Portuguese: Avianca Brasil), trademark of Oceanair Linhas Aéreas S/A, is a Brazilian airline based in São Paulo, Brazil. It operates passenger services from 23 destinations. Its main base is Guarulhos International Airport, São Paulo.[1] Even though the legal name of the airline remains OceanAir, Avianca (Colombia) authorized OceanAir to use its name as a brand-name. Avianca (Colombia) and Avianca (Brazil) remain separate legal entities although closely linked and belonging to the same holding group.
According to the National Civil Aviation Agency of Brazil (ANAC) in November 2011 Avianca (Brazil) had 3.48% of the domestic and 1.47% of the international market shares in terms of passengers per kilometre flown.[2]
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[edit] History
[edit] OceanAir days
The airline was established in 1998 as an air taxi company to operate services for oil companies in the Campos Basin. Its name was then OceanAir and began to operate scheduled services in 2002, between São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Macaé and Campos. Soon afterwards, it started to become better known to the public with a flight (no longer operated now) connecting Congonhas Airport in São Paulo and Santos Dumont Airport in Rio de Janeiro via São Paulo-Guarulhos International Airport, enabling international passengers from both cities easy access to the country's largest international hub from those cities' smaller but central and more convenient airports. At the time, OceanAir's fare between São Paulo's airports was cheaper than a taxi and on a par with a luxury bus ride.
In 2004, Synergy Group, the owner of OceanAir bought Avianca, and as a result OceanAir feeds Avianca's flight into GRU and vice-versa. This partnership between the two airlines has increased the flow of passengers between Colombia and Brazil. In 2004, Synergy Group also bought VIP Ecuador as part of a strategy to create a continent-wide airline under the aegis of Avianca. In 2006, a joint venture formed by OceanAir (49%) and Fondo de Inversiones Sustentables (51%) created a new Peruvian airline called Wayraperú, but the airline suspended operations a few months later. These airlines make up Synergy Group's aviation interests, and coordination of schedules to feed Avianca's network has been implemented. They will soon all be members of the AviancaPlus Frequent Flyer programme. Synergy Group had a profit of US$ 3 billion in 2005 and investments of US$ 100 million in the last months.
OceanAir started its first international operation to Mexico in 2007, with Boeing 767-300 aircraft, but in April 2008 the flights were discontinued. Since then the airline has concentrated its efforts on the Brazilian domestic market. Germán Efromovich, the owner of Avianca and OceanAir, bought 12 Boeing 787 aircraft, making OceanAir the first Brazilian airline to fly the Dreamliners. Five Airbus A330 and 30 Airbus A320 aircraft will also be added to the fleet in 2010, a contract worth US$ 2.5 billion. With this fleet growth, Efromovich intends to control 15% of the Brazilian air market in the next decade, including routes to Mexico, Colombia, Africa and the United States.[3]
On 7 October 2009, Sinergy group announced its intention to purchase the cargo-only airline VarigLog from its present owner, Velog. Synergy group chairman Efromovich is already running VarigLog, which remains under judicial protection. If the purchase is finalized, VarigLog would operate services in partnership with OceanAir.[4]
[edit] Deal with TACA and rebranding to Avianca (Brazil)
On October 9, 2009 Synergy announced a merger deal between TACA and Avianca. This merger will increase OceanAir's feeder operations, already implemented with Avianca in São Paulo, to include TACA in São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, and Porto Alegre.
On March 26, 2010 Germán Efromovich announced the official re-branding of OceanAir, which is now known as Avianca (Brazil). OceanAir Linhas Aéreas remains the legal name of the airline but Avianca (Colombia) allowed OceanAir to use its name as a brand-name for free.[5] This way, Synergy group can further align the operations of OceanAir with the ones of Avianca.[6] The first aircraft with the new name started operations on 27 April 2010.[7] The only notable differences between the aircraft of Avianca (Colombia) and the ones of Avianca (Brazil) are the Brazilian registration numbers and a small Brazilian flag under the cockpit window.
[edit] Star Alliance
On November 10, 2010 Star Alliance approved to accept the group Avianca-TACA to join the network as future member airline. Avianca Brasil, however, is to be excluded while other arrangements are made. It's also expected that this airline will join the alliance at a later time.[8]
[edit] Destinations
Avianca Brazil connects flights at São Paulo-Guarulhos International Airport with those of Avianca and vice-versa at El Dorado International Airport in Bogotá, Colombia.
[edit] Fleet
As of December 2011 the fleet of Avianca Brazil included the following aircraft:[9]
| Aircraft | Total | Orders | Passengers (Y) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Airbus A318 | 5 | 10 | 120 | |
| Airbus A319 | 3 | — | 132 | |
| Airbus A320-200 | 4 | — | 162 | |
| Fokker 100 | 14 | — | 100 | |
| Total | 26 | 10 |
| Aircraft | Total | Years of Operation |
|---|---|---|
| Embraer EMB 120 Brasília | 5 | 2001–2008 |
| Fokker 50 | 3 | 2003–2008 |
| Boeing 767-300 | 3 | 2007–2008 |
[edit] Airline Affinity Programs
Avianca (Brazil) has an affinity program called Programa Amigo
[edit] References
- ^ "Directory: World Airlines". Flight International: p. 58. 2007-04-10.
- ^ "Dados Comparativos Avançados" (in Portuguese). Agência Nacional de Aviação Civil (ANAC). http://www2.anac.gov.br/dadosComparativos/DadosComparativos.asp. Retrieved January 10, 2012.
- ^ Exame Magazine, 18 December 2006
- ^ "Juíza aprova plano da VarigLog". Valor Online. 7 October 2009. http://www.valoronline.com.br/?online/transportes/63/5859077/juiza-aprova-plano-da-variglog. Retrieved 9 October 2009.
- ^ Laguna, Eduardo (26 April 2010). "OceanAir passa a se chamar Avianca" (in Portuguese). São Paulo: Valor Online. http://www.valoronline.com.br/?online/transportes/63/6228162/oceanair-passa-a-se-chamar-avianca&scrollX=0&scrollY=0&tamFonte=. Retrieved 27 April 2010.
- ^ Jardim, Lauro (17 March 2010). "Panorama: Radar: Aviação" (in Portuguese). Veja: pp. 53.
- ^ "OceanAir agora é Avianca" (in Portuguese). Avianca. 27 April 2010. http://www.avianca.com.br/empresa/site/quemsomos.asp. Retrieved 27 April 2010.
- ^ "Star Acceptance of Avianca excludes Avianca Brazil". Flight Global. 10 November 2010. http://www.flightglobal.com/articles/2010/11/10/349581/star-acceptance-of-avianca-taca-excludes-avianca-brazil-for.html. Retrieved 10 November 2010.
- ^ "Frota atual das empresas brasileiras" (in Portuguese). Aeromuseu. December 31, 2011. http://www.aeromuseu.com.br/frota.htm. Retrieved January 2, 2012.
[edit] External links
- Avianca Brazil, formerly OceanAir Photo Archive at airliners.net
- Avianca Brazil, formerly OceanAir History Sketch at Aviação Brasil
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