SANSA (airline)
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| Founded | August 28, 1979 | ||||||
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| Hubs | Juan Santamaría International Airport | ||||||
| Frequent-flyer program | Distancia | ||||||
| Fleet size | 12 | ||||||
| Destinations | 15 | ||||||
| Headquarters | San José, Costa Rica | ||||||
| Website | http://www.flysansa.com | ||||||
SANSA Airlines (Servicios Aéreos Nacionales S.A.) is an airline based in San José, Costa Rica. It operates scheduled passenger services as part of the TACA Airlines regional airline system, and was a subsidiary of Avianca Costa Rica. Its hub is Juan Santamaría International Airport.[1]
History
The airline was established on August 28, 1979 as a domestic airline of LACSA.[1] It started operations on September 8 of the same year with two Douglas DC-3.
In 1983, it was assumed that LACSA will provide technical advice at all levels. In March 1987, operations were restarted with the CASA 212-200s that had been practically out of service since 1983.
Due to the restructuring measures of Avianca Holdings, TACA Regional dissolved and Sansa now operates independently.
Destinations
The destinations of Sansa Airlines are:[2]
| Country | City | Airport | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Costa Rica | Bahía Drake | Bahía Drake Airport | |
| Costa Rica | Barra del Colorado | Barra del Colorado Airport | Terminated |
| Costa Rica | Coto 47 | Coto 47 Airport | Terminated |
| Costa Rica | Golfito | Golfito Airport | |
| Costa Rica | La Fortuna/Arenal | La Fortuna Arenal Airport | |
| Costa Rica | Liberia | Daniel Oduber Quirós International Airport | |
| Costa Rica | Limón | Limón International Airport | |
| Costa Rica | Nosara | Nosara Airport | |
| Costa Rica | Palmar Sur | Palmar Sur Airport | |
| Costa Rica | Puerto Carillo | Carrillo Airport | Terminated |
| Costa Rica | Puerto Jiménez | Puerto Jiménez Airport | |
| Costa Rica | Punta Islita | Punta Islita Airport | Terminated |
| Costa Rica | Quepos | Quepos La Managua Airport | |
| Costa Rica | San Isidro de El General | San Isidro de El General Airport | |
| Costa Rica | San José | Juan Santamaría International Airport | Hub |
| Costa Rica | Tamarindo | Tamarindo Airport | |
| Costa Rica | Tambor | Tambor Airport | |
| Costa Rica | Tortuguero | Tortuguero Airport | |
| Nicaragua | Costa Esmeralda | Costa Esmeralda Airport |
Fleet
Current Fleet
As of September 2020, the SANSA fleet includes:[3]
Former fleet
Accidents and incidents
- On April 19, 1984, A Douglas DC-3 (registered TI-SAA), charter flight coming from San Andres, Colombia crashed on "Cerro Santa Rosa" (northwest face of the Irazu Volcano), killing all on board.
- On January 16, 1990, SANSA Flight 32 crashed into the Cerro Cedral, a mountain in Costa Rica, after takeoff from Juan Santamaría International Airport in San José. All 20 passengers and 3 crew on board died in the crash.[4]
- On August 26, 2000, a Cessna 208B Grand Caravan crashed into the Arenal Volcano, an active volcano in Costa Rica. The Cessna Caravan took off from Juan Santamaría International Airport in San José at 11:38, for a flight to Tamarindo. An intermediate stop at La Fortuna was made at 11:55 to drop off a Japanese tourist. The flight left La Fortuna again at 12:05 for a 35-minute flight to Tamarindo. The aircraft collided with the active 5380 feet (1650 m) high Arenal volcano, at around 656 feet (200 m) below the crater. All 8 passengers and 2 crew on board died in the crash.[5]
- On November 28, 2001, a Cessna 208B Grand Caravan crashed into the Cerro Chontal, a mountain in Costa Rica. The aircraft crashed approximately four minutes before it was expected to land into a wooded hillside of the Cerro Chontal. The aircraft appeared to be off the usual approach track for Quepos. Both crew members and 1 passenger died; 5 passengers survived the crash and were rescued the next day.[6]
- On July 30, 2018, a Cessna 208B Grand Caravan (registered TI-BGB), left the runway of the Tamarindo Airport in the Guanacaste Province after landing, none of the ten occupants were injured.
References
- ^ a b Sansa Website History, 16. September 2020
- ^ Sansa Website Destinations, 16. September 2020
- ^ rzjets: SANSA rzjets.com, accessdate 16. September 2020.
- ^ Aviation Safety Network 16 January 1990, Cerro Cedral
- ^ Aviation Safety Network 26 Augst 2000, Arenal Volcano
- ^ Aviation Safety Network 28 November 2001, Cerro Chontal
External links
Media related to SANSA Airlines at Wikimedia Commons
