On Tuesday, the Colombian carrier Avianca announced the launch of three new routes connecting Colombia and Ecuador next year. These point-to-point routes will improve the capacity between both South American nations.
Avianca’s new routes
As of March 2023, travelers flying with Avianca will be able to fly from Cartagena International Airport (CTG) and Medellín International Airport (MDE) to Guayaquil International Airport (GYE) in Ecuador. As of December 2022, these two routes are entirely uncontested. There are 60 weekly flights from Colombia to Ecuador, with 10,134 seats available, per Cirium.
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David Alemán, Avianca's Director of Sales for Colombia and South America, said,
“The connectivity of Colombia and Ecuador is key for Avianca. An example is that, so far in 2022, we have transported close to 470,000 travelers on more than 3,740 flights between the two countries, and we have moved close to 50,000 tons to and from Ecuador.”
He added that with these three new routes, Avianca will operate 20 routes from Medellín, 11 from Cartagena, and 15 in Ecuador. “This is how we continue consolidating our Avianca, with more direct routes and a flexible and tailored product, allowing more travelers in Latin America to fly.”
The planes employed in these routes
Avianca will operate three flights per week on both of the new routes. The Colombian airline will deploy its Airbus A320 fleet, with a capacity for over 150 passengers, to serve these new flights.
The flight Guayaquil-Medellín (AV136) will be operated on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. It will depart at 09:00, landing at 10:40 in Colombia. Meanwhile, the return service, AV137, will leave at 11:35, landing at 13:30.
The flight Guayaquil-Cartagena (AV134) will depart at 09:00, landing in Colombia at 11:25, while the return service (AV135) will depart at 12:20, landing in Ecuador at 14:50.
The connectivity between Colombia and Ecuador
Despite being neighboring countries, Colombia and Ecuador have 60 weekly flights operated by three carriers. These airlines are Avianca (the largest player by capacity with 44 weekly flights), LATAM (nine flights), and Wingo (seven flights). Avianca and Wingo fly from Bogotá International Airport (BOG) to Guayaquil and Quito, while LATAM only flies between Bogota and Quito.
Overall, Avianca operates 264 weekly flights in Ecuador. Mostly it operates domestic services (200 flights) in six routes. The other 64 flights are international, operated from Guayaquil (Bogota, New York, and San Salvador) and Quito (Bogota, Buenos Aires, San Salvador, and San José).
Avianca’s growth in Cartagena
The flights to Guayaquil, Ecuador, aren’t the only services Avianca is launching from Cartagena. Starting on June 11, the airline will operate a new service to Sao Paulo Guarulhos International Airport (GRU).
Avianca will operate three flights per week (on Wednesdays, Fridays, and Sundays) in aircraft with a capacity for more than 150 passengers. Departures from Cartagena are on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. According to Avianca, the new route consolidates one of the company's objectives: to increase connectivity to different destinations in the Americas.
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