Avianca and TAP Air Portugal signed a new codeshare agreement. It will be valid from 27 February onwards and it will enable passengers of the South American carrier to connect to several cities in Portugal and Europe.

How does it work?

This new codeshare agreement will allow the travelers of Avianca, departing from Bogota, to connect on the following cities operated by TAP: London, Munich, Madrid, Barcelona, and Porto.

For travelers with the Portuguese carrier, they will have access to the following routes: Miami-Bogota; Miami-Cali and New York-Bogota. Soon, Avianca will add the route Miami-Medellin to the agreement.

Both airlines are members of Star Alliance. And now, with the agreement, the travelers can earn miles with its flights with each of the frequent flyers programs of both carriers: TAP Miles & GO for TAP Air and LifeMiles for Avianca.

Avianca
The codeshare agreement comes into effect from 27 February. Photo: Avianca Holdings

Avianca’s 2020 hot start

The South American carrier is still celebrating the 100th Aniversary of its founding. In the last few months, Avianca has been all over the place, from starting corruption probes to launching new regional carriers in Colombia.

Avianca also increased its weekly flights to Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo, as well as launching a new route to Porto Alegre, Brazil. In October 2019, signed a new codeshare agreement with GOL.

After a few turbulent years in which even the feared word of bankruptcy was heard, Avianca is coming back. The airline even received a $250 million USD loan. This has allowed the airline to create a legacy for the next hundred years. And we think that is just great.

About the codeshare agreement with TAP, Ana María Copete, Alliance Director for Avianca Holdings, said,

“Thanks to this agreement, the Avianca clients will benefit from the great connectivity offered by our destinations in Europe (London, Madrid, Barcelona, and Munich) to the main cities in Portugal: Porto and Lisbon.”

TAP Air Portugal
TAP is increasing its presence in Portugal. Photo: TAP Air Portugal

TAP is expanding in Latin America

Earlier this year, TAP Air Portugal signed a cooperation agreement with Azul Linhas Aéreas, the Brazilian carrier. This new agreement is purely commercial. It “will contribute to the increase in connectivity between the European and the Brazilian markets”, said TAP in a statement.

Azul is the largest domestic airline in Brazil, so we can see why TAP chose it as it is a great way to enter this, the largest market in Latin America.

Also, Antonoaldo Neves, CEO of TAP, met with Brazilian touristic authorities to promote the country in Europe.

TAP is trying to increase the number of European tourists in Brazil by 200,000. He said,

“The goal is to bring tourists from Spain, England, France, Germany, and Italy, as well as Portugal. This number can generate earnings of over $321 million USD in revenues and $115 million USD in taxes.” 

So, even though Venezuelan authorities banned TAP from operating in its country for 90 days, it seems as the Portuguese airline is doing a great job in South America.

What do you think? Let us know in the comments.