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Avianca Ecuador

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Avianca Ecuador S.A.
IATA ICAO Call sign
2K GLG GALAPAGOS
FoundedNovember 1985; 39 years ago (1985-11) (as AeroGal)
HubsQuito
Secondary hubsGuayaquil
Frequent-flyer programLifeMiles
AllianceStar Alliance (affiliate)
Fleet size8
Destinations16
Parent companyAvianca Group
HeadquartersQuito, Ecuador
Key peopleFrederico Pedreira (CEO)
FounderCarlos Serrano Lusetti
Websitewww.avianca.com

Avianca Ecuador S.A.[1] (formerly known as AeroGal) is an airline based in Quito, Ecuador.[2] It operates passenger and cargo flights within Ecuador, between the mainland and the Galápagos Islands, and between Ecuador and Colombia (on behalf of Avianca). It is one of the seven nationally branded airlines (Avianca Costa Rica, Avianca El Salvador, etc.) in the Avianca Group of Latin American airlines.

History

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AeroGal was founded in November 1985 by the Ecuadorian businessman Carlos Serrano Lusetti, with the objective of offering air transportation of passengers and cargo in Continental Ecuador and the Galapagos Archipelago. It began operating in 1986 with 2 Dornier Do 28s with a capacity for 12 passengers each.

In October 2009, AeroGal was 80% taken over by Synergy Group and announced its merger with Avianca, and TACA Airlines.[3] With the merger, the company expanded its connections to Europe. It also merged with Vuelos Internos Privados, being the first Ecuadorian company of this firm, the codes shared with this airline were still preserved in Aerogal's image, but since it merged with AviancaTaca Holding, it was part of the same company.

Avianca invested US$7.2 million to strengthen and modernize the company. Despite the purchase by Avianca, AeroGal continued using its separate identity until June 18, 2014, when the airline was renamed to Avianca Ecuador and continues to operate in Ecuador. On June 18, 2014, AeroGal was renamed under the brand Avianca Ecuador, but the official name was not changed accordingly until early 2018, when the company was officially renamed to Avianca Ecuador S.A.[4]

Destinations

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Avianca Ecuador serves the following destinations:

Country City Airport Notes Refs
Aruba Oranjestad Queen Beatrix International Airport
Bolivia Santa Cruz de la Sierra Viru Viru International Airport Terminated
La Paz El Alto International Airport
Colombia Bogotá El Dorado International Airport
Cali Alfonso Bonilla Aragón International Airport
Cartagena Rafael Núñez International Airport Terminated [5]
Medellín José María Córdova International Airport
Curaçao Willemstad Curaçao International Airport Terminated
Dominican Republic Punta Cana Punta Cana International Airport [6]
Ecuador Baltra Island Seymour Airport
Cuenca Mariscal Lamar International Airport [7]
El Coca Francisco de Orellana Airport Terminated [8]
Guayaquil José Joaquín de Olmedo International Airport Hub
Manta Eloy Alfaro International Airport
Nueva Loja Lago Agrio Airport [9]
Quito Mariscal Sucre International Airport Hub
San Cristóbal Island San Cristóbal Airport
Mexico Cancún Cancún International Airport Terminated [10]
Panama Panama City Tocumen International Airport
Peru Lima Jorge Chávez International Airport
United States Miami Miami International Airport Terminated
New York City John F. Kennedy International Airport [11]
Orlando Orlando International Airport Terminated [6][12]

Fleet

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Current fleet

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AeroGal's only Boeing 767-300ER parked at José María Córdova International Airport in 2009
Avianca Ecuador Airbus A320neo approaching Mariscal Sucre International Airport, wearing a heritage livery of AeroGal

As of May 2023, Avianca Ecuador operates the following aircraft:[13][14]

Avianca Ecuador fleet
Aircraft In
service 		Orders Passengers Notes
W Y+ Y Total
Airbus A319-100 1 — 12 48 84 144 To be retired by 2024.[15]
Airbus A320-200 6 — 12 60 108 180
Airbus A320neo 1 —
Total 8 —

Former fleet

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As AeroGal, the airline previously operated the following aircraft:[16][17]

Avianca Ecuador former fleet
Aircraft Total Introduced Retired Notes
Boeing 727-200 2 2002 2007
Boeing 737-200 9 2003 2011
Boeing 737-300 2 2008 2012
Boeing 757-200 2 2008 2012
Boeing 767-300ER 1 2009 2012 Leased from Avianca
Dornier Do 28 2 1986 Un­known
Douglas C-54 Skymaster 1 1988 1990
Fairchild F-27 2 1993 1996
Fairchild Hiller FH-227D 2 1995 2002

Accidents and incidents

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  • On October 28, 1997, a Fairchild Hiller FH-227D (registered HC-BUF) was carrying company staff and equipment to the provisional operations base at Ambato. The approach was flown at 100 knots. The touchdown was very late, with just 900 meters of the runway remaining. A fine ground pitch was selected, but the aircraft overran the runway and fell into a deep ravine.[18] All seven occupants survived with various injuries.
  • On May 2, 2009, a Boeing 757-200 (registered HC-CHC) was taking off from José Joaquín de Olmedo International Airport, when its right engine suffered repeated compressor stalls and lost power. The crew reduced the thrust on that engine to idle, leveled off, and returned to Guayaquil for a safe landing about 13 minutes later.[19]
  • On September 19, 2010, AeroGal's Boeing 767-300ER (registered HC-CIJ) was involved in a near-miss at John F. Kennedy International Airport. Initial reports by the NTSB indicated that the flight was cleared to land on runway 13L, but instead attempted to land on runway 13R. The runway was used by a JetBlue aircraft cleared for takeoff. The error was spotted by a Delta crew in line for takeoff, who relayed the information to the tower. The air traffic controller issued an order for the flight to turn immediately and was able to prevent the collision.[20]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Desde hoy Aerogal cambia su nombre a Avianca en Ecuador". ecuavisa.com. 18 June 2014.
  2. ^ "Contáctenos." AeroGal. Retrieved on November 21, 2010. "Quito Dirección Matriz : Amazonas 7797 y Juan Holguín."
  3. ^ "La fusión Avianca-TACA-Aerogal puede generar planes similares en América Latina". Archived from the original on 2012-02-25. Retrieved 2013-06-02.
  4. ^ "AeroGal to rebrand as Avianca Ecuador". ch-aviation.com. January 3, 2018. Retrieved January 7, 2018.
  5. ^ "Avianca suspenderá sus vuelos directos desde Guayaquil hacia Medellín y Cartagena". Eluniverso.com (in Spanish). June 29, 2023.
  6. ^ a b Nicolás Larenas (August 13, 2024). "Avianca Ecuador deja de volar a Orlando, pero abre Punta Cana". Nlarenas.com (in Spanish).
  7. ^ "Avianca reanuda a partir del 4 de octubre la ruta Quito-Cuenca". Ecuavisa.com (in Spanish). August 12, 2021. Retrieved August 13, 2021.
  8. ^ "Avianca suspende rutas desde Quito a El Coca y a Galápagos". Juiciocrudo.com (in Spanish). Retrieved October 30, 2020.
  9. ^ "Avianca aumenta vuelos Quito-Guayaquil y confirma horarios a Lago Agrio". Nicolás Larenas (in Spanish). February 21, 2020. Retrieved February 21, 2020.
  10. ^ "Avianca suspende la ruta Quito-Cancún que abrió en junio pasado". Eluniverso.com (in Spanish). 27 October 2023. Retrieved October 27, 2023.
  11. ^ "Avianca Ecuador inaugurates flights to New York". Aviacionline.com. 6 December 2021. Retrieved December 6, 2021.
  12. ^ "Avianca to suspend non-stop flights between Quito and Orlando". Aviacionaldia.com. August 28, 2024.
  13. ^ "Global Airline Guide 2019 (Part One)". Airliner World (October 2019): 13.
  14. ^ "Avianca Ecuador Fleet Details and History". Planespotters.net. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
  15. ^ Sena, Gastón (2023-09-24). "Avianca to Retire its A319 Fleet in 2024; One Operator Left in South America". Aviacionline.com (in Spanish). Retrieved 2023-11-12.
  16. ^ "AeroGal fleet". Aerobernie.bplaced.net. Retrieved November 30, 2022.
  17. ^ "AeroGal Fleet Details and History". Planespotters.net. Retrieved November 9, 2022.
  18. ^ "Accident description". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved September 5, 2008.
  19. ^ "Incident: AeroGal B752 at Guayaquil on May 1st 2009, engine failure on takeoff". avherald.com. Retrieved May 2, 2009.
  20. ^ "Incident: Aerogal B763 at New York on Sep 19th 2010, approached wrong runway". avherald.com. Retrieved September 21, 2010.
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