Low-cost airline Norwegian Air Shuttle ASA will begin operating flights in Argentina beginning in late 2017, a spokesman said Dec. 16th , as more air travel operators seek a foothold in Latin America’s No. 3 economy.
The company plans to open two or three operating bases and begin passenger flights by November. It already has begun the relevant regulatory processes. Spokesman Alfons Claver did not say which routes the airline plans to run but expects to have bases in Buenos Aires, Cordoba and possibly Mendoza. “South America is a very interesting market characterized by little competition and high prices,” Claver said in a statement. He said
the company was in the process of sending representatives to Argentina to set up bases and routes. International flights were also a possibility.
Argentina’s domestic airline industry is currently dominated by state-owned Aerolineas Argentinas SA [AERA.UL] and Chilean Latam Airlines Group SA. Long-haul bus routes connecting the country’s major cities and tourist destinations remain a popular form of travel.
Norwegian Air Shuttle ASA , trading as Norwegian, is the third largest lowcost carrier in Europe, the second-largest airline in Scandinavia, and the ninth-largest airline in Europe in terms of passenger numbers. It offers a high-frequency domestic flight schedule schedule within Scandinavia and Finland, and to business destinations such as London, as well as to holiday destinations in the Mediterranean and the Canary Islands, transporting to over 30 million people in 2015.
As of July 2016, Norwegian operated 110 aircraft, of which 100 are Boeing 737s and 10 are Boeing 787 Dreamliners. The airline is known for its distinctive livery of white with a red nose, with individual portraits of noteworthy Scandinavians on the aircraft’s tain fin.
Mendoza, the country’s fourth largest city and home to vineyards that are a popular tourist attraction, recently completed an expansion of its airport to allow for more international flights and boost its capacity to 50 daily flights.
Souces: Reuters, wikipedia