| Airline: | Aerolíneas Argentinas |
| Iata: | AR |
| Icao: | ARG |
| Callsign: | ARGENTINA |
| Aoc: | AISF117C[1] |
| Frequent Flyer: | Aerolíneas Plus |
| Fleet Size: | 82 |
| Destinations: | 58 |
| Parent: | Government of Argentina |
| Headquarters: | Aeroparque Jorge Newbery, Buenos Aires, Argentina |
| Key People: | Fabian Lombardo (President & CEO) |
| Revenue: | US$ 1.33 billion (FY 2019) |
| Net Income: | US$ –603.15 million (FY 2019) |
| Assets: | US$ 1.6 billion (FY 2019) |
| Equity: | US$ –213.9 million(FY 2019) |
| Num Employees: | 10,230 (FY 2019) |
Aerolíneas Argentinas, formally Aerolíneas Argentinas S.A., is the state-owned flag carrier of Argentina, and the country's largest airline. The airline was created in 1949, from the merger of Aeroposta Argentina (AA), Aviación del Litoral Fluvial Argentino (ALFA), Flota Aérea Mercante Argentina (FAMA), and Zonas Oeste y Norte de Aerolíneas Argentinas (ZONDA), and started operations in December 1950. A consortium led by Iberia took control of the airline in 1990, and Grupo Marsans acquired the company and its subsidiaries in 2001, following a period of severe financial difficulties that put the airline on the brink of closure. The airline was renationalized in late 2008. It has its headquarters in Buenos Aires. The airline joined the SkyTeam alliance in August 2012; the airline's cargo division became a member of SkyTeam Cargo in November 2013.
Aerolíneas Argentinas and its former sister company Austral Líneas Aéreas operate from two hubs, both located in Buenos Aires: Aeroparque Jorge Newbery and Ministro Pistarini International Airport. Its narrow-body fleet, used on domestic and regional routes, consists of the Brazilian-made Embraer 190, as well as the Boeing 737-700, -800 and MAX 8, whereas intercontinental and transoceanic services are flown on the wide-body Airbus A330-200.
The history of the airline began in 1929, when Compagnie Générale Aéropostale (Aéropostale) started airmail operations between Buenos Aires and Asunción using Laté-25 equipment, later expanding its network to cities located in Patagonia. Many French pilots (including aviator and author Antoine de Saint-Exupéry) flew for the company in its beginnings. Argentine personnel replaced the Frenchmen as they gradually withdrew from the airline, and shortly after Aéropostale's Argentine subsidiary Aeroposta Argentina was formed. In 1947, this airline became a mixed-stock company in which the government had a 20% stake and private investors held the balance. As Aeroposta expanded its network southwards and incorporated the Douglas DC-3 into its fleet, another three mixed-stock companies were in operation at the time: ALFA mainly operated flying boats northwards to the Mesopotamia, FAMA operated overseas services with DC-4s as its mainstay equipment, and ZONDA was mainly concerned with operations in the northwest region. These carriers became unprofitable and President Juan Perón had them amalgamated into a single state-owned company on 14 May 1949. The state holding was officially rebranded as Aerolíneas Argentinas-Empresa del Estado. The four companies comprising the state holding ceased independent operations on 31 December 1949.
Aerolíneas Argentinas started operations on its own on 7 December 1950. In February 1950, almost 10 months prior to the start of operations, five new Convairs were already acquired. As early as 1950, the Douglas DC-6 was added to the fleet, and was used to launch a weekly Buenos Aires–Rio de Janeiro–Natal–Dakar–Lisbon–Paris–Frankfurt flight in late 1950. Soon afterwards, Douglas DC-4s joined the fleet and services were inaugurated to Santiago de Chile, Lima, Santa Cruz, and São Paulo. By March 1953, the airline's network was long, flown with DC-3s, DC-4s, DC-6s, Convair-Liner 240s, and Short Sandringhams. The company carried 291,988 passengers in 1954, and 327,808 in 1955. On 8 February 1957, it was reported that Aerolíneas Argentinas had ordered ten F-27 Friendships. The Comet had begun commercial jet services in the 1950s, and the carrier once again set the pace among the South American airlines, when Aerolíneas' president A. Cdre. Juan José Güiraldes persuaded Argentina's President Arturo Frondizi to buy six of them, becoming the first overseas airline in ordering the type. The first of these aircraft departed Hatfield Aerodrome on 2 March 1959; over 18 hours were needed for it to cover a distance of between Hatfield and Buenos Aires. On 7 March, she was christened Las Tres Marías by Frondizi's wife Elena Faggionato at Ezeiza Airport. Comet flights to New York City began in May 1959.
In the early 1960s, the fleet consisted of four Comet 4s, four Convair 240s, 15 DC-3s, six DC-4s, five DC-6s and six Sandringhams, whereas the ten F-27s ordered in 1957 were still pending delivery. The 1960s saw the carrier ordering the Avro 748 turboprop airliner. The aircraft started services on 15 February 1962 between Buenos Aires and Punta del Este. The first flight for the Caravelle in Aerolíneas colors was Buenos Aires–Santiago de Chile on 1 April 1962. At April 1965 the carrier had 5,960 employees, and the fleet consisted of three Comet 4s, one Comet 4C, three Caravelles, 12 DC-3s (three of them freighters), six DC-4s, three DC-6s and 12 HS-748s. In 1966, loans granted by the Ex-Im Bank and Boeing permitted the purchase of a number of Boeing 707-320Bs in a deal worth . In November 1969, the carrier entered a pool agreement with Lufthansa covering services between Germany and Argentina.
By March 1970, Aerolíneas Argentinas had a fleet of six Boeing 707s that served routes to Europe and the United States, three Caravelles 6Rs and four Comet 4s that flew regional services, and 12 HS-748s that flew domestically, whereas six Boeing 737-200s were on order. During the decade, the fleet had the arrival of three different aircraft types from Boeing: the 727—the first example entered the fleet in December 1977 on lease from Hughes AirWest and three more were ordered directly from Boeing—, the 737, and the 747. The incorporation of the Fokker F-28 into the fleet in the mid-1970s, prompted the withdrawal of the last HS-748s, making the company to be the first South American airline in operating an all-jet aircraft park. Frankfurt, Madrid, and Rome became the first destinations to be served with the new 747s, starting January 1977. Another milestone for the company took place in June 1980, with the first south polar scheduled service, linking Buenos Aires with Hong Kong via Auckland.[2] Late that year, a second-hand Boeing 747SP was acquired from Braniff for .
The airline was assigned by law the monopoly of international operations from Argentina in 1971.[3] This meant no other Argentine airline was able to operate international flights, let alone the already created Austral. The carrier therefore became the flag carrier of the country. The same law also assigned Aerolíneas Argentinas a 50% share of the domestic market.
Following the acquisition of Austral by the Argentine government in 1980, both Aerolíneas Argentinas and Austral became government-owned, to the extent that some routes were simultaneously operated, even using similar equipment. However, a state of continuous tension existed over salary differences between both companies that eventually led the Aerolíneas Argentinas' pilots to a three-week-long strike that started on 1 July 1986. During this strike, the government leased pilots from the Argentine Air Force to operate some aircraft. Other companies took advantage of this situation and gained the market share that Aerolíneas Argentinas lost, as domestic routes were operated by Austral, LADE, and LAPA, and the government temporarily authorized foreign carriers to exploit the company's international routes.[4]
Using a Boeing 747-200, the airline operated the first transantarctic commercial flight on 7 June 1980.[5] During and shortly after the Falklands War in 1982, the airline was banned from British airspace. A flight from London-Gatwick to Argentina's capital was once scheduled, but because of the ban, passengers bound to Argentina had to change planes at Madrid-Barajas.[6]
At March 1985, Aerolíneas Argentinas had 9,822 employees. At this time, the fleet comprised one Boeing 707-320B, one Boeing 707-320C, seven Boeing 727-200s, 10 Boeing 737-200s, two Boeing 737-200Cs, five Boeing 747-200Bs, one Boeing 747SP, two Fokker F28-1000s, and a Fokker F28-4000. The international network radiated from Buenos Aires and served Asuncion, Auckland, Bogotá, Cape Town, Caracas, Frankfurt, Guayaquil, Hong Kong, La Paz, Lima, Los Angeles, Madrid, Mexico City, Miami, Montevideo, Montreal, New York, Paris, Rio de Janeiro, Rome, São Paulo, Santiago, Porto Alegre, and Zürich. Sydney was first served in 1989, and flights to London resumed in January 1990.
| Item | 1991 | 2001 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Assets (without routes, brand, etc., US$ mil.) | |||
| Annual Balance (US$ mil.) | 18 | –390 | |
| Debt (US$ mil.) | 0 | 900 | |
| Aircraft (owned/leased) | 28/1 | 1/43 | |
| Flight simulators | 3 | 2 | |
| Number of employees | 10,372 | 6,734 |
| Year | Millions | |
| 1950 | 253 | |
| 1955 | 353 | |
| 1960 | 592 | |
| 1965 | 948 | |
| 1969 | 1,615 | |
| 1971 | 2,069 | |
| 1975 | 3,441 | |
| 1980 | 6,927 | |
| 1989 | 8,254 | |
| 2000 | 11,111 | |
| 2008 | 12,107[7] | |
| 2009 | 11,477 | |
| 2010 | 13,640 | |
| 2011 | 13,649 | |
| 2012 | 14,150 | |
| 2013 | 17,753 (projected) | |
| 2016 | 18,933 | |
| 2017 | 20,390[8] | |
| source |
|
The airline had 5,384 employees at March 2000. At this time, the aircraft park consisted of two Airbus A310-300s, four Airbus A340-200s, four Boeing 737-200s, Boeing 737-200 Advanced, one Boeing 737-200C, and nine Boeing 747-200Bs, whereas six Airbus A340-600s were on order. The list of international destinations served at the time was Asunción, Auckland, Bogotá, Cancún, Caracas, Florianópolis, Lima, Madrid, Mexico City, Miami, Montevideo, New York, Orlando, Paris, Punta del Este, Rio de Janeiro, Rome, Santiago, São Paulo, and Sydney; domestic services to Catamarca, Comodoro Rivadavia, Córdoba, Corrientes, Esquel, Iguazú, Jujuy, La Rioja, Mar del Plata, Mendoza, Neuquén, Posadas, Presidencia Roque Sáenz Peña, Resistencia, Rio Gallegos, Río Grande, Rosario, Salta, San Carlos de Bariloche, Santa Cruz, Santa Fe, Santiago del Estero, Trelew, Tucuman, Ushuaia, and Villa Gesell were also operated.
Allegations of corruption were made on the basis of the price paid by Iberia and the Spanish firm's ulterior conduct (including some convoluted lease-back operations), with the airline paying the price for its own purchase with its assets. Subsequent management by American Airlines and SEPI drove Aerolíneas Argentinas into an almost terminal crisis in 2001. In June 2001, the aftermath began after the airline filed for bankruptcy protection from creditors, and went into administration; the salaries were paid by the Argentine government, instead of using money coming from the SEPI. The payment of salaries for the upcoming months was suspended, as the mechanics union refused to accept the reorganisation plan raised by the SEPI to keep the company afloat. On 6 June, flights to Auckland, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, São Paulo, Sydney and Rio de Janeiro were halted. Owing to a million debt with the fuel supplier, the suspension of the daily flight to Madrid, which also served Rome and was the last connection with Europe, followed a week later. After this, most of the fleet was grounded, and only 30% and 10% of domestic and international flights, respectively, were operating.
Marsans group acquired a 92% stake through its subsidiary Air Comet from the SEPI in late 2001, and committed to inject million capital with the intention of resuming short– as well as long–haul services. The resumption of international flights started in early November 2001. At July 2002, the airline and its subsidiaries employed 7,090. The company exited bankruptcy in January 2003, and emerged from administration a month later. That year, the first profit in five years was announced, along with an important increase in market share.
| 2008 | 1,814,518,196 | 525,490,355 | [13] | |
| 2009 | 1,661,074,557 | 437,124,883 | ||
| 2010 | 1,611,603,589 | 405,332,895 | [14] | |
| 2012 | 2,407,120,549 | 489,451,108 | [15] | |
| 2013 | 2,781,683,300 | 426,573,118 | [16] [17] | |
| 2014 | 5,486,921,815 | 641,670,192 | ||
| 2015 | 9,278,058,094 | 711,507,523 | [18] | |
| 2016 | 7,035,221,506 | 442,745,217 | [19] | |
| 2017 | 6,379,021,189 | 342,057,011 | [20] | |
| 2018 | 21,804,470,692 | 578,367,923 | [21] | |
| 2019 | 41,182,297,596 | 687,632,286 | [22] [23] |
In May 2008, an initial agreement between the Argentine government and Grupo Marsans in which the latter would decrease its participation in the airline to 35% was announced; in reducing their holding, Marsans would make room for new private investors, as well as for the government of Argentina to increase its stake in the airline from 5 to 20%. Amid accusations from Marsans and following the disclosure of an agreement, the Argentine government took the airline back under state control in July 2008, after acquiring 99.4% of the stake for an undisclosed price; the remaining 0.6% continued being owned by the company's employees. At this time, the company had 40% of its fleet grounded. The act renationalizing Aerolíneas Argentinas and its subsidiary Austral Líneas Aéreas was passed by the Chamber of Deputies in August 2008, and became law in September 2008 following the 46–21 vote in the Argentine Senate. There were disagreements regarding the value to be paid by Grupo Marsans to the government. Negotiations fell through, and an administrator was appointed by an Argentine court in that year to oversee the running of the company. A vote by both the lower and the upper houses of the Argentine Congress in support of taking over the company and its subsidiaries took place in, when the Chamber of Deputies voted 152–84 in favor of the expropriation, and the Senate approved the bill by a 42–20 vote.
In September 2011, the airline emerged from the reorganization proceedings it had filed in 2001. In late November 2011, the government announced an austerity plan for the company to reduce the deficit it has been incurring since being taken over from Marsans; the plan included the revision of unprofitable routes, the reduction of pilot/aircraft pay rates, and the abandonment of obsolete equipment, among others.[24]
Passenger traffic for the group reached a record 8.5 million in 2013, a 57% increase from the time of its renationalization in 2008. Revenues rose to a record of US$2 billion in 2013, an 85% increase from 2008 levels; losses likewise declined from $860 million (78% of revenues) to $250 million (12% of revenues). Corporate assets as of 2012 had tripled to over $1.6 billion, as the group's fleet grew from 26 to 63 planes and the average age of same was reduced from 20 years to 7.5. In 2017, projections for 2018 were given at 14.5 million passengers and a loss of $90 million.[25]
Between 2008 and 2021, Aerolíneas Argentinas received over $8 billion USD in subsidy from the Argentine government.
Following the election of Javier Milei as president of Argentina in 2023, he affirmed his intention to privatize the airline again.[26] Under his proposal, shares in the airline would be handed over by the state to its workers along with an end in state support for the airline.[27] Unions have expressed opposition to the proposal with one union head promising violence before apologizing.[28] [29] On 21 December 2023, Milei announced a presidential decree to begin the process of privatization and transfer of shares, likely to employees.[30] He would also implement open skies policies including cabotage to improve competitiveness.[31]
Aerolíneas Argentinas was completely owned by the government of Argentina, ., Aerolíneas Argentinas Cargo, domestic airline Austral Líneas Aéreas, ramp service provider Aerohandling, cargo division JetPaq S.A., and tourism operator Optar S.A. are listed as Aerolíneas Argentinas subsidiaries.[32] The airline and its subsidiaries operate from two hubs, both located in Buenos Aires. Operations of domestic and regional flights by the smaller aircraft types in the fleet are concentrated at Aeroparque Jorge Newbery, which also serves as its operating base, whereas Ministro Pistarini International Airport is mainly used for international services, although some regional and a few domestic services are operated, as well. In 2010, the company began providing free-of-charge transfers to passengers connecting between the two airports.[33] The service was discontinued in 2020.[34]
, the airline and its subsidiaries employ 10,230.
In 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Aerolíneas Argentinas and its Austral subsidiary merged. Austral's fleet was integrated into Aerolíneas' fleet, agreements were reached with both airlines' pilot and cabin crew unions, and the Aerolíneas Argentinas brand was retained.[35]
Pablo Ceriani was president of the airline until 2023.[36] Fabian Lombardo, previously its chief commercial officer, in 2024.[37] [38]
Aerolíneas Argentinas is headquartered at Aeroparque Jorge Newbery, located in Buenos Aires city.
See main article: List of Aerolíneas Argentinas destinations.
With the mentoring of Delta Air Lines, the company signed an agreement to begin the process of joining SkyTeam in late November 2010. It became the first South American and the second Latin American carrier in joining the alliance in August 2012, as well as its overall member. The airline cargo division, Aerolíneas Argentinas Cargo, joined SkyTeam Cargo in November 2013, becoming the member airline of the alliance.[39]
Aerolíneas Argentinas has codeshare agreements with these airlines:[40]
, Aerolíneas Argentinas operates the following aircraft:[42] [43]
| Aircraft | In service | Orders | Passengers[44] | Notes | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C | Y | Total | |||||
| 10[45] | - | 24 | 248 | 272 | Two aircraft to be leased from Aircastle.[46] | ||
| 8 | - | 8 | 120 | 128[47] | |||
| 31 | - | 8 | 162 | 170 | |||
| 7 | 4 | 8 | 162 | 170 | [48] | ||
| 24 | - | 8 | 88 | 96[49] | Transferred from merged Austral Líneas Aéreas. | ||
| - | 12 | TBA | Deliveries begin in 2024. To replace E190.[50] | ||||
| Cargo fleet | |||||||
| 2 | - | Cargo | Deliveries from 2023.[51] [52] | ||||
| Total | 82 | 16 | |||||
Aerolíneas Argentinas previously operated the following aircraft:
Aerolíneas Argentinas began to modernise its fleet in 2009, when it agreed to lease 10 Boeing 737-700s and to purchase two more of these aircraft that would act as a replacement for the ageing Boeing 737-200s and MD-80s. Along with the first leased ones, the two brand new aircraft, which became the first ones acquired by the company in 17 years, were incorporated into the fleet in mid-2009. In October 2009, the carrier had announced it was looking for about six Boeing 737-800 aircraft, both to complement the 12 Boeing 737-700s and to replace the ageing Boeing 737-500s. In November, the Boeing 737-200 made its last flight on a scheduled Buenos Aires–Catamarca–La Rioja–Buenos Aires passenger service. In late November 2010, the airline agreed to lease a further ten aircraft of the –700 series from ILFC, which started being delivered in April 2011., the airline was considering both the Airbus A350-900 and the Boeing 787-9 as replacement aircraft for the long-haul fleet. The incorporation of leased Airbus A330-200s in 2013 for serving routes to Bogotá, Cancún, Caracas and Miami was also planned, whereas an increased maximum takeoff weight version of the same type was also under consideration to partly replace the Airbus A340-200s by 2016.
In April 2013, Air Lease Corporation announced the lease of six Boeing 737-800s to the company, with deliveries starting in November 2014; in May 2013, CIT Group announced the lease of four additional aircraft of the same type, with deliveries starting in January 2014.[55] In the same year, an agreement for the acquisition of 20 more aircraft of the type, worth billion, was announced. In addition to the lease of four used Airbus A330-200s from ILFC —the first of them delivered in September 2013— Aerolíneas Argentinas signed in a memorandum of understanding with Airbus, aimed at acquiring four more aircraft of the type. In a transaction worth million, the order was firmed up in February 2014. These aircraft will be fitted with GE Aviation CF6-80E1 engines. The first Airbus A330-200 directly purchased from Airbus was delivered in March 2015.
With its ageing long-haul fleet in need of replacement, Aerolineas CEO Mario Dell’Acqua stated in November 2017 that the company was evaluating a replacement for the Airbus A340, with a decision to be made in 2018. The company was considering either the Boeing 787 or the Airbus A350 as possible replacements, with the intention of the new fleet entering service in 2020.[56] The Airbus A330 will also be replaced as part of the long-haul fleet replacement, though they are to be retired progressively after the A340s.[25] In November 2017, Aerolíneas Argentinas became the first Latin American airline in taking delivery of a Boeing 737 MAX 8; the aircraft flew its first revenue service on the Buenos Aires-Ezeiza–Mendoza route.
In June 2010, Aerolíneas Argentinas revamped its image to give the airline a more modern appearance. The new logo is a combination of light blue and grey colours.[57] Likewise, the previous eurowhite livery is replaced with a combination of the Argentine flag colours plus grey.[57] Subsidiary airline Austral also adopted this new livery, additionally including a red cheatline.
See main article: Aerolíneas Argentinas accidents and incidents. According to the Aviation Safety Network database, the last fatal accident at the airline was in 1970. As of June 2023, Aviation Safety Network records 47 accidents or incidents for Aerolíneas Argentinas since it started operations in 1950.[58] The company ranks among the safest airlines in the world.[59]