Avianca Costa Rica Explained

Airline:Avianca Costa Rica S.A.
Fleet Size:4
Destinations:20
Iata:LR
Icao:LRC
Callsign:LACSA
Parent:Avianca Group
Founded: (as LACSA)
Headquarters:San José, Costa Rica
Hubs:Juan Santamaría International Airport
Frequent Flyer:LifeMiles
Alliance:Star Alliance (affiliate)

Avianca Costa Rica S.A., using callsign as LACSA (Spanish: Lineas Aéreas Costarricenses S.A.), minority owned by the Synergy Group, is the national airline of Costa Rica and is based in San José. It operates international scheduled services to over 35 destinations in Central, North and South America.[1] [2] [3] The airline previously used the TACA/LACSA moniker when it was a subsidiary of Grupo TACA. Since May 2013, following Avianca's purchase of Grupo TACA, Avianca Costa Rica became one of seven nationally branded airlines (Avianca Ecuador, Avianca El Salvador, etc.) operated by Avianca Group of Latin American airlines.

History

LACSA was formed on October 17, 1945, with the help of Pan American World Airways, and started operations on June 1, 1946, using Douglas DC-3s for local services within Costa Rica,[4] operating as an affiliate of Pan Am.[5] The airline was designated as Costa Rica's Flag carrier in 1949[4] and was nationalized in 1958.[6]

LACSA operated the Douglas DC-6B four-engined piston airliner from 1960 until 1976 on their regular passenger, and eventually freight, scheduled flights to Miami International Airport. The airline introduced the first of their BAC One-Eleven twin-engined jet airliners onto their Caribbean passenger route network in April 1967.[7]

The airline also operated a subsidiary in the Cayman Islands, Cayman Brac Airways (CBA) Ltd.,[8] which it sold a 51% controlling interest in the late 1960s to the Cayman Islands government, which in turn used the air carrier to form Cayman Airways. LACSA served Grand Cayman for many years as an intermediate stop on its services between San José, Costa Rica and Miami.[9]

Beginning in 1998, TACA/LACSA was one of the member airlines comprising the TACA Airlines alliance along with Aviateca, Nica, Isleña Airlines, and five other regional airlines.[10] [11] In 2008, a new fleet of Embraer 190 jets was introduced.[12] Also in 2008 a new TACA logo was introduced,[13] followed by a new fleet of Embraer 190 airplanes registered in Costa Rica and operated under the LACSA code. In October 2009, Avianca and TACA announced their merger plans to be completed in 2010. By May 28, 2013, the airlines began operating as a single commercial brand using the Avianca name.[14]

Destinations

Avianca Costa Rica serves the following destinations:

CountryCityAirportNotesclass=unsortableRefs
ArgentinaBuenos AiresMinistro Pistarini International Airport[15]
BrazilBrasiliaBrasília International Airport
Rio de JaneiroRio de Janeiro/Galeão International Airport
CanadaTorontoToronto Pearson International Airport
MontrealMontréal–Trudeau International Airport
ChileSantiagoArturo Merino Benítez International Airport
ColombiaBogotáEl Dorado International Airport
CartagenaRafael Núñez International Airport[16]
MedellínJosé María Córdova International Airport
Costa RicaSan JoséJuan Santamaría International Airport
CubaHavanaJosé Martí International Airport[17]
Dominican RepublicSanto DomingoLas Américas International Airport
EcuadorGuayaquilJosé Joaquín de Olmedo International AirportOperation starts October 27, 2024
QuitoMariscal Sucre International Airport
El SalvadorSan SalvadorEl Salvador International Airport
GuatemalaGuatemala CityLa Aurora International Airport
HondurasSan Pedro SulaRamón Villeda Morales International Airport
MexicoCancúnCancún International Airport
Mexico CityMexico City International Airport[18]
NicaraguaManaguaAugusto C. Sandino International AirportTerminated
PanamaPanama CityTocumen International AirportTerminated
PeruLimaJorge Chávez International Airport
Puerto RicoSan JuanLuis Muñoz Marín International Airport
United StatesChicagoO'Hare International Airport[19]
Los AngelesLos Angeles International Airport
MiamiMiami International Airport
New York CityJohn F. Kennedy International Airport
OrlandoOrlando International Airport
Washington, D.C.Dulles International Airport[20]
VenezuelaCaracasSimón Bolívar International Airport[21]

LACSA international destinations in 1973

According to the May 31, 1973 LACSA system timetable, the airline was serving the following international destinations:[22]

This same timetable states that all international flights were being operated with British Aircraft Corporation BAC One-Eleven twin jets at this time with the exception of the San José-San Andres Island route which was being flown with a Convair 440 propliner.

International routes in 1984

The airline was operating to such international destinations in 1984 as:

These cities were flown to using LACSA’s Boeing 727.[23]

Fleet

Current

, Avianca Costa Rica operates the following aircraft:[24] [25]

Avianca Costa Rica fleet
AircraftIn
service		OrdersPassengersNotes
WY+YTotal
Airbus A320-2001 - 1260108180
Airbus A320neo3 -
Total 4 -

Former

LACSA operated the following aircraft:[26]

Avianca Costa Rica former fleet
AircraftTotalIntroducedRetiredNotes
Airbus A319-100320072022
Airbus A321-200220092021
BAC One-Eleven619671982
Beechcraft 18119651976
Boeing 707-320C119851986Leased from Jet 24
Boeing 727-100319871992
Boeing 727-200519791994
Boeing 737-200819922004
CASA C-212 Aviocar119931995
Convair CV-340319551962
Convair CV-440219721977
Curtiss C-46 Commando619481979
Douglas C-47 Skytrain619451961
Douglas DC-3219461959
Douglas DC-6B219601977
Douglas DC-8-21F119811982Leased from General Air Services Inc.
Douglas DC-8-55CF319821991
Douglas DC-8-62F119861987Leased from Jet 24
Embraer 190AR420082012[27]
Lockheed L-188CF Electra319761981

Accidents and incidents

See also

References

Bibliography

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Our History. Grupo TACA. 2010-10-21. https://web.archive.org/web/20110716183107/http://news.taca.com/NewsCenter/eng/inf/ilan/ilanabout.asp?idsc=2. 2011-07-16. dead.
  2. Web site: LACSA Lineas Aéreas Costarricenses – Details and Fleet History. Planespotters.net. 2010-10-21. 2022-04-16. https://web.archive.org/web/20220416212825/http://www.planespotters.net/Airline/LACSA-Lineas-Aereas-Costarricenses. dead.
  3. Web site: LACSA. Airfleets.net. 2010-10-21.
  4. Endres 1979, p.362
  5. Bridgman 1951, p. 22b
  6. Bridgman 1958, p. 20
  7. Eastwood & Roach, 2004, p. 170
  8. Web site: Cayman Brac Airways - CBA Airways . 2024-03-01 . www.timetableimages.com.
  9. Web site: Avianca Costa Rica - LACSA - Lineas Aereas Costarricenses . 2024-03-01 . www.timetableimages.com.
  10. Web site: Avianca Holdings S.A., Welcome to Avianca Holdings S.A.. www.aviancaholdings.com. 2016-08-18. 2017-10-15. https://web.archive.org/web/20171015094943/http://www.aviancaholdings.com/en/history. dead.
  11. News: A Home-Grown Giant Of Central America. The New York Times. 1998-04-15. 2009-10-21. Larry. Rohter.
  12. Web site: EMBRAER 190 JET TO EXPAND TRIP LINHAS AÉREAS FLEET. 19 July 2010. revistaaerea.com.
  13. News: Taca lanza nueva imagen y servicios. La Nación. San José. 2008-09-25. 2009-10-21. es. 2009-03-30. https://web.archive.org/web/20090330220439/http://www.nacion.com/ln_ee/2008/septiembre/25/economia1714639.html. dead.
  14. News: TACA renueva flota para vuelos al Istmo. La Nación. San José. 2008-10-08. 2009-10-21. es. 2008-12-11. https://web.archive.org/web/20081211123848/http://www.nacion.com/ln_ee/2008/octubre/08/economia1729562.html. dead.
  15. Web site: Avianca inaugurates flights between San José, Quito and Buenos Aires. Aviacionline.com. 31 October 2022 . October 31, 2022.
  16. Web site: Avianca adds 3 New flights from Costa Rica to South America. The Tico Times. icotimes.net. January 14, 2022.
  17. Web site: Avianca dejará de volar a Cuba el próximo 15 de enero. 22 November 2019 . es. Asere. November 24, 2019.
  18. Web site: Avianca conectará San José y Ciudad de México sin escalas a partir de diciembre. Spanish. LaRepública.net. September 2021. September 1, 2021.
  19. Web site: Avianca Costa Rica Resumes 2 US Routes From Dec 2023. Aeroroutes.com. September 13, 2023.
  20. Web site: Avianca launches new nonstop flights from D.C. to Costa Rica. Ticotimes.net. 18 July 2022. July 18, 2022.
  21. Web site: Avianca suspenderá sus vuelos sin escalas entre San José y Caracas. Aviacionaldia.com. es. February 17, 2024.
  22. Web site: Avianca Costa Rica - LACSA - Lineas Aereas Costarricenses . 2024-03-01 . www.timetableimages.com.
  23. Avianca Costa Rica - LACSA - Lineas Aereas Costarricenses . October 28, 1984 . Spanish.
  24. Global Airline Guide 2019 (Part One). Airliner World. October 2019. 12.
  25. Web site: Avianca Costa Rica Fleet Details and History. Planespotters.net. October 24, 2021.
  26. Web site: LACSA fleet. aerobernie.bplaced.net. February 20, 2021.
  27. Global Airline Guide 2018 (Part One). Airliner World. October 2018. 12.
  28. News: Airliner speeds off runway at S.F. Airport. The San Francisco Chronicle. 1998-01-11.
  29. News: Airplane gets stuck in mud after veering off San Francisco runway at full speed. CJOnline.com. January 11, 1998. 2009-05-17. https://web.archive.org/web/20110805230450/http://cjonline.com/stories/011198/new_stuck.html. 2011-08-05. dead.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Avianca Costa Rica".

Except where otherwise indicated, Everything.Explained.Today is © Copyright 2009-2024, A B Cryer, All Rights Reserved. Cookie policy.