RUTACA Airlines explained

Airline:	RUTACA Airlines
Fleet Size:	9
Destinations:	15
Iata:	5R
Icao:	RUC
Callsign:	RUTACA
Headquarters:	Ciudad Bolívar, Venezuela
Founder:	Evard Mares Bianchi
Num Employees:	+500 (2023)

RUTACA Airlines (legally Rutas Aéreas C.A.) is an airline headquartered in Ciudad Bolívar, Venezuela with its home base at Tomás de Heres Airport and a hub at Simón Bolívar International Airport in Caracas.^[1]

History

RUTACA Airlines was founded by Evard Mares Bianchi on March 26, 1974, and began operating non-scheduled cargo and passenger flights with small aircraft. It currently operates scheduled and charter services throughout the country.

The airline's operations suffered gravely during the 2017 Venezuelan constitutional crisis, including suspending flights between key routes.

Destinations

, RUTACA Airlines serves the following destinations:^[2]

Country	City	Airport	Notes	Refs
Aruba	Oranjestad	Queen Beatrix International Airport
Curaçao	Willemstad	Curaçao International Airport		^[3]
Dominican Republic	La Romana	La Romana International Airport
	Punta Cana	Punta Cana International Airport
	Santo Domingo	Las Americas International Airport		^[4]
Guyana	Kaieteur	Kaieteur International Airport
Mexico	Cancún	Cancún International Airport
Panama	Panama City	Tocumen International Airport		^[5]
Trinidad and Tobago	Port of Spain	Piarco International Airport		^[6]
United States	Miami	Miami International Airport		^[7]
Venezuela	Barcelona	General José Antonio Anzoátegui International Airport		^[8]
	Barquisimeto	Jacinto Lara International Airport
	Caracas	Simón Bolívar International Airport
	Carúpano	General José Francisco Bermúdez Airport
	Ciudad Bolívar	Tomás de Heres Airport		^[9]
	Cumaná	Antonio José de Sucre Airport
	El Vigia	Juan Pablo Pérez Alfonzo Airport
	Maracaibo	La Chinita International Airport		^[10]
	Maturín	José Tadeo Monagas International Airport		^[11]
	Porlamar	Santiago Mariño Caribbean International Airport
	Puerto Ordaz	Manuel Carlos Piar Guayana Airport
	San Antonio del Táchira	Juan Vicente Gómez International Airport
	Santo Domingo	Mayor Buenaventura Vivas Airport		^[12]

Fleet

Current fleet

The RUTACA Airlines fleet includes the following aircraft (as of June 2024):^[13]

RUTACA Airlines fleet

Aircraft	In service	Orders	Passengers	Notes
Boeing 737-300	3	-	148
McDonnell Douglas MD-82	2	-	164
McDonnell Douglas MD-83	2	-	166
McDonnell Douglas MD-88	2	-	166
Total	9	-

Former fleet

RUTACA Airlines formerly operated the following aircraft:

• 6 Antonov An-2TP
• 1 Beechcraft C-45 Expeditor
• 10 Boeing 737-200^[14]
• 1 Britten-Norman BN-2 Islander
• 17 Cessna 206
• 1 Cessna 207
• 4 Cessna 208B Grand Caravan
• 1 Convair CV-340
• 1 Convair CV-440
• 8 Douglas C-47A Skytrain
• 1 Douglas DC-3C
• 6 Embraer EMB 110 Bandeirante

Accidents and incidents

• On June 5, 1987, a Britten-Norman BN-2 Islander (registration YV-230C) was disarmed in flight over the area of Upata, Bolívar state. All 10 occupants on board died.
• On January 25, 2001, RUTACA Airlines Flight 225, a Douglas DC-3 (registered YV-244C) crashed shortly after taking off from Ciudad Bolívar, killing all 20 passengers and four crew members.^[15]
• On October 16, 2008, a Boeing 737-200 (registered YV162T) landed on runway 28R at Simón Bolívar International Airport following a domestic flight from Puerto Ordaz. After touchdown, the airplane swerved to the left. The nose came to rest on the runway embankment.^[16]
• On February 15, 2009, a Cessna 208B Grand Caravan (registered YV1950) overran the runway at Guasdualito Airport following a domestic flight from Las Flecheras Airport. The airplane sustained damage to the propeller and underside of the fuselage.^[17]
• On July 27, 2010, a Boeing 737-200 (registered YV169T) made an emergency landing at Ciudad Guayana international airport following a domestic flight from Ciudad Bolivar after problems in engine number one.

See also

• List of airlines of Venezuela

External links

• Official website

Notes and References

1. Web site: Rutaca Airlines information. 30 March 2018.
2. Web site: Rutaca - Destinos.
3. Web site: Puerto la Cruz y San Cristóbal: Nuevos destinos de Rutaca en Barquisimeto. Noticiasbarquisimeto.com. es. October 20, 2023.
4. Web site: Rutaca Airlines inaugurates a new route between Maracaibo and Santo Domingo. Aviacionaldia.com. 11 July 2022. July 11, 2022.
5. Web site: Rutaca Airlines: nueva aerolínea que opera en Panamá. Ecotvpanama.com. es. August 20, 2023.
6. Web site: Over 100 Trinidad and Tobago tourists head to Margarita. Grevic Alvarado. Newsday.co.tt.
7. Web site: Rutaca Airlines inicia sus vuelos entre Barcelona y Miami a partir del 22 de diciembre.. Aviacionaldia.com. es. December 15, 2017.
8. Web site: Venezuela: Rutaca resumes flights to Barcelona. Aviacionline.com. 25 August 2022 . August 25, 2022.
9. Web site: Rutaca incorpora a Ciudad Bolívar entre sus destinos nacionales. Versionfinal.com.ve. 8 April 2022 . April 8, 2022.
10. Web site: Rutaca Airlines abrirá vuelo entre Maracaibo, Venezuela y Punta Cana. Arecoa.com. es. October 28, 2021.
11. Web site: Flights to Venezuela: Rutaca Airlines schedules flights between Caracas and Maturín. Aviacionline.com. 23 April 2023 . April 23, 2023.
12. Web site: Rutaca Airlines inicia vuelos entre Caracas y Santo Domingo del Táchira. Torreeldorado.co. Daniel Martínez Curiel. es. November 16, 2021.
13. Web site: Rutaca Airlines Fleet Details and History. Planespotters.net. July 31, 2019.
14. Web site: RUTACA retired its last Boeing 737-200adv and eight remain in service in Latin America. Aviacionline.com. January 15, 2024.
15. http://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=20010125-0 Aviation Safety Net
16. Web site: ASN Aircraft accident Boeing 737-2H4 YV162T Caracas-Simón Bolívar International Airport (CCS). Harro. Ranter. aviation-safety.net. 30 March 2018.
17. Web site: ASN Aircraft accident Cessna 208B Grand Caravan YV1950 Guasdualito-Vare Maria Airport (GDO). Harro. Ranter. aviation-safety.net. 30 March 2018.