Avianca: airline's rebuilding will take time to bear fruit
Latin American airline group Avianca Holdings has had a tumultuous 2019 that includes shareholder upheaval, urgent debt renegotiations and significant changes to its senior management.
The company has cut more than 20 unprofitable routes and part of Avianca's strategy in 2020 is full leverage of the company's hub in Bogotá, with a planned 20% increase in international city pairs. The airline has already announced plans to launch service from Bogotá to Asunción and Montevideo, and recently forged new codeshare agreements with GOL and Azul.
Avianca is working to shrink its fleet and aims to phase out its Embraer 190s by the end of year 2019. The company is also working to shed its remaining A318s and two additional A320s by the end of 2019.
Although Avianca's new senior management has laid out a back to basics plan that includes cutting unprofitable routes, a refocus on its Bogotá hub and the shedding of smaller gauge aircraft, its debt levels remain significant, and balance sheet repair will be an ongoing concern for the future.
Become a CAPA Member to access Analysis Reports
Our Analysis Reports are only available to CAPA Members. CAPA Membership provides exclusive access to in-depth insights on the latest developments in the aviation and travel industry, developed by our team of dedicated analysts located in Europe, North America, Asia and Australia.
Each report offers a fresh perspective on the latest industry trends and is available online or via the CAPA mobile app, with customisable alerts to help you stay informed and identify new business opportunities.
CAPA Membership also provides access to our full suite of tools, including a tailored selection of more than 1,000 News Briefs every week and comprehensive data and analysis on thousands of companies around the world.