Avianca, United and Copa Airlines
realize a Commercial and Strategic Partnership
to offer better service to travelers between Latin America and the United States
The joint business agreement expected to benefit customers and Latin American communities by improving
the travel experience and offering more connection opportunities with the United States.
This agreement seeks approval from regulatory authorities in 20 countries for its subsequent implementation.
BOGOTA, Nov. 30
Avianca Holdings airlines (Avianca) announced that it has reached an agreement with United
Airlines (United) and Copa Airlines (Copa) to realize a strategic and commercial partnership that will bring new service and innovation for passengers travelling between the United States and 19 countries in Latin America. The company expects this
agreement will help bring benefits to travelers, communities and the marketplace. The companies, all members of Star Alliance, have reached the agreement following a global trend toward similar cooperative arrangements in the airline industry.
By integrating their complementary networks in this strategic and commercial partnership, Avianca, United and Copa expects to offer a broad portfolio of
benefits to their customers. In addition to the United States, the agreement is expected to cover the following Latin American countries: Argentina, Belize, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guyana, French Guyana,
Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Surinam, Uruguay and Venezuela.
More options for travelers:
By integrating their route networks between United States and the Latin American countries under the joint business agreement (JBA), Avianca,
together with United and Copa, plan to offer important benefits for travelers, including:
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Joint service between the companies so that customers may travel with more than 12,000 connection options,
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Additional flights on existing routes and,
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Better service for passengers:
Allowing the carriers to
serve customers as if they were a single airline is expected to enable the companies to better align their frequent flyer programs, coordinate flight schedules and improve airport facilities.
We are certain that together we are stronger in the United States Latin America market than any of the three airlines individually, said
Hernan Rincon, Executive President CEO of Avianca. This Partnership will allow Avianca airlines to strengthen its position as a first-level player in the airline industry in America, as we will expand our scope of service in the
continent with United and Copa, offering better connectivity to our customers.
This agreement represents the next chapter in U.S.-Latin
American air travel, said Scott Kirby, Uniteds president. We are excited to work with our Star Alliance partners Avianca and Copa to bring much-needed competition and growth to many underserved markets while providing a better
overall experience for business and leisure customers traveling across the Western Hemisphere.