Photo: Viva.
Avianca, Viva Air merger approved
Reuters reports that Colombia’s civil aviation authority formally approved a merger between Avianca and Viva Air. What do we know about the Colombian market?
As always, here’s a model.
- Colombia’s traffic has recovered from the pandemic and is back to previous levels. From April 2020 and August 2020, there was no air travel in the country.
- Viva’s collapse was traumatic. The airline claimed it could not afford to stay in business. It has refused to refund tickets or help passengers with lodging or food.
- The regulator’s concern with allowing the merger focused on allowing certain routes to potentially be monopolies. It appears this concern has been overcome. Like most small markets, there is a concentration in traffic flow among a few cities. The top seven cities accounted for 36% of traffic in 2022. This compares to these same markets accounting for only 30% in 2019.
Co-Founder AirInsight. My previous life includes stints at Shell South Africa, CIC Research, and PA Consulting. Got bitten by the aviation bug and ended up an Avgeek. Then the data bug got me, making me a curious Avgeek seeking data-driven logic. Also, I appreciate conversations with smart people from whom I learn so much. Summary: I am very fortunate to work with and converse with great people.
