JetSmart Argentina

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JetSmart Argentina
Logo JetSmart.svg
IATA ICAO Callsign
WJ [1] JES [1] SMARTBIRD [1]
Founded2016 (as Alas del Sur)
Commenced operations10 April 2019
Operating bases
Fleet size8
Destinations12
Parent company JetSmart
Headquarters Buenos Aires, Argentina
Website www.jetsmart.com

JetSmart Airlines S.A., styled as JetSMART, is an Argentine airline owned by ultra low-cost carrier JetSmart, itself owned by Indigo Partners, a firm that also has stakes in US-based Frontier Airlines, Mexico-based Volaris, and Hungary-based Wizz Air. The airline uses the branding and corporate identity of JetSmart, its parent company, and operates a fleet of Airbus A320-200 aircraft with a base at Aeroparque Jorge Newbery in Buenos Aires. Its aircraft are registered in Argentina.

Contents

History

The airline was originally established in 2016 as Alas del Sur Líneas Aéreas (English: Southern Wing Airlines), with plans to establish a hub in Córdoba. The plans consisted of an April 2017 launch date with short-haul flights from Córdoba to South American destinations added throughout 2017, and long-haul flights from Argentina to North America, Europe, and Asia by 2022. [2] The airline planned to operate a fleet of Airbus A320 and Boeing 777 aircraft. [3] However, as the airline did not receive an air operator's certificate, the start of service was postponed. In June 2018, Indigo Partners acquired the startup airline through its Chilean subsidiary JetSmart, allowing for JetSmart's entry into Argentina's domestic aviation market, and the airline was subsequently rebranded as JetSmart Argentina. [4]

JetSmart Argentina received its air operator's certificate and its first aircraft, an Airbus A320-200 registered as LV-HEK, in December 2018. [5] [6] In February 2019, the airline announced and opened reservations for its first services beginning on 10 April 2019, which were to be operated from a new base at El Palomar Airport near Buenos Aires, after its parent company had previously operated flights to the airport from Santiago de Chile. [7] The airline announced further expansion plans in August 2019, with Rosario as a new destination to launch in November 2019, [8] and that it would increase its Airbus A320 fleet to six aircraft. [9]

Following JetSmart's acquisition of Norwegian Air Argentina in December 2019, [10] the airline planned to launch services from Norwegian's Aeroparque Jorge Newbery base in March 2020. [11] As Argentina's Civil Aviation Administration had not immediately transferred Norwegian's Aeroparque-based route authorities to JetSmart Argentina, Norwegian's fleet of Boeing 737s was wet-leased and operated under a separate, rebranded entity named JetSmart Regional. [12] [13] The services at Aeroparque were ultimately suspended as an impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on aviation, with JetSmart Argentina's existing services additionally relocated from El Palomar Airport to Ezeiza International Airport by late 2020. In early 2021, it was reported that the airline would not return to El Palomar and instead relocate its services to Aeroparque, with operations at the airport and new base launching in March 2021. [14] [15]

Destinations

As of May 2024, JetSmart Argentina operates or has operated to the following destinations:

CountryCityAirportNotesRefs
Argentina Bariloche Teniente Luis Candelaria Airport [15]
Buenos Aires Aeroparque Jorge Newbery Base [15]
El Palomar Airport Terminated [14]
Ministro Pistarini International Airport Base
Córdoba Ingeniero Aeronáutico Ambrosio L.V. Taravella International Airport [15]
Corrientes Doctor Fernando Piragine Niveyro International Airport [16]
El Calafate Comandante Armando Tola International Airport [15]
Mendoza Governor Francisco Gabrielli International Airport [15]
Neuquén Presidente Perón International Airport [15]
Puerto Iguazú Cataratas del Iguazú International Airport [15]
Rosario Rosario – Islas Malvinas International Airport Terminated
Salta Martín Miguel de Güemes International Airport [15]
San Martín de los Andes Aviador Carlos Campos Airport [16]
San Miguel de Tucumán Teniente General Benjamín Matienzo International Airport [15]
San Salvador de Jujuy Gobernador Horacio Guzmán International Airport [16]
Ushuaia Ushuaia – Malvinas Argentinas International Airport [15]
Brazil Curitiba Afonso Pena International Airport Begins 11 July 2024 [17]
Florianópolis Hercílio Luz International Airport [18]
Porto Alegre Salgado Filho International Airport Begins 12 July 2024 [19]
Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro/Galeão International Airport [20]
Chile Antofagasta Andrés Sabella Gálvez International Airport Terminated
Concepción Carriel Sur International Airport Terminated [21]
Santiago Arturo Merino Benítez International Airport [15]
Paraguay Asunción Silvio Pettirossi International Airport [22]
Uruguay Montevideo Carrasco International Airport Begins 29 May 2024 [23]

Fleet

The JetSmart Argentina fleet consists of the following aircraft as of October 2022: [24]

JetSmart Argentina Fleet
AircraftIn serviceOrdersPassengers
Airbus A320-200 8186
Total8

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References

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  2. "Destinations". Alas del Sur (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 8 March 2017. Retrieved 8 March 2017.
  3. "Fleet". Alas del Sur (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 8 March 2017. Retrieved 8 March 2017.
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  6. "JetSMART Argentina secures AOC, preps for 2Q19 launch". ch-aviation. 24 December 2018. Retrieved 2 November 2019.
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  16. 1 2 3 "Destinos". jetsmart.com (in Spanish).
  17. "JetSMART será la primera aerolínea low cost en volar hacia Curitiba". Aviacionline (in Spanish). 5 April 2024. Retrieved 6 April 2024.
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