Viru Viru International Airport

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Viru Viru International Airport

Aeropuerto Internacional Viru Viru
VVI 2011.jpg
Summary
Airport typePublic
OperatorNAABOL
Location Santa Cruz de la Sierra
Opened1983;41 years ago (1983)
Hub for
Focus city for Boliviana de Aviación
Elevation  AMSL 1,225 ft / 373 m
Coordinates 17°38′41″S63°08′07″W / 17.64472°S 63.13528°W / -17.64472; -63.13528
Website www.naabol.gob.bo
Map
Bolivia adm location map.svg
Airplane silhouette.svg
VVI
Location of airport in Bolivia
Runways
Direction LengthSurface
ftm
16/3411,4833,500Concrete
Statistics (2015)
Passengers2,384,746
Source: SABSA, [1] Airport Statistics [2]

Viru Viru International Airport( IATA : VVI, ICAO : SLVR) in Santa Cruz de la Sierra is Bolivia's largest international airport. Viru Viru handles domestic, regional, and international flights from Bolivia, North America, South America and Europe and serves as a focus city for Bolivia's biggest airline Boliviana de Aviación. The airport is able to handle large aircraft such as the Boeing 747-400, Airbus A340-600 and Boeing 777-300ER.

Contents

History

The idea of having an airport in the city of Santa Cruz de la Sierra was conceived in 1965 by General René Barrientos, [3] [4] former president of Bolivia, with the intention of creating an intercontinental airport. Shortly thereafter, construction of the airport began until it was completed and inaugurated in 1983, to replace the obsolete El Trompillo Airport.[ citation needed ] Upon its inauguration, Viru Viru became a main gateway for international flights. Lloyd Aéreo Boliviano used Viru Viru as a hub before ceasing operations in 2008.[ citation needed ] On 1 March 1997, the government of Bolivia entered into a 25-year contract with Airport Group International to operate the three largest airports in Bolivia — El Alto International Airport in La Paz, Jorge Wilstermann International Airport in Cochabamba and Viru Viru International Airport.[ citation needed ] Servicios de Aeropuertos Bolivianos Sociedad Anonima (SABSA) was created to operate the concession. In 1999, Airport Group International was purchased by TBI plc. In 2004, Spain's Abertis/AENA purchased TBI. SABSA has been substituted in March of 2022 by the newly established government agency Navegación Aérea y Aeropuertos Bolivianos (NAABOL). This state-owned agency now manages the airports in Bolivia. [5]

Name

The name "Viru Viru" originates from the indigenous Guarani language spoken in the area. Most likely, "Viru Viru" refers to a toponym or a distinctive geographical feature after which the airport was named.There is some ambiguity about the meaning of it based on sources in the internet. Different meanings have been proposed:

Today, some researchers claim that the correct spelling of the term would be "Birubiru". [8]

Airlines and destinations

Passenger

AirlinesDestinations
Aerolíneas Argentinas Buenos Aires–Aeroparque
Air Europa Madrid
Avianca Bogotá
Boliviana de Aviación Asunción, Buenos Aires–Ezeiza, Caracas, [9] Cochabamba, Havana, [10] La Paz, Lima, Madrid, Miami, Oruro, São Paulo–Guarulhos, Sucre, Tarija, Trinidad
Conviasa Caracas
Copa Airlines Panama City–Tocumen
EcoJet Cobija, Guayaramerín, Riberalta, Sucre, Tarija, Trinidad
Gol Transportes Aéreos São Paulo–Guarulhos
LATAM Chile Santiago de Chile
LATAM Perú Lima
Paranair Asunción

Cargo

AirlinesDestinations
TAB - Transportes Aéreos Bolivianos Cochabamba, La Paz, Miami
AerCaribe Lima

Statistics

Top destinations

Busiest international routes from VVI
(2015–2016)
[11]
RankCityPassengersTop carriers % Change
1 Flag of the United States.svg Miami, United States 386,496American Airlines, Boliviana de AviaciónDecrease2.svg 4%
2 Flag of Brazil.svg São Paulo (Guarulhos), Brazil 372,773Boliviana de Aviación, Gol AirlinesIncrease2.svg 10%
3 Flag of Argentina.svg Buenos Aires (Ezeiza), Argentina 358,943Aerolíneas Argentinas, Boliviana de AviaciónIncrease2.svg 43%
4 Flag of Spain.svg Madrid, Spain 348,603Air Europa, Boliviana de AviaciónIncrease2.svg 5%
5 Flag of Panama.svg Panama City, Panama 278,277Copa AirlinesIncrease2.svg 15%
6 Flag of Peru.svg Lima, Peru 268,584Avianca Ecuador, LATAM PerúIncrease2.svg 26%
7 Flag of Chile.svg Iquique, Chile 94,733Amaszonas, LATAM ChileDecrease2.svg 7%
8 Flag of Paraguay.svg Asunción, Paraguay 79,962Amaszonas, LATAM ParaguayDecrease2.svg 13%

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References

  1. "Aeropuerto Intl. El Alto - Bienvenidos a la Paz". Archived from the original on 31 May 2011. Retrieved 17 December 2015.
  2. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 November 2014. Retrieved 25 October 2015.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  3. Arce San Martín, Santiago R. (16 April 2008), "Liderazgo en Bolivia", Opinión Bolivia, retrieved 9 December 2022
  4. "Bolivia sin una verdadera puerta de conexión al mundo". Datos-Bo. 13 June 2018. Retrieved 9 December 2022.
  5. "Gobierno anuncia que SABSA pasará a NAABOL y ofrece a trabajadores formar parte de la institución".
  6. ultracasas.com - 5 datos que NO CONOCÍAS acerca del Aeropuerto de VIRU VIRU
  7. https://www.flickriver.com/photos/dan59/4540707944/ flickriver.com - Aeropuerto Internacional Viru Viru
  8. ultracasas.com - 5 datos que NO CONOCÍAS acerca del Aeropuerto de VIRU VIRU
  9. "Boliviana De Aviación Announces New Routes To Asunción, Caracas, and Havana".
  10. "Boliviana De Aviación Announces New Routes To Asunción, Caracas, and Havana".
  11. "Tráfico de pasajeros – Origen/Destino Servicio Regular Internacional" (PDF). Dirección General de Aeronáutica Civil (Bolivia) (in Spanish). January 2017. Retrieved 9 May 2017.