Air Europa have announced their latest connection to the Americas. Their service to Ramón Villeda Morales International Airport in San Pedro Sula, Honduras will be detrimental for the Latin American country, as according to 2014 statistics, the airport serves less than one million passengers a year.
The route will operate once a week on Airbus 330-200 aircraft which has the ability to carry 275 passengers in economy and 24 in business class. This announcement follows the airline’s plans to begin service to Guayaquil, Ecuador and Cordoba, Argentina via Asuncion, Paraguay.
The Guayaquil expansion followed three meetings that took place at Routes events over the past two years between José Joaquín de Olmedo International Airport and Air Europa executives. The meetings were supported by air service development consultancy ASM (Airport Strategy and Marketing). The consultancy has been working alongside the Ecuadorian airport on its network development strategy in recent years.
Speaking earlier this year when the route was announced, Mike St-Laurent, vice president, consulting, ASM stated: “It is fantastic news that Madrid and Guayaquil are now connected with a new 5x weekly service by Air Europa. Working together with Guayaquil Airport, we presented a strong business case to Air Europa for this new route between the two cities. The new service will open up Guayaquil to a new wave of European tourists and promote business interests within the region.”
Last month, the Spanish carrier announced the arrival of their third Boeing 787 Dreamliner of the 22 they placed an order for. Long-haul services are firmly on the forefront of Air Europa’s minds judging by their plans for the aircraft. This year, Miami and Bogota routes have been announced, and the Dreamliner has been earmarked to serve both Madrid to New York and a Buenos Aires link.
The order of 22 aircraft consists of eight 787-8 and 14 787-9. The order for 14 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft is the largest every Boeing widebody order from a Spanish carrier. Air Europa boast one of the youngest fleet on the continent.
The city of San Pedro Sula is the second largest city in Honduras after the capital, Tegucigalpa. Two-thirds of the country’s gross domestic product comes from the city, largely due to the clothes-weaving factories, better known as maquila.
Earlier this year, AeroMexico announced additional frequencies to San Pedro Sula, offering a second daily flight from Mexico City.
Related Content
