Spanish national carrier Iberia is to relaunch flights to Puerto Rico with the return of direct flights between its Adolfo Suárez Madrid-Barajas Airport hub and Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport in San Juan. The new link will commence from May 15, 2016 and will be operated on a three times weekly basis on a summer seasonal basis only.
The announcement marks the return of the Spanish flag carrier to Puerto Rico after a three-year hiatus following a restructuring of its long-haul operations to support its business transformation programme and return to profitability. The airline ended its previous flights between Madrid and San Juan in March 2013 but the void was quickly filled by Air Europa which introduced its own twice weekly operation on the route from January 2014.
Building on the success of this year’s event in Denver, USA, Routes Americas 2016 will take place in February 2016, in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The event, which is the route development forum for the entire Americas region, will be hosted by Puerto Rico Tourism Company with the support of their partners Aerostar Airport Holdings LLC and MeetPuertoRico. Find out more: Routes Americas 2016
The new Iberia operation will complement the Air Europa offer and also provide good connection opportunities in Madrid with the schedule affording efficient links to 52 destinations across Europe with the carrier and fellow International Consolidated Airline Group (IAG) members and other airline partners.
The flight will be operated using Iberia’s new Airbus A330-200s, the first of which is due to join its fleet in December. The aircraft are configured with a two-class arrangement seating 19 passengers in a newly-designed Business Class cabin and 269 in an improved Economy section.
“This is a very satisfying day for us. When we suspended flights to Puerto Rico nearly three years ago we promised to resume them as soon as we were able to make the route economically sustainable, and that moment has now arrived,” said Luis Gallego, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Iberia.
The flights to Puerto Rico will help consolidate Iberia’s leadership in the Europe-Latin America market based on network activities. The airline operates a total of 250 flights each week between Europe and Latin America and San Juan will be its 20th destination in the region.
“All the changes made in the company in recent months have enabled us not only to restore these routes but to open up five new destinations in Latin America –Havana, Cali, Medellin, Montevideo and Santo Domingo, consolidating Iberia’s leadership in flights between Latin America and Europe,” added Gallego.
Leading route development consultants, ASM, currently support Puerto Rico with its route development strategy and have worked to secure new routes for their client over the last three years. ASM provided analytical support undertaking traffic forecast for the Iberia business case (you can find out more about ASM here).
“It is great to see Iberia returning to San Juan, visitor numbers continue to grow to Puerto Rico as new hotel developments are attracting new visitors. According to Sabre ADI, passenger numbers from Europe (YTD July 2015) are up 24 per cent. The Spanish market is around 57,000 passengers and 59 per cent still travel indirect. Iberia will be able to capture a large proportion the Spanish market as well as the larger connecting markets like Germany and Italy,” said Nigel Mayes, Senior Vice President Consulting & Product Development, ASM.
A closer look at demand data shows the reasoning for the quick return of Iberia to the Puerto Rican market and the important role a European hub carrier can play in boosting connectivity and supporting the growth of business and leisure links to the country.
Although the marketplace has changed since Iberia departed in spring 2013 following the arrival of its Spanish rival Air Europa, around 59 per cent of the Spanish O&D market continues to spill via indirect services, most via points in the United States (New York, Atlanta and Miami have the largest flows).
Air Europa is stimulating demand with passenger traffic up 33 per cent over the first seven months of this year following a frequency increase versus the same period last year, and full year figures will likely deliver the largest annual flows on the route for a number of years.
However, the limited frequency means the carrier is only attracting round 65 per cent of the total market between Madrid and San Juan. When you factor in the larger 185,000+ annual passenger market between Europe and San Juan (up 24 per cent on previous rolling 12 months) then there is a sizeable opportunity for Spain’s flag carrier through connectivity behind Madrid.
“Iberia is back, and in a big way. It is opening a door for Puerto Ricans, and for everyone who uses our Luis Muñoz Marín airport for connections, to travel and business opportunities throughout Europe. Likewise, Iberia's return, along with the flights by other European airlines to our market, will bring unprecedented numbers of passengers from Europe to Puerto Rico each week," said Puerto Rican Governor Alejandro García Padilla.
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