The Government is preparing to expand in the coming days the number of passengers from abroad who can enter the country to 2,300 per day and enable airports in the interior of the country to receive international flights, through secure corridors. The first airport to obtain this authorization is El Plumerillo, in Mendoza.
Last Saturday the head of the National Civil Aviation Administration (Anac), Paola Tamburelli, held a meeting with the authorities of the Chamber of Air Companies in Argentina (Jurca) and transmitted that during September the Mendoza airport will be enabled to receive flights from abroad and the daily passenger entry quota will be expanded. The quota would go from the current 1,700 passengers per day to 2,300, as foreseen in Administrative Decision 793 published at the beginning of August.
According to the latest Administrative Decision of the Government on the closure of borders, as of this Monday, September 6, the entry quota for flights from abroad can already be increased from the current 1,700 daily passengers to 2,300 per day
The Government confirmed that the province of Mendoza has already made the corresponding request but clarified that the signature and authorization of the Chief of Cabinet and the Ministry of Health still remains. Once these authorizations have been granted, the Anac can give the green light to the authorization of the air corridor.
If the number of 2,300 daily entries is finally reached, the number of 2,000 passengers that had been enabled from December 2020 to June 25 of this year will be exceeded for the first time, when the quota was reduced to 600 passengers, which originated numerous flight suspensions and the consequence of the Argentines who were stranded abroad. That quota was gradually expanded to 1,700.
“We had a virtual meeting with the Anac authorities on Saturday. They informed us that they were advancing in the expansion of the quota and the qualification of the airports in the interior. The first would be Mendoza. But the process is not that fast. The companies still do not have requested flights to that airport. Once it is enabled, only then can the airlines ask the airport for the feasibility of the flight. And then the approval of the Anac is required ”, he explained. Felipe Baravalle, Executive director of Jurca.
“The 600 passengers that will be added to the daily quota can be distributed in the different airports. It can be three flights of 200 passengers per day to a single airport or in several. In Ezeiza the separation of two hours between each flight would be maintained, but more capacity could be added to the flights that are arriving and that come with a restricted quota ”, he added. Prior to the restrictions due to the pandemic, the companies with international flights that arrived at the Mendoza airport were Latam, Gol, Sky and Copa Airlines, among others.
According to the latest Administrative Decision of the Government on the closure of borders, as of this Monday, September 6, the entry quota for foreign flights can already be increased from the current 1,700 daily passengers to 2,300 per day. The official measure also provided that as of that date the entry of foreign flights through the airports of the provinces can be enabled. So far, the only authorized one is the Ezeiza airport.
The Chief of Cabinet confirmed that the Governments of Mendoza, Córdoba and Salta have already formally requested authorization to be authorized as “safe corridors”. To be authorized, airports must have mechanisms for testing, isolating and transferring samples.
The three requests are being evaluated by the Ministry of Health. The provincial authorities had to present a protocol for their airports, which must contemplate the conditions that are met today at the Ezeiza International Airport and which allow, for example, to carry out tests for those who arrive in the country from abroad. According to the official provision, airports must have mechanisms for testing, isolating and transferring samples for genomic sequencing to the Malbrán Institute.
Meanwhile, the Governor of Misiones, Oscar Herrera Ahuad, asked the national authorities three weeks ago to enable the Tancredo Neves international bridge, which connects Puerto Iguazú with Foz, in Brazil. The province presented a protocol for the opening of the bridge with the objective that about 800 foreign tourists can enter daily and allow the re-entry of 1,000 Argentines per day.
In August, the National Civil Aviation Administration (ANAC) also enabled airlines to carry out special flights. But, nevertheless, from the airlines they assured that they were approved on the hour and, in some cases, they did not have enough time to contact the passengers and be able to complete the capacity of the flight.
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