“The authorization of the integration was decided, conditional on compliance with various structural and behavioral remedies,” reported a statement from the Civil Aeronautics.
The aviation governing body warned that in the integration process the rights of Viva users must be respected, refund canceled flight tickets and allow those who have tickets pending execution to fly.
Additionally, they must return the slots or schedules that imply aggravating the situation of concentration in the most demanded slots, maintaining an effective rate limit on routes where the integrated company remains with 100% and returning the frequencies of the Bogotá – Buenos Aires route.
Avianca said that it will analyze the financial and technical implications of the authorization and maintained that Viva Air does not have the same route network, aircraft and worker capabilities that it had before the temporary suspension of its operations.
“Given the operational, financial and technical implications of Aerocivil’s decision, Avianca will study the resolution and the implications of the measures set forth by the authority as soon as possible to determine the feasibility of complying with them,” he explained in a statement. .
The two companies signed an agreement in April 2022 with which they sought to be part of the same group and unify their economic rights, maintaining their respective brands and strategies to strengthen the airlines after the crisis in the air sector worldwide as a result of the covid-19 pandemic.
The integration request was objected in November by the Civil Aeronautics, considering that it represented risks for competition in the sector and the well-being of consumers. However, last January the Civil Aeronautics canceled the integration process due to procedural irregularities and restarted it.
Avianca, which completed its restructuring process at the end of 2021 and successfully emerged from Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Law, has more than 130 aircraft, 12,000 employees and one of the largest operations in Latin America.
Viva Air, which emerged as a low-cost airline with operations in Colombia and Peru, has a fleet of 21 aircraft and some 1,000 direct employees.
The low-cost airline, with routes to the interior of Colombia and to Peru, Brazil, Mexico, Argentina and the United States, temporarily suspended its operations at the end of February due to financial difficulties in operating.
In the midst of waiting for the aeronautics decision on the integration with Avianca, the airlines LATAM and JetSMART announced their interest in buying Viva Air.