Venezuelan Aviation

[bmibaby.com]

Some time between June 2005 & August 2006, I will be planning a trip around South America, as it is a continent that has long fascinated me, and one stop I would love to make is in Venezuela, however, the airline industry there really confuses me.

I am aware that the two main airlines in the country are Conviasa & Avensa. However, neither airline has any information about their routes or operations, how to book or to contact either company.

I was hoping someone on the board could talk a bit about the two airlines & how to get in touch with them

Thanks in advance

[malagajohn]

I'm not an expert but Conviasa is only just up and running and only operating a service to Porlamar - the Chaves government want to expand the airline and make it become the new Viasa but it still has some time to go

Is Avensa still operating? If it is you'll find that Avensa / Servivensa is no longer the airline it was in the seventies and eighties - I'm not sure how many planes it has in its fleet at the moment but a friend mentioned some months ago that it only offers service from Caracas to Merida - in any case its not in a great financial state so beware of booking with them unless you hear otherwise . When I was in CCS in February Conviasa was using the Avensa hangars !!!

The Venezuelan airlines offering some sort of regular servcie are AEROPOSTAL , SANTA BARBARA, ASERCA, AVIOR and LASER

It probably depends on what part of Venezuela you need to visit

You´ll get an idea of whose operating in Caracas at the following web site

http://www.maiquetia.com.ve/

[luisde8cd]

Ok let me help you...

1) Avensa is dead, well in coma. They only have a single EMB-120 flying between Caracas and Merida. This airline is virtually nonexistant.

2) Conviasa has just began operating and their fleet consists of a single 733 and a dash7. The major route they fly is Caracas-Margarita Island-Caracas.

3) Venezuela's largest airline is Aeropostal. Visit aeropostal.com and you can book online.

4) I suggest Santa Barbara to fly transatlantic from MAD. www.sbairlines.com

5) Avior has a large regional network in the country. They have lots of B1900Ds, EMB-120 and B732s. You can also book online with them at: www.avior.com.ve

6)Aserca comes as the 3rd largest domestic airline. They focus on traffic between large venezuelan cities. www.asercaairlines.com

I think that's all, if you need any further info please ask, thanks for considering visiting Venezuela as part of your trip :)