Star Member Heads To Bogota

Star Alliance member TAM Linhas Aereas will begin scheduled services to Bogota, Colombia, effective December 19th, to be operated on a six-weekly basis from Sao Paulo. The new route will then become a daily rotation from January 7^th 2011. TAM is the largest operator in Sao Paulo with a 37% market share of all scheduled flights serving 45 destinations.

THE SAO PAULO TO BOGOTA MARKET

IATA BSP data shows that there are large traffic flows between Sao Paulo and Bogota. The route is currently operated by Avianca, which operates a double-daily rotation, with a mix of widebody (A330) and narrowbody (A319) equipment. Brazilian low-cost operator GOL also operates the route on a six-times weekly basis.

Between September 2009 and September 2010, over 100,000 O+D passengers flew between the city pairs. Avianca currently has a 49% share of this traffic with GOL having a 43% share. The leading carrier not operating a non-stop service is Avianca partner, TACA, carrying 4% of traffic via Lima.

It will the first service into the Colombian capital for TAM, however its soon to be partner, LAN, already serves the Colombian capital from Lima on an eleven-times weekly basis, whilst also operating three-times weekly to Miami and five-times weekly from Santiago, Chile.

The Brazil to Colombia market is largely dominated by the Sao Paulo to Bogota sector, however there is wider demand between the two countries, with over 184,000 O+D passengers traveling between September 2009 and September 2010. The market share by carrier is listed below;

Source: IATA BSP DATA SEPTEMBER 2009-SEPTEMBER 2010

The route is an important addition for TAM, as the unified LATAM brand will compete with the Avianca and TACA group as consolidation in the Latin American market begins to take shape, and the carriers compete for share in key markets.