RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Conviasa, as the state-run airline is known, says that its operations jumped 85% in 2020, making it one of the few airlines in the world to post any growth after the pandemic wiped out air travel.
The airline, which is banned from flying to the US as part of that country’s wide-ranging sanctions against the Maduro regime, now has regular flights to five countries. Three of them are led by Maduro’s political allies – Bolivia, Iran and Mexico – and there are plans to add a Moscow connection soon.
Conviasa also now services high-demand routes to Panama and the Dominican Republic, which act as key transit hubs for Venezuelans.
While airlines in the US and Europe have received billions of dollars in government bailouts to tackle the coronavirus pandemic, Conviasa has gotten state support of a different kind. Competition has been squashed with permits delayed or last minute hurdles put up against other carriers, including Copa Airlines.
The secret to its relative success isn’t hard to find. Keen on propping up state enterprises that can bring much needed hard currency revenue to a battered regime, President Maduro has allowed Conviasa to charge in dollars and at exorbitant rates for destinations such as Toluca, Mexico, or Viru Viru, Bolivia.
“If Conviasa has grown, that’s great, but Venezuelan air operations shouldn’t depend on a single airline, a single interest, that’s dangerous, it’s not right,” said Reinaldo Pulido, vice-president of tourism association Conseturismo. “You make a country of 30 million people dependent on a single company.”
The airline, now run by Ramón Velásquez, a former soldier who also ran the Ministry of Eco-Socialism and Water, saw its operations nearly double last year, according to a company statement. In that period, passenger traffic fell 63% across Latin America and nearly 66% globally, the International Air Transport Association reported.
Buying a ticket, however, can be a maddening experience.
Conviasa’s website is unreliable for bookings and even to check departure and arrival times. Nobody answers the service support numbers. Going to an office in person doesn’t guarantee getting a ticket either, since they are usually sold out or agencies may not keep regular working hours.
However, flights are usually full.
Conviasa doesn’t publish financial reports or key data such as ticket sales, revenue, flight capacity or an operating budget. Neither Conviasa nor its main hub, Caracas’s Maiquetia international airport, responded to requests for comments on the airline’s business practices.
When the first case of coronavirus was confirmed in Venezuela on March 13th, 2020, the government quickly enacted one of the world’s most stringent lockdowns, and airports were closed for seven months.
But when skies reopened in November, Conviasa received quick permits for newly approved direct flight destinations, such as Mexico, and announced an exclusive connection between Caracas and Bolivia. Other airlines have struggled to get approvals.
Source: Exame