Just nine months after starting its flights between Santa Cruz de la Sierra (VVI)Bolivia and Havana (HAV), Cuba, Bolivian Aviation (BoA) suspends said link on July 25, 2024. Currently, the state airline operates one weekly flight on Boeing 737-800 aircraft.
BoA landed in the Caribbean in October 2023 as part of an expansion that included adding flights to Caracas (CCS), Venezuela, and Asunción (ASU), Paraguay. The airline maintains the two aforementioned destinations unchanged, as well as its current operations to Buenos Aires, Lima, Madrid, Miami and São Paulo.
Through an interview with local media, the general manager of Boliviana de Aviación, Ronald Casso, reported that the 47% of domestic passengers use BoA to leave and enter the countryand the rest do so in other airline companies.
Cuba loses connectivity with South America
For Cuba, this is another loss of connectivity with South America. At the beginning of 2024, Argentinian airlines suspended its flights to Havana, and then Cuban Aviation suspended its operations to the Argentine capital due to problems with aircraft fuel suppliers. Another connection that the Caribbean island lost is Medellín-Havana, operated by Wingo.
However, the growing offer of connections with other airlines also affects point-to-point flights and less varied connections such as Boliviana de Aviación and Aerolíneas Argentinas. Starting July 2, Avianca will resume its flights between Bogotá and Havana, and, recently, Arajet requested to connect the Cuban capital with its hub in Santo Domingo/Las Américas.
The majority of passengers are leisure, followed by trips for friends and family (VFR) by the Cuban diaspora distributed throughout the region. LATAMthrough Lima (LIM), and Copa Airlinesvia Panama City/Tocumen (PTY), are the main connecting routes to reach Cuba from South America.
Other specific connections
- wingo, connecting Havana with Bogotá (BOG), Colombia. The only low cost airline that offers flights to South America from Cuba.
- ConViasa and Cubana de Aviaciónoffer weekly flights between Caracas (CCS), Venezuela and Havana.
- FlyAllwaysoffers flights from Georgetown (GEO), Guyana to Havana and Santiago de Cuba (SCU). SKY High Dominican connects the Cuban and Guyanese capitals. It mainly moves mainly Cuban citizens seeking US visa and purchasing tourism.
