SANTIAGO – The LATAM Airlines has launched flights from Peru’s seventh biggest city in terms of population, Cusco to the Chilean capital, Santiago.
The region’s largest airlines will perform three weekly flights on the 2,208-kilometre South American city pair using its fleet of 144-seat A319s. No other airline presently operates between the two cities. This is the carrier’s only international route from Cusco, often spelled as Cuzco, with it offering non-stop flights on seven domestic links from the city this August.
“We will continue to improve the national and international air connectivity of Peru, because we want our passengers to reach more destinations enjoying the service, quality and punctuality that characterize us,” said Manuel van Oordt, the General Manager of LATAM Airlines Peru.
The airline indicated that they will offer a rate from US$365, including taxes and airport taxes.
An analysis of OAG traffic data shows that over 61,100 people travelled indirectly between Cuzco and Santiago in 2017, resulting in an average PDEW of 84 people.
The top connection airport last year was Lima, with it accounting for 98% of traffic flying between Cuzco and Santiago.
Cusco is the starting point to know the Inca history and Machu Picchu. Surrounded by mountains and valleys, the city is the representation of the life of various ancient peoples and concentrates the most important expressions of craftsmanship, design of jewelry and clothes of the country. There are experiences as different as walking through history between Inca ruins, Baroque architecture, the churches of the Plaza de Armas, the old colonial houses or the sacred valleys of the Inca civilization.
Peru is a nation where the capital airport of Lima holds the majority stake of international traffic, with 99% of all non-domestic passengers flying into the city. However, Cuzco saw its market share of Peru’s international passengers grow from 0.5% in 2016 to 0.8% last year, with LATAM’s new Santiago route hopefully helping it push the 1.0% barrier in 2018.
