Aérolíneas Peruanas

Aérolíneas Peruanas
IATA ICAO Callsign
EP[1] PRU[2]
Founded 1956
Commenced operations 1957
Ceased operations 1971
Hubs Lima Airport
Headquarters Lima

Aérolíneas Peruanas S.A. (also known by the abbreviation APSA or the English translation Peruvian Airlines)[3] was an airline from Peru, serving as flag carrier of the country from 1956 to 1971.[1] Headquartered in Lima, it operated a network of scheduled passenger flights to major places in Latin America, as well as the United States, out of its hub at Lima Airport.[4] In 1967, APSA had around 1,000 employees.[5]

History

Aérolíneas Peruanas was founded by C. W. Shelton in September 1956,[6] with 77 percent of the company's shares spread amongst private Peruvian investors.[5] Flight operations were launched in mid-1957, on the Lima to Santiago and Miami routes.[5] Originally not a member of the International Air Transport Association (IATA was only joined in 1966), APSA could significantly undercut the usual airline fares for flights between South America and the USA.[7] To strengthen its market position, APSA went into a partnership with Transportes Aéreos Nacionales (TAN, from Honduras) and Compañía Ecuatoriana de Aviación (CEA, from Ecuador).[7][2]

The Douglas DC-6 being the aircraft most commonly used with the airline in the early 1960s,[7][8] Aérolíneas Peruanas joined the jet age on 1 December 1963 with the introduction of the Convair 990 Coronado.[9] During that years, the network had been greatly expanded,[4] which culminated in the launch of transatlantic flights using the Douglas DC-8 by the end of the decade.[10][6]

In the early 1970s, Aérolíneas Peruanas found itself in a worsening financial situation. Plans for a take-over by the Peruvian government and Spanish national airline Iberia failed, so that the company was forced to cease all flight operations on 2 May 1971.[11]

Route network

APSA offered scheduled passenger flights to the following destinations:[2][8][12][3][4]

City State Airport Commenced
Buenos Aires Argentina Ministro Pistarini International Airport
ca. 1958[2]
La Paz Bolivia El Alto International Airport
ca. 1970[6]
Rio de Janeiro Brazil Galeão International Airport
1965[13]
São Paulo Brazil Congonhas Airport
1966[3]
Santiago Chile Santiago International Airport
1957[5]
Barranquilla Colombia Soledad Airport
1962[7]
Bogotá Colombia El Dorado International Airport
1966[3]
Guayaquil Ecuador José Joaquín de Olmedo International Airport
ca. 1958[2]
Paris France Orly Airport
ca. 1970[6]
Tegucigalpa Honduras Toncontín International Airport
ca. 1958[2]
Acapulco Mexico Acapulco International Airport
1966[3]
Mexico City Mexico Mexico City International Airport
1960[8]
Panama City Panama Tocumen International Airport
1960[8]
Lima Peru Lima Airport (hub)
1957[5]
Talara Peru Talara Airport
1960[8]
Madrid Spain Madrid–Barajas Airport
ca. 1970[6]
Port of Spain Trinidad and Tobago Piarco International Airport
ca. 1970[6]
London United Kingdom Gatwick Airport[14]
ca. 1970[6]
Los Angeles United States Los Angeles International Airport
1966[3]
Miami United States Miami International Airport
1957[5]
Caracas Venezuela Simón Bolívar International Airport
ca. 1970[6]

Fleet

Over the years, APSA operated the following aircraft types:[1]

Aircraft Introduced Retired
Convair 990 Coronado
1963[9]
1971
Curtiss C-46 Commando
1957[15]
1970[16]
Douglas DC-6
1960[17]
1966[13]
Douglas DC-7
1967[5]
1970[16]
Douglas DC-8
1969[10]
1971

Incidents

On 11 January 1969, an Aérolíneas Peruanas Convair 990 Coronado was hijacked en route a flight from Panama City to Miami and forced to divert to Cuba.[18] At that time, such United States-Cuba hijackings had become common occurrences.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Aero Transport Data Bank: Aérolíneas Peruanas". Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Aérolíneas Peruanas: 1959 timetable (at timetableimages.com)". Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Aérolíneas Peruanas: 1966 timetable (at timetableimages.com)". Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  4. 1 2 3 "Aérolíneas Peruanas: 1968 timetable (at timetableimages.com)". Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Directory: World Airlines". Flight International. 13 April 1967. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "Directory: World Airlines". Flight International. 13 May 1971. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  7. 1 2 3 4 "Latin American Low Fare Challenge". Flight International. 12 April 1962. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 "Aérolíneas Peruanas: 1960 timetable (at timetableimages.com)". Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  9. 1 2 "Directory: World Airlines". Flight International. 2 April 1964. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  10. 1 2 "Directory: World Airlines". Flight International. 10 April 1969. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  11. ↑ "Directory: World Airlines". Flight International. 13 May 1971. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  12. ↑ "Aérolíneas Peruanas: 1964 timetable (at timetableimages.com)". Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  13. 1 2 "Directory: World Airlines". Flight International. 14 April 1966. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  14. ↑ "Photo of an Aérolíneas Peruanas DC-8 landing at Gatwick in 1970 (at airliners.net).". Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  15. ↑ "Directory: World Airlines". Flight International. 18 April 1958. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  16. 1 2 "Directory: World Airlines". Flight International. 24 March 1970. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  17. ↑ "Directory: World Airlines". Flight International. 8 April 1960. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  18. ↑ "Description of the 1969 APSA hijacking". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
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