MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Argentina's aviation industry nearing decisive hours

The Libertarian Administration would not hesitate to scrap the flag carrier if passengers are repeatedly put through recurrent hardships

The Libertarian Administration of President Javier Milei gave aviation unions until Friday to work out their discrepancies or otherwise Aerolíneas Argentinas was to be shut down given the number of hardships passengers at various airports, particularly Ezeiza and Jorge Newbery in Buenos Aires, are going through.

At both terminals, tarmac operators Intercargo are on strike affecting the uploading and deplaning of luggage which in turn causes extremely long delays. In addition, the flag carrier has been rescheduling long-haul flights after pilots certified to fly the Airbus A330 aircraft were unable to renew their licenses given the ongoing conflicts. Hence, the company was forced to serve Miami with Boeing 737 MAX aircraft with a stopover in Lima to refuel, which added flight time as well as reduced capacity, with some passengers having their tickets endorsed to other airlines.

“We gave them until Friday to present a proposal to put an end to the conflicts and operate normally,” a high-ranking Aerolíneas Argentinas official was quoted by TN as saying.

The Intercargo strike also forced budget carrier Flybondi to call off eight flights on Wednesday. Given this situation, the Security Ministry filed charges against some Aeronautical Personnel Association (APA) and Intercargo leaders for the alleged crimes of illegitimate deprivation of liberty, extortion, and hindering air transportation.

The Airline Pilots Association (APLA) led by Pablo Biró held a strike in the pilot training and education centers (Cefepra), where pilots must renew their biannual licenses. Hence, there was a drop in the number of pilots able to fly the longer-range Airbus 330s, which resulted in the cancellation of flights. But such a measure was lifted at the end of the day Wednesday. “This decision is part of the will and effort of APLA pilots to find a negotiation path that allows us to recompose our salaries. The suspension is aimed at restarting wage negotiations with a focus on good faith. If this is not met, we will resume the scheduled actions,” APLA said. Long-distance flights to Rome, Madrid, Miami, and Cancun are expected to resume shortly.

In this havoc, the Argentine government was said to have sacked an Aerolíneas Argentinas worker while filing criminal charges against the pilots for keeping passengers hostage onboard. The dismissal was described as “arbitrary” and “without cause” by the unions, which endorsed the decision of the Intercargo workers to hold informative meetings in the different operating sections of the company. No official information was released as to the alleged sacking.

According to Infobae, the pilots have devised a plan that would please President Milei as the fears of the Government moving on with its plans to liquidate the company mounted.