MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

New Uruguayan airline launched

The company should be operational in the last quarter of 2025. SUA will be operating Canadian-built Airbus A220-300 aircraft

The company to pick up the baton from Pluna as Uruguay's flag airline was launched Tuesday during a press conference at Montevideo's Carrasco International Airport. SUA (Sociedad Uruguaya de Aviación) intends to position the air terminal as a regional logistics hub by reducing flight times and costs to destinations in Mercosur and Chile, it was explained.

Tourism Minister Eduardo Sanguinetti highlighted that the airline will start operating in the second half of 2025 and insisted that SUA's case should not be compared with any previous national carrier, although SUA CEO Antonio Rama has already been at the helm of U-Air, a short-lived budget carrier experiment between 2003 and 2005.

Rama also noted the importance of the wet lease partnership with airBaltic, Latvia's flag carrier in a country with a population similar in number to that of Uruguay. The presence of a national airline allows greater control over fares, frequencies, and services, improving the local offer, Rama argued. SUA will be operating Canadian-built Airbus A220-300 aircraft in the fourth quarter of 2025, he added. Rama also noted that completing SUA's necessary paperwork and the operation permits would still require between four to five months.

Meanwhile, airBaltic President Martin Gauss explained that the alliance stemmed from the partnership with Airbus and his airline already operating 49 of these units. “We are very successful in providing connectivity because of this unique aircraft we have, the A220. From a very small country like Latvia we can provide 140 routes because of this aircraft, so from Uruguay, which is larger, they will be able to at least match what we do,” said Gauss.

SUA is expected to connect “key cities in Uruguay, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, and Paraguay from the end of this year,” the company said in a statement. Uruguayan media insisted SUA has Saudi Arabia funding but Rama denied these reports.

SUA's initial fleet will consist of six aircraft, which will be phased in over a period of 18 months. In the medium term, the company plans to expand its fleet to 10 aircraft in three years. Rama noted that the company's focus is “to present a solid business model that addresses the challenges of air connectivity in Latin America.”

See also: New Uruguayan airline to make key announcements next week