A new military airline for Mexico has been announced for December, promising cheaper fares to Cancun and other tourist destinations, the government of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador announced Thursday. Mexicana de Aviación promises tickets 18% cheaper than its main competitors, Aeroméxico and the low-cost companies Volaris and Vivaerobus, explained Defense Secretary Luis Crescensio Sandoval.
The new company will serve 20 airports including Cancun, Los Cabos, Acapulco, Oaxaca, Puerto Vallarta, all tourist destinations in Mexico, one of the ten most visited countries in the world.
Acquisition of the brand for 48 million dollars
Mexicana de Aviación will be part of the Olmeca-Maya-Mexica group, under the control of the armed forces. The Army already manages the construction of the Mayan Tourist Train, more than 1,500 km of railway in the Yucatan peninsula, which the president wants to inaugurate in December, despite the controversies over environmental damage. Manuel López Obrador has been accused of wanting to “militarize” society.
His announcement closes the story of the government takeover of the Mexicana de Aviación brand, a private company that has been bankrupt for 13 years. The transaction was closed for an amount of 48 million dollars, which will be distributed among the 7,407 employees, who were never compensated after the bankruptcy.
The government has promised an investment of $235 million. The company will have a fleet of ten Boeing 737-800s. The planes will depart from the new Mexico City airport, opened in March 2022 northeast of the capital, and from an airport under construction in Tulum. In February, the small company Aeromar announced its closure due to financial problems.
Source: BFM TV
