LaMia Corporation S.R.L., operating as LaMia (short for ''Línea Aérea Mérida Internacional de Aviación''), was a
Bolivia
, image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg
, flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in the center
, flag_alt2 = 7 × 7 square p ...
n
charter airline
Air charter is the business of renting an entire aircraft (i.e., chartering) as opposed to individual aircraft seats (i.e., purchasing a airline ticket, ticket through a traditional airline).
Regulation
Charter – also called air taxi or ad h ...
headquartered in
Santa Cruz de la Sierra
Santa Cruz de la Sierra (; "Holy Cross of the Mountain Range"), commonly known as Santa Cruz, is the largest city in Bolivia and the capital of the Santa Cruz Department (Bolivia), Santa Cruz department.
Situated on the Pirai River (Bolivia), P ...
, as an
EcoJet subsidiary. It had its origins from the failed Venezuelan airline of the same name. Founded in 2015, LaMia operated three
Avro RJ85
The British Aerospace 146 (also BAe 146) is a short-haul and regional airliner that was manufactured in the United Kingdom by British Aerospace, later part of BAE Systems. Production ran from 1983 until 2001. Manufacture by Avro Internation ...
as of November 2016. The airline received international attention when
one of its aircraft crashed in November 2016, killing many members of Brazilian football club
Chapecoense. In the aftermath, LaMia's
air operator's certificate
An air operator's certificate (AOC) is the approval granted by a civil aviation authority (CAA) to an aircraft operator to allow it to use aircraft for commercial purposes. This requires the operator to have personnel, assets, and system in pla ...
was suspended by the
Bolivian civil aviation authority.
History
LaMia (Venezuela)
Bolivian airline LaMia originated in the failed Venezuelan airline of the same name, which was founded as LAMIA, C.A. in 2009 by Spanish businessman
Ricardo Albacete.
The name chosen, styled as , was the
acronym
An acronym is a word or name formed from the initial components of a longer name or phrase. Acronyms are usually formed from the initial letters of words, as in ''NATO'' (''North Atlantic Treaty Organization''), but sometimes use syllables, as ...
of ''Línea Aérea Mérida Internacional de Aviación''. It took delivery of an
ATR 72-500
The ATR 72 is a twin-engine turboprop, short-haul regional airliner developed and produced in France and Italy by aircraft manufacturer ATR (french: Avions de transport régional or it, Aerei da Trasporto Regionale), a joint venture formed ...
wet leased
Aircraft leases are leases used by airlines and other aircraft operators. Airlines lease aircraft from other airlines or leasing companies for two main reasons: to operate aircraft without the financial burden of buying them, and to provide tempora ...
from
Swiftair and intended to begin service out of
Mérida, Venezuela, its original base. However, the company failed to secure its own
air operator's certificate
An air operator's certificate (AOC) is the approval granted by a civil aviation authority (CAA) to an aircraft operator to allow it to use aircraft for commercial purposes. This requires the operator to have personnel, assets, and system in pla ...
and folded in October 2010 after only operating since August, with Swiftair taking back the aircraft.
After its permits expired, LaMia attempted a relaunch in 2011 by taking a single
Avro RJ85
The British Aerospace 146 (also BAe 146) is a short-haul and regional airliner that was manufactured in the United Kingdom by British Aerospace, later part of BAE Systems. Production ran from 1983 until 2001. Manufacture by Avro Internation ...
and focusing on domestic flights, although none operated from Mérida. Having had its efforts in Mérida thwarted twice, the airline moved to the state of
Nueva Esparta
The Nueva Esparta State (in Spanish: ''Estado Nueva Esparta'', ), is one of the 23 states of Venezuela. It comprises Margarita Island, Coche, and the largely uninhabited Cubagua.
The state has the smallest area, and is located off the northe ...
: the airline changed the M in its name to mean
Margarita
A margarita is a cocktail consisting of Tequila, triple sec, and lime juice often served with salt on the rim of the glass. The drink is served shaken with ice (on the rocks), blended with ice (frozen margarita), or without ice (straight up). T ...
and planned to relaunch in early 2014 operating out of
Porlamar
)
Pueblo de La Mar ( en, Village by the Sea)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Panoramic
, image_flag = Bandera santiagomarino.jpg
, image_seal =
, pushpin_map =Venezuela
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_type1 = State
, subdivis ...
. A November 2013 demonstration flight featured the state's governor,
Carlos Mata Figueroa
Carlos José Mata Figueroa is a former Defence Minister of Venezuela from January 2010 to January 2012 noticias24.com, 17 January 2012Perfil: Henry Rangel Silva, el nuevo ministro de la Defensa) and the Chief of the Venezuelan armed forces. He hol ...
, and Albacete gave a speech praising Venezuelan president
Nicolás Maduro
Nicolás Maduro Moros (; born 23 November 1962) is a Venezuelan politician and president of Venezuela since 2013, with his presidency under dispute since 2019.
Beginning his working life as a bus driver, Maduro rose to become a trade unio ...
; this incarnation also fell through amidst the country's worsening economic crisis.
In 2014, LaMia even placed its planes in
Trujillo, Trujillo
Trujillo is the capital city of Trujillo State in Venezuela.
About 40,000 people live in this city, located in El Valle de Los Mukas.
History
Founded by one of the "Conquistadores de America", Diego García de Paredes (1506 - 1563), son of ...
, apparently with the intent of operating flights from
Valera
Valera is a city in Trujillo State in Venezuela, situated between the rivers Momboy and Motatán. The mayor is José Karkom, who has had that post since 2013. The city is home to Italian, Portuguese, Chinese, Colombian and Spanish communit ...
to
Caracas
Caracas (, ), officially Santiago de León de Caracas, abbreviated as CCS, is the capital and largest city of Venezuela, and the center of the Metropolitan Region of Caracas (or Greater Caracas). Caracas is located along the Guaire River in the ...
, but these efforts never got off the ground; the airline failed to receive certification from the
National Institute of Civil Aviation The National Institute of Civil Aviation (Spanish: Instituto Nacional de Aeronáutica Civil, INAC) is a Venezuelan civil aviation agency. Its headquarters were in the ''Torre Británica'' in Caracas, Miranda, and it had offices in the ''Edificio S ...
(INAC), and the planes were only in Venezuela for a year.
LaMia (Bolivia)
With their repeated failures in two Venezuelan states,
the Venezuelan owners opted to lease the three RJ85s they had to Bolivian entrepreneurs; in a cost-cutting move, the Bolivian company adopted the name already painted on the aircraft: LaMia.
The two aircraft not in service at the time of the crash still bore the Venezuelan airline's website, lamia.com.ve, on their sides.
In November 2015, Bolivian airline LaMia—a legally distinct company incorporated as LAMIA Corporation SRL—set up offices in a house in
Santa Cruz de la Sierra
Santa Cruz de la Sierra (; "Holy Cross of the Mountain Range"), commonly known as Santa Cruz, is the largest city in Bolivia and the capital of the Santa Cruz Department (Bolivia), Santa Cruz department.
Situated on the Pirai River (Bolivia), P ...
,
and received permission from its national civil aviation authority to begin offering domestic charter flights there; such operations began in January 2016 under the new company's "indefinite" operating certificate.
Its fleet included three RJ85 aircraft with capacity for 95 passengers, though two never flew and the airline never offered commercial service.
At the time, operations coordinator Mario Pacheco said that resource extraction and mining companies, travel agencies and soccer teams were among their target clients.
Indeed, soccer teams were among the most faithful clients, and the airline had flown the
Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
,
Bolivia
, image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg
, flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in the center
, flag_alt2 = 7 × 7 square p ...
and
Venezuela
Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...
national teams as well as the Colombian
Atlético Nacional
Atlético Nacional S. A., best known as Atlético Nacional, is a Colombian professional association football, football club based in Medellín. The club is one of only three clubs to have played in every first division tournament in the countr ...
, the Paraguayan
Club Olimpia
Club Olimpia is a Paraguayan sports club based in the city of Asunción. The club promotes the practice of various sports with most importance given to the football, rugby and basketball sides, the former being the highest priority and most s ...
and local sides
Oriente Petrolero
Club Deportivo Oriente Petrolero () is a Bolivian football club based in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia. They play at the 38,000-capacity Estadio Tahuichi Aguilera. Oriente have been Bolivian champions five times, Copa Aerosur winners two ti ...
,
The Strongest
Club The Strongest is a Bolivian professional football club based in La Paz, that currently plays in the Bolivian Primera División.
Founded in 1908, their team colours are yellow and black. Although they have a home ground, Estadio Rafae ...
and
Club Blooming
Club Social, Cultural y Deportivo de Blooming, commonly known as Blooming, is a Bolivian professional football club from Santa Cruz de la Sierra that currently plays in the Bolivian Primera División.
Founded in 1946, its home colours are sky bl ...
.
Additionally, the Bolivian Ministry of Mining and Metallurgy was a client of the airline.
In the aftermath of the crash of Flight 2933,
DGAC, Bolivia's aviation authority, suspended LaMia's operating license, and the Bolivian Labor Ministry stated that LaMia was not a registered business with the government.
Bolivian law requires all employers to be registered with the Labor Ministry, which maintains the Obligatory Registry of Businesses.
Corporate affairs
LaMia was headquartered in the Bolivian city of Santa Cruz de la Sierra.
It was owned by Gustavo Vargas Gamboa; its other owner, Miguel Alejandro Quiroga Murakami, died in the Flight 2933 accident.
As of 30 November 2016, the airline had eight employees.
Albacete, the owner of the Venezuelan airline that owns the Bolivian airline's fleet, told press from Spain that while he was emotionally affected by the disaster, he was not involved in the Bolivian airline's operations.
On 6 December, Vargas Gamboa was arrested along with two other LaMia employees by the local branch of the attorney general's office.
He claimed that he had presented his resignation from the company three days before the crash, on 25 November. That same day, the civil aviation authority hauled documents and papers from the airline's Santa Cruz headquarters.
The other owner, Miguel Quiroga, had an arrest warrant issued by the Bolivian government for leaving the
Bolivian Air Force
The Bolivian Air Force ( es, Fuerza Aérea Boliviana or 'FAB') is the air force of Bolivia and branch of the Bolivian Armed Forces.
History
By 1938 the Bolivian air force consisted of about 60 aircraft (Curtiss Hawk fighters, Curtiss T-32 Co ...
earlier than had been stipulated, breaking the terms of his pilot training. The Air Force found that Quiroga and four other trained pilots had not provided sufficient justification for leaving before they had completed their required years of military service.
In May 2017, a CNN report revealed that LaMia's insurance policy with Bolivian insurer Bisa had lapsed beginning in October 2016 for nonpayment; while said policy did not cover flights to Colombia, which the insurer included as part of a geographical exclusion clause along with several African countries, as well as Peru, Afghanistan, Syria and Iraq, the airline managed to get permission to fly to Colombia on at least eight occasions.
Fleet
Final fleet
As of November 30, 2016, after the destruction of CP-2933, the remaining LaMia fleet consisted of the following:
The multinational investigative commission opted on December 7 to seize the other two aircraft as part of its investigation.
The
Bolivian Air Force
The Bolivian Air Force ( es, Fuerza Aérea Boliviana or 'FAB') is the air force of Bolivia and branch of the Bolivian Armed Forces.
History
By 1938 the Bolivian air force consisted of about 60 aircraft (Curtiss Hawk fighters, Curtiss T-32 Co ...
also revealed that it had filed a lawsuit for maintenance on the downed aircraft carried out by the Air Force in 2014, but for which the airline never paid.
Retired fleet
The airline formerly operated the following for the Venezuelan LaMia:
*1 further
Avro RJ85
The British Aerospace 146 (also BAe 146) is a short-haul and regional airliner that was manufactured in the United Kingdom by British Aerospace, later part of BAE Systems. Production ran from 1983 until 2001. Manufacture by Avro Internation ...
stored at
Norwich Airport
Norwich Airport is an international airport in Hellesdon, Norfolk, England, north of Norwich. In 2017, Norwich Airport was the 28th busiest airport in the UK and busiest in the East Anglia region.
Norwich Airport has a CAA Public Use Aero ...
*1
ATR 72-500
The ATR 72 is a twin-engine turboprop, short-haul regional airliner developed and produced in France and Italy by aircraft manufacturer ATR (french: Avions de transport régional or it, Aerei da Trasporto Regionale), a joint venture formed ...
wet leased from
Swiftair
Accidents and incidents
Flight 2933
On the night of November 28, 2016 at approximately 10:33 pm (Bogotá time),
LaMia Flight 2933
LaMia Flight 2933 was a charter flight of an Avro RJ85, operated by LaMia, that on 28 November 2016 crashed near Medellín, Colombia, killing 71 of the 77 people on board. The aircraft was transporting the Brazilian Chapecoense football squad a ...
, which carried 77 passengers mostly composed of Brazilian football squad
Chapecoense, departed Santa Cruz de la Sierra (Bolivia) heading towards
Medellín
Medellín ( or ), officially the Municipality of Medellín ( es, Municipio de Medellín), is the second-largest city in Colombia, after Bogotá, and the capital of the department of Antioquia. It is located in the Aburrá Valley, a central re ...
(Colombia) when the aircraft crashed in the countryside just outside La Unión in Antioquía department. Out of the 77 passengers, 71 were officially confirmed dead. Miguel Quiroga, one of the flight crew of the downed aircraft, was also a part owner of the airline.
The crash exposed gaps in safety at the airline. LaMia did not meet
IATA
The International Air Transport Association (IATA ) is a trade association of the world's airlines founded in 1945. IATA has been described as a cartel since, in addition to setting technical standards for airlines, IATA also organized tariff ...
regulations that would have permitted it to handle the aftermath of the crash; instead, the airline had to borrow 100 coffins, requiring
Avianca
Avianca S.A. (acronym in Spanish for ''Aerovias del Continente Americano S.A.'', "Airways of the American Continent") is a Colombian airline. It has been the flag carrier of Colombia since December 5, 1919, when it was initially registered under ...
, the Colombian flag carrier, and the Colombian and Brazilian governments to step in and pick up the slack. The Bolivian government proceeded to suspend LaMia's license on 1 December.
See also
*
List of defunct airlines of Bolivia
References
External links
*
*
{{Airlines of Bolivia
Defunct airlines of Bolivia
Airlines established in 2009
Airlines disestablished in 2016
2016 disestablishments in Bolivia
Venezuelan companies established in 2009
Bolivian companies established in 2014