TAM – Transporte Aéreo Militar
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TAM – Transporte Aéreo Militar (Military Air Transport) was an
airline An airline is a company that provides air transport services for traveling passengers and freight. Airlines use aircraft to supply these services and may form partnerships or alliances with other airlines for codeshare agreements, in wh ...
based in La Paz, Bolivia. It was owned by 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 ...
, and was established to offer flights to rural communities where commercial airlines could not operate profitably. It also operated in competition with commercial airlines on many of Bolivia's trunk domestic routes. In September 2019, the airline suspended all operations.


History

TAM began operations on June 15, 1945, with the acquisition of new Douglas C-47s. In 1955, the squadron of the Bolivian Air Transport decided for TAM to begin commercial operations.
"El Grupo Aéreo "71" (the Air group "71") known by the civil populace as Transporte Aéreo Militar (TAM), is an essential part of the structure of the Bolivian Air Force and the fundamental element for the development and integration of the populations in the distant parts of the national territory." —TAM website, Historical summary/review.
The original name (from 1944) was "El Escuadrón de Transporte Aéreo" (ETA). In 1953 the name was changed to Transporte Aéreo Militar. This heritage is reflected in the words "Grupo Aéreo 71" appearing as part of the TAM logo. The airline has stopped their flights since July 2018. On March 27, 2019, the airline gained authorization to begin flying again, but during that period failed to obtain an operating authorization from the ATT; this failure lead to them ceasing all operations again on September 23, 2019.


Destinations

Transporte Aéreo Militar serviced the following destinations: *
Cobija Cobija is a city in Bolivia, capital of the department of Pando, is located about 600 km (373 mi.) north of La Paz in the Amazon Basin on the border with Brazil. Cobija lies on the banks of the Rio Acre across from the Brazilian ci ...
Captain Aníbal Arab Airport Captain Aníbal Arab Airport ( es, Aeropuerto Capitán Aníbal Arab, ) is an international airport serving the Acre River port city of Cobija, the capital of the Pando Department of Bolivia. This airport is located at a reasonably near distance to ...
*
Cochabamba Cochabamba ( ay, Quchapampa; qu, Quchapampa) is a city and municipality in central Bolivia in a valley in the Andes mountain range. It is the capital of the Cochabamba Department and the fourth largest city in Bolivia, with a population of 630 ...
Jorge Wilstermann International Airport Jorge Wilstermann International Airport ( es, Aeropuerto Internacional Jorge Wilstermann, ) is a high elevation international airport serving Cochabamba, the capital of the Cochabamba Department of Bolivia. The facility is named after Jorge Wils ...
* Guayaramerín
Guayaramerín Airport Capitán de Av. Emilio Beltrán Airport is an airport serving the Mamoré River town of Guayaramerín in the Beni Department of Bolivia. The airport is south of Guayaramerín and replaces the former airport () near the river. Airlines and dest ...
* La Paz
El Alto International Airport El Alto International Airport ( es, link=no, Aeropuerto Internacional El Alto) is an international airport serving La Paz, Bolivia. It is located in the city of El Alto, west of La Paz. At an elevation of , it is the highest international ...
* Riberalta
Riberalta Airport Capitán Av. Selin Zeitun Lopez Airport is an airport serving Riberalta, a port city on the Beni River in the Beni Department of Bolivia. The airport is in the western section of the city, near the confluence of the Beni and Madre de Dios Ri ...
*
Rurrenabaque Rurrenabaque is a small town in the north of Bolivia on the Beni River. It is the capital of Rurrenabaque Municipality. In recent years it has become popular with international tourism as it is an easy gateway for visits to Madidi National Park ( ...
Rurrenabaque Airport Rurrenabaque Airport is an airport serving Rurrenabaque, a port city on the Beni River in the Beni Department of Bolivia. The airport is northeast of the city. Runway 14/32 was asphalted in 2010. Before, because of the grass runways, no flig ...
*
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. Situated on the Pirai River in the eastern Tropical Lowlands of Bolivia ...
: **
El Trompillo Airport El Trompillo Airport is located in the south part of Santa Cruz, Bolivia, about 2 km (1.25 miles) away from the central plaza. Creation It was created in 1920 with a lane that measured no more than 800 meters (2,624 feet). The airport wa ...
(SRZ) * Sucre
Juana Azurduy de Padilla International Airport Juana Azurduy de Padilla International Airport is an airport located in Sucre, Bolivia, the nation's constitutional capital city. It is currently a base of the Bolivian Air Force and was formerly Sucre's main commercial airport until it was repl ...
*
Tarija Tarija or San Bernardo de la Frontera de Tarixa is a city in southern Bolivia. Founded in 1574, Tarija is the largest city and capital and municipality within the Tarija Department, with an airport ( Capitán Oriel Lea Plaza Airport, (TJA)) off ...
Capitán Oriel Lea Plaza Airport Capitán Oriel Lea Plaza Airport is an airport serving Tarija, the capital of the Tarija Department of Bolivia. The airport is in the southeastern section of the city, which is within a basin of the Cordillera Central mountain range. There is di ...


Fleet

The TAM fleet consists of the following aircraft as of February 2014:


Accidents and incidents

*On 11 September 1962 Captain Walter Arze Rojas's aircraft crashed after the plane was given standard gasoline instead of aviation fuel. *On 12 February 1970, Douglas DC-3 TAM-11 crashed while attempting an emergency landing at Laja Airport. The aircraft was operating a non-scheduled passenger flight. All five people on board survived. *On 14 July 1970, Douglas DC-3 TAM-17 was damaged beyond repair in an accident at
El Alto International Airport El Alto International Airport ( es, link=no, Aeropuerto Internacional El Alto) is an international airport serving La Paz, Bolivia. It is located in the city of El Alto, west of La Paz. At an elevation of , it is the highest international ...
, La Paz. *On 4 May 1971,
Douglas C-47 The Douglas C-47 Skytrain or Dakota (Royal Air Force, RAF, Royal Australian Air Force, RAAF, Royal Canadian Air Force, RCAF, Royal New Zealand Air Force, RNZAF, and South African Air Force, SAAF designation) is a airlift, military transport ai ...
TAM-22 crashed shortly after take-off from El Alto Airport, La Paz on a cargo flight to El Jovi Airport. *On 25 September 1972, Douglas C-47A TAM-24 was reported to have been damaged beyond economic repair in an accident at Caranavi Airport. *On 19 January 1974, Douglas DC-3 TAM-30 was damaged beyond economic repair in a wheels-up landing at Laia. *On 11 November 1974, Douglas DC-3 TAM-34 crashed near the Sorata Mountain shortly after take-off from El Alto Airport. *On 27 October 1975, a CV-440 crashed into the Cerro Colorado volcano during takeoff, killing all 4 crew and 63 passengers on board. The aircraft was carrying military officers and their families. *On 18 March 2011, a
Xian MA60 The Xian MA60 (新舟60, ''Xīnzhōu liùshí'', "Modern Ark 60") is a turboprop-powered airliner produced by China's Xi'an Aircraft Industrial Corporation under the Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC). The MA60 is a stretched versio ...
(with Bolivian registration FAB-96) with 33 passengers and crew aboard, performed an emergency landing without locked nose landing gear in the airport of the touristic Amazonian village of Rurrenabaque, on arrival from La Paz. No injuries were reported. *On 9 January 2012 a
Xian MA60 The Xian MA60 (新舟60, ''Xīnzhōu liùshí'', "Modern Ark 60") is a turboprop-powered airliner produced by China's Xi'an Aircraft Industrial Corporation under the Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC). The MA60 is a stretched versio ...
(with Bolivian registration FAB-96) with 16 passengers and 5 crew aboard performed an emergency landing without landing gear lowered at Guayaramerin on arrival from Riberalta. No injuries occurred, but the aircraft was substantially damaged.


References


External links


www.tam.bo
Página Oficial de Transporte Aéreo Militar. (In Spanish)
Fuerza Aérea Boliviana
(The website of the FAB, the Bolivian Air Force). {{DEFAULTSORT:TAM - Transporte Aereo Militar Defunct airlines of Bolivia Airlines established in 1945 Airlines disestablished in 2019 Military airlines 1945 establishments in Bolivia 2019 disestablishments in Bolivia La Paz