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'{{refimprove|date=January 2014}} {{Infobox Airline | airline = Conviasa | logo = Logo conviasa.png | logo_size = 300 | fleet_size = 27 | destinations = 22 | IATA = V0 | ICAO = VCV | callsign = CONVIASA | parent = {{nowrap|[[Ministry of Aquatic and Air Transport]]}} | company_slogan = ''El placer de volar'' <br>(the pleasure of flying) | founded = 31 March 2004 | headquarters = [[Maiquetía]], [[Venezuela]] | key_people = {{nowrap|Luis Gustavo Graterol Caraballo, [[CEO]]}} | hubs = {{nowrap|[[Simón Bolívar International Airport (Venezuela)|Simón Bolívar International Airport]]}} | focus_cities = [[Santiago Mariño International Airport]] | frequent_flyer = Infinito | lounge = | alliance = | website = [http://www.conviasa.aero conviasa.aero] }} '''Conviasa''' (legally '''Con'''sorcio '''V'''enezolano de '''I'''ndustrias '''A'''eronáuticas y '''S'''ervicios '''A'''éreos, S.A.) is an [[airline]] with its headquarters on the grounds of [[Simón Bolívar International Airport (Venezuela)|Simón Bolívar International Airport]] in [[Maiquetía]], [[Venezuela]], near [[Caracas]].<ref name="FI">{{Cite news| title= Directory: World Airlines | work= [[Flight International]] | page= 68 | date= 3 April 2007}}</ref> It is the [[flag carrier]] and largest airline of Venezuela, operating services to domestic destinations and to destinations in the Caribbean and South America. ==History== ===Early years=== [[File:ConViasa 737-200 YV101T.jpg|thumb|right|A former Conviasa [[Boeing 737-200]]]] In January 1997, Venezuela's former [[flag carrier]], [[Viasa]], ceased operations after 37 years of service due to prolonged financial problems. In May 2001, the idea to create a new flag carrier for Venezuela was proposed, but in December 2002, the project was put on hold until 1 October 2003. On 30 March 2004, then [[President of Venezuela]], [[Hugo Chávez]], signed a decree that formally established the airline. This decree was published in the nation's official gazette the next day. On 28 November 2004, Conviasa's inaugural flight was made with a [[De Havilland Canada Dash 7]] aircraft flying from the airport in Charallave to the [[Santiago Mariño International Airport]], on [[Isla Margarita|Margarita Island]]. On 10 December 2004, Conviasa formally began its national and international operations. Conviasa was originally run by the now defunct Ministry of Production and Commerce (''Ministerio de la Producción y el Comercio''), but it has since been taken over by the Ministry of Infrastructure.<ref>[http://www.conviasa.aero/interna.php?id=10 ] {{wayback|url=http://www.conviasa.aero/interna.php?id=10 |date=20080414063530 }}</ref> On 17 April 2006, [[José David Cabello|José David Cabello Rondon]] replaced Wilmer Castro Sotelo as head of Conviasa. On 30 June 2006, Jose David Cabello Rondon replaced Ramon Alonzo Carrizalez Rengifo as the Minister of Infrastructure and on 18 July 2006, Franklin Fernandez Martinez became president of Conviasa. ===Development since the 2010s=== Following the [[Conviasa Flight 2350|Flight 2350 crash]], on September 17, 2010, the government of Venezuela grounded all Conviasa flights so that it could perform a technical review of the airline's fleet. The airline said that the temporary suspension would remain in effect until October 1, 2010. Flights have since been re-instated. Decree No. 7838 of the Official Gazette No. 39,558 published on Wednesday, provides for the appointment of Colonel citizen (AVB) Jesús Rafael Viñas García, President of the Venezuelan Consortium Trading Company Aircraft Industries and Air Services SA (CONVIASA) under the Ministry of Popular Power for Transportation and Communications. On 3 April 2012, Conviasa has been [[List of air carriers banned in the European Union|banned]] from flying to countries in the European Union because of safety concerns. It said that Conviasa failed to show it had taken adequate steps to prevent future accidents, but had this restriction lifted on 10 July 2013.<ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/04/world/americas/venezuela-airline-banned-by-europe.html?_r=1&ref=americas | work=The New York Times | first=William | last=Neuman | title=Venezuela: Airline Banned by Europe | date=4 April 2012}}</ref><ref>"[http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-07-10/eu-removes-philippine-air-conviasa-from-access-blacklist.html EU Removes Philippine Air, Conviasa From Access Blacklist]" Bloomberg, 10 July 2013</ref> Conviasa is under the authority of the [[Ministry of Aquatic and Air Transport]].<ref>"[http://www.mpptaa.gob.ve/images/organigrama1.png Organigrama]." ([http://www.webcitation.org/66zI1eTq8 Archive]) [[Ministry of Aquatic and Air Transport]]. Retrieved on April 17, 2012.</ref> The airline is owned by the Venezuelan government (80%) and the regional government of [[Nueva Esparta]] (20%). Conviasa has its headquarters on the grounds of [[Simón Bolívar International Airport (Venezuela)|Simón Bolívar International Airport]] in [[Maiquetía]], [[Venezuela]], near [[Caracas]].<ref>"[http://www.conviasa.aero/eng/contactos/contactos.php Contacts]." Conviasa. Retrieved on May 9, 2010. {{dead link|date=June 2016|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref><ref>"[http://www.conviasa.aero/media/sede.php Sede Principal]." Conviasa. Retrieved on May 9, 2010. "Av. Intercomunal Aeropuerto Internacional de Maiquetía Edf. Sector 6.3, Zona Estratégica, Lado Este del Aeropuerto Internacional de Maiquetía, Adyacente a Tránsito Terrestre. Venezuela."</ref> Originally Conviasa had its headquarters on [[Margarita Island]].<ref>[[Bloomberg News]] and Wire Reports. "[http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/sun_sentinel/access/576313941.html?dids=576313941:576313941&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Mar+12%2C+2004&author=Bloomberg+News+and+Wire+reports&pub=South+Florida+Sun+-+Sentinel&desc=GLOBAL+BUSINESS&pqatl=google GLOBAL BUSINESS]." ''[[South Florida Sun]]''. March 12, 2004. 3D. Retrieved on May 9, 2010. "Conviasa which will have headquarters on the tourist island of Margarita."</ref> At one time Conviasa had its headquarters in the East Tower of Parque Central in [[Caracas]].<ref>"[http://web.archive.org/web/20070711062654/www.conviasa.aero/contactos/contactos.php Contactos]." Conviasa. July 11, 2007. Retrieved on May 9, 2010. "Dirección Sede Principal Av. Lecuna, Parque Central, Torre Oeste, Piso 49, Caracas, Venezuela."</ref> In August 2016, it has been reported that over 80 percent of Conviasa pilots quit their jobs due to low and outstanding payments and the airline had to reduce operations down to around 16 flights per day subsequently. Additionally, several of the company's aircraft have been stored unused since several months.<ref>[http://www.aerotelegraph.com/pilotenmangel-bringt-conviasa-in-schwierigkeiten aerotelegraph.com - "Pilot shortage puts Conviasa into struggle"] (German) 17 August 2016</ref> ==Destinations== {{norefs|section|date=May 2016}} Conviasa operates the following services ({{as of|2013|12|9|lc=on}}):{{fact|date=May 2016}} *'''[[Argentina]] **[[Buenos Aires]] - [[Ezeiza Airport]] *'''[[Colombia]] **[[Bogota]] - [[El Dorado International Airport]] *'''[[Cuba]] **[[Havana]] - [[José Martí International Airport]] *'''[[Dominica]] **[[Melville Hall Airport]] *'''[[Grenada]] **[[Maurice Bishop International Airport]] *'''[[Nicaragua]] **[[Managua]] - [[Augusto C. Sandino International Airport]] *'''[[Panama]] **[[Panama City]] - [[Tocumen International Airport]] *'''[[Spain]] **[[Madrid]] - [[Barajas Airport]] (operated by [[Orbest]]) *'''[[Trinidad and Tobago]] **[[Port of Spain]] - [[Piarco International Airport]] *'''[[Venezuela]] **[[Barcelona, Anzoátegui|Barcelona]] - [[Generál José Antonio Anzoátegui International Airport]] **[[Barinas, Barinas|Barinas]] - [[Barinas Airport]] **[[Cabimas]] - [[Oro Negro Airport]] **[[Caracas]] - [[Simón Bolívar International Airport (Venezuela)|Simón Bolívar International Airport]] '''Hub''' **[[Santa Ana de Coro|Coro]] - [[José Leonardo Chirinos Airport]] **[[Alberto Adriani Municipality|El Vigía]], [[Mérida (state)|Mérida]] - [[Juan Pablo Pérez Alfonso Airport]] **[[La Fria]] - [[La Fria Airport]] **[[Paraguaná Peninsula|Las Piedras]] - [[Josefa Camejo International Airport]] **[[Maracaibo]] - [[La Chinita International Airport]] **[[Maturín]] - [[Maturín Airport]] **[[Porlamar]] - [[Del Caribe International General Santiago Marino Airport]] **[[Puerto Ayacucho]] - [[Cacique Aramare Airport]] **[[Puerto Ordaz]] - [[Manuel Carlos Piar Guayana Airport]] **[[Santo Domingo, Venezuela|Santo Domingo]] - [[Mayor Buenaventura Vivas Airport]] **[[Valera]] - [[Dr. Antonio Nicolás Briceno Airport]] ==Fleet== [[File:Conviasa_Embraer_190AR_taking_off_at_Caracas.jpg|thumb|thumb|Conviasa [[Embraer 190]]]] The Conviasa fleet includes the following aircraft (August 2015):<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ch-aviation.ch/airlinepage.php?code1=CVA |title=Conviasa |publisher=ch-aviation.ch |date= |accessdate=2013-08-31}}</ref><ref>[http://www.planespotters.net/Airline/Conviasa Planespotters.net page for Conviasa]</ref> <div class="center"> {| class="toccolours" border="1" cellpadding="3" style="border-collapse:collapse" |+ '''Conviasa Fleet''' |- style="background:orange;" ! Aircraft ! In Fleet ! Orders ! Passengers ! Notes |- |[[ATR-42|ATR 42-400]] |2 |&mdash; |46 |1 stored |- |[[ATR-72|ATR 72-200]] |2 |&mdash; |70 | |- |[[Boeing 747-400]] |1 |&mdash; |477 |Leased from [[Wamos Air]] |- |[[Cessna 208 Caravan]] |7 |3 |12 | |- |[[Canadair Regional Jet|CRJ-700ER]] |3 |&mdash; |78 | |- |[[Embraer 190]] |17 |3 |114 | |- !Total !28 |7 |colspan="2"| |- |} </div> ==Incidents and accidents== *On 15 December 2005, Conviasa flight 2600, a De Havilland Canada Dash 7 with 36 passengers and 4 crew members on board, was forced to make a [[belly landing]] at Porlamar's airport when the landing gear failed to deploy. After circling Porlamar for an hour and a half to burn off fuel, the aircraft touched down without any injuries.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.primera-clase.com/2005/12/16/avion-de-conviasa-aterrizo-de-emergencia-en-aeropuerto-de-margarita/ |title=Avión de Conviasa aterrizó de emergencia en aeropuerto de Margarita |publisher=Primera-clase.com |date= |accessdate=2013-08-31}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rescate.com/conviasa.html |title=ATERRIZAJE DE EMERGENCIA DEL YV-1003 EN MARGARITA, VENEZUELA |publisher=Rescate.com |date= |accessdate=2013-08-31}}</ref> *On 30 August 2008, a Boeing 737-200 took off from Caracas's Maiquetia airport, Venezuela, and was bound to Latacunga, Ecuador, 80 kilometers (50 miles) south of Quito. Three crew members (a captain, a first officer and a mechanic) were on board. The plane crashed in mountainous area in Ecuador’s Andes, killing all the three people on board. The Boeing 737 had been stored for a while at Caracas. It was being ferried to Latacunga, reportedly underway to a new owner. *On 13 September 2010, [[Conviasa Flight 2350|Flight 2350]], an [[ATR 42-300]] (registration YV1010), with 47 passengers and 4 crew on board, crashed shortly before landing. It was a domestic scheduled passenger flight from [[Del Caribe "Santiago Mariño" International Airport]], [[Porlamar]], [[Isla Margarita]] to [[Manuel Carlos Piar Guayana Airport]], [[Ciudad Guayana]].<ref name=BBC11289500>{{Cite news|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-11289500 |title=Plane crashes in eastern Venezuela |publisher=BBC News Online |accessdate=13 September 2010 |date=14 September 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.avherald.com/h?article=430e1137&opt=4096| title=Crash: Conviasa AT42 near Puerto Ordaz on Sep 13th 2010, impacted terrain |publisher=Aviation Herald |date=2010-09-13 |accessdate=2010-09-13}}</ref> There were 34 survivors and 17 fatalities.<ref name=conviasa01>{{cite web| title = Aumentan a 17 fallecidos por accidente de avión de Conviasa - El Universal Venezuela.| url = http://www.eluniversal.com/2010/09/14/suc_ava_aumentan-a-17--falle_14A4468055.shtml| language=Spanish |accessdate =14 September 2010}}</ref> ==References== {{Reflist|2}} ==External links== {{Commons category inline}} *{{es icon}} [http://www.conviasa.aero Conviasa] *{{es icon}} [http://www.tsj.gov.ve/gaceta/Marzo/310304/310304-37910-07.html Part one of the decree that created Conviasa] *{{es icon}} [http://www.tsj.gov.ve/gaceta/Marzo/310304/310304-37910-08.html Part two of the decree that created Conviasa] *{{en icon}} [http://web.archive.org/web/*/www.conviasa.aero/eng/index.php Conviasa] (Archive) *{{en icon}} [http://web.archive.org/*/www.conviasa.aero/eng/ Conviasa] (Archive 2) {{Portalbar|Venezuela|Companies|Aviation}} {{Airlines of Venezuela}} [[Category:Airlines of Venezuela]] [[Category:Airlines established in 2004]] [[Category:Government-owned airlines]] [[Category:2004 establishments in Venezuela]] [[Category:Vargas (state)]] [[Category:Venezuelan brands]]'