Líneas Aéreas Privadas Argentinas
Template:Short description Template:Use dmy dates Template:Infobox airline Líneas Aéreas Privadas Argentinas (Template:Langx), more commonly known by the acronym LAPA (and known as ARG Argentina Línea Privada and AIRG from 2001 to 2002), was an airline based in Buenos Aires, Argentina. At its heyday, the carrier operated international services to the United States and Uruguay, as well as an extensive domestic network within Argentina. Additionally, the company also operated charter services. Domestic and regional flights were operated from downtown's Aeroparque Jorge Newbery, whereas an international service to Atlanta was operated from Ministro Pistarini International Airport. LAPA was the first carrier to break a monopolistic market controlled by Aerolíneas Argentinas and its sister company Austral Líneas Aéreas, offering competitive prices.
It ceased operations in April 2003 after declaring bankruptcy.<ref>El 20 de abril de 2003 LAPA decretó su quiebra y canceló todos sus vuelos on Radio Perfil</ref>
History
The airline was formed in 1977, initially aimed at providing internal services within the Buenos Aires Province.<ref name="FI1980" /> In May 1978, it was authorised to operate charter services to cities in the Americas,<ref name="FI1980"/> and scheduled services began the following year.<ref name="FI1988" /> By Template:Start date, the major shareholder of the company was Claudio Zichy-Thyssen; the fleet comprised three YS-11As and a Piper Cheyenne that worked on a domestic passenger and cargo network serving Concordia, Ezeiza Airport, Gualeguaychu, La Plata, Necochea, Olavarria, Parana, Pehuajo, San Nicolas and Tres Arroyos.<ref name="FI1980" /> Gustavo Deutsch acquired the company in 1984, when it had a network consisting of two domestic routes served with a single propeller aircraft.<ref name="South by Southwest" />
In January 1987, the airline became the first South American operator of the Saab 340.<ref name="FI1988"/> The carrier started a period of major growth in 1993 when it gained permissions to fly to Bariloche, Córdoba, Iguazú and Mar del Plata. A year later, the route network included 17 destinations, served with three aircraft.<ref name="LAPA tiene el 30% del cabotaje" /> At Template:Start date, LAPA had 60 employees; the fleet consisted of one Beech B-58 Baron, one Beech King Air 500, two Boeing 737s and two Saab 340s that worked on routes to Bariloche, Colonia, Córdoba, Iguazú, Mar del Plata, Mendoza, Montevideo and Villa Gessel.<ref name="FI1995-75" /> LAPA became a Boeing 757 operator in September 1995 when it took possession of its first aircraft of the type.<ref name="LAPA Takes First 757" /> By late 1996, LAPA had a 30% of domestic market share.<ref name="LAPA tiene el 30% del cabotaje" />
Change of ownership and name
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On 27 September 2001 the airline changed its name to ARG Argentina Línea Privada following the acquisition of the company by Eduardo Eurnekian.<ref name="FI2003" />Template:Rp Aircraft were painted in a new livery, displaying the acronym ARG on both sides of the fuselage. This situation prompted an issue with the airline's name, as ARG is the ICAO airline code for Aerolíneas Argentinas. In mid-2002 the name of the airline was changed to AIRG.<ref name="FI2003"/>Template:Rp Bolivian airline AeroSur and four Argentine investors acquired the airline on 29 August 2002,<ref name="FI2003"/>Template:Rp and the original name LAPA was restored.<ref name="FI2003"/>Template:Rp<ref name="AIRG buy brings Aerosur link" />
Downfall and ceased operations
The company filed for bankruptcy protection in May 2001, and ceased operations in April 2003, after three of its five aircraft were repossessed by the lessors.<ref name="LAPA waits on elections"/>
Destinations
The airline had its heyday following the deregulation of the Argentine air market in 1994;<ref name="Pride of Argentina " /> it operated an extensive domestic network, as well as international services to Atlanta, Montevideo and Punta del Este.
The list of destinations served at the time of closure in 2003 were Buenos Aires, Comodoro Rivadavia, Córdoba, El Calafate, Florianópolis, Iguazú, Mendoza, Puerto Madryn, Puerto Montt, Salta, San Carlos de Bariloche, San Juan, San Luis, Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Santiago de Chile, São Paulo, Trelew, Tucumán, and Ushuaia.<ref name="FI2003"/>Template:Rp During the course of its history, LAPA served the following destinations:
| City | Airport code | Airport name | Refs | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| IATA | ICAO | |||
| Template:ARG | ||||
| Bahía Blanca | BHI | SAZB | Comandante Espora Airport | <ref name="FI2000" /> |
| Bariloche | BRC | SAZS | San Carlos de Bariloche Airport | <ref name="FI2003"/>Template:Rp<ref name="FI2000"/> |
| Buenos Aires | AEP | SABE | Aeroparque Jorge Newbery | <ref name="FI2003"/>Template:Rp<ref name="FI2000"/> |
| Buenos Aires | EZE | SAEZ | Ministro Pistarini International Airport | <ref name="FI1980"/><ref name="FI2003"/>Template:Rp<ref name="FI2000"/> |
| Catamarca | CTC | SANC | Coronel Felipe Varela International Airport | <ref name="FI2000"/> |
| Comodoro Rivadavia | CRD | SAVC | General Enrique Mosconi International Airport | <ref name="FI2003"/>Template:Rp<ref name="FI2000"/> |
| Concordia | COC | SAAC | Concordia Airport | <ref name="FI1980"/> |
| Corrientes | CNQ | SARC | Doctor Fernando Piragine Niveyro International Airport | <ref name="FI2000"/> |
| Córdoba | COR | SACO | Ingeniero Aeronáutico Ambrosio L.V. Taravella International Airport | <ref name="FI2003"/>Template:Rp<ref name="FI2000"/> |
| El Calafate | FTE | SAWC | Comandante Armando Tola International Airport | <ref name="FI2003"/>Template:Rp |
| Formosa | FMA | SARF | Formosa International Airport | <ref name="FI2000"/> |
| General Roca | GNR | SAHR | Dr. Arturo Umberto Illia Airport | <ref name="FI2000"/> |
| Gualeguaychú | GHU | SAAG | Gualeguaychú Airport | <ref name="FI1980"/> |
| Iguazú | IGR | SARI | Cataratas del Iguazú International Airport | <ref name="FI2003"/>Template:Rp<ref name="FI2000"/> |
| Jujuy | JUJ | SASJ | Gobernador Horacio Guzmán International Airport | <ref name="FI2000"/> |
| La Plata | LPG | SADL | La Plata Airport | <ref name="FI1980"/> |
| La Rioja | IRJ | SANL | Capitán Vicente Almandos Almonacid Airport | <ref name="FI2000"/> |
| Mar del Plata | MDQ | SAZM | Ástor Piazzolla International Airport | <ref name="FI2000"/> |
| Mendoza | MDZ | SAME | El Plumerillo International Airport | <ref name="FI2003"/>Template:Rp<ref name="FI2000"/> |
| Necochea | NEC | SAZO | Necochea Airport | <ref name="FI1980"/> |
| Neuquén | NQN | SAZN | Presidente Perón International Airport | <ref name="FI2000"/> |
| Olavarría | OVR | SAZF | Olavarria Airport | <ref name="FI1980"/> |
| Paraná | PRA | SAAP | General Justo José de Urquiza Airport | <ref name="FI1980"/> |
| Pehuajó | PEH | SAZP | Comodoro P. Zanni Airport | <ref name="FI1980"/> |
| Posadas | PSS | SARP | Libertador General José de San Martín Airport | <ref name="FI2000"/> |
| Puerto Madryn | PMY | SAVY | El Tehuelche Airport | <ref name="FI2003"/>Template:Rp |
| Resistencia | RES | SARE | Resistencia International Airport | <ref name="FI2000"/> |
| Río Gallegos | RGL | SAWG | Piloto Civil Norberto Fernández International Airport | <ref name="FI2000"/> |
| Río Grande | RGA | SAWE | Hermes Quijada International Airport | <ref name="FI2000"/> |
| Salta | SLA | SASA | Martín Miguel de Güemes International Airport | <ref name="FI2003"/>Template:Rp<ref name="FI2000"/> |
| San Juan | UAQ | SANU | Domingo Faustino Sarmiento Airport | <ref name="FI2003"/>Template:Rp<ref name="FI2000"/> |
| San Luis | LUQ | SAOU | Brigadier Mayor César Raúl Ojeda Airport | <ref name="FI2003"/>Template:Rp<ref name="FI2000"/> |
| Trelew | REL | SAVT | Almirante Marcos A. Zar Airport | <ref name="FI2003"/>Template:Rp<ref name="FI2000"/> |
| Tres Arroyos | OYO | SAZH | Tres Arroyos Airport | <ref name="FI1980"/> |
| Tucumán | TUC | SANT | Teniente General Benjamín Matienzo International Airport | <ref name="FI2003"/>Template:Rp<ref name="FI2000"/> |
| Ushuaia | USH | SAWH | Malvinas Argentinas International Airport | <ref name="FI2003"/>Template:Rp<ref name="FI2000"/> |
| Villa Gesell | VLG | SAZV | Villa Gesell Airport | <ref name="FI2000"/> |
| Villa Mercedes | VME | SAOR | Villa Reynolds Airport | <ref name="FI2000"/> |
| Template:BOL | ||||
| Santa Cruz de la Sierra | VVI | SLVR | Viru Viru International Airport | <ref name="FI2003"/>Template:Rp |
| Template:CHL | ||||
| Puerto Montt | PMC | SCTE | El Tepual Airport | <ref name="FI2003"/>Template:Rp |
| Santiago de Chile | SCL | SCEL | Arturo Merino Benítez International Airport | <ref name="FI2003"/>Template:Rp |
| Template:BRA | ||||
| Florianópolis | FLN | SBFL | Hercílio Luz International Airport | <ref name="FI2003"/>Template:Rp |
| São Paulo | GRU | SBGR | Guarulhos Airport | <ref name="FI2003"/>Template:Rp |
| Template:U.S. | ||||
| Atlanta | ATL | KATL | Hartsfield International Airport | <ref name="FI2000"/><ref name="Routes" /> |
| Template:URU | ||||
| Colonia | CYR | SUCA | Colonia Airport | <ref name="Una empresa que creció y ganó mercado" /> |
| Montevideo | MVD | SUMU | Carrasco International Airport | <ref name="FI2000"/> |
Fleet
Prior to its bankruptcy in April 2003, the most modern aircraft in the fleet, such as the brand-new Boeing 737-700s, Boeing 757-200s, as well as a single Boeing 767-300ER the company flew the Buenos Aires–Atlanta route with, were gradually returned to their lessors throughout 2001 and 2002, as their leases proved too expensive. When LAPA ceased operations in April 2003, only three of its remaining five Boeing 737-200 Advanced were operational.
The company operated the following aircraft throughout its history:<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Template:Div col
- BAC 1-11 400
- Boeing 737-200
- Boeing 737-200 Advanced<ref name="FI2000"/>
- Boeing 737-200C
- Boeing 737-700<ref name="FI2000"/>
- Boeing 757-200<ref name="Argentina's LAPA plans fleet expansion" />
- Boeing 767-300ER<ref name="Argentina's LAPA plans fleet expansion" />
- Embraer EMB 110 Bandeirante<ref>Photography of a LAPA Embraer EMB 110Template:Dead link</ref>
- Piper Cheyenne<ref name="FI1980"/>
- Piper Cheyenne II<ref name="FI1988"/>
- Saab 340<ref name="FI1980"/>
- Short 330<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
- YS-11A-300
Accidents and incidents
{{#invoke:Labelled list hatnote|labelledList|Main article|Main articles|Main page|Main pages}}
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- 31 August 1999: Flight 3142, a Boeing 737-200C,<ref name="ASN">Template:ASN accident</ref> registration LV-WRZ,<ref name="ASN"/> that operated a scheduled Buenos Aires–Córdoba passenger service, crashed during takeoff from Aeroparque Jorge Newbery after it failed to get airborne.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Unable to stop, the aircraft overshot the runway, hit the perimeter fence at a speed greater than Template:Convert, hit a car while crossing an avenue, collided with a wall and heavy construction machinery, came to rest on a golf course, and burst into flames less than a minute later.<ref name="lanacion.com">Template:Cite news</ref> Out of 103 occupants of the plane, 63 died in the accident, plus two ground casualties.<ref name="ASN"/> The accident remains the third deadliest one in the Argentine aviation history, behind Aerolíneas Argentinas Flight 644 and Austral Líneas Aéreas Flight 2553.