Avianca

Avianca
The Airline of the Americas
IATA ICAO Call sign
AV AVA AVIANCA
FoundedDecember 5, 1919 (1919-12-05) (as SCADTA)
AOC #ANCF173C
HubsBogotá
Secondary hubs
Focus cities
Frequent-flyer programLifeMiles
AllianceStar Alliance
SubsidiariesHelicol
Fleet size128
Destinations74
Parent companyAvianca Group
Headquarters
Key people
Operating income COP 100.3 B (FY 2019 Q3)
Total assets COP 2.403.632 M (FY 2008)
Employees9853 (2020)
Websitewww.avianca.com

Avianca S.A. (acronym in Spanish for Aerovias de Colombia S.A., "Airways of Colombia", and stylized as avianca since October 2023) is the largest airline in Colombia. It has been the flag carrier of Colombia since December 5, 1919, when it was initially registered under the name SCADTA. It is headquartered in Colombia, with its registered office in Barranquilla and its global headquarters in Bogotá and main hub at El Dorado International Airport. Avianca is the flagship of a group of airlines of the Americas, which operates as one airline using a codesharing system. Avianca is the largest airline in Colombia and second largest in South America, after LATAM of Chile. Avianca and its subsidiaries have the most extensive network of destinations in the Americas. Before the merger with TACA in 2010, it was wholly owned by Synergy Group, a South American holding company established by Germán Efromovich and specializing in air transport. It is listed on the Colombia Stock Exchange.

Through SCADTA, Avianca is the world's second oldest extant airline after KLM and celebrated its 100th anniversary in December 2019. It is the oldest airline in the Western Hemisphere. It became a member of Star Alliance on June 21, 2012, after a process that lasted approximately 18 months from the initial announcement of its invitation to join the alliance. On May 10, 2020, Avianca filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in a court in New York City, and liquidated its subsidiary Avianca Perú, due to the COVID-19 pandemic crisis.