Mexico’s domestic airline industry in shambles

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico’s domestic airline industry is in shambles, plagued by safety problems, a ratings downgrade by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration, and vandalism.

This week alone, passengers missed connections because thieves cut the fiber optic cables leading into the Mexico City airport, forcing immigration authorities to return to using slow paper forms.

The internet outage Wednesday came almost one month after aviation and transportation authorities were forced to suspend medical, physical and license renewal exams until 2023 because the Transportation Department’s computer systems had been hacked.

After a near-miss between two planes at the Mexico City airport on May 7, things just got worse. Authorities revealed that one of the airport’s main terminals is sinking and needs emergency work to shore it up.

President Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s answer has been to propose allowing foreign airlines to fly domestic routes. But the safety downgrade — the FAA dropped Mexico from Category 1, which most countries have, to the lower Category 2 in 2021 — prevents Mexican airlines from opening new routes to the United States.

Thus, Mexico’s struggling airlines face competition in their home market, with no access to new international routes. Experts say all of it looks like a disaster for domestic aviation, a sector López Obrador had placed special emphasis on developing.

“It is not very encouraging for investment or the prospect of recovering Category 1 in the short or medium term,” aviation expert Rodrigo Soto-Morales wrote in the trade journal a21, referring to the internet outage and hacking.

Authorities said the Mexico City airport internet cables were cut by thieves who mistakenly thought the fiber optic cables were saleable copper. They stressed it happened outside airport property but, in fact, it was a cable conduit that leads directly into the airport from less than a mile away.

Rogelio Rodriguez Garduño, an aviation expert who teaches aeronautical law at Mexico’s National Autonomous University, said the events reflect a decadeslong decay in Mexico’s aviation regulation. Mexico, unlike most countries, doesn’t have an independent aviation agency.

“If something goes wrong, they investigate themselves and say they don’t bear any responsibility,” said Rodriguez Garduño.

It doesn’t bode well for López Obrador’s promise to recover a Category 1 safety rating.

“It seems possible that this is a process where we are taking steps backward,” Rodriguez Garduño said.

Consider the incident on May 7, when a Mexican airliner was cleared to land on a runway where another plane was about to take off. They came within a few hundred yards of each other.

The only person who appears to have been fired for the near-miss was a member of the crew of another plane who filmed the incident on her cellphone, accompanied by the words, “No no no no,” and a phrase roughly equivalent to “unbelievable.”

“The problems we are seeing, for example, in air traffic control where planes are on the verge of colliding … the failure of the immigration system, the problems with training and maintenance supervision, the issuing of permits, it’s a recurring thing that didn’t start yesterday with this administration,” Rodriguez Garduño said, “though this administration also hasn’t taken the necessary steps.”

It is all a strange position for a president who placed so much emphasis on the airline industry that one of his administration’s biggest projects was to build a new Mexico City airport to relieve pressure on the overcrowded old terminal.

López Obrador has asked the army to offer civilian domestic flights, and has publicly stated a desire for a state-run airline in Mexico. But the president does not like spending money on the kind of independent regulatory bodies that many say are needed to ensure safety.

Over the past year, there were at least 17 incidents of ground-proximity warning system alerts for planes approaching the Mexico City airport. The International Air Transport Association, which represents 290 airlines, wrote to the Mexican Airspace Navigation Services expressing concern about the close calls.

“Mexico needs an autonomous agency with legal standing that guarantees independence,” Rodriguez Garduño said.

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico’s domestic airline industry is in shambles, plagued by safety problems, a ratings downgrade by the U.S. Federal Aviation . . .

Follow Us On Google News | Get Our Newsletter



Trending News on PVDN

  • protests3Mexico City Protests: There is a fine line between anti-gentrification and xenophobia The line between anti-gentrification and racism is clear if you choose to see it: genuine activism targets policy and practice, not nationality or ethnicity. I have lived in Mexico for two decades, and I have never witnessed the level of anti-American sentiment that exists today. All of it is tied to the buzzword "gentrification," a…
  • puerto vallarta lettersPuerto Vallarta needs a new image to create meaningful reasons for travelers to visit Business leaders at Jalisco Tourism Secretariat forums stressed the need for renewing Puerto Vallarta image and diversifying attractions to appeal to national and international markets. Local business leaders and tourism specialists agreed this week that Puerto Vallarta needs a fresh look and a broader range of attractions to compete at home and abroad. In a…
  • puerto-vallarta-police-chase-bahia-de-banderasPuerto Vallarta police chase ends in deadly collision in Bahía de Banderas A Puerto Vallarta police chase along Highway 200 ended in a deadly collision in Bahía de Banderas, leaving two people dead. A high-speed chase that began in Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco, and ended in Bahía de Banderas, Nayarit, left at least two people dead and raised new questions about police engagement and road safety in the…
  • Where do foreigners come from and where do they live in MexicoMexico City Protest on July 5 Challenges Gentrification and Airbnb’s Impact on Housing Residents of Roma and Condesa will gather at Parque México on July 5 to protest gentrification, rising rents, and Airbnb’s effect on local housing. This Saturday, July 5, Mexico City will witness its first organized citizen protest against gentrification—a peaceful but urgent gathering taking place at 3:30 p.m. at the Lindbergh Forum in Parque México,…
  • puerto-vallarta-rainfall-hurricane-flossie-july-2025Puerto Vallarta braces for torrential rains as Hurricane Flossie gains strength Puerto Vallarta faces a high risk of flooding as Hurricane Flossie intensifies in the Pacific. Torrential rains and overwhelmed drainage systems pose major challenges for the city. Puerto Vallarta, a city wedged between the Sierra Madre mountains and the Pacific Ocean, is no stranger to dramatic weather shifts—but this summer, the skies are testing the…
  • protestProtest graffiti and smashed windows mars anti-gentrification rally in Mexico City Residents and activists joined an anti-gentrification rally in Mexico Park, but the anti-gentrification rally Mexico Park turned destructive as masked youths defaced local shops and broke windows. A rally against gentrification held yesterday in Mexico City’s Parque México drew residents from Juárez, Roma, Condesa and Hipódromo alongside local activists. Organizers billed it as the city’s…
  • Body with signs of crocodile attack found in Ameca River, a leg was found last monthPurple Flag Warns Beachgoers after Crocodile at Los Muertos Beach Authorities raised a purple flag after a crocodile at Los Muertos Beach was spotted swimming near shore, advising visitors to avoid entering the water until safety checks ended. Local authorities recorded a crocodile swimming in the vicinity of Los Muertos Beach, one of Puerto Vallarta’s busiest tourist spots. Lifeguards spotted the reptile in shallow water…
  • mexico city real estateGentrification in Mexico City is not the reason for the high cost of housing City housing shortage, not gentrification, drives prices skyward as planning lags behind demand and foreigner influence remains minimal. High real estate costs in Mexico City stem from a deep and persistent housing shortage—exacerbated by land constraints, tangled regulations and speculative investment—rather than by the presence of foreign residents. Despite headlines blaming “gentrification,” foreign-born residents make…
  • puerto vallarta loses three blue flag beachesPuerto Vallarta retains four Blue Flag Beaches, down from eight Puerto Vallarta will enter the 2025–2026 season with four international Blue Flag distinctions in Puerto Vallarta, even after tourism-driven environmental damage cost it half of its previous honors. The Foundation for Environmental Education (FEE) in Mexico confirmed that three resort flags will be revalidated at Marriott Puerto Vallarta Resort & Spa, The Westin Resort &…
  • cancun-beaches-50-tons-sargassum-cleanupSargassum in Quintana Roo Hits 76 Beaches from Cancun to Tulum, Only 24 Clean Beaches Sargassum in Quintana Roo has reached moderate to excessive levels on 76 beaches—including Cancun—as cleanup crews race to protect tourism and coastal ecosystems. A recent survey from the Quintana Roo Sargassum Monitoring Network and the Sargassum Citizen Observatory shows 76 out of 100 beaches on the state’s Caribbean coast now face moderate to excessive seaweed…
Scroll to Top