PUERTO VALLARTA (PVDN) – Mexico’s President, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, has confirmed that the country’s new airline operated by the Ministry of National Defense (Sedena), ‘Mexicana de Aviación’, is set to begin operations on December 1.
The announcement follows a court ruling stipulating that proceeds from the airline’s purchase will benefit all workers equally. The President expressed his satisfaction with the decision and said that the workers should be pleased, as it means a total payout of approximately a billion pesos.
According to Obrador’s calculations, this ruling could result in each worker receiving a payout of between 60,000 and 100,000 pesos.
As stated by Darío Celis, the specific flight routes of the new Sedena airline are currently under evaluation. The airline is considering a mix of lucrative routes and those with a social connectivity purpose.
Eight routes with proven success are being considered, including Mexico City to Tijuana, Monterrey, Puerto Vallarta, Cancún, Mérida, Los Cabos, and Guadalajara, and a direct flight from Guadalajara to Tijuana.
There’s also interest in serving less populated cities such as Ixtepec, Palenque, Lázaro Cárdenas, and Salinas Cruz, which were recently left without service due to the bankruptcy of Aeromar, as well as Ciudad Victoria, Monclova, and San Luis Potosí.
In October 2022, AMLO pointed out that “there are many places that cannot be reached by plane because they are not served by the current lines.”
The new ‘Mexicana’ will consist of 10 leased aircraft to transport passengers. However, Sedena will not use Airbus aircraft, according to Celis, due to the unavailability of a batch of 10 A320 aircraft. Boeing has indicated its willingness to provide B 737 MAX aircraft, but with certain stipulations, including the crucial AOC guarantee.
In contrast, the Brazilian manufacturer Embraer is expected to pose fewer problems, as the new government of Luiz Ignácio Lula da Silva would facilitate a successful lease contract, Celis added.
