The largest airline in South America, LATAM, has started operating flights again between Santiago and Melbourne, reestablishing a direct connection between Victoria, Australia, and South America.
A Boeing 787 Dreamliner made headlines on September 2 when it flew the first direct route from South America to Victoria since 2020.
Initially, flights will leave Santiago, Chile’s capital, on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. They will then fly over the Pacific Ocean to Melbourne, Australia, where they will land the following day.
With services leaving from Melbourne to Santiago on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays, travelers and exporters from the state of Victoria have direct access to LATAM’s international network.
For the service, Boeing 787-9s with 30 business class seats and 283 economy seats are operated.
LATAM offers two 787-9 cabin arrangements. On the Melbourne-Santiago route, the former 2-2-2 business cabin arrangement is still available.
LATAM’s Australian operations were stopped by the pandemic in April 2020. Flights from Sydney via Auckland to Santiago were resumed in March 2022 with three weekly trips, and they increased to daily service by December 2022.
According to Lorie Argus, chief executive officer of Melbourne airport, “the restart of flights to Santiago restores our direct connection to South America and brings the number of international carriers flying into Melbourne back to pre-pandemic levels.”
“Before COVID-19, there were 36 airlines flying into Melbourne Airport for foreign flights, and getting back to that number has required a lot of work from our staff and the Victorian state government. With LATAM’s restoration, our overall international capacity has returned to 97% of its pre-pandemic levels. By the end of the year, we anticipate having reached 100%.Best in Class
Source- Travel daily
Link- https://www.traveldailymedia.com/latam-restarts-melbourne-santiago-service/