Aérolíneas Peruanas
| |||||||
Founded | 1956 | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Commenced operations | 1957 | ||||||
Ceased operations | 1971 | ||||||
Hubs | Lima Airport | ||||||
Headquarters | Lima |
Aérolíneas Peruanas S.A. (also known by the abbreviation APSA or the English translation Peruvian Airlines)[3] was an airline from Peru, serving as flag carrier of the country from 1956 to 1971.[1] Headquartered in Lima, it operated a network of scheduled passenger flights to major places in Latin America, as well as the United States, out of its hub at Lima Airport.[4] In 1967, APSA had around 1,000 employees.[5]
History
Aérolíneas Peruanas was founded by C. W. Shelton in September 1956,[6] with 77 percent of the company's shares spread amongst private Peruvian investors.[5] Flight operations were launched in mid-1957, on the Lima to Santiago and Miami routes.[5] Originally not a member of the International Air Transport Association (IATA was only joined in 1966), APSA could significantly undercut the usual airline fares for flights between South America and the USA.[7] To strengthen its market position, APSA went into a partnership with Transportes Aéreos Nacionales (TAN, from Honduras) and Compañía Ecuatoriana de Aviación (CEA, from Ecuador).[7][2]
The Douglas DC-6 being the aircraft most commonly used with the airline in the early 1960s,[7][8] Aérolíneas Peruanas joined the jet age on 1 December 1963 with the introduction of the Convair 990 Coronado.[9] During that years, the network had been greatly expanded,[4] which culminated in the launch of transatlantic flights using the Douglas DC-8 by the end of the decade.[10][6]
In the early 1970s, Aérolíneas Peruanas found itself in a worsening financial situation. Plans for a take-over by the Peruvian government and Spanish national airline Iberia failed, so that the company was forced to cease all flight operations on 2 May 1971.[11]
Route network
APSA offered scheduled passenger flights to the following destinations:[2][8][12][3][4]
Fleet
Over the years, APSA operated the following aircraft types:[1]
Aircraft | Introduced | Retired |
---|---|---|
Convair 990 Coronado | ||
Curtiss C-46 Commando | ||
Douglas DC-6 | ||
Douglas DC-7 | ||
Douglas DC-8 | ||
Incidents
On 11 January 1969, an Aérolíneas Peruanas Convair 990 Coronado was hijacked en route a flight from Panama City to Miami and forced to divert to Cuba.[18] At that time, such United States-Cuba hijackings had become common occurrences.
References
- 1 2 3 "Aero Transport Data Bank: Aérolíneas Peruanas". Retrieved 20 March 2013.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Aérolíneas Peruanas: 1959 timetable (at timetableimages.com)". Retrieved 20 March 2013.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Aérolíneas Peruanas: 1966 timetable (at timetableimages.com)". Retrieved 20 March 2013.
- 1 2 3 "Aérolíneas Peruanas: 1968 timetable (at timetableimages.com)". Retrieved 20 March 2013.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Directory: World Airlines". Flight International. 13 April 1967. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "Directory: World Airlines". Flight International. 13 May 1971. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
- 1 2 3 4 "Latin American Low Fare Challenge". Flight International. 12 April 1962. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
- 1 2 3 4 5 "Aérolíneas Peruanas: 1960 timetable (at timetableimages.com)". Retrieved 20 March 2013.
- 1 2 "Directory: World Airlines". Flight International. 2 April 1964. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
- 1 2 "Directory: World Airlines". Flight International. 10 April 1969. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
- ↑ "Directory: World Airlines". Flight International. 13 May 1971. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
- ↑ "Aérolíneas Peruanas: 1964 timetable (at timetableimages.com)". Retrieved 20 March 2013.
- 1 2 "Directory: World Airlines". Flight International. 14 April 1966. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
- ↑ "Photo of an Aérolíneas Peruanas DC-8 landing at Gatwick in 1970 (at airliners.net).". Retrieved 20 March 2013.
- ↑ "Directory: World Airlines". Flight International. 18 April 1958. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
- 1 2 "Directory: World Airlines". Flight International. 24 March 1970. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
- ↑ "Directory: World Airlines". Flight International. 8 April 1960. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
- ↑ "Description of the 1969 APSA hijacking". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 20 March 2013.