Leasing Airbus A330 aircraft to connect the Azores with North America during the summer is a “very profitable solution”, the head of SATA said today, revealing that there is “high demand” for the aircraft.
Speaking to the Luza news agency, Luis Rodriguez said the company will lease an Airbus A330 from Spanish airline Plus Ultra Lineas Aria, which will “essentially” serve to connect Oakland, California with the Azorean archipelago.
“The bottom line is connecting Oakland. Depending on the current demand, there’s a lot of demand right now, and that makes us very happy that it can fill Boston, mainly with Ponta Delgada. And Terceira,” he said.
Recalling that in recent years SATA had “rented a plane for two months” in the summer to ensure connectivity to North America, the SATA board chairman said he had “no doubt” that renting was “a very profitable solution”. Azorean Company.
“This is the move that connects Oakland to Terceira every summer. We don’t have the aircraft to do that. It’s a very long road. This could be done using a fraction of the fleet, but it would require technology. Stop in Toronto. We will spend a lot more money,” he reasoned.
Without giving details of the sums involved in the process, the head of SATA assured that the lease “costs less than the revenue it generates” and that it is a “normal and peaceful option”.
“It is a well-researched activity. We considered three options. It is very economical and efficient. We did all the math we needed to do, with all the assumptions. We’ve already started getting pictures of the store. “Oakland is full of people wanting to buy tickets for the summer,” he asserted.
Regarding the prices of flights between Boston and the Azores for the summer, which are criticized by the Portuguese community in the US, the head of the airline felt that “specific comparisons” were being used. General.
“SATA is by no means a monopoly. People can come up with other routes, and if they do the exercise they need to do, they’ll find it more expensive than the SATA route. During that period, SATA was cheaper. Will,” he asserted.
On Monday, Portuguese communities in North America criticized the “severe increase” in airfares charged by Azorean airline SATA, denouncing it as a “wrong move” and an “opportunistic abuse of a public service monopoly”.
Today, Luis Rodríguez warned that SATA “cannot favor some over others” or create “preferential tariffs” for non-residents because “market rules do not allow it.
“We have a higher booking rate than in 2022, with a large advance purchase. The world seems to be returning to normal, which is a good thing. Demand is increasing,” he pointed out, “and prices are. Everything adds up.”
“We are not the ones who said that. For example, the people at Ryanair are the same as every other airline in the world. Costs have skyrocketed. There is no magic,” he emphasized.
In a note to which Lusa had access, the Regional Council of North America of the Council of Portuguese Communities (CRAN/CCP) highlighted the prices of air tickets between Boston and the Azores, which at the height of the summer “increased by 200. %”.