Venezolana Internacional de Aviación Sociedad Anónima (English: JSC Venezuelan International Airways), or VIASA for short, was the Venezuelanflag carrier airline between 1960 and 1997.[1] It was headquartered in the Torre Viasa in Caracas.[2][3] Launched in November 1960 (1960-11),[4] it was nationalised in 1975 due to financial problems, and re-privatised in 1991, with the major stake going to Iberia. The company ceased operations in January 1997 (1997-01), and went into liquidation.
Viasa was envisioned by the government of Venezuela in 1959 to create a new company that could serve as the country's flag carrier and run without government intervention. It was set up in 1960 when the international routes operated by Línea Aeropostal Venezolana (LAV) and Avensa were merged and taken over by the newly created carrier.[5][6] The government contributed with 55% of the capital, while private investors – among which were LAV and Avensa, the latter owned by Grupo Boulton and Pan American World Airways—contributed with the remainder.[5] The board of directors came entirely from the private sector.[citation needed] The first president of the airline was Mr. R. van den Branden;[5] the first chairman of the board was Mr. Oscar Augusto Machado Zuloaga, a very competent and well liked gentleman, who was instrumental in Viasa's commercial success and immediate acceptance by the market.
In early 1961, the airline signed an agreement with KLM to operate a Douglas DC-8 on Viasa's behalf, aimed at starting operations to Europe in April that year;[5][7] KLM maintained a nurturing relationship with Viasa for another 24 years. In the same year, Avensa transferred two Douglas DC-6Bs to the company, as well as an order for a Convair 880-22M.[8] Viasa boosted their Convair 880 order by purchasing another one. The airline flew the type mostly on routes to North America.[9][10][11] Also in 1961, the airline joined the International Air Transport Association, becoming its 89th member.[12] In 1963, Viasa started a commercial agreement with Iberia and KLM for operations through the mid-Atlantic.[13] The same year, a third Convair 880 was ordered.[9] Until the first DC-8-50 the company had ordered in early 1965 was delivered, long-haul services using the type were provided with wet-leased aircraft from KLM.[14] The type was also chartered from KLM for deployment on the Caribbean routes.[15] By April 1966 (1966-04), the first DC-8-50 was already forming part of the company's fleet along with the three Convair 880s, while an additional DC-8-50 was on order.[16] To complement these two DC-8-50s, the carrier ordered two Douglas DC-8-63s in early 1967.[17] Two Convair 880s were sold to Cathay Pacific in mid-1967.[18] Also in 1967, Viasa started up a Panamanian airline named Panameña Internacional de Aviación SA (PAISA), with KLM support; This company began operations on 3 May 1967 with two DC-9-10s leased to VIASA from Avensa, which were in turn sub-leased to PAISA.[19] In 1968, VIASA set up a wholly owned, non-IATA member, national cargo airline named Transportes Aereos de Carga SA, more commonly known as Transcarga, which in its beginnings served Caracas, Curaçao, Maracaibo, Miami and New York.[20]
VIASA leased this Boeing 747-200B from KLM in 1972. The aircraft wore a mixed livery during the lease agreement, with the port side in KLM colours and its starboard with a VIASA decor.[21][22]
In March 1970, the Government of Venezuela had a majority stake (55%) in the carrier, while the balance was held by private investors.[23]: 508 Viasa's fleet strength at this time was eight: two DC-8-63s, two DC-8-50s, a DC-8-50F, a Convair 880, and two DC-9-10s.[23]: 509 In November 1971 (1971-11) Viasa renewed the pool agreement with KLM and Iberia on their Caribbean–Europe services;[24] to this purpose the company signed another agreement with the Dutch company in 1972, this time for the lease of a Boeing 747-200B that was put on service on a weekly round-trip Caracas–Madrid–Paris flight in April 1972 (1972-04).[22] This event was a milestone for Viasa, as it became the first South American carrier to operate wide-body aircraft across the Atlantic.[22] Through KLM, the company also placed an order for two McDonnell Douglas DC-10s the same year, and bought two Douglas DC-8-33s from the Dutch carrier as well.[22][25] Also in 1972, the route network saw the incorporation of Washington and Toronto, Ontario, Canada.[22]
With the lease of a Douglas DC-8-50 from KLM in 1974, and the sale of two aircraft of the same type to Aeroperú the same year,[26][27] by March 1975 (1975-03) the Viasa's fleet consisted of two DC-8-63s, one DC-8-50, two DC-8-30s, and one DC-10-30, while another DC-10-30 was yet to be delivered.[28]: 510 At a cost of US$30,000,000 (equivalent to $160,631,579 in 2023), another DC-10-30 was ordered in 1976, followed by an order for three more of these aircraft in July 1977 (1977-07).[29][30]
Viasa had been a model of good management and it had returned a profit every year since its creation. Viasa posted its first ever loss for the October 1975 – September 1976 fiscal year, plagued by rising fuel costs and union problems. The government nationalised the airline and began its downturn. This was not noticeable at first, since Venezuela's strong economy was backed by high oil revenue and the government did not mind pumping in money to cover mounting losses.
By 1979, Viasa had built a fleet of 6 DC-10-30s, 2 DC-8-63s, 2 DC-8-53s and 1 DC-8-63F.
In the summer of 1982, Viasa leased a couple of MD-82s from KLM for Caribbean routes and for new flights from Barquisimeto, Barcelona and Porlamar to Miami. These were returned to KLM in 1984.
In 1985, Viasa got rid of all its DC-8s plus one DC-10-30 and kept just five DC-10-30s. It revamped its livery almost completely in 1986, adopting a whiter body with three-tone blue cheatlines under the windows. The orange tail retained the white Viasa letters adopted in 1978 with the arrival of DC-10-30 YV-135C.
Two former LufthansaAirbus A300-B4 jets were leased from GPA in 1987 for United States and South American services. In the same year, for the first time ever, VIASA began domestic services and made use of empty seats on the Caracas-Maracaibo and Caracas-Porlamar routes.
Privatisation
A VIASA McDonnell Douglas DC-10-30 at Charles de Gaulle Airport in 1996. The aircraft is wearing the livery used by the company throughout the Iberia management.
The red ink continued to flow and, with the new government policies adopted in 1989, Viasa became a target for privatisation.[citation needed] The initial plans of the government were to allocate 60% of the company to private investors, keep 20% of the shares, and transfer the balance to the airline workers. In June 1991 (1991-06), Iberia and KLM were approved as bidders in the privatisation process, the former teaming up with Venezuela's Banco Provincial, and the latter partnering with Northwest Airlines and other four local entities.[35] Iberia was the only bidder left with a US$145.5 million offer, after KLM stepped aside citing that a price of US$81 million for 60% of the shares was too high.[36]
Iberia apparently milked the airline (some Venezuelans point at this as one of Viasa's causes of bankruptcy). While it could be argued that it was not wise to sell a government owned leasing company to another government owned leasing company, changing the old ways of Viasa was an uphill battle.
All its aircraft were placed under Iberia's ownership, the Airbuses were sent back to GPA, former Iberia 727s were used by Viasa (competing on the US routes versus American's 757s or A300-600s and United's 757s) and all supplies were purchased centrally through Madrid.
Short of liquidity, Viasa ceased operations on 23 January 1997 (1997-01-23).[37][38][39] Operations came to a halt following the pilots and cabin crew staff rejecting a restructuring plan raised by Iberia and the state-run holding company that had a 40% interest in Viasa at that time, with both consortiums refusing to inject more cash into the airline.[37] Shareholders, with Iberia being the major one having 45% of the stakes at the time, later decided to liquidate the carrier.[39][40] Viasa's routes were divided between Aeropostal, Avensa and Aserca.[41]
The airline's livery consisted of silver on the belly, white on the top part of the fuselage color, with orange and blue cheatlines that went all the way to the start of the tail. The fuselage featured the name Viasa written in orange on top of the cheatlines. The tail was all orange, with the name Viasa in white. After Iberia took over, all the fuselage went white, and so did the tail. The cheatlines were made thicker around the plane's cockpit, to resemble Iberia's planes.
Accidents and incidents
According to Aviation Safety Network, Viasa experienced five accidents/incidents events throughout its history, with two of them being deadly ones, yielding a combined death toll of 216 fatalities, plus a hijacking episode.[50] The two deadly accidents occurred with leased aircraft.[50] Following is a list of the events that carried with the hull-loss of the aircraft involved. The worst accident experienced by the company, and also the worst aviation disaster at the time it took place, occurred in March 1969 (1969-03), and killed all 84 occupants of the aircraft plus 71 people on the ground.[51]
The aircraft, leased from KLM, was due to operate the third leg of an international scheduled Rome–Madrid–Lisbon–Santa Maria–Caracas passenger service as Flight 897, when it plunged into the sea shortly after takeoff from Portela Airport, 3 km (1.9 mi) east-northeast of Fonte da Telha.
The aircraft was destroyed by fire while undergoing maintenance at Schiphol Airport owing to an explosion in one of its engines. The aircraft was on lease from KLM.
Leased from AVENSA, the aircraft was due to operate the second leg of an international scheduled Caracas–Maracaibo–Miami passenger service as Flight 742, when it performed a long take-off at Grano de Oro Airport, hit powerlines, and plunged into a nearby crowded neighborhood of the city. All 84 occupants of the aircraft perished in the accident, plus 71 people on the ground.
Inbound from Caracas as Flight 940, the aircraft started aquaplaning immediately after touchdown in bad weather at Ezeiza Airport. Overran the runway threshold by 180 m (590 ft). The nosegear collapsed, causing both port and starboard engines to strike the ground.
^"Brevities". Flight: 933. 9 December 1960. Archived from the original on 7 April 2014. Retrieved 2 January 2013. An airline merger is reported from Venezuela: LAV and Avensa are to be merged together as VIASA.
^"Brevities". Flight: 226. 17 February 1961. Archived from the original on 19 February 2014. Retrieved 2 January 2013. KLM has signed an agreement with VIASA of Venezuela for technical, operational and commercial co-operation. VIASA is to lease a KLM DC-8 with crew for services between Caracas and Rome, Paris, London and Amsterdam next April.
^"World airlines survey...—Aerovias Venezonalas SA – AVENSA". Flight: 483. 13 April 1961. Archived from the original on 2 January 2013. Retrieved 2 January 2013. The international services of AVENSA and LAV have now been merged to form VIASA, in which AVENSA has a small holding, and to which the two DC-6Bs and the Convair 880 on order are now transferred.
^ ab"New 880 Order". Flight International: 134. 24 January 1963. Archived from the original on 6 November 2012. Retrieved 2 January 2013. Viasa has purchased a third Convair 880M for delivery in April. The airline's two 880s link Caracas with New York, Miami and New Orleans.
^"Brevities". Flight. 79 (2715): 385. 23 March 1961. Archived from the original on 24 December 2013. The new Venezuelan international airline Viasa has ordered a second Convair 880-M. The first will be delivered in May and the second in September, and they will be used for services from Caracas to New York, Miami/New Orleans, and Bogota/Lima.
^"Brevities". Flight. 79 (2724): 725. 25 May 1961. Archived from the original on 22 February 2014. VIASA has become an active member of IATA, bringing the total membership to 89.
^"DC-8-63s for VIASA". Flight International: 193. 9 February 1967. Retrieved 8 December 2011. Two DC-8-63s, the capacity and range-stretched variant in the 60 series, have been ordered by VIASA, of Venezuela. Deliveries are scheduled for late 1968 and early 1969. VIASA already has two DC-8-50s in operation.
^"MARKET MOVEMENTS". Flight International: 885. 1 June 1967. Retrieved 8 December 2011. Cathay Pacific has bought VIASA's two Convair 880s to bring its fleet of this type to six.
^"Air Transport..."Flight International. 101 (3285): 284. 24 February 1972. Archived from the original on 2 March 2014. Retrieved 9 January 2010. The Venezuelan national carrier, Viasa, is leasing this KLM 747B for use on the Caracas-Paris route. But the Dutch airline will also be using the aircraft, which still carries KLM colours on the port side
^"Viasa Buys DC-10s". Flight International: 516. 20 April 1972. Retrieved 4 January 2012. The Venezuelan national carrier Viasa is to buy two McDonnell Douglas DC-10-30s, previously taken on option by KLM.
^"Airliner market". Flight International: 310. 30 July 1977. Retrieved 6 January 2012. Venezuelan flag carrier Viasa is doubling its McDonnell Douglas DC-10-30 fleet with an order for three of the type.
^"Airliner market". Flight International: 1481. 5 June 1976. Retrieved 6 January 2012. Viasa of Venezuela has ordered a third McDonnell Douglas DC-10-30 for delivery next April. Cost is $30 million.
^"Marketplace". Flight International: 170. 22 January 1983. Archived from the original on 7 April 2014. Retrieved 2 January 2013. Viasa, the Venezuelan flag carrier, has received two McDonnell Douglas DC-9 Super 80s under a previously unannounced order. This order brings to 23 the number of airlines to order the type. Viasa's Super 80s are to be used on its short-to-medium international routes from Caracas. They are being flown to such destinations as St Maarten, Aruba, Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, Miami, Trinidad and Tobago, and Bogota.