On Wednesday, Avianca revealed an Airbus A320 aircraft painted with a retro livery showing the logo of the former TACA (Transportes Aéreos del Continente Americano). This airline existed between 1931 and 2009 and merged with Avianca.
TACA in a retro livery
Today, the Colombian airline Avianca presented its second aircraft with retro paintwork. It is an Airbus A320 with registration number N567AV that now wears the livery of the Central American company TACA, founded in 1931. The first retro aircraft was presented during Avianca’s 100th anniversary in 2019 and had a commemorative paintwork from the 1950s.
The aircraft with the TACA livery will start flying today in Colombia and will operate commercial flights from El Salvador next year as well. Avianca said that the painting process of the narrowbody jet took about 13 days, during which 30 technicians worked on the image of one of the most influential companies in Central American aviation history.
Adrian Neuhauser, President and Chief Executive Officer of Avianca, said that the company recognizes its origins and roots and is pleased to honor that legacy because it allows Avianca to be stronger and prouder than ever to continue building the company. “We started this project when we celebrated our 100th anniversary with the Avianca livery of the 1950s, and now we commemorate TACA,” he added.
Photo: Avianca.
The first retro livery, a look at it
In September 2019, Avianca revealed an Airbus A320 painted with a special 1950 livery and a logo that said “100 Avianca Airlines”, celebrating the 100th anniversary of the company.
That year, Avianca celebrated its one-hundredth anniversary (it was founded on December 5, 1919). Avianca’s first name was the Colombo-German Air Transport Society (SCADTA), and it provided domestic services throughout Colombia. In 1940, SCADTA merged with Servicio Aéreo Colombiano (SACO), creating today’s Avianca.
Avianca’s A320 with the 100th-anniversary livery has a registration number N284AV. It is a 12 years old aircraft that currently operates mostly domestic flights, although, for example, it is set to fly from Bogota to Miami this week, according to data by FlightRadar24.com.
Meanwhile, Avianca’s Airbus A320 with a TACA livery was delivered to Avianca in February 2011. It is set to operate mostly domestic flights for the next few days, although it will visit Mexico City on November 2, covering the flight AV34 from Medellín.
Photo: Avianca.
A brief history of TACA
TACA was a Central American airline founded in Tegucigalpa in the 1930s by Lowell Yerex, a New Zealand billionaire. A few years later, the airline moved its headquarters to El Salvador, where it grew, creating a regional brand well-known among the flying public. It competed against the Costa Rican airline LACSA until TACA acquired LACSA in 1995, and both airlines merged under the Salvadorian brand.
In 2009, Avianca and TACA surprised everyone when they announced they would merge, with the objective of creating a single airline under one powerful brand and the second most important carrier in the Americas.
Do you like the new livery of this Airbus A320 aircraft? Did you ever travel with TACA? Let us know in the comments below.
Source: simpleflying.com
