Brazilian low-cost carrier GOL Linhas Aéreas has revealed it will not resume flights to Chile and Peru after both destinations were set to return to its network this year. The airline is also set to scrap flights to Cancun, Mexico, this month.
GOL keeps Chile and Peru suspended
The carrier had initially planned to restart flights to Lima Jorge Chavez International Airport (LIM) on March 29th, followed by a return to Santiago Arturo Merino Benítez International Airport (SCL) on June 2nd. However, as reported by Aviacionline, GOL will no longer be returning to either destination since suspending flights in March 2020.
As quoted by Melhores Destinos, GOL said,
“GOL informs that it will not resume its flights between Guarulhos (GRU) and Santiago (SCL), the capital of Chile, from the end of March 2023. GOL informs that, in the short and medium term, it will not resume its flights between Guarulhos (GRU) and Lima (LIM), the capital of Peru.”
Photo: Lukas Souza | Simple Flying
The Brazilian airline last served Lima and Santiago before the pandemic – it operated a daily service from São Paulo-Guarulhos International Airport (GRU) to Lima, while it served Santiago from three airports: São Paulo (13x weekly), Rio de Janeiro (4x weekly), and Recife (1x weekly). While the airline has not stated why it won’t restart either route, it will provide support for passengers who have booked flights to either destination.
GOL said,
“For customers with tickets purchased for Lima and Santiago, GOL is promoting relocation on similar flights and also offers the option of keeping the value as a credit with the company, for the purchase of future tickets, or requesting a reimbursement.”
Lima and Santiago connections
Despite GOL scrapping its plans, Lima will still benefit from direct Brazilian connections via LATAM – the South American carrier currently serves Peru’s capital city from Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and Porto Alegre with 28 weekly flights in total. In fact, LATAM will add a fourth daily connection – Brasília International Airport (BSB) – on March 26th, taking it to 35 weekly flights.
Photo: Lima Airport Partners
Santiago boasts far more extensive connections to Brazil with multiple airlines, including LATAM, JetSMART and Sky Airline, to a broader range of airports which includes São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Curitiba, Florianópolis, Porto Alegre and Foz do Iguaçu.
Gradual international recovery
GOL has slowly rebuilt its pre-COVID international network in recent months, now serving destinations in Argentina, Bolivia, the Dominican Republic, Paraguay, Suriname, the US and Uruguay. The airline recently restarted Buenos Aires flights in December after almost three years away and revealed last week that its return to Johannesburg will now happen in September, not July as initially planned.
Photo: Lukas Souza
The Brazilian airline has removed one destination from its international network, however – as Simple Flying reported in October, GOL canceled one of the longest 737 MAX routes after scrapping Brasilia-Cancun this month. The route came in as the world’s third-longest for the MAX and ceased on February 4th.
Have you flown often with GOL Linhas Aereas in the past year? Do you think the airline should have canceled its return to Peru and Chile? Let us know in the comments.
Source: Aviacionline, Melhores Destinos
Source: simpleflying.com
