Avianca

  December 1919 to present

  Colombia

TYPE: Airline

IATA/ICAO CODES: AV / AVA

HEADQUARTERS: Baranquilla, then Bogota

FORMER NAME: SCADTA

SUBSEQUENT NAME: Nil

Avianca was founded in Barranquilla on 5 December 1919 as SCADTA (Sociedad Colombo-Alemana de Transporte Aereo), thanks to the vision and spirit of enterprise of a group of businessmen of Colombian and German origin. SCADTA's first flight was made using a Junkers F-13 commanded by German pilot Helmuth Von Krohn between Barranquilla and Puerto Colombia, with a load of 57 maps. The aircraft had to be converted to a floatplane so that it could land on rivers near certain towns, since runways were scarce.

Operations expanded in the 1920's as SCADTA obtained a concession from the Colombian government to transport mail. International services began to Venezuela and the USA. The first mail flight between Bogota and New York was operated in 1931. Modern American aircraft, Boeing 247s and Douglas DC3s, were added to the fleet in 1937 and 1939. As World War II broke out, the SCADTA's German pioneers were pressured to sell their shares to Pan American Airways.

After merging with its competitor SACO (Servicios Aereos Colombianos) in June 1940, SCADTA became Avianca (Aerovias Nacionales de Colombia). Avianca continued to grow during the 1940's, with the acquisition of Douglas DC4s and the opening of lines to Quito, Lima, Panama City, Miami, New York and Europe. In the 1950's, it introduced the then very modern Lockheed 749 Constellation and 1049 Super Constellation. Later, Avianca entered the jet era with the rental of two Boeing 707 aircraft. The airline was one of the launch customers, together with Lufthansa and Singapore Airlines, of the Boeing 737. Avianca later acquired 707s and 727s, and became in 1976 the first Latin American airline to operate the Boeing 747. Avianca had an extensive network of destinations that reached as far as Zurich, also covering Paris, Madrid and Frankfurt, and much of the American continent.

At the end of the 1990's, Avianca was belonging to the Santodomingo Group. The company was about to declare bankruptcy but managed to stay afloat. However, after the terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001, Avianca merged with its hitherto rival ACES (Central Airlines of Colombia), forming the Summa Alliance. The alliance was a failure and Avianca officially entered Chapter 11 bankruptcy on 21 March 2003.

After being purchased by the Synergy group and drastically reorganized, Avianca left bankruptcy protection in 2004. It modernized its fleet and started to expand its network again. After merging with TACA in 2009 and joining the Star Alliance in 2010, Avianca has become today one of Latin America's largest airlines.

1949* to April 1955*

• Curtiss C-46A-35-CU Commando: HK-164
• Curtiss C-46A-45-CU Commando: HK-165, HK-156, HK-157
• Curtiss C-46A-50-CU Commando: HK-158