Managing a Hub at Bogota’s El Dorado Airport
How Avianca, Colombia’s flag carrier, manages its main hub in Bogotá with airport infrastructure, capacity and traffic growth, as well as geographic challenges.
Colombia-based Avianca faces numerous challenges at its main hub in Bogotá, such as capacity issues that don’t support the airline’s growth trajectory, as well as outdated technology. Therefore, the master plan for Bogotá indicated that due to continuing passenger growth, another airport will have to be built. In fact, in January Colombia President Juan Manuel Santos announced plans to complete the construction of a second airport in Bogotá known as El Dorado II, within the next five years.
Following the announcement of El Dorado II, Colombia’s government is now tasked with creating a new master plan to develop long-term solutions that address current operating and growth challenges. With this announcement, the industry expects to have an airport with optimal size and conditions to adequately respond to the terminal projected traffic for at least the next 30 years.
In the meantime, as Avianca grows and further develops its hub at Bogotá, the airline must continue to work with Colombian government agencies and airport entities to determine ways to minimize customer impact and assure that the airline’s growth plans are not jeopardized in the long run by airport constraints.