Month: February 2018

• Investments of more than US$ 130 million since its inauguration, multiple local and international recognitions, increased passenger and cargo capacity, all this added to the scope of its Social Responsibility programs are some of the achievements that summarize the impact of the Quito airport during its five years of existence.

Five years have elapsed since February 20, 2013 – a date that marked a milestone in air transportation of Quito upon the transfer of operations from the Mariscal Sucre International Airport to Tababela, northeast of Quito. According to information provided by Corporación Quiport S.A. (the concessionaire of this infrastructure) the concessionaire and its strategic partners have invested US$ 133.2 million in expansions, fittings, and improvements in the airport during its five years of operation.

In respect of connectivity, Quiport explains that 25.7 million passengers have transited through the Mariscal Sucre Airport since 2013 through 11 domestic destinations and 15 international destinations connected with Quito. Likewise, four new airlines have been added to the routes serving the capital city (Aeroméxico, JetBlue, Wingo and Air Europa). Furthermore, weekly frequencies to existing destinations such as Amsterdam, Bogota, Panama and Mexico City were added.

Such increased connectivity has positive influence on the generation of more and better opportunities for the country. For instance, IATA’s connectivity index grew from 4.75% in 2010 to 10.24% in 2016, resulting in US$ 356.75 million added to the country’s GDP.

“We who belong to Quiport and to the Quito International Airport are proud for the accomplishments obtained during five years of operation thanks to our profound knowledge of the activity and much efforts and great passion for our work, being aware that the airport offers the first and the last impression of the city and the country” said Andrew O’Brian, President and Director General of Quiport.

Likewise, the city’s export capacity has been strengthened during the five years of operation in Tababela. Approximately 800 tons of cargo have been handled, representing an important contribution to the country’s international trade. Since 2014 until December 2017, flower exports cargo has increased by 23.3%. During the 2018 Valentine season, more than 16,000 tons of flowers were exported to the world from the renewed cargo platform that allows simultaneous parking of 6 airplanes of great capacity, some of them regarded as the largest in the world.

Excellence passenger experience is one of the pillars of Quiport’s activity. More first-class services have been implemented during the past five years, such as the area for children’s games at the terminal, automatic boarding doors, self-check-in and baggage self-tagging kiosks, free WiFi, and an ample commercial supply of prestigious brands that are leaders in each segment.

Concerning tourism, the total expenditures generated by visitors who came to Ecuador through the Quito airport amounted to US$ 817 million nationwide during 2016. And concerning employment generation, about 38,270 jobs were created in 2016 in the country.

Furthermore, Quiport’s social and environmental approach has permitted substantial development of the airport’s neighboring communities. More than 100,000 persons have benefitted from the social programs, and operations at the airport are carried out according to strict environmental regulations that led us to obtain important ratings worldwide on reduction of the carbon footprint.

Those figures demonstrate our contribution to the development of the country, the city and the areas surrounding the airport which, added to excellent ratings from passengers and users in respect of the airport’s services, have resulted in that the aeronautical and tourism industry has recognized it as South America’s Leading Airport during four consecutive years.

“The success of the Mariscal Sure Airport operations is due to the work performed jointly by more than 120 entities that operate in it, employing approximately 8,000 persons. Nothing like this could have been reached without the work performed by each one of them,” the official added.

• As of April 13, the route will add 3 new weekly frequencies.
• This increase will offer greater connectivity for the region.
• During 2017, Aeromexico transported 20 percent more passengers on this route than in 2016.

Aeromexico, the Mexican flag carrier, announced an increase in frequencies on its Quito – Mexico City route starting April 13, which will grow to 10 weekly flights with the following itinerary:

These new frequencies -subject to government approval- aim to satisfy the demand that exists between both countries and offer greater connectivity to national destinations such as Guadalajara, Cancun, Monterrey, among others. In addition to this, it is planned to offer a better connection to international destinations such as Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York, Las Vegas and Miami, also reducing connection times to Canada and Asian destinations.

Arik De, Vice President of Strategy and Planning of Aeromexico, said: “With this new increase we will strengthen our presence in the market and allow us to have a 43 percent greater seat offering, which reflects our effort to give a better product to our clients. In 2017 alone, Aeromexico transported 20 percent more passengers than in 2016”.

The President of Corporación Quiport, Andrew O’Brian, stated: “the experience of working with Aeromexico has been one of the best since the beginning of its operation in Quito in December 2013. It is a responsible and reliable airline whose operation at the International Airport of Quito has strengthened and registered an important growth. All this leads us to announce an increase from seven to 10 weekly frequencies. This decision was the result of joint work between Aeromexico, Quiport, the Municipality of Quito and the central government through the ministries of Tourism and of Transport. We are very happy with the announcement and we predict success for Aeromexico with its new frequencies”.

Aeromexico reaffirms its commitment to provide its customers with the best flight options and a greater connectivity network through its more than 90 destinations in three continents.

• The aviation industry will gather in Quito next week (13-15 February) at the 11th annual Routes Americas to plan and negotiate new air services within North and South America and the Caribbean.

Routes Americas brings together airlines, airports and tourism authorities to develop air route networks. It moves to a new city every year to highlight the diverse aviation markets across the Americas. The 2018 event is hosted by the Municipality of Quito, Secretariat of Productive Development and Competitiveness, Quito Turismo and Corporación Quiport.

The event will bring together 650 delegates taking part in 2,100 meetings. Leading airlines that will attend include American Airlines, International Airlines Group (IAG), Aeroméxico, Air Canada, LATAM, TAME and JetSmart. Around 70 airlines, 150 airports and 35 tourism authorities are expected in total.

The latest issues and challenges facing aviation in the Americas will be debated the event’s conference sessions, including how the industry across South and Central America has picked itself up following a series of devastating natural disasters in 2017.

High-profile speakers include: Juan Carlos Zuazua, Chief Executive Officer, VivaAerobus; Declan Ryan, Chief Executive Officer, Viva Air; Maribel Rodriguez, Regional Director of Southern Europe and LATAM, World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC); and Peter Cerdá, Regional Vice President, The Americas, International Air Transport Association (IATA).

Quito is a rapidly growing tourism destination. Named as one of the first UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Sites in 1978, the city has a well-preserved Spanish colonial centre and is the gateway to the Ecuadorian Amazon and the Galapagos Islands.

The travel and tourism industry in Ecuador directly supported 137,500 jobs in 2016 and its GDP contribution was more than $2bn. The World Travel & Tourism Council has estimated that the sector’s employment contribution will rise to 196,000 jobs by 2027 and its GDP could be worth $3.36bn, equivalent to 2.5 percent of overall GDP.

In December 2017, Ecuador’s president Lenín Moreno signed an executive decree for the adoption of an Open Skies policy – a move that has the potential to boost connectivity, unlock new markets, increase tourism and create new jobs.

Quito International Airport is the main gateway to Ecuador. As a result of Quiport’s efforts in acquiring new international destinations with an increased number of airlines in operation, the airport’s IATA Connectivity Index has more than doubled within the last six years (from 4.25% to 10.24%). The airport has invested more than $133m in projects to improve the infrastructure and quality of services.

“Hosting Routes Americas will help Quito realise its growth potential, with opportunities to develop the network on both domestic and international routes following the recent announcement of Open Skies.” said Steven Small, brand director of Routes.

Andrew O’Brian, CEO of Quiport remarked that “having Routes Americas in Quito represents a unique opportunity to unite in the Middle of the World the main planning executives of the most important airlines operating in the hemisphere. This will allow us to show the quality of airport services for both passengers and airlines, as well as the infrastructure and efficiency in the operation of our airport”.

“Routes Americas, the leading air connectivity event in Latin America, places Quito in the eyes of the world. It opens doors to new opportunities for tourism, business and investments in a strategically located city, with the most modern airport in the region, full of alternatives and options for people with unlimited vision,” stated Alvaro Maldonado, Secretary of Productive Development and Competitiveness from the Municipality of Quito.

More information about Routes can be found at routesonline.com

Routes Americas 2018, 13-15 February, Centro de Exposiciones Quito (CEQ), Quito, Ecuador.

• The event brings together 40 airport operations and security professionals from all over the world in order to discuss current issues in this field and share best industry practices.

From February 5 to 9, the 37th meeting of the World Safety and Technical Standards Standing Committee is being held in Quito, organized by Airports Council International (ACI), the entity that groups all of the world’s civil airports.

At this meeting, 40 airport professionals from different cities (Copenhagen, San Francisco, Geneva, Doha, Vienna, Delhi, Paris, Hong Kong, Mexico City, Accra, London, Johannesburg, Kansas City, among others) will discuss important airport safety issues, key safety indicators and data collection, marking of taxiway edges, as well as issues related to cyber menaces that threaten the safety of airport operations.

On February 7th, the Operating Safety Committee of the Airports International Council – Latin America and the Caribbean (ACI-LAC) will meet to discuss issues such as the implementation of Runway Safety Committees in airports of the region, the update of the Aerodrome Certification process, standardization of operating indicators in the region, among other issues of great importance for the airport industry.

In his welcome, Mr. Andrew O’Brian, President and Director General of Quiport, stated that “the dynamics surrounding operating safety force us to keep ourselves up to date and to be even one step ahead in this field. In order to do so, meetings such as these are of vital importance in order to discuss the principal issues regarding operating safety and share best industry practices”.

Mr. Alan Padilla, Director of Operations of the Quito airport, who also chairs the World Safety Committee, will participate in the event. Mr. Padilla will speak about the regional safety week, best industry practices, runway safety equipment, among other topics.

Corporación Quiport will host this important event, thanks to the efforts performed in operating safety, thereby positioning itself as an industry leader.