FLEET - Argentina’s Flybondi orders up to 20 A220-300s, 15 B737-10s

Flybondi (FO, Córdoba International) has ordered fifteen A220-300s with options for five additional units, and ten B737-10s with options for five more. Deliveries will start in 2027 and are expected to be finalised through 2029 for the A220s, and 2030 for the B737 MAX.

The Argentine low-cost carrier’s new major investor, COC Global Enterprise, will invest USD1.7 billion in the new fleet.

Once delivered, Flybondi will become the first operator of the A220-300 in Argentina.

Its order for the B737-10s follows one placed by flag carrier Aerolíneas Argentinas, which announced a commitment for eight units in late November 2025.

Despite the new order, Flybondi does not expect to stop adding capacity through seasonal ACMI contracts, chief executive Mauricio Sana said during a press conference. The airline sees them as important for boosting its capacity during the high season.

Flybondi’s current fleet comprises fourteen in-house B737-800s. It also wet-leases one A320-200 from Avion Express, and one B737-800 from ETF Airways. Up to eight more narrowbodies are coming in the following weeks from these two ACMI providers as well as Spain’s AlbaStar.

With the arrival of the new aircraft types, Flybondi will look into developing in-house maintenance capabilities. “Remember that we strive to make our fleet as reliable as possible, and to achieve that we will have to strengthen our line maintenance capacity and look for partners to handle heavy maintenance. This is work we will need to carry out over the next three years,” Sana said.

Sana said that the airline did not envision merger or consolidation possibilities in the next three to four years. The South American airline industry has recently seen an increase in mergers and acquisitions, most notably with Abra Group’s purchase of SKY Airline (Chile).

CH Aviation / Photo: Flybondi

 

Flybondi resumes international flights

Flybondi (FO, Córdoba Int'l) restarted international flights on December 17, 2021, flying outside Argentina for the first time since late March 2020.

The Argentine low-cost carrier resumed services to Florianopolis in Brazil and Punta del Este in Uruguay in December 2021. In early January 2022, it reactivated routes to Sao Paulo Guarulhos and Rio de Janeiro Int'l in Brazil. All of Flybondi's international services operate out of Buenos Aires Ezeiza, even though some of them are filed as operating from Buenos Aires Aeroparque. The carrier's domestic flights to 12 destinations in Argentina (soon to be 13 with the addition of Ushuaia) operate from Aeroparque.

Without going into details, the carrier promised to add more international destinations in the months to come.

The ch-aviation fleets advanced module shows that Flybondi currently operates four B737-800s. It said it would take delivery of the fifth unit of the type by the end of this month, thus restoring its pre-pandemic capacity. During the course of 2022, it plans to double its fleet to ten B737-800s.

ch-aviation

Argentina's Flybondi unveils first 737

Argentina's low-cost start-up Flybondi has unveiled its first Boeing 737-800, which is expected to arrive in the South American country in the second half of November.
The aircraft is being leased from SMBC Aviation Capital, and is configured with 189 seats in a single class. Flybondi says the aircraft is in Singapore and will soon depart for Argentina.

Registered LV-HKS, the 737 entered service in 2005 and was previously operated by Ryanair and Thailand's Nok Air, Flight Fleets Analyzer shows.

The aircraft will undergo certification in Argentina, allowing the airline to launch operations by the end of the year, says Flybondi chief executive Julian Cook. Ticket sales have not started.

Flybondi plans to grow its fleet to 10 leased 737s, with eight based at the El Palomar military airbase in Buenos Aires and two at Cordoba. Cook told FlightGlobal in September that the airline has already leased another 737 from Avolon that will be delivered in the second quarter of 2018. While Flybondi had previously expressed interest in ordering the 737 Max 200 from Boeing, Cook has said the airline needs more time to negotiate a deal with the airframer and wants to first accumulate operational experience with the 737.

The carrier plans to operate to domestic destinations like Bariloche, Mendoza, Iguazu and Ushuaia among others. Cook has said that the airline plans to serve around 15 domestic points.
FLIGHT DASHBOARD BY: GHIM-LAY YEO WASHINGTON DC

Photo:TTT - Team NinerVictor Photos

B737-8AS - LV-HKS - Singapore Seletar - WSSL, Singapore

Flybondi secures $75mn capital injection

Flybondi (Córdoba Int'l) has announced it has completed an investment round of USD75 million with major investors including US-based private equity firm, Cartesian Capital Group LLC, Yamasa Co. Limited, Michael Cawley (former COO at Ryanair Holdings Plc), Michael Powell (former CFO at Wizz Air Holdings Plc), as well as other European and Argentinian private investors.

Flybondi has already signed lease agreements for two B737-800s ahead of its proposed launch out of Córdoba Int'l during the fourth quarter of the year. It has also presented a plan to the Argentine government to set up what will become its main base at the Buenos Aires El Palomar once all necessary infrastructural upgrades at the Fuerza Aérea Argentina-owned facility.

A route determination board (Junta Asesora del Transporte Aéreo - JATA) in Argentina's civil aviation authority (Administración Nacional de Aviación Civil - ANAC) has already granted the start-up its requested route authorities to serve 43 domestic and 42 international destinations. They consist of:

Domestic:

- Buenos Aires - Iguazu (Misiones);

- Buenos Aires - Córdoba;

- Buenos Aires - San Carlos de Bariloche (Río Negro);

- Buenos Aires - Mendoza;

- Buenos Aires - Salta;

- Buenos Aires - Neuquen (Neuquén);

- Buenos Aires - Tucumán (Tucumán);

- Buenos Aires - Ushuaia (Tierra Del Fuego, Antártida E Islas Del Atlántico Sur);

- Buenos Aires - El Calafate (Santa Cruz);

- Buenos Aires - Comodoro Rivadavia (Chubut);

- Buenos Aires - Resistencia (Chaco);

- Buenos Aires - Rio Gallegos (Santa Cruz);

- Buenos Aires - San Juan, SJ (San Juan);

- Buenos Aires - Posadas (Misiones);

- Buenos Aires - Jujuy (Jujuy);

- Buenos Aires - Mar del Plata (Buenos Aires);

- Buenos Aires - Rio Grande, TF (Tierra Del Fuego, Antártida E Islas Del Atlántico Sur);

- Buenos Aires - Santa Fe (Santa Fe);

- Buenos Aires - Formosa (Formosa);

- Buenos Aires - Puerto Madryn (Chubut);

- Buenos Aires - San Martin de los Andes (Chapelco - Neuquén);

- Buenos Aires - Santiago del Estero (Santiago Del Estero);

- Buenos Aires - La Rioja (La Rioja);

- Buenos Aires - Esquel (Chubut);

- Buenos Aires - Trelew (Chubut);

- Buenos Aires - San Fernando, BA (Catamarca);

- Buenos Aires - Bahia Blanca (Buenos Aires);

- Buenos Aires - Parana (Entre Ríos);

- Buenos Aires - San Luis (San Luis);

- Buenos Aires - San Rafael;

- Buenos Aires - Rosario, SF (Santa Fe);

- Buenos Aires - Corrientes (Corrientes);

- Buenos Aires - Malargüe;

- Buenos Aires - Viedma (Río Negro);

- Buenos Aires - Santa Rosa, LP (La Pampa);

- Córdoba Int'l - Mendoza;

- Córdoba - Salta;

- Córdoba - San Carlos De Bariloche (Río Negro);

- Córdoba - El Calafate (Santa Cruz);

- Córdoba - Comodoro Rivadavia (Chubut);

- Córdoba - Neuquén (Neuquén);

- Córdoba - Puerto Iguazú (Misiones);

- Córdoba - Rosario (Santa Fe);

- Rosario, SF (Santa Fe) - San Carlos De Bariloche (Río Negro);

- Rosario (Santa Fe) - Mendoza;

- Rosario (Santa Fe) - Salta;

- Rosario (Santa Fe) - El Calafate (Santa Cruz);

- Rosario (Santa Fe) - Comodoro Rivadavia (Chubut);

- Rosario (Santa Fe) - Neuquén (Neuquén);

- Rosario (Santa Fe) - Puerto Iguazú (Misiones);

- Salta - San Carlos De Bariloche (Río Negro);

- Salta - Mendoza;

- Salta - Puerto Iguazú (Misiones);

- Mendoza - Puerto Iguazú (Misiones);

- Mendoza - San Carlos De Bariloche (Río Negro);

- Mendoza - Comodoro Rivadavia (Chubut).

International:

- Buenos Aires - Santa Cruz Viru Viru (Bolivia);

- Buenos Aires - São Paulo (Brazil);

- Buenos Aires - Rio de Janeiro Int'l (Brazil);

- Buenos Aires - Salvador (Brazil);

- Buenos Aires - Florianopolis (Brazil);

- Buenos Aires - Porto Alegre (Brazil);

- Buenos Aires - Recife (Brazil);

- Buenos Aires - Curitiba (Brazil);

- Buenos Aires - Fortaleza (Brazil);

- Buenos Aires - Natal Aluizio Alves (Brazil);

- Buenos Aires - Porto Seguro (Brazil);

- Buenos Aires - Brasilia (Brazil);

- Buenos Aires - Belo Horizonte (Brazil);

- Buenos Aires - Maceió (Brazil);

- Buenos Aires - Santiago de Chile Int'l (Chile);

- Buenos Aires - Bogotá (Colombia);

- Buenos Aires - Cartagena de Indias (Colombia);

- Buenos Aires - Quito Int'l (Ecuador);

- Buenos Aires - Guayaquil (Ecuador);

- Buenos Aires - Asuncion (Paraguay);

- Buenos Aires - Lima Int'l (Perú);

- Buenos Aires - Cuzco (Perú);

- Buenos Aires - Montevideo (Uruguay);

- Buenos Aires - Punta del Este (Uruguay);

- Buenos Aires - Caracas Simón Bolivar (Venezuela );

- Córdoba Int'l - Santiago De Chile (Chile);

- Córdoba - Río De Janeiro (Brazil);

- Córdoba - São Paulo (Brazil);

- Córdoba - Salvador De Bahía (Brazil);

- San Carlos de Bariloche (Río Negro) - São Paulo (Brazil);

- Mendoza - Santiago De Chile (Chile);

- Mendoza - São Paulo (Brazil);

- Mendoza - Río De Janeiro (Brazil);

- Rosario, SF (Santa Fe) - São Paulo (Brazil);

- Rosario (Santa Fe) - Río De Janeiro (Brazil);

- Rosario (Santa Fe) - Santiago De Chile (Chile);

- Salta - Santiago De Chile (Chile);

- Salta - São Paulo (Brazil);

- Puerto Iguazu (Misiones) - São Paulo (Brazil);

- Puerto Iguazú (Misiones) - Curitiba (Brazil);

- Puerto Iguazú (Misiones) - Río De Janeiro (Brazil);

- Puerto Iguazú (Misiones) - Porto Alegre (Brazil);

- Puerto Iguazú (Misiones) - Santiago De Chile (Chile).