Exclusive: Abra Group partnership fuels Avianca’s South American growth
March 23, 2026
Avianca is positioning Bogota as an increasingly important transfer hub within the Latin American market, and its parent company, the Abra Group, acts as a key support for the Colombian carrier as it seeks to grow across the region.
Speaking to Aerospace Global News at Routes Americas 2026, David Aleman, the carrier’s sales director for South America, said Abra Group was playing a central role in strengthening Avianca’s presence across South America.
Abra Group bolsters Avianca and GOL across Latin America
Abra Group encompasses both Colombia’s Avianca and Brazil’s GOL, and has strategic investments in Spanish charter airline Wamos Air.
By leveraging partnerships within the group – particularly with GOL – Avianca is expanding connectivity, boosting capacity, and improving the passenger experience, even as both airlines have navigated difficult periods in recent years.
From coordinating schedules to enhancing service offerings and opening new routes, the group’s consolidation allows Avianca to optimise operations and capture growing demand.
This is especially true in key markets between the Colombian capital – Avianca’s base – and São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and emerging regional hubs across Brazil.
“We are in a stronger position, taking advantage of Abra Group in terms of the connectivity we can offer, partnering with GOL, reaching more opportunities in the Brazilian market that right now we are not operating in, such as Curitiba and Salvador da Bahia, while strengthening the routes that we are operating,” Aleman said.
“We have seen a strong increase in sales from Ecuador and Colombia to Brazil. The traffic from Venezuela, Colombia and Ecuador has also been increasing a lot in the last few years, so the idea is to keep pushing that traffic, which is currently lower than where we should be, and while benefiting from the synergy with Abra Group, increase our overall traffic.”
Emerging from Chapter 11 – with growth in their sights
Both Avianca and GOL have been through Chapter 11 bankruptcy restructuring in recent years.
The Colombian carrier was forced to restructure during the Covid downturn and completed the Chapter 11 process in 2021, while GOL entered proceedings in 2024 and successfully completed the financial restructuring last summer.
The shared platform that Abra Group provides has enabled the airlines to benefit from lower unit costs, more resilient cash flows, and a more sustainable future.
Aleman is optimistic that Avianca will grow in the market, both regionally and beyond. The carrier currently operates trans-Atlantic services to London and Paris.
“Connectivity is really important to us; we have been working hard to give the customer a really simple way to connect through Bogota to other destinations in Latin America,” he said.
“Right now, we are seeing strong opportunities and the market growing between Europe and Brazil, going through Avianca. From Belem and Manaus, our passengers take advantage of flying into Bogota and then onto to Europe.
“What we are also seeing is the growth of corporate travellers, and on more routes than the traditional Sao Paulo to Bogota. For example, from Rio and other regional airports, the traffic is increasing. Customers are looking for simplicity and for the best way to connect to their destination, whether it is leisure or corporate.”
Partnership with GOL offers improved Brazilian connections
GOL is on a similar trajectory. The low-cost carrier confirmed last week that it would be introducing the Airbus A330neo into its fleet, with New York-JFK the first destination for the aircraft type, with plans to expand to Europe later in the year.
The carrier will seek to turn its hub at Rio de Janeiro’s Galeão International Airport into a new intercontinental hub.
It helps that Brazil remains the biggest market within the South American region, and Avianca is keen to tap into that demand.
“The opportunity for us is to align and improve our position as Abra Group, including GOL,” said Aleman.
“We have been working a lot with them for the last year to know how to capture those opportunities. Not only traditional markets in Sao Paolo and Rio, but also how we can better connect our customers inside Brazil. GOL is an important part of the equation.
“It allows us to give more opportunities not only from Colombia but also from other countries in North and South America. From Lima and Central America, there is a good opportunity to improve connectivity and to give our customers more choice.”
Featured image: Markus Mainka | stock.adobe.com
