At 23:02 on January 1st, the inaugural flight of Flybondi arrived at the “Astor Piazzolla” airport in Mar del Plata from Buenos Aires/Aeroparque, marking the arrival of the ultra low-cost airline at the main tourist hub on the Buenos Aires province Atlantic coast. The service was operated with the Boeing 737-800, registration LV-KJD, which was added to the fleet last September.
Flybondi will operate up to March 3rd with four weekly flights between Buenos Aires and Mar del Plata, on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Sundays in the evening (varying between 23:00 and 0:20 depending on the day), with an estimated flight time of 55 minutes.
“We are very happy to arrive in Mar del Plata, since its launch we have detected great interest in the route. Each new destination drives us to continue working hard so that the freedom to fly becomes ever greater,” said Federico Pastori, Chief Commercial Officer of Flybondi, who highlighted that they offer a “simple, friendly service with the best market rates.”
As can be seen in the reservation system, at the time of this publication, tickets for January are available starting from ARS 32,489, while in February, fares start at ARS 20,527, to which additional costs such as cabin or checked luggage and seat selection may eventually be added (official seller dollar today: USD 1 = ARS 828 / free dollar: USD 1 = ARS 1,025).
Regarding the competition, Aerolineas Argentinas has fares for February starting from ARS 28,759 (including up to 8 kg of hand luggage and seat selection), while bus tickets start at ARS 25,000.
Mar del Plata thus joins the Flybondi network, which from Buenos Aires (Aeroparque and Ezeiza) covers nationally Bariloche, Comodoro Rivadavia, Córdoba, Corrientes, El Calafate, Puerto Iguazú, Jujuy, Mendoza, Neuquén, Salta, Santiago del Estero, Posadas, Puerto Madryn, Tucumán, Trelew, and Ushuaia; and internationally, Florianópolis, Rio de Janeiro, and Sao Paulo.
The low-cost airline recently received three more Boeing 737-800s, so its fleet is now composed of 15 aircraft. Domestically, it has a 20% market share, and 5% of the regional international market (neighboring countries).
Flights in Mar del Plata
The arrival of Flybondi to Mar del Plata means that, for the first time in almost five years, the Astor Piazzolla airport will receive regular flights from a second major airline (previously it had flights from LADE). Avianca Argentina operated there until its closure in June 2019.
During the peak of the summer season, Aerolineas Argentinas will have an average of 32 weekly flights to Mar del Plata from Buenos Aires/Aeroparque, three from Bahia Blanca, five from Cordoba, four from Mendoza, three from Rosario, and four from Tucuman, as well as an unprecedented route with two weekly flights between Mar del Plata and Montevideo.
