Lloyd Aereo Boliviano
                         Summary: Lloyd Aereo Boliviano served Bolivia proudly as its flagship airlines for many years. However, it was frequently financially troubled and is no longer in operation. Plans to re-start the company have been announced frequently over the past two years; however, they have not as of yet come to fruition. APRIL 2009 UPDATE: Lloyd Aereo Boliviano is currently NOT operating again. JANUARY 2009 UPDATE: Lloyd Aéreo Boliviano (LAB Airlines) has started operating again, but only nationally for the time being. It is operating between La Paz, Cochabamba, and Santa Cruz but expects to be flying soon to other departments as soon as it receives an additional aircraft it is awaiting. Apparently flights are pretty cheap because LAB is trying to get its passengers back. It may be worth looking into for national connections. This article was published in El Deber (Santa Cruz newspaper) on the last day of January): El LAB reanuda vuelos comerciales Por lo pronto, la empresa aérea realizará vuelos en el eje troncal, entre Cochabamba, La Paz y Santa Cruz. El Lloyd Aéreo Boliviano (LAB) comenzó, ayer, a realizar vuelos comerciales en la ruta Cochabamba-Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz-Cochabamba a precios económicos. Después de que el pasado jueves la Superintendencia de Transportes le dio al LAB la licencia para operar por cinco años, la empresa preparó un itinerario para comenzar a prestar sus servicios. El primer vuelo comercial que despertó gran demanda y expectativa en la población partió, ayer, de Cochabamba con destino a la ciudad de Santa Cruz a las 19:00 e hizo el viaje de retorno de Santa Cruz-Cochabamba a las 20:30. El precio económico de los pasajes hizo que se registraran largas filas para obtener un boleto, ya que el costo del boleto de ida para adultos fue de Bs 425, para menores de Bs 213 y para mayores de 60 años Bs 340. El jefe de Publicidad y Marketing del LAB, Tonchy Martínez, invitó a todos los cochabambinos a apoyar a la empresa que también comenzará a realizar paquetes promocionales en las próximas semanas. “Sólo en Cochabamba hay 470 trabajadores que están apostando todo para sacar adelante a la empresa y esperamos tener la respuesta favorable de la población. La aerolínea va a continuar caracterizándose por la puntualidad y el buen servicio, que es lo que a la gente le gusta”, dijo. La aeronave Boeing 727-200 con placa CP-1366 con una capacidad de 152 pasajeros es la única que opera por el momento, sin embargo, la empresa espera la llegada de otra aeronave en las próximas tres semanas. Rutas e itinerario Martínez indicó que por el momento solamente se realizarán vuelos en el eje troncal, es decir, Cochabamba, La Paz y Santa Cruz, pero sostiene que con la llegada de una nueva aeronave también se habilitarán vuelos a otros departamentos. Hoy domingo, la empresa realizará un viaje Cochabamba-La Paz a las 18:00 y el retorno será a las 19:30. El precio de ida para adultos es de Bs 340, menores Bs 170 y mayores de 60 años Bs 272, los costos de retorno son los mismos. Mañana lunes está programado otro vuelo en la ruta Cochabamba-Santa Cruz a las 19:00 y Santa Cruz-Cochabamba a las 20:30, los precios son de; Bs 425 para adultos Bs 213 para menores y Bs 340 para adultos. Brief Background on Lloyd Aéreo BolivianoLloyd Aereo Boliviano, known also as LAB Airlines, was established in 1925 when German residents in Bolivia donated an aircraft so the Bolivian government could begin establishing a national airline. The name was chosen after Lloyd's of London for its image of safety and security, although the two firms are not related.Over the past 80+ years ownership of Lloyd changed hands multiple times, but the company continued to operate offering international flights to the country’s three major cities Santa Cruz, Cochabamba and La Paz and national flights between various cities throughout the country. Miami was the major hub for LAB Airlines flights between Bolivia and the U.S. and offered direct flights to La Paz and Santa Cruz and indirect flights to Cochabamba. The company was almost always in financial trouble of one sort or another and despite various different owners, management companies, and restructuring efforts, just could not seem to get its financial act together. The airport in La Paz is the highest airport in the world and first-time visitors often suffer from altitude sickness upon arrival (shortness of breath, headaches and nausea). It also tends to be very cold. Passengers disembarking to go through customs often suffer these high altitude symptoms. From my own experience, Lloyd Aereo Boliviano was safe and its pilots are experienced in flying over the Andes. The flight attendants were usually professional and courteous. However, LAB flights were often delayed or suspended and the airline overbooked international flights too frequently (usually without apology or explanation) and all too often without offering travel alternatives. Over the past 30 years I noticed the company offered much MUCH better service when it is a privately owned, NOT nationalized airline. The government ordered LAB to cease operating in early 2007 because the company was in financial trouble and owed the government (which is also a partial owner of the airline) millions in taxes. Talks of reorganizing and re-initiating operations had all but ceased by late 2007 and it appears LAB is now just part of Bolivia's history. President Evo Morales announced soon after that the Bolivian government would start up a new nationalized (fully government-owned) airline. When this occurs officially, we will post information. The govt's new airline is BOLIVIANA DE AVIACIÓN (BOA). Return from Lloyd Aereo Boliviano to Home Page           Custom Search
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