One on One
South American Standout
Pablo Chiozza, vice president, United States, Canada and the Caribbean, LAN Airlines, on the airline’s expansion plans.
January 03, 2012
TELL OUR READERS ABOUT LAN’S ROUTE NETWORK EXPANSION.
Business travel to South America is booming, and we are expanding our fleet and offerings. LAN is currently expecting 150 aircraft; 32 of them are Boeing 787 Dreamliners. In 2011, we increased our regional routes by 30 percent, offering the biggest network in South
America. We tell U.S. travelers: Your legacy carriers can get you to South America, but LAN is the only airline that can also get you around South America. From the United States, we are increasing frequencies on our Los Angeles to Lima routes; in November we added a non-stop Los Angeles to Santiago route. From New York City travelers can reach Santiago, Lima and Ecuador non-stop; and from Miami, non-stop to Santiago, Lima, Buenos Aires and Bogotá. For leisure travelers, we offer flights to Iguazú Falls from Lima via Buenos Aires, and to the Galápagos Islands from Guayaquil. Our flight from San Francisco to Lima is the only non-stop service from the Bay Area to South America. We also launched LAN Colombia in December 2011 with service to 22 new domestic destinations in the country.
WHAT DOES LAN OFFER PREMIUM TRAVELERS TO SOUTH AMERICA?
LAN is the only South American carrier offering non-stop flights from four U.S. gateways and the only one to offer fully flat premium business-class seats. The South American experience begins the moment our passengers step on board. A master sommelier selects our wine list, which is refreshed and updated every four months. We offer passengers a Bvlgari amenity kit and a dedicated customs area upon landing in Santiago. In our award-winning lounges, we serve the same wines and Champagnes that are handpicked for in-flight use and provide WiFi, showers and plenty of seating. In gateways without a dedicated LAN lounge, passengers can access shared lounges through our strong oneworld alliance partnership.
WHAT IS THE STATUS OF THE LAN/TAM BRAZILIAN AIRLINES MERGER?
Both airlines submitted an intent to merge to their respective flagship countries; approval has been received from Brazil and Chile. LAN and TAM will continue to operate as different brands. Once the merger is put into play, LAN will be able to offer domestic flights in Brazil and international flights from Brazil to the United States and Europe. The move is important, as nearly 50 percent of the traffic in South America is into and from Brazil.
TELL US ABOUT YOUR CAREER.
I began my career in the banking industry. Last fall, I celebrated my 10th anniversary with LAN. My tenure with the airline has taken me around the world, with positions in Chile, Ecuador, Miami, New York City, Spain and Argentina. I returned to the Miami office last April to assume my current role.
