Arca Colombia
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Founded | 1956 | ||||||
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Ceased operations | 1997 | ||||||
Focus cities | Miami | ||||||
Fleet size | 17 | ||||||
Destinations | 11 | ||||||
Headquarters | Villavicencio, Colombia | ||||||
Key people | Captain Hernando Pote Gutiérrez |
ARCA Colombia (Arca Aerovías Colombianas Ltda) was an airline company in Colombia founded in 1956, that ceased operations in 1997.[1] The company was based in La Vanguardia Airport, Villavicencio.
History
It was founded in 1956 at the initiative of Captain Hernando Pote Gutiérrez, who had withdrawn from the company Avianca due to disagreements with the head of the company, Martín del Corral. Captain Gutierrez wanted to create a passenger company and compete with Avianca by acquiring the first aircraft, two Douglas DC-3 for passenger transports belonging to a company called Tacata. The first and only regular route that Arca managed to operate was Bogotá-Cúcuta for a value of 42 pesos per ticket. A great advertising campaign was made, which announced the new rate.
Under pressure from Avianca, Lloyd and Taxader, the
Success in the 1970s
At the beginning of the 1970s, some of the DC-3s were sold to
In 1975, Arca entered the jet era by leasing a Boeing 707-120F, with a wide cargo door to transport flowers and perishable products between Bogotá and Miami, mainly, a route that had been approved by the SAUCA. This rare Boeing 707 belonged to the Swiss cargo company Phoenix, which retained some emblems during its short operation in Arca. In 1977 the company achieved sufficient financial capacity to acquire its first Douglas DC-8-43 (registered as HK-1854), through Alitalia, to increase cargo operations between Bogotá and Miami. This would be the first DC-8 operated in Colombia; In addition, he introduced the new image of the following Arca aircraft, preserving the colors of the Italian airline. The particular thing about this aircraft was that it had no loading door, so loading and unloading operations took a long time.
Douglas aircraft in the fleet
At that time, Arca became the first Colombian cargo airline to fly the DC-8 to Miami. In addition, they bought a simulator, installed in the former loading area at Miami. Arca was characterized from then, until it ceased operations, for having two DC-8s operating simultaneously. Other cities were included in cargo operations from Miami, such as Cali,
Minor troubles
The itinerary of the Arca flights with flowers and other perishable items, at that time, was scheduled to leave Bogotá at dawn to arrive in Miami very early in the morning. The aircraft was unloaded and was ready before noon to return to Colombia. In mid-1982, Douglas DC-8 HK-2587-X suffered an accident arriving at Cali from Miami, leaving the runway due to a hydraulic failure and loss of nosewheel steering, a factor aggravated by the wet runway. The break at the airport lasted for three days, while the aircraft was removed and the runway cleared. The aircraft returned to operations after repair.[3]
1980s
In the early eighties, the arrival from Miami at Olaya Herrera Airport, Medellín was sometimes considered a feat of the pilots. Since the aircraft arrived with full cargo on most flights and was sometimes overloaded. Sometimes, after landing, the aircraft's tires deflated on the platform because of a safety valve that overheated due to the intensive braking that was needed to stop the aircraft. In addition, for this aircraft only runway 19 was available to land, even with tail wind. Which definitely slowed down all flights at Olaya Herrera Airport and made the mechanics jobs much easier if no flights are going out.
During the 1980s, Arca initiated operating agreements with the cargo airline, Ecuador Andes, thus the Douglas DC-8 HK-2667X was transferred to it, and shared flights were initiated to the Old Mariscal Sucre International Airport from Miami and Colombia. By the end of that decade an additional Douglas DC-8 were acquired.
1990s
At the beginning of the last decade, after having signed the Open Skies Agreement of the Andean Pact,[4] especially with Venezuela, Arca processed before the SAUCA the authorization to transport passengers between Cartagena and Miami with seven weekly frequencies in Douglas DC-8 aircraft for 180 passengers at a cost of $279, about half of what an ordinary ticket cost; He also requested permission to fly the Bogotá-Cartagena, Cartagena-Medellín and Cartagena-Cali routes with passengers. Arca's request was supported by the National Tourism Corporation (NTC). His representative, Luis Baldión, said at the public hearing that the request was presented that the entity supported the initiative that tends to make tourism an industry. Dozens of Colombians in Miami joined their voice to call to break the monopoly and lower air fares between the United States and Colombia. In the Colombia la Grande radio program, broadcast by WRHC Cadena Azul, calls were received from the public to support Arca, who also sent his signatures of support to the head of the SAUCA at that time, José Joaquín Palacio Campuzano.[5] Days after studying the petition, the SAUCA denied Arca the approval of these routes. The decision adopted was based on the recommendation of the Higher Aeronautical Council,[6] which considered it inconvenient for the company, to operate cargo, to move passengers, in particular on the most important routes for the country.
After knowing the refusal of the SAUCA, Captain Gutierrez founded the airline in
The decade of the nineties would mark a crisis not only for Arca, but for all Colombian freight airlines, because of several circumstances that combined against the airline industry in the country. The main one was
On January 24, 1997, Arca was intervened by the SAUCA. The director of the entity, Abel Enrique Jiménez, and the head of the Office of Control and Security, Captain Germán Duarte, said that in the process of inspection, they had to paralyze the operation they had been carrying out the aircraft of the company, because they did not meet the requirements to fly to the United States. So the company was under fire for having not completed the inspection on aircraft and the financial status of the company. The immobilization of each DC-8 represented for the company a 50% decrease in its revenues and that since the beginning of 1996 the SAUCA was lowered by the
In mid-1997 the FAA fined Arca with a sum of $68,000, for not complying with a maintenance plan. According to the FAA, Arca made a series of flights on the Douglas DC-8-55F between June 1992 and August 1993 without a necessary ventilation system for the main cargo door within a stipulated period. These decisions, the lack of government support and decertification were events that unfortunately marked the end of the company, its three DC-8s, HK-2587X, HK-3746X and N5824A were immobilized at Miami and then scrapped totally at the end of that decade in the famous airport sector known as "Corrosion Corner".[8]
Destinations
ARCA served to the following destinations:[9]
- Colombia
- Barranquilla (Ernesto Cortissoz International Airport)
- Bogotá (El Dorado International Airport)
- Bucaramanga (Palonegro International Airport)
- Cali (Alfonso Bonilla Aragón International Airport)
- Medellin (José María Córdova International Airport)
- San Andrés (Gustavo Rojas Pinilla International Airport)
- Villavicencio (La Vanguardia Airport) Hub
Fleet
ARCA Colombia used throughout the years the following aircraft:[10]
- 1 Boeing 707-120F
- 1 Curtiss C-46 Commando
- 5 Douglas DC-3
- 1 Douglas DC-6B
- 2 Douglas DC-8-43
- 1 Douglas DC-8-51F
- 2 Douglas DC-8-53F
- 3 Douglas DC-8-54CF
- 1 Douglas DC-8-55CF
See also
References
- ^ "ARCA Colombia Fleet Details and History". www.planespotters.net.
- ^ "GEOFF GOODALL'S AVIATION HISTORY SITE". www.goodall.com.au.
- ^ OpenFlights. "Airline Database". kaggle.com.
- ^ ICAO Secretariat. "Andean Open Skies Pact" (PDF). icao.int.
- ^ Tiempo, Casa Editorial El (June 17, 1993). "DIMITIÓ DIRECTOR DE LA AERONÁUTICA". El Tiempo.
- ^ ICAO Secretariat. "Aide Memoire" (PDF). clacsec.lima.icao.int.
- ^ "Andean Community of Nations". www.internationaldemocracywatch.org.
- ^ Prophet, Michael. "Miami's Corrosion Corner". michaelprophet.com.
- ^ Romero, Camilo Luengas. "Aerovías Colombianas - ARCA". aviacol.net.
- ^ "ARCA Colombia Fleet Details and History". Planespotters.net. Retrieved July 26, 2020.