LATAM Argentina


LATAM Airlines Argentina, formerly LAN Argentina, was an airline based in Buenos Aires, Argentina and a member of the LATAM Airlines Group.

History

Prior to its acquisition by LAN Chile, the airline was known by its legal name, Aero 2000. LAN Argentina became an affiliate member of the Oneworld airline alliance on April 1, 2007, but left on May 1, 2020. The airline was owned by LATAM Airlines Group and Argentine investors.
On August 28, 2013, an Argentinean judge blocked the government's plan to break a long term lease of hangar space to LAN in Aeroparque Jorge Newbery, that was seen as vital to the airline's operations.
As its parent company LAN Chile merged with TAM Airlines and rebranded to form LATAM Airlines, LAN Argentina also rebranded to LATAM Argentina.
LATAM Airlines agreed to pay more than $22 million in civil and criminal fines relating to a decade-old Argentine bribery case. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission said the fine of LATAM related to "improper payments it authorized during a dispute between the airline and its union employees in Argentina". LAN was accused of using an Argentine consultant to negotiate with unions on the company's behalf and paid the consultant via a sham contract that channelled funds to corrupt union officials. The scheme had violated the accounting provisions of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, the U.S. Justice Department said, and the airline agreed to pay a $12.75 million criminal penalty. It will pay a further $9.4 million, including interest, to settle the SEC's charges of inadequate accounting controls.
On June 17, 2020 LATAM Argentina's parent LATAM Airlines Group announced it would cease operations of the subsidiary, with all aircraft returned to lessors and all employees laid off immediately.

Destinations

LATAM Argentina operated scheduled domestic services from Buenos Aires to Bariloche, Córdoba, Comodoro Rivadavia, El Calafate, Mendoza, Puerto Iguazú, Neuquén, Río Gallegos, Salta, San Juan, Tucumán and Ushuaia, and international services to Lima, Miami, Santiago and Sao Paulo. Its main bases were Jorge Newbery Airport for its short-haul operations and Ministro Pistarini International Airport for its long-haul operations, both located in Buenos Aires.

Fleet

At the time the airline ceased operations in June 2020, LATAM Argentina's fleet consisted of the following aircraft: