The FINANCIAL — Thanks to a partnership with TACA, one of the leading Latin American airlines, Lufthansa will be able to offer flights to two new destinations in Central and South America, starting 1 April 2009.
Travellers to the Latin American capitals Lima (Peru) and San Salvador (El Salvador) can take long-haul Lufthansa flights from Frankfurt to Caracas or Miami and then transfer seamlessly to a connecting flight operated by TACA under a Lufthansa flight number. The new codeshare flights can be booked with immediate effect and will provide to the customer daily connections to Lima (via Caracas) and San Salvador (via Miami). TACA will operate both these routes with an Airbus A320 or A321. In addition, members of Lufthansa’s Miles & More and TACA’s Distancia frequent flyer programme will be able to earn and redeem award miles on all partner routes. Out of Lima and San Salvador TACA operates some 17 further connections each to destinations in Central- and South America.
“The codeshare agreement with TACA enables us to connect new destinations in Central and South America for our customers,” said Götz Ahmelmann, Vice President Alliances, Strategies & Subsidiaries Lufthansa Passenger Airlines. “TACA is a quality carrier and it offers Lufthansa passengers one of the most modern aircraft fleet and a very good on board product. We are looking forward to this cooperation, which will strengthen our presence in other parts of Latin America.”
“It is our priority to always develop innovations that satisfy our customers’ needs. We are very pleased to have an agreement with an airline as prestigious as Lufthansa and we are looking forward to develop further this very productive alliance,” said Alex Benitez, TACA’s Corporate Development Vice-President. “Through this codeshare agreement our clients will be able to broaden their frequent flyer benefits by using it also on Lufthansa flights, and therefore strengthening our Distancia program.”
TACA has an international route network encompassing 38 destinations in 22 countries throughout the Americas which it serves from its three hubs in San Salvador, San José (Costa Rica) and Lima. The airline op-erates the latest-generation Airbus A319, A320 and A321 aircraft as well as the Embraer 190, which is recognised worldwide for its technical innovation, efficiency and safety. All the aircraft in the fleet are fitted with a Business Class cabin. TACA has earned a reputation for its reliable and punctual flight operations and also possesses an IOSA (IATA Operational Safety Audit) certificate for its high safety and quality standards. In addition, TACA operates its own regional fleet of 30 propeller aircraft, which mainly serve smaller destinations in Central America.
The cooperation between Lufthansa and TACA has been prepared jointly since May 2007 which is now being launched with the two Codeshare flights based on a corresponding agreement.
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