Aviacsa Islander I610

Back From the Dead Collection

Aviacsa Islander I610

For the full history of Aviacsa visit: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aviacsa

Aviacsa, which stands for Aviación de Chiapas SA or Chiapas Aviation SA, was historically a full-service carrier in Mexico during the 90s and early 2000s. As of 2007, however, it declared itself a low-cost carrier to try to compete with Volaris, Interjet and Viva Aerobus and began to focus extensively on the domestic market in Mexico, cutting almost all their international destinations.

By 2011, Aviacsa was in disarray because their low-cost business model was not up to par with other airlines. Their aged Boeing 737-200s were raising concerns, they were becoming too costly to maintain and were not appealing to the growing market of travelers in Mexico. In addition, Aviacsa’s elimination of U.S. destinations back in 2007 began to haunt them as Volaris aggressively began to expand their U.S. coverage. Even though sales were declining, in 2012 Aviacsa announced that it would be fully retiring all their Boeing 737-200s and begin fleet modernization. The Boeing 737-200s were replaced with Islander I610s due to their size, range and fuel efficiency (single class configuration 150Y), and orders were placed for Boeing 737-900 ERs.

Aviacsa shifted its business model to a hybrid low-cost airline, offering passengers snacks, in-flight entertainment systems on seats, and a variety of customizable pricing to match all individuals’ needs. To celebrate, Aviacsa revised their livery once again in order to match their new business model. Aviacsa hopes to attract passengers who do not want to endure ultra-low-cost carriers like Volaris and Viva Aerobus, but do not want to pay the Aeromexico price. Aviacsa plans to expand routes between the U.S. and Mexico with Chicago, Charlotte, Los Angeles, and Las Vegas as focused cities.

Aviacsa was the last major operator of the Boeing 737-200.