American Airlines and JetSMART have signed a letter of intent to create a new partnership, taking advantage of American's global capabilities and tying it to the ultra-low-cost carrier JetSMART in South America.
The goal, American said in a statement, is to offer competitive fares and expanded travel options for flyers throughout North and South America.
American proposes acquiring a minority ownership stake in JetSMART allowing the carrier to rapidly grow its low-cost network in South America.
Customers would be able to earn and redeem AAdvantage miles on JetSMART flights.
"This proposed investment in JetSMART would give customers access to the largest network, lowest fares and best travel loyalty program in the Americas," said Vasu Raja, American's Chief Revenue Officer. "This would enable JetSMART and American to grow aggressively and profitably across Latin America as demand recovers, while preserving the best aspects of each carrier's business model. This partnership would also make AAdvantage the largest travel loyalty program in the Americas, creating more ways for customers to earn travel rewards and use their miles to access new destinations and elite benefits globally, no matter whether they earn in Latin or North America."
Operating from Chile and Argentina, JetSMART is a portfolio airline of Indigo Partners, one of the world's premier developers of new generation ultra-low-cost airlines. JetSMART operates a modern fleet of Airbus A320 aircraft and offers short-haul domestic and international service to 33 destinations throughout South America.
American has served Latin America since 1942 and offers service to 17 destinations in South America from its U.S. hubs in Dallas-Fort Worth, Miami and New York. Through the two airlines' codeshare, customers would be able to travel seamlessly throughout the Americas.
"We look forward to working with American to continue delivering low fares and customer choice throughout South America," said Bill Franke, Founder and Managing Partner of Indigo Partners.
For the latest travel news, updates and deals, subscribe to the daily TravelPulse newsletter.
Topics From This Article to Explore
