Responding to growing demand from passengers flying between Australia and South America, Latin American airline LATAM Airlines Group has announced it will increase the number of non-stop flights between Melbourne and Santiago, Chile from the current three-weekly to five.
LATAM launched the route on 6 October 2017, and is the only non-stop connection between Melbourne and Santiago, significantly reducing travel times between the two cities.
“LATAM is committed to providing unrivalled connectivity to, from and within Latin America so that more people have the opportunity to experience the unique destinations our region has to offer,” said Roberto Alvo, Chief Commercial Officer, LATAM Airlines Group. “With two extra weekly flights, we expect to transport an additional 50,000 passengers per year between the two cities.”
According to current schedules, Flight LA804 will depart Melbourne at 2010 on Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday, arriving in Santiago at 7.05pm the same day, with a flight time of 12 hours 55 minutes.
The return flight, LA805, will depart Santiago at 12.45pm on Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday, arriving in Melbourne at 5.30pm the following day, with a journey time of 14 hours 45 minutes.*
Melbourne Airport’s Chief of Aviation welcomed the capacity boost saying, “Since LATAM’s entry into the Melbourne market, the number of passengers travelling between Melbourne and Santiago has grown significantly, demonstrating the positive impact the airline’s service has had on tourism and education”.
In addition to its Santiago-Melbourne service, LATAM also operates seven flights per week from Sydney to Santiago (via Auckland). Both flights are operated by state-of-the-art Boeing 787-9 aircraft, offering 30 seats in Premium Business and 274 seats in Economy.
See www.latam.com.