Sturzenegger in action: Government deregulates airline activity | Setback for Aerolineas Argentinas

the first blow of federico sturzenegger As Minister of Regulation he went against Aerolineas Argentinas. Through a decree published this morning Opened the door to deepening the open skies policy by amending the Aeronautical Code and reducing state capacity to provide routes, airspace, schedules and even ramp services.,

New solution Enables entry of new operators, reduces requirements for providing air routesDeregulates ramp services that until now were mostly in the hands of Intercargo Allows smaller aircraft to fly from city to city and province to province with fewer requirements and controls than their,

Too Revises the Aeronautical Code In a way that allows companies in the region to “collaborate” with each other and agree on their operations without a state controller, sharing their flight schedules, routes, resources and reconfiguration of trips.

Biro: “The government is taking away our entire sovereignty”

Pablo Biro, head of the Air Line Pilots Association (APLA)denounced that “the government is completely playing with our sovereignty.”

The leader maintained it “It’s a complete deregulation of the airline system” that “it does not work anywhere in the world” and “where it was launched it left countries at the mercy of speculation, profiteering and monopolies.”

Blow to flag airline

All these measures take away from Aerolineas Argentinas the exclusivity of routes, frequencies and some excellent services. That is, Can’t privatize it Because an amendment to the Aadhaar Act removed it from the list of companies to be sold, The government of Xavier Meili decided to reach the point of endangering the continuity of the flagship company in the face of private competition.,

For example, it deregulates controls and rates so that private companies can provide their own ramp services to passengers Travel is cheaper but also less safe,

In the context of tariff liberalisation, Biro retained its Strategy in favor of airline monopoly The following is: “First they deregulate the rates to be able to lower the tickets, then they go bankrupt (the companies that cannot match the prices) and then they raise the prices to the skies and take hostage the municipalities, the provinces, the hotel chambers and the gastronomic” who use those flights the most.

In terms of safety, the decree “turns (airline) management and control into a rubber stamp,” he said in a radio interview. “Things were already bad and with this rule they are getting worse,” he said.

Besides, Leaves the possibility of accessing routes in the hands of the commercial airline market without the need for a public hearing

. It also allows the closure of routes that are not as profitable from a tourism point of view but have remained in place due to their strategic nature in connecting the country.

free air market

Decree signed by the President Xavier MileyMinister of Economy, Louis Caputoand the Chief of Staff, Guillermo Francos It is governed by the following certain “principles”: Free access to the market for new operators“Shorter and more efficient administrative processes”, encouragement of competition, “Freedom in tariff regulation and pricing”,

also for “Commercial freedom in determining frequency and route” air services, “immediate grant of capacity and/or frequencies”, and “Incentives for the creation of new commercial air routes”; i.e. potential subsidies for private,

What Sturzenegger actually did was legalize the privatization process of the airline sector through Decree 599/2024 It was planned in Mega DNU 70 Which is effective from the end of last year.

Government promises

Through an official statement, the government of Javier Mieli praised the initiative of the Minister of Regulation. “The regulations governing the Argentine airline sector have not been renewed for more than 70 years. These need to be updated to reflect changes in transport, aerial work and civil aviation“the text says.

Further, he said that the reform package will “enable greater connectivity, more frequencies and new airline companies in the country”. “A bigger influx of tourism into the provinces” and “more people can fly.”

The regulation of access to airline commercial markets outlined in the decree came into force immediately after its publication in the Official Gazette. Also included are the new rules of the Aeronautical Code, whose compliance, until now, was in the hands of the National Civil Aviation Administration (ANAC), which regulates the activity, and the Argentine Air Navigation Company Sociedad del Estado (EANA SE).

According to Article 5 of the Decree, New transitional rules to specify capacity and frequencies for national and international air services will remain in force until October 31, 2025. The Worldwide Airport Slot Guidelines will then be in the hands of the International Air Transport Association (IATA) and the International Airports Council.