Aserca Airlines

Aserca Airlines was a Venezuelan company dedicated to passenger air transport services, which managed to offer more than 485 weekly flights. Its service offer was complemented by extensive itineraries that satisfied the demand of the business or leisure traveler that required flexible schedules and a variety of destinations.

This Venezuelan airline company had been providing commercial services in Venezuela for 25 years. The airline served various national and international destinations, maintaining close to 250 weekly flights; its main destination was the Arturo Michelena International Airport, which serves the city of Valencia (Venezuela). From there, it covered three international destinations as well as a dozen national destinations.

Currently, by order of the National Institute of Civil Aeronautics (INAC for its acronym), it is suspended even for irregularities with its aircraft, lack of insurance payments (due to strict exchange control), among other irregularities.

The airline permanently closed its operations on May 22, 2018.

History

On March 6, 1968, a group of Valencian businessmen started a thriving private air transport company called Aero Servicios Carabobo C.A. Subsequently, on July 27, 1990, the Valencian businessman Simeón García, acquired all the shares and decided to direct it to passenger air transport. On September 14, 1992, the airline made its first flight, on the Valencia - Puerto Ordaz route, with a DC9-30, called El Pilar con el Cap. José A. Azpúrua and the cap. Agustín Hernández and on November 27, 1997, he acquired his second aircraft, and it was renamed Aserca Airlines.

In 1995 it absorbed some employees who were laid off after the bankruptcy of Aeropostal (which in 1998 would be refloated).

On May 22, 2018, the airline announced the definitive cessation of its operations due to financial bankruptcy after delivering its Certificate of Operation of Public Air Transport Service (AOC).

Expansion

In September 2008, the airline created a commercial alliance with the line SBA airlines, formerly called Santa Bárbara Airlines, also from Venezuela, with whom it undertakes international expansion through what is now called SBA Airlines, unifying the corporate image of both airlines and coordinating their respective itineraries to improve their connection times between the flights of both airlines, to facilitate connections between Aserca's domestic destinations with SBA Airlines' international destinations. On the other hand, it collaborates with the Dominican airline PAWA and in February 2016 the alliance now called Grupo Cóndor C.A. announced the purchase of the Aereotuy Tourist Line. The McDonnell Douglas DC-9 aircraft were being replaced by McDonnell Douglas MD-82 and McDonnell Douglas MD-83 aircraft as an expansion plan and had plans in 2012 to acquire the McDonnell Douglas MD-87 from the ex-Aeromexico airline which they hoped could enter in service in 2014.

Fleet

SBA Airlines airline gave its MD80 fleet to Aserca Airlines.

Destinations

Until its suspension, it operated a total of 9 destinations and 8 routes in 4 countries, as follows:

Venezuela Venezuela (8 destinations, 5 routes)

• Barcelona, General José Antonio Anzoátegui International Airport
• Barquisimeto, Lara / Jacinto Lara International Airport
• Caracas, Capital District / International Airport of Maiquetía Simón Bolívar (Hub)
• The Watch, Merida / Juan Pablo Pérez Alfonso International Airport (sighs)
• The Stones, Falcon / International Airport Josefa Camejo
• Maracaibo, Zulia / La Chinita International Airport
• Maturín, Monagas / José Tadeo Monagas International Airport
• Puerto Ordaz, Bolivar / Manuel Piar International Airport

ArubaAruba (1 destination, 1 route)

• Oranjestad / Reina Beatriz International Airport

CuracaoCuracao (1 destination, 1 route)

• Willemstad / Hato International Airport

Dominican RepublicDominican Republic (1 destination, 1 route)

• Santo Domingo / International Airport of the Americas

Minor accidents and incidents

• 10 July 2000A DC-9 called "Virgen del Valle" landed without a front train at Jacinto Lara International Airport in Barquisimeto.

• 6 November 2005a DC-9 must have returned from emergency to La Chinita International Airport after taking off to Maiquetía, when he presented a depressurization.

• On 27 January 2006, a DC-9 with 125 passengers lands in emergency at General José Antonio Anzoátegui International Airport in Barcelona because there was a fire in one of the engines.

• On 5 December 2006, a DC-9 was returned to the Manuel Piar International Airport of Puerto Ordaz for hydraulic failures.

• 11 April 2007, a DC-9 landed in the International Airport of Santo Domingo after taking off from it to the International Airport of Maiquetía Simón Bolívar, for presenting problems in one of the engines, according to the official authorities.

• The 12 February 2008, a DC-9-30 crashed on one of the tracks of the International Airport of Maiquetía Simón Bolívar, Maiquetía, Venezuela, the aircraft came out of the hangar with motors on and apparently could not stop or turn, on land it crossed with track 09 stopping by falling into a channel in the area between track 09 and Foxtrot, before reaching track 10L.

• The 15 May 2009 at 7:30 pm, a DC-9, registration YV243T, heading for the International Airport of Maiquetía Simón Bolívar must have returned to Barcelona for cabin depressurization.

• The 15 June 2009, an aircraft made an emergency landing in the city of Barquisimeto, apparently, for failure in one of the engines. No casualties were recorded.

In December 2009, an Aserca DC9 made an emergency landing due to failures in the landing gear.

• The 20 August 2011, Flight 714 had problems with steering control of the front train, after landing at Barquisimeto Airport, the plane was towed to the terminal. None of the passengers suffered injuries.

• The 31 August 2011, Flight 774 from Maiquetía to Maturín landed in the International Airport of the General East José Antonio Anzoátegui for presenting a fault in the right engine during the flight.

• The 2 September 2011, a DC-9 plane, flight 752, returned emergency to Maiquetía airport for failure in the right engine.

• The 26 September 2011, a DC-9 acronym YV-371T, with 90 passengers on board, left Puerto Ordaz and was returned after detecting the presence of smoke in the aircraft cabin.

• The 27 September 2011a MD-83 acronym YV-348T in flight Puerto Ordaz-Maiquetía is returned by hydraulic leak.

• The 07 August 2012 The four main tyres of the aircraft covering the Caracas-Maturín R7 710 flight were resold. The plane landed made hydroplane and upon entering a dryer part of the track, the wheels exploded for sliding on the track due to the water pushed on the track.

• The 30 August 2013 An aircraft completely loses power during the flight and makes an emergency landing at La Chinita International Airport in Maracaibo.