LATAM Airlines Reports Strong Traffic Growth, Expands U.S. Frequencies

LATAM Airlines Group has announced robust traffic growth in 2024, driven by a surge in returning international passengers, prompting the airline to enhance its U.S. route offerings.

The group’s affiliated airlines based in Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru collectively carried 32.8 million passengers in the first five months of 2024, marking a substantial 16.6% increase compared to the same period last year.

International passenger numbers surged by 30.6% year-over-year to reach 4.8 million from January through May.

In May alone, LATAM airlines flew 6.4 million passengers, up 11.2% from May 2023. This growth was supported by a 15.9% increase in overall capacity, with international capacity rising by 27.6%. The consolidated load factor for May reached 81.4%, up 2.3 percentage points from the previous year.

To strengthen its strategic partnership with Delta Air Lines under their antitrust-immunized joint venture (JV), LATAM Airlines Group will increase frequencies on key U.S. routes:

• Starting October 27, flights between Santiago International Airport (SCL) and Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) will increase from 6X-weekly to 7X-weekly.
• Also in October, service between São Paulo Guarulhos Airport (GRU) and LAX will rise from 3X-weekly to 4X-weekly.
• Three additional weekly frequencies will be added between GRU and Orlando, Florida, increasing service from 4X-weekly to 7X-weekly in October.
• Service between SCL and Miami will grow from 12X-weekly to 13X-weekly in November, and then further to 14X-weekly in December.
• Additionally, Delta will operate double daily flights between Atlanta and SCL from December 13 to January 13, 2025, up from daily service currently.

Kamal Hadad, LATAM’s network director, emphasized, “The addition of new flights reinforces our partnership with Delta, enhancing connectivity between South and North America and providing travelers with easier access to key U.S. vacation destinations.”

Delta acquired a 20% stake in LATAM in 2019, leading to the approval of their metal-neutral, antitrust-immunized JV for U.S.-South America flights by the U.S. Transportation Department in October 2022. This collaboration aims to optimize flight schedules and improve travel options across the Americas.