Chile: LATAM Airlines to Resume Operations Amidst Pandemic

Chile's LATAM Airlines Group Thursday announced that its operations will resume in June after a two-month cease period due to coronavirus outbreak.

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“We have implemented higher hygiene and safety standards as well as a new flexibility policy,” the company tweeted and mentioned that it allows ​​​​​​​passengers to carry one bottle of sanitizing gel or spray. ​​​​​​​

LATAM announced available flights from Brazil and Chile to the U.S. and Europe. Frankfurt, London, Madrid, Miami, Germany, and Spain are the main destinations.

Airline's offices in Argentina will not reopen until September because of national flight restriction as a preventive measure facing the virus.

The air transportation group will operate in 74 national routes in Brazil and 12 local destinations in Chile. It also plans to retake operations in Ecuador, Colombia, and Peru from June to July.​​​​​​​

“Given the new economic environment, the LATAM group has further reduced costs and increased efficiency to offer tickets that on average can be up to 20 percent more affordable,” the company stated.

LATAM would resume operations despite the World Health Organization (WHO) warnings on lockdowns early lifting. The airline dismissed over 1,400 employees and ran at five percent of its capacity due to the economic recession because of the virus. 

So far, Chile registers 57,581 positive cases, 589 deaths, and 23,992 recoveries. Brazil is South America’s pandemic epicenter, with 312,074 cases and over 20,000 deaths.  ​​​​​​​