America : Argentina : LADE (Líneas Aéreas del estado) State-Owned Airlines

Líneas Aéreas del estado

History

LADE is a State owned company run by the Air Force, planes and pilots included, that was born to link isolated towns across the Patagonia, that don’t have regular and fast means of transportation. Once these airline routes become profitable a private owned company can take over the route.

In July 1940, a freight, passenger and mail route was authorized to cover the route between El Palomar and Esquel, stopping at Santa Rosa, Neuquen, and San Carlos de Bariloche. This was accomplished on September 4th, under the name of LASO (Southwest Airline)

The first official, regular flight was made with a three-motor Junker JU-52, under the command of First Lieutenant Mr. Francisco Fabri.

Four years later, in 1944, LANE (Northeast Airline) was created to cover the route between Buenos Aires and Cataratas de Iguazu.

The outcome was that on October 23rd, 1945 both Airlines merged creating LADE which stands for Linea Aerea del Estado (State Airline), which continues with the aim it was created for, linking the South of Argentine, concretely the Patagonia area, stopping at towns where the regular airlines don’t stop due to low profitability caused by the low inhabitant rate.

Activities

LADE links the interior areas with the coastal areas, and the most isolated villages with the big commercial and touristic centers. With departures from the Aeroparque Jorge Newbery and stops at Mar del Plata, San Antonio Oeste, Puerto Madryn and Trelew it reaches the most important coastal areas of the country.

LADE has 30 branches in the South of Argentina the main ones being Jorge Newbery in Buenos Aires, and Rio Gallegos, Bariloche, Comodoro Rivadavia and Ushuaia in the Patagonia region.

Comodoro Rivadavia, is LADE’S most important center in the Patagonia region, from where it reaches all the central villages like Rio Mayo, Rio Gallegos, Rio Grande, Rio Turbio, Calafate to name some of them.

In 1972, by means of international agreements, LADE added the Malvina Islands to their route. The first aircraft used was a Grumman Albatros, and some time later a Fokker F-27 and F-28 took over with flights twice a week. In 1982 this trip was put to an end due to the South Atlantic conflict.

Since 1970, LADE has sponsored the Escuela Provincial n° 68, in the province of Chubut. Under this sponsorship, LADE has fulfilled social, economic and political needs, fomenting the development of isolated areas that must feel and keep integrated in the national network.

Currently the company is undergoing a transition period aimed at enhancing human and material resources whilst at the same time tending to the Austral Zone of Argentine.

Facts and figures

Since its creation in 1940 to July 1999, LADE has developed the following activities:

• 90,252 Flights
• 273.011 hours flying
• 80,483,661 kilometers covered
• 2,793,619 passengers transported
• 18,630,400 Kilos transported
• 3,216,977 Kilos of mail transported

Director Comodor Alberto Vicente Borsato
Director of LADE

Contact
Perú 710C1068AAF
Buenos Aires
ARGENTINA
Phone: (54-11) 4362-1853
Fax: (54-11) 4300-0031
E-mail: director@lade.com.ar
Web Site: www.lade.com.ar

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