Chile’s Sky Airline has applied to the US Department of Transportation (DOT) to provide air service to the United States alongside its Peruvian subsidiary, which has been flying to the USA since 2022.
Sky applied with the DOT on 1 December, saying it will begin service “upon receipt of aircraft with the range necessary to do so on a nonstop basis to and from Chile”.
“Currently Sky Chile has 28 Airbus A320neo and A321neo aircraft in its fleet,” the application reads. “With an all-neo fleet, Sky Chile is one of the most environmentally responsible airlines in the world. Additionally, Sky Chile has 10 ultra-long-range Airbus A321XLR aircraft on order.”
“Sky Chile is scheduled to become the first Latin America-based operator of this aircraft type, which will allow Sky Chile to launch nonstop flights between Chile and the United States,” the airline says.
It does not say what routes it will serve, or give a timeline for potential new flights.
Currently Sky Airline Peru, the carrier’s Peruvian subsidiary, operates daily flights between that country’s capital Lima and Miami.
In addition, the two carriers – which operate under common ownership and control – have asked the DOT for permission to operate under a single flight code, saying that doing so will “increase consumer awareness of their respective commercial air services”.
The approval ”will position the joint applicants to offer more effective competition to larger incumbents in US-South America markets for air services”.
Sky Peru uses H8 as its designator code for US flights. Sky Chile’s code is H2.
Sky ordered the A321XLRs in 2019. It currently serves destinations in Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Mexico, Peru and Uruguay.
