Buenos Aires – The result of the legislative elections of Argentina, won by President Javier Milei’s party, should kickstart a period of a more positive economic scenario, according to Mauricio Sana, CEO of Flybondi, one of the biggest airlines in the country.

“A time is coming in which the economic environment will be positive, and when a kind of political calm will continue, which will reflect in a kind of economic ease. There will be a more balanced Congress, which should eliminate a little the constant noise of governance issues the current government had”, says Sana, in a talk with EXAME from his office in the company headquarters in Buenos Aires.

Sana, who is Colombian, leads the first budget air company of Argentina, which also operates in Brazil. During the interview, he also analyzes the growth of air travel by Argentinians, even during the crisis, and questions the stagnation of the Brazilian air market, which has been limping in the last few years.

How do you see Argentina’s economic outlook after the election results this Sunday?

It will have to deal with situations that aren’t necessarily what we expected a few days ago. Today [Monday, October 27th], we woke up with a drop in the dollar. We are at the verge of 1,400 pesos per dollar, whereas on Friday, we closed at almost 1,600. There has been a nearly 30% increase in Argentine bonds. The leading companies are recovering a lot of ground that they’d lost over the last few weeks in the stock market.

I believe that a time is coming when the economic environment will be positive and a kind of political calm will prevail, which will reflect in economic ease. There will be a more balanced Congress, which should eliminate a little of the constant noise of governance issues the current government had.

With this, many laws, regulations, and projects will likely pass, while others will pick up in pace. It is the first day of a good moment that I hope will last for a long time. But it is the first day; the first hours. Let’s wait and see.

To what is the government’s victory owed, in your evaluation?

It has to do with the way Argentina has been understanding these moves toward the future, how Argentina is aware that the political situation affects its economic counterpart, and from that comes the message. Argentinians are saying that they want peace from now on, and they are playing this game to guarantee peace and see how the results at home improve, in the privacy of their families.

Flybondi plans to fly in record numbers this summer. How has flight demand behaved in such an uncertain economic scenario in Argentina?

We have seen growth in the market for several years, which we attribute primarily to the emergence of a model that reduces economic barriers to air transport access. In 2019, the domestic market saw a record number of passengers, with approximately 12 million passengers. In 2023, there were 16 million. In 2023 and 24, we had 10 million passengers, and this year, we are projecting around 17 million in the domestic market and around 13 or 14 million in the international market. The domestic market is growing at 10% to 12% compared to last year, and the global market is above 12%. Therefore, there is no reason to think that we will not close with these numbers, given that we have only a few months left until the end of the year.

There is a growing market with robust demand that has continued to increase in recent months. We are generating additional supply during the period of most significant growth, the peak of summer, which is essentially the period of real market growth. We will operate around 15,000 flights between December and March, representing around 2.7 million passengers in the market. When we compare this, it is basically what we move in an entire semester.

Why do people want to travel more to Argentina? Is it because of the exchange rate, because the peso is stronger?

It is difficult to relate this to the economic situation or the exchange rate. Was there growth in totally different scenarios? In 2019, the market grew; in 2023, the market grew; in a year that was economically difficult in Argentina, the air market grew. In 2024, there was a radical change in economic and exchange rate policy.

The change has more to do with the country's conditions. This is a very large country, with a lot of tourist activity, a lot of growth, and many centers of industrial growth. Ultimately, Argentines need mobility, and we are a mobility option that did not exist before [low-cost flights].

The latest reports from IATA (International Air Transport Association) show that, over the last 10 years, Argentina has grown by around 25% to 26% in per capita travel. It went from 0.45% to 0.6%. Over the last 10 years, more capacity has been created in the market through the low-cost model, which has reduced barriers to entry for passengers who did not fly before: 20% of the passengers we have served so far had never flown before.

What are the company's prospects for the Brazilian market?

Brazil is a very important market for Argentines. We have identified where this growth potential lies. We are opening a route from Córdoba to Rio de Janeiro. This summer, we will have operations in Maceió, which we have not operated before. There is a large market in both directions, with Brazilians arriving and Argentines going to Brazil. So, we will continue to strengthen our product wherever we find demand.

Brazilian airlines have been experiencing many problems, with Azul, Gol, and Latam undergoing restructuring processes. Would this open up space for Flybondi to expand its presence in the country?

In principle, we are not evaluating how Gol or Azul are performing. But what do we see? In the last 10 years, per capita travel in Argentina has grown by 28%. In the Bolivian market, per capita travel has increased by 10% over the last decade. Obviously, Chile has had a different type of growth and is around 50%. In Brazil, it grew 0%.

The country continues to have a per capita travel rate below 0.5. It is around 0.48. This means that for every 100 Brazilians, only 48 trips are made per year. In a population of 200 million inhabitants. Clearly, there is an opportunity there for any airline, because it seems that there is an undersupplied market, a condition similar to what we had in Argentina. Now, some say ‘it's strange’ because there are three very large, very solid companies that have been here for 10 years, but per capita travel has not grown.

Is there a chance to resume entry plans in Brazil’s domestic market?

We have already analyzed this, worked on it in the past, and continue to hope for more positive conditions for a new player to enter the market. At the time, we observed numerous legal and legislative barriers that halted the deal. Litigation rates in Brazil are incredibly high for situations common to an airline. The business case for us was very risky.