MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Paraguayan carrier allowed to serve domestic route in Uruguay

Paranair's new service is in line with Uruguay's newly signed open skies agreements, it was explained

Paraguayan carrier Paranair reached an understanding with Montevideo to add a stopover in Salto to some of its bidaily flights between the Uruguayan capital and Asunción,
Transport Undersecretary Juan José Olaizola announced.

“We signed the authorization of the request of the company Paranair to start a flight between Asunción, Montevideo and Salto,” Olaizola explained.

He also underscored the initiative as a milestone towards relaunching Uruguay's domestic air connectivity. Paranair's first service “will be arriving in a month or two,” Montevideo's presidential website also pointed out.

According to Olaizola, the segment between Salto and Montevideo and back will become twice a week “the first flight that we authorized to one of the new terminals of the National System of International Airports for Uruguay, in this case, Salto, which begins to have two weekly frequencies with Montevideo, in terms of passenger and cargo transport.”

The new alternative gives Paraguayan and Uruguayan travelers the chance to visit Salto's thermal area and get to know the productive system of the coast and the north of the country, Olaizola alsi highlighted.

Paranair's new service is in line with Uruguay's newly signed open skies agreements with Argentina, Chile and Paraguay. A similar deal is being brokered with Brazil, the official also pointed out. “The initiative generates possibilities for other airlines to find niches in the interior of the country,” Olaizola argued. “There are talks for more than one airline to arrive at the binational airport of Rivera,” he also said.

Uruguay's National System of International Airports includes Carrasco (Montevideo), Punta del Este, Carmelo, Durazno, Paysandú, Salto, Melo, and Rivera.

Paranair's fleet consists of three CRJ 200 twin-engine jets built in Canada by Bombardier Aerospace, with an average age of 24 years and a 50-seat capacity.

The model is known for its lower noise emissions compared to most jet airliners. The company was founded on Sept. 2, 2015, as Amaszonas Paraguay and rebranded Paranair on Oct. 15, 2018. Its main hub is Asunción's Silvio Pettirossi International Airport.