Approved by the Falkland Islands authorities (Malvinas for the Argentineans), the second flight that will connect the archipelago to the South American continent is expected to debut in 2019, according to the Argentine press.
The flight will be operated by LATAM Brazil and will connect São Paulo to Mount Pleasant airport in the capital Stanley once a week with Airbus A320 aircraft. The airline did not confirm the flight, but said it awaited an official positioning of the governments of those countries before an official announcement.
The latest information revealed by the Argentine press says that once a month the flight will stop in Cordoba, Argentina’s second largest city.
The decision on a stop over in Argentina would have occurred earlier this month in a meeting between authorities of the two countries and the islands. According to a local newspaper, the official announcement is awaiting a suitable political moment in the coming months.
War in 1982
The Falkland affair has been a delicate issue for Argentines since the United Kingdom retaken control of the islands of the Argentine military that had invaded the archipelago in 1982. Although the episode occurred during the Argentine military dictatorship and since the end of the conflict the two countries have resumed relations, the “Malvinas” continue to cause internal conflicts in the country.
British flights to the archipelago, for example, are condemned by Argentina if they stop in some other South American country. With about 12,200 km², the islands have a population of only 3,400 people.
Falkland Islands currently receive only one weekly flight operated since 1999 by LATAM Chile that departs from Punta Arenas and stops monthly in Rio Gallegos, both in the south of the continent.
