As a result of the lifting of the severe travel restrictions imposed by the United Kingdom and the removal of Costa Rica from the red list, British Airways returned to Juan Santamaría Airport (SJO) after more than 18 months of having suspended its operations in the country. Since December 9, European travelers can now connect from London to San José.
” This is the return of a long-awaited commercial partner. Together with British Airways, we have recovered most of the airlines that facilitate mobility between Juan Santamaría Airport and Europe, specifically connecting us with the city of London and attracting the ideal tourist potential for our country,” said Ricardo Hernández, General Director of AERIS.
The resumption of these operations is the result of the coordinated work between AERIS and the Costa Rican Tourism Institute (ICT), to speed up the recovery of the airline market and promote Costa Rica as a safe vacation destination.
” With the return of British Airways, one of Europe’s most important airlines, Costa Rica recovers the air connectivity that had with the United Kingdom before the pandemic. This flight is a temporary one, it will be operating until Easter and will return again in October 2022″, added Gustavo Alvarado, Minister of Tourism.
British Airways will arrive just in time for the high winter season offering three flights per week on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays on Boeing 777-200ER aircraft with 332/336 seats. The company’s first flight from London Gatwick (LGW) to San Jose (SJO) in 2021 carried 300 passengers and returned to the British capital with 160 travelers.
Information obtained by Aviacionline through the Civil Authority Aviation UK (CAA), indicates that in 2019, 57,198 passengers were mobilized between London and San José, being one of the main vacation routes in Latin America and the Caribbean from Gatwick (LGW).
Welcome back @British_Airways to SJO!
Foto por Osvaldo Arce @CrAereo @CR_Aviation pic.twitter.com/1tF7XLx9gX
— En vivo desde SJO (@adsbcr) December 10, 2021
“We are honored to play our part in reuniting family and friends with their loved ones after being apart for so long. The safety of our customers and colleagues has always been at the heart of everything we do. While we know that some customers have not flown for a long time, we can assure them that we have a comprehensive range of anti-COVID-19 measures in place to provide stress-free and hassle-free travel,” said Vladimir Salgado, British Airways Sales Manager for Costa Rica.
At present, Juan Santamaría International Airport connects with 25 destinations around the world, through the operation of 21 foreign airlines, including Lufthansa, Iberia, KLM, Air France, and Edelweiss among the European ones.
