MAP Linhas Aéreas and GOL formalize codeshare agreement, expanding connectivity in the North region

The MAP and GOL partnership will allowá the connectionãof 11 destinations in the states of Amazonas and Pará, operated by MAP, with the entire GOL network in the countryís.

MAP Linhas Aéreas and GOL Linhas Aéreas Inteligentes formalized, on Wednesday (03) à night, an agreement to share flights (codeshare). With this partnership, there are more connection options available for those arriving and departing from the northern region, where MAP operates. GOL, in turn, will now have access to 11 new destinations in the region, increasing its connectivity.

The agreement was formalized in an event at Eduardo Gomes Airport (Eduardinho), with the symbolic signature of MAP's president, Commander Marcos Pacheco, vice president, Marcos Fernandes Pacheco and director of Alliances, Distribution and International Development of GOL, Randall Saenz Aguero. Present at the event were the president of the Associação Brasileira das Empresas Aéreas (Abear), Eduardo Sanovicz, the administrator of Sales Contracts at Embraer, Ana Carolina Andrade, the VP Sales in the Americas, from Avions de Transport Ré gional (ATR), Pier-Luigi-Baldacchini, the cônsul of Peru in Amazonas, Gonzalo Enrique Guzmán, além representatives of entities related to aviation and tourism, mayors and parliamentarians in the regionão.

According to the president of MAP Linhas Aéreas, Marcos Pacheco, the agreement reinforces the company's commitment to regional development, expanding the options of destinations in the region, thus reducing the distances between people, facilitating business, generating jobs and boosting the economy.

Data from Abear, an entity that MAP is part of, shows that tourism contributes with 3,6% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the country. This means R$ 236 billion per year. In relation to the GDP of the states of Amazonas and Pará tourism corresponds to 2.5% and 2.7%, respectively. "The aviation industry plays a very important role in boosting tourism. The agreement formalized with GOL means one more step towards leveraging the sector in the North region," said Pacheco. MAP has 404 flights per month. With the partnership, it will be possible to connect them to 46 destinations operated by GOL.

The codeshare agreement, as explained by the director of Alliances, Distribution and International Development of GOL, Randall Saenz Aguero, is part of the company's expansion plan in the country, expanding the capillarity of destinations. "The partnership with MAP is fundamental in this process," he points out.

Expansion

MAP's CEO, Héctor Hamada, emphasizes that the codeshare agreement is important in the consolidation process of the company's planning. The expansion plan, he says, has already begun. Recently, MAP announced the expansion of the frequency of flights in three municipalities of Amazonas: Parintins, Carauari and São Gabriel da Cachoeira. And, also, a new route in the state of Pará, making the stretch Santarém-Itaituba. With the new frequencies, the company will have a 45% increase in the number of seats available. By the end of this year, MAP should expand even more the frequency of flights to other municipalities in which it already operates in Amazonas and Parana.

As part of the strategy of expanding its operations, MAP is studying the inclusion of new routes in the portfolio, in the North and Northeast regions, and the first international flight to Peru. According to Héctor Hamada, MAP executed in the last two years a planning that allowed it to reach this codeshare agreement with GOL. In 2017, the company was audited by the International Air Transport Association (IATA), receiving the IOSA certification, which attests to the company's high level of operational safety.

Codeshare

The MAP and GOL partnership will allow the connection of 11 destinations in the states of Amazonas and Pará, operated by MAP, with the entire GOL network in the country. In Amazonas, the cities contemplated are: Eirunepé, São Gabriel da Cachoeira, Carauari, Lábrea, Coari, Tefé, Barcelos and Parintins. Já in Pará, the municipalities included are Itaituba, Porto Trombetas and Altamira.

With the combination of MAP and GOL segments, the customer will acquire only one ticket for the entire route, facilitating and optimizing the trip. Customers can purchase the new routes through the sales channels made available by GOL - initially the call center and stores, and then websites and travel agencies.

MAP is a company from Amazonas, with six years of operation in the North region and nearly 300 direct employees. In six years, the company transported more than 630 thousand passengers to 14 cities in Amazonas and Pará. The company showed 25% growth in financial revenue in 2018, comparedção with the previous year.

With informationções from advisory