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During the first year, the carrier expects to transport some 31,000 passengers between Miami and Santa Marta, which it has named its third hub in Colombia.

"At its worst, the box that Medellín was put in was a terrible box. But if you are here, you know the box is alive," said Robert Young.

The route to Santa Cruz is Avianca’s second connecting Colombia in Bolivia. The carrier also operates a daily flight between Bogotá and La Paz.

Among the projects underway is the development of methods to pay for flights through mobile platforms such as WhatsApp.

The LATAM Group already owned more than 70% of Multiplus as the controlling stakeholder and will purchase the remaining shares of the São Paulo-based firm.

Avianca say the problem involved the failure of a communications system with crew members who did not show up for scheduled flights.

Avianca beat out beat everyone on the continent, including second-place finisher Azul Airlines, LATAM, Sky Airlines, and Aerolíneas Argentinas.

Avianca’s new lounge has private cubicles with power connections in quiet areas of the complex in addition to a greatly expanded menu of food and drink options.

This will be the first direct flight operating between these two major cities in the Americas.

Russia, the United States, and Brazil — three countries with much larger populations — are the only nations that have bought more tickets than Colombia.