Mexicana Performs Test Flights on Fleet

(Mexico, AN 21 January) Yesterday Mexicana de Aviación, which had suspended operations last August, took to the skies again. They made just two test flights, to certify the turbines. The flights consisted of a take-off, a flight to Acapulco without landing, and a return and landing at Mexico City’s International Airport. Next week more test flights will take place to certify technical and cabin crew members. Employees of the former state-owned airline expect negotiations with investors to conclude successfully with the reactivation of the company. The "restructuring" is actually a quiet privatization, in which the old company’s assets will be acquired for cents on the dollar by a group of new, private sector investors. The group negotiating with Mexicana is said to be “PC Capital,” a private venture capital firm thought to be comprised of several affluent investors from Mexico and elsewhere. The matter is considered delicate, as the presidential party has for years favored privatization of public companies, especially through sweetheart arrangements with political allies, and the general public has often cried foul.

The certification flights for turbines, pilots and cabin crew thus bode well for a return of Mexicana, and with it, an increase in daily frequencies into Acapulco’s International Airport. Approximately 90 pilots will be re-certified this month. Other preparatory arrangements include flight simulator time, drills on evacuation, water landings, and the certification of ground operations. Cancun and Guadalajara will be the first stations to pass through the process.