TAM Airlines

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Not to be confused with TAME or TAN Airlines.
TAM Airlines
TAM Airlines Logo.svg
IATA ICAO Callsign
JJ TAM TAM
Founded 1976
Commenced operations July 12, 1976
Operating bases
Hubs
Focus cities
Frequent-flyer program TAM Fidelidade
Airport lounge VIP Lounge
Alliance Oneworld[1]
Subsidiaries TAM Paraguay
Fleet size 169
Destinations 63
Company slogan Portuguese: Paixão por voar e servir
English: Passion to fly and serve
Parent company LATAM Airlines Group
Headquarters São Paulo, Brazil
Key people Marco Antonio Bologna (CEO) [2]
Revenue Increase US6.4 billion (2013)[3]
Net income Decrease - US$640.0 million (2013)[3]
Website www.tam.com.br
The headquarters of TAM
Former TAM logo
A TAM Boeing 777-300ER taxiing at Frankfurt Airport.
TAM Airbus A319

TAM Airlines[4] (Portuguese: TAM Linhas Aéreas[5]) is the Brazilian brand of LATAM Airlines Group. The merger of TAM with LAN Airlines was completed on June 22, 2012.[6] The company is currently the largest Brazilian airline by market share and fleet size, though it is not a flag carrier.

Before the takeover, TAM was Brazil's and Latin America's largest airline.[7][8] Its headquarters are in São Paulo,[9] operating scheduled services to destinations within Brazil, as well as international flights to Europe and other parts of North and South America. Shares in the company were traded on the São Paulo Exchange (BM&F Bovespa) and New York Stock Exchange as "TAM".[10] Prior to the merger with LAN, the company closed its capital, transferring its shares to LATAM Airlines Group. However, in August 2015, it was announced that the two airlines would fully rebrand as LATAM, with one livery to be applied on all aircraft by 2018.[11][12]

According to the National Civil Aviation Agency of Brazil (ANAC), between January and December 2014 TAM had 38.1% of the domestic and 78.82% of the international market shares in terms of passengers per kilometer flown,[13] making it the largest airline in Brazil.

The airline withdrew from the Star Alliance and joined Oneworld effective March 31, 2014.[1]

History

The Origins: TAM – Táxi Aéreo Marília

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Main article: TAM Aviação Executiva

TAM – Táxi Aéreo Marília and TAM – Transportes Aéreos Regionais were two different entities, although both belonged to the TAM Group. TAM – Marília, an air taxi company founded in 1961, provided the start-up infrastructure for TAM – Regionais.

TAM – Transportes Aéreos Regionais (KK)

On November 11, 1975, the Government of Brazil created the Brazilian Integrated System of Regional Air Transportation and divided the country in five different regions, for which five newly created regional airlines received a concession to operate air services. Founded by Rolim Adolfo Amaro[14] TAM – Transportes Aéreos Regionais S/A was the third of those regional airlines to be made operational. Its services started on July 12, 1976, and its operational area comprised parts of the Southeast and Central West regions of Brazil, specifically the states of Mato Grosso do Sul, and parts of Mato Grosso, and São Paulo plus the possibility of serving the cities of Cuiabá, Rio de Janeiro, Londrina, Maringá and Brasília when linking them to its area of concession.[15]

TAM – Linhas Aéreas Regionais was formed as a joint-venture between TAM – Táxi Aéreo Marília and VASP, the latter of which was then a state-owned airline. The airline received the IATA code KK[16] on October 13, 1999. The new airline flew Embraer EMB 110 Bandeirantes at first, but these proved grossly inadequate for the task at hand, and even at full capacity needed to be subsidized by the government in order to be profitable.

TAM went on to purchase three used Fokker F27 turboprops, which were subsequently refurbished by Fokker in the Netherlands. In order to obtain the import authorization for the aircraft, a deal was struck with the government in which TAM was forced to maintain 3 Bandeirantes for every F27, as well as removing 5 seats from each one, bringing the F27's capacity down to 40 passengers. A fourth F27, previously owned by Air New Zealand, was added to the TAM fleet in 1981. By 1983, TAM had acquired 10 F27s. By 1981, TAM had flown one million passengers, and two million by 1984.

TAM (KK) joint operations with TAM (JJ)

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Main article: Brasil Central Linhas Aéreas

In August 1986, the company, under financial stress, went public and began floating stock in the market. The same year, TAM – Transportes Aéreos Regionais (KK) acquired another regional airline, VOTEC, which operated in areas of northern and central Brazil. VOTEC was then renamed Brasil Central Linhas Aéreas. TAM and Brasil Central were both regional airlines and operated in different designated areas. They however operated as a consortium with integrated networks and fleet, with the most notable differences being the flight number IATA codes (whereas TAM had the IATA code KK, Brasil Central operated with the code JJ inherited from VOTEC), the different color schemes of the aircraft, and their designated areas of operation. In 1988, TAM flew its 3 millionth passenger.

On May 15, 1990, the Brazilian Government lifted restrictions on operational areas of regional airlines allowing them to fly anywhere in Brazil. As a consequence, Brasil Central was renamed TAM – Transportes Aéreos Meridionais, acquired the same color scheme of TAM (KK) but maintained the IATA code JJ.

In 2000 TAM (KK) was merged into TAM (JJ) and TAM (JJ) was renamed TAM Transportes Aéreos. The code JJ was maintained and the code KK was released back to IATA. It is now used by Atlasjet.

Despite TAM's success in the market, it was evident the airline would not last long when competing against airlines such as Varig and VASP, both of which already possessed Boeing 737s in their fleet. Amaro then tried to buy VASP, which was about to be privatized, and called the project "Revolution". Having lost the bid, he opted for slower growth with a gradual addition of new aircraft, re-dubbed "Evolution".

Consolidation of Services

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Main articles: Helisul Linhas Aéreas, Itapemirim Transportes Aéreos, and Pantanal Linhas Aéreas

On September 15, 1989, TAM arranged for the acquisition of two Fokker 100 jets. Like the F27s before them, TAM did not actually purchase these aircraft, but used Amaro's credibility to arrange for a third-party asset management company, Guinness Peat Aviation to purchase them and subsequently lease them back to TAM. Two more were added in 1991. In 1992, TAM carried its eight millionth passenger. By 1993, through the use of the Fokker 100 fleet, which now numbered at 14, TAM was serving 56 cities in Brazil.

In 1996 TAM bought another airline, Helisul Linhas Aéreas, which used the trade name of TAM. In 1997, TAM ordered its first large jets; the airline ordered 45 planes from Airbus, including 10 A330s, 4 A319s, and 34 A320s. In 1997, the Airbuses began to be delivered and the airline flew its first international service, from São Paulo to Miami International Airport. In 1998 TAM purchased the passenger division of Itapemirim Transportes Aéreos.

Two years later, in 1999, services to Europe were inaugurated through a code share service with Air France, to Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport. In 2000, the airline was renamed TAM Linhas Aéreas in Portuguese. Long running discussions to merge with Varig ended in 2004. In 2008, TAM transported 30,144,000 passengers, with an average load factor of 71%.[17] As of 2010, the airline is owned by the Amaro family (46.25%), Amaro Aviation Part (3.52%), treasury stocks (0.27%) and minority shareholders (49.96%). It employs 24,000 staff.[17] On May 13, 2010, TAM became the 27th member of Star Alliance.[18]

In 2009 TAM decided to replace its Passenger Service System provided by Sabre, known as Sabresonic, with the Altéa platform from Amadeus.[19] The migration to Altéa was completed in the first quarter of 2010.[20]

On March 30, 2011, TAM signed a letter of intentions to purchase up to 31% of the shares of TRIP Linhas Aéreas, a regional airline which code-shares with TAM since 2004.[21] A final decision had however been postponed,[22] and finally in February 2012 the purchase agreement was not renewed. On May 28, 2012, TRIP was sold to Azul Brazilian Airlines.[23] Code-sharing operations ended on March 28, 2013.[24]

On December 21, 2009, TAM Airlines purchased Pantanal Linhas Aéreas. At that time TAM decided to maintain Pantanal as a separate airline within the TAM Group integrated into the network of TAM.[25] Starting August 1, 2011 Pantanal operated flights on behalf of TAM, all with origin and destination at São-Paulo-Congonhas Airport. On March 26, 2013 Brazilian authorities approved the incorporation of all Pantanal assets by TAM and Pantanal ceased to exist.[26] The incorporation process was completed on August 23, 2013.[27]

In January 2013, the Jet Airliner Crash Data Evaluation Centre (JACDEC) determined that TAM Airlines had the second worst safety record in the world. The ratings take into account the number and deadliness of the hull losses (destroyed airplanes) they have suffered in the past 30 years, how they have fared more recently, and how many flights they have flown without incident. The results do not take into account the cause of the hull losses, or whether the airline is at fault, so they are not a perfect measure of how safely an airline behaves.[28]

The Creation of LATAM Airlines Group

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Main article: LATAM Airlines Group
TAM Airbus A330-200 in the former livery
A TAM Boeing 777-300ER taxiing at Frankfurt Airport.

On August 13, 2010, TAM signed a non-binding agreement with Chilean airline LAN Airlines to merge and create LATAM Airlines Group.[29] This was changed into a binding agreement on January 19, 2011.[30] Latam agreement was approved with 11 restrictions by Chilean authorities on September 21, 2011. These included transferring 4 slots at São Paulo-Guarulhos to competitors interested in operating flights to Santiago de Chile, renouncing membership to either Oneworld or Star Alliance, restricting increase capacity on flights between Brazil and Chile, and opening code-share possibilities and fidelity program membership to interested competitors.[31] On December 14, 2011, Brazilian authorities approved the agreement imposing similar restrictions as Chilean authorities. By August 2012 LATAM made a decision in favor of Oneworld and frequencies between São Paulo and Santiago de Chile were reduced: TAM had two pairs of slots while LAN had four. LAN ceded two pairs to competitors interested in using them which later was known to be Sky Airline.[32] The merger was completed on June 22, 2012.[6]

Subsidiary: TAM Paraguay

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Main article: TAM Airlines (Paraguay)
TAM plane at Londrina airport

In 1994 TAM Airlines established a small subsidiary airline in Paraguay called ARPA - Aerolíneas Paraguayas with a fleet consisting mostly of Cessna 208 Caravan aircraft, formerly operated by TAM. On September 1, 1996, TAM via ARPA, purchased 80% of the shares of the former state-owned LAP – Líneas Aéreas Paraguayas and merged it with ARPA. The new airline was named TAM – Transportes Aéreos del Mercosur and maintained the IATA code of LAP, PZ. Today TAM owns 94.98% and the Paraguayan government 5.02% of the shares.

In 2008, following a branding strategy, the name TAM Mercosur was dropped and the airline adopted an identical corporate identity of TAM Airlines. However, its corporate structure remains the same.[33] This airline is today informally known as TAM Paraguay, and uses the IATA code PZ.

Destinations

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Main article: TAM Airlines destinations

The network of TAM Group (composed of TAM Airlines and TAM Paraguay) covers Brazil, Paraguay, Europe, North and South America.

Furthermore, TAM Airlines maintains code-share agreements for domestic destinations with Passaredo Linhas Aéreas and for international destinations with Oneworld partners and a few other selected airlines, mostly former Star Alliance partners, and Aeroméxico.[34][35]

Fleet

A TAM Airlines Airbus A330-200 wearing the new livery at Frankfurt Airport. (2011)
TAM Airbus A320 in the former livery

On June 16, 2005, TAM purchased 20 additional Airbus A320 family aircraft (including the A319, A320 and A321), with an additional 20 options. These are expected to be delivered between late 2007 and 2010, adding to the already scheduled delivery of 6 A320s between 2006 and 2008. At the same time, the company signed a memorandum of understanding with Airbus stating its intent to buy 10 of the new Airbus A350-900 (plus 5 options), with deliveries due to commence at the end of 2014. These are expected to replace the A330 on the Paris and Miami routes as they become available.[citation needed]

TAM has signed a firm contract with Airbus to acquire 37 additional aircraft. The order comprises twelve A319s, 16 A320s, three A321s and three A330s and includes twelve unspecified extra options. This would bring the number of aircraft in TAM's fleet acquired directly from Airbus to 115 aircraft.[36] The commitments are separate from deals in earlier years for 29 firm-ordered A320s and 20 options. The deliveries are to be concluded by 2010.

In 2013, TAM announced the phase out of the 3 Boeing 767 it operates, but it later changed plans and decided to keep the aircraft and bring 6 more newer aircraft from LAN Airlines. They will replace older A330-200. TAM will also receive the first aircraft of the A320 family with Sharklets in April 2013. TAM will also receive more Airbus A321 in the ends in March 2015.[citation needed]

Fleet maintenance is partially conducted at the technology center at São Carlos Airport.[37][38]

As of October 2015, the fleet of TAM Airlines includes the following aircraft:[39][40][41][42]

TAM Airlines Fleet
Aircraft In Service Orders Passengers Notes
F C Y Total
Airbus A319-100 27 3 — — 144 144 Order are due
Airbus A320-200 83 14 —
—		 12
—		 144
174		 156
174		 4 leased to TAM Paraguay. 3 leased from GECAS.
Airbus A320neo — 22 TBA 150
Airbus A321-200 26 24 — — 220 220 3 2007 model are to be sold to Jetstar Pacific Airlines by December 2015.
Airbus A330-200 9 — 4 36 183 223 To be phased out.
Airbus A350-900 1 26 — 30 318 348 First service in January 2016[43]

A350 launch customer in the Americas
Boeing 767-300ER 14 6 — 30 191 221
Boeing 777-300ER 10 — — 56 323 379
Total 169 95

Retired Fleet

TAM Airlines Retired Fleet[44]
Aircraft Total Years of operation
Embraer EMB 110 Bandeirante ? 1976–1996
Fokker F27 10 1980–2000
Fokker 50 9 1990–2001
Fokker 100 53 1991–2008
McDonnell Douglas MD-11 3 2007–2008
Airbus A340-500 2 2007–2011

TAM Fidelidade

TAM Fidelidade (TAM Loyalty) is the frequent flyer program of TAM Airlines. Program points can be redeemed for tickets on TAM, Oneworld airlines and other selected partners. It is divided into the following categories and percentages of mileage accrual:[45]

Card Type Oneworld Status Points Needed / Year Economy class Business class First class
WHITE
 — —
100% (100%)
150% (150%)
200% (200%)
BLUE
Ruby
 15,000
100% + 25% (125%)
150% + 25% (175%)
200% + 25% (225%)
RED
Sapphire
 50,000
100% + 75% (175%)
150% + 75% (225%)
200% + 75% (275%)
RED PLUS
Emerald
 100,000
100% + 100% (200%)
150% + 100% (250%)
200% + 100% (300%)
BLACK
Emerald
 150,000
100% + 100% (200%)
150% + 100% (250%)
200% + 100% (300%)

Actual points accrual vary according to the fare basis of the ticket. Figures in the table are for full fares.

To achieve BLACK status, only points flown with TAM Airlines, LAN Airlines and their subsidiaries are taken into account.

Incidents and accidents

This building across from Congonhas-São Paulo Airport advertised TAM Airlines's TAM Express (now TAM Cargo) service, prior to the crash of TAM Airlines Flight 3054.
  • On February 8, 1979, an Embraer EMB 110 Bandeirante registration PT-SBB operating a flight from Bauru to São Paulo-Congonhas, while on initial climb from Bauru, struck trees and crashed into flames. All 2 crew and 16 passengers died.[46][47]
  • On October 7, 1983, an Embraer EMB 110C Bandeirante registration PP-SBH flying from Campo Grande and Urubupungá to Araçatuba struck the ground just short of the runway threshold after missing the approach at Araçatuba Airport twice. Seven crew and passengers died.[48][49]
  • On June 28, 1984, an Embraer EMB 110C Bandeirante registration PP-SBC operating a chartered flight by Petrobras from Rio de Janeiro-Galeão to Macaé flew into São João Hill hill while descending through rain and clouds over the Municipality of São Pedro da Aldeia. All 16 passengers and 2 crew died. The passengers were journalists of well-known Brazilian networks who were preparing a special report about the Campos Basin oil fields.[50][51]
  • On February 12, 1990: a Fokker F27 registration PT-LCG operating a flight from São Paulo-Congonhas to Bauru, due to faulty approach procedures touched down at Bauru 775 m past the runway threshold. The pilot was unable to initiate a go-around procedure and went past the end of the runway, hitting a car that was passing on a road nearby. One crew member and two occupants of the car died.[52]
  • On October 31, 1996, a Fokker 100 registration PT-MRK and operating as Flight 402 from São Paulo-Congonhas to Rio de Janeiro-Santos Dumont crashed on urban area during takeoff procedures and after engine no. 2 suffering at least three uncommanded reverse thrust deployments and thus losing power, stalled, rolled to the right and struck two buildings. All 95 passengers and crew on board and 4 people on the ground died.[53][54]
  • On July 9, 1997, a Fokker 100 registration PT-WHK operating flight 283 en route from São José dos Campos to São Paulo-Congonhas. The aircraft was climbing after take-off from São José dos Campos when a bomb exploded in the rear part of the passenger cabin. The uncontrolled decompression blew one passenger out of the aircraft. The aircraft made a successful emergency landing in São Paulo, despite the hole in the fuselage. The aircraft was repaired and returned to service.[55]
  • On September 15, 2001, a Fokker 100 registration PT-MRN operating the charter flight 9755, flying from Recife to São Paulo-Congonhas via Campinas-Viracopos, following an uncontrolled engine failure en route to Campinas had 3 cabin windows shattered by fragments of the engine and made an emergency landing at Belo Horizonte-Confins. One passenger was sucked out partly and held by another passenger until the aircraft landed. The passenger did not survive though.[56][57]
  • On July 17, 2007, an Airbus A320 registration PR-MBK operating flight 3054 from Porto Alegre to São Paulo-Congonhas overran the runway while landing at Congonhas, crossed a major thoroughfare and impacted against a TAM Express warehouse. All 187 passengers and crew perished, as did 12 people on the ground.[58]

Sister companies

  • TAM Cargo provides cargo services.[59]
  • Multiplus Fidelidade is the customer loyalty network.[59] On November 8, 2011, Multiplus and the Canadian company Aimia, administrator of Aeroplan, the loyalty program of Air Canada, established a joint-venture to create in Brazil a third company that would administer loyalty schemes of other companies.[60]
  • TAM Aviação Executiva provides air services for business executives.[59]
  • TAM Viagens provides vacation package services for Brazilians,[59] while TAM Vacations provides vacation package services for Americans.[61][62]
  • Cine TAM: a cinema in São Paulo owned by the airline.
  • TAM Museum: a museum of vintage aircraft located in São Carlos and maintained by TAM Group.[59]

See also

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  2. ↑ http://memoria2014.marketinglatam.net/english/latam_annual_report_2014.pdf
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  4. ↑ TAM Airlines. Retrieved February 2, 2009.
  5. ↑ "Resumo Historico do Grupo TAM". Retrieved 26 January 2012. (Portuguese)
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  7. ↑ TAM bill of US$ 5.5 million, 2 million more than LAN.
  8. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  9. ↑ Contact Us TAM Airlines. Retrieved September 21, 2009.
  10. ↑ TAM S.A., Joins NYSE Group, Inc. as 3rd Latin American IPO for 2006
  11. ↑ "LAN and TAM to operate as LATAM with a new livery" retrieved 9 August 2015
  12. ↑ "LATAM's entire fleet to have new livery by 2018" retrieved 9 August 2015
  13. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  14. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  15. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  16. ↑ Home Page
  17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 Airways magazine, Fast Facts - TAM Linhas Aereas, February 2010, p. 25
  18. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  19. ↑ TAM reveals Amadeus deal as it readies to join Star in April
  20. ↑ Amadeus processes record number of airline passengers through its Altea platform (press release) | ABTN
  21. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  22. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  23. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  24. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  25. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  26. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  27. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  28. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  29. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  30. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  31. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  32. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  33. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  34. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  35. ↑ [1] Archived May 17, 2015 at the Wayback Machine
  36. ↑ Airliner World January 2007
  37. ↑ "Centro Tecnológico de São Carlos," TAM Airlines
  38. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  39. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  40. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  41. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  42. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  43. ↑ http://www.airbus.com/newsevents/news-events-single/detail/tam-airlines-becomes-first-a350-xwb-operator-from-the-americas/
  44. ↑ TAM Fleet | Airfleets aviation
  45. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  46. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  47. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  48. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  49. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  50. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  51. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  52. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  53. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  54. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  55. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  56. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  57. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  58. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  59. ↑ 59.0 59.1 59.2 59.3 59.4 "TAM Group Companies." TAM Airlines. Retrieved on August 12, 2010.
  60. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  61. ↑ TAM Viagens
  62. ↑ TAM Vacations Travel South America - Vacation Packages-Special Offers

External links

External image
image icon TAM Photo Archive at airliners.net
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