Aviateca

Avianca Guatemala is headquartered in Guatemala City. It is now a subsidiary of Avianca.

History

The airline was established on 14 March 1945 as Empresa Guatemalteca de Aviación S. A., which was shortened to Aviateca. It was formed as the successor to Aerovías de Guatemala, which had been founded in 1929. One of the original founders was Alfredo Castaneda Duarte that also served as a pilot. Aviateca started operations in March 1946 and early aircraft operated by the carrier included the Douglas DC-3.

In 1961, service to Miami was originated with 4-engined Douglas DC-6 airliners. Convair 340/440 twin engined medium airliners were also acquired to replace some of the DC-3's on short-haul routes in Latin America. Aviateca was a customer for the British Aircraft Corporation BAC One-Eleven medium twin jet in 1970.

It also temporarily leased a Fokker F28, a Boeing 720 (N421MA) and a Douglas DC-8 in the 1970s. Aviateca acquired 2 Boeing 727 (TG-ALA, TG-AYA) from Eastern Airlines later, which operated for the airline in the 1980s. From 1989 on Aviateca's fleet consisted of several Boeing 737-200 and Boeing 737-300 jetliners. A full cargo Boeing 737-300 was also operated for a few months.