Originally Posted by
SCL767
The remaining A343s will be phased out by late April. LAN will receive seven 787-9s during 2015 and three of those 787-9s will be exclusively dedicated to the SCL-AKL-SYD route.
SCL is LATAM's gateway to Oceania for obvious reasons. Remember that NZ is basically replacing the "capacity void" left when AR withdrew from AKL/SYD and will be dependent on AR's meager connectivity via EZE since NZ will codeshare with AR. Whereas LAN and TAM offer superior connections to/from GRU, GIG, LIM, etc. via SCL. With the addition of the three new weekly frequencies on the SCL-AKL-SYD route, LATAM will offer enhanced connectivity for passengers and will remain as the dominant carrier linking South America to Australia and New Zealand.
But NZ has a far superior onboard service and a much better capilarity out of AKL than LA.
If one is flying to anywhere else other than SYD, NZ become appealing because you can fly straight from AKL to smaller destinations across NZ.
And I really hope the LA management is not so stiff as you suggest. Or just because GRU is their hub to Europe, you believe they should cancel the SCL-MAD non-stop?
This is about trying to minimize your enemy's service before they can get a hold of passangers.