txp

Any suggestion which airlines offers better safety and service? Thanks!

swiss_global

The main difference is that AV offers Business Class, LA is Economy from first row to last.

The service in Economy on this short flight (1h20', approx. 1h in air) pretty similar, but rather minimal anyway. The seat pitch on LA is more narrow, even in Economy. In terms of safety pretty much the same, as far as I can tell. Both operate a newish Airbus fleet.

LA has a pretty good ontime rating, AV unfortunately does not provide data, but looks like delayed slightly more often.

Bottom line, I would give LA a slight edge on reliability, AV on comfort.

txp

Thanks. The business class fares on AV seem reasonable and this might be a good reason to chose them over LA.

I assume no difference in terms of safety (maintenance, pilot training, etc.)?

LAX888

I had the same questions when I booked last year for my flights in February this year. As the flights between those cities are very expensive it was actually cheaper to book a business class ticket on Avianca-Taca instead of a Y ticket on LA and Avianca-Taca.

My two flights were on time and I had no issues with the service received on the ground or in the air. The staff were all friendly and priority was always given to C class passengers. Food was a cold appetizer which was quite good and the seats are comfortable too.

My only worry was that it seems that Avianca-Taca pilots are not trained for all weather scenarios at Cusco airport. I read somewhere that they cannot fly to Cusco if it is foggy or bad weather. Even Star Peru and Peruvian cannot depart/land then. So it is not only an issue for Avianca-Taca.
However both times I had good weather and my flights were on time. Also as Avianca-Taca has less flights between those cities there might not be many alternatives for you if there is bad weather etc. Apparently LAN seems to be the only airline which can still land and depart if weather is not that great.

However I felt that the pilots did a good job and spoke good English during the announcements and therefore I have no issues recommending them.

txp

Thanks very much, I appreciate the detailed comments.

rrohio

I am 1k on united & plat on AA, but I have flown 4 segments on Peruvian in the last 3 weeks with my wife & our 5 yr old. They fly only Boeing 737-500 that only have economy class but all the flights are less than 1 1/2 hours so no problem. They give you a small snack(sandwich & cupcake) and drink on all their flights and the 4 I did were on time. They allow 25kg of checked luggage and normal carry ons.
I did LIM-AQP and LIM-TTP and will definitely check them out when we go to Cusco AND Iquitos later this year. The prices were a lot less than LAN or Avianca especially if you are not From Peru as Lan charges a lot more if U are not From Peru, Remember to call them 48 hours prior to flight to get seat assignment. On some flights they board thru both doors from the ground. row 1-11 front door and 12-24 rear door so boarding is very fast

captain_starwood

My brother and both flew LAN for these LIMA-CUZCO legs. Extremely positive experiences: good flights, nice snacks in wrapped boxes, reliable and ontime. I'd fly LAN again.

MarinFlyer

You can't go wrong with either.

Main differences being business class is offered in AV and none in LAN. The sights out the window anyways between LIM-CUZ are so good I'd rather have a window seat sitting on a bucket than be on an aisle seat in business class for one hour.

Get a seat on the left hand side (facing forward, left shoulder against window) flying LIM-CUZ for the best views of the mountains, the reverse, for CUZ-LIM on the right hand side.

Avianca only has like 1 or 2 flights to work as connectors for their long hauls out of Lima, so tend to stick to schedules unless there is a weather related or ATC delay. LAN has a strong domestic network so has more frequent shuffling of flight numbers and times.

UpperDeckJunkie

I'm with LAX888. If you're flying to CUZ in the rainy season, fly LAN - they are the only planes that can get in when CUZ is fogged in and even then you can expect delays but they seem to find a way in eventually. I would only fly another airline outside of the rainy season when there is less chance of weather issues at CUZ

I flew AV last October and spent 14 hours trying to get from LIM-CUZ, most of that time was on the plane. Had to return to LIM in the evening, get rebooked on a flight the next day, then get transported to a hotel which as you can imagine, took forever and a day.

Return flight to LIM was great - on time, no weather issues and a comfortable seat.