Q & A with Marcelo Toledo Chief of International Sales for Air Europa and the airline´s representative to Cuba

Mr. Toledo knows the ropes in the aviation industry, where he worked his way up from a reservation and call service center. That´s why he´s so at ease when he speaks about his current job. He´s certain Air Europa has really meant a lot to his entire career.

Mr. Toledo talked to Caribbean News Digital about his company´s future perspectives, its target destinations and its strategy to clear hurdles standing in the way of most major carriers worldwide.

CND: How many world destinations is Air Europa covering right now? What kind of strategy is the company´s future building on?

MT: Air Europa´s flights cover most of the Spanish territory and some of Europe´s major cities, as well as in Latin America. In recent years, we´ve added new destinations in Eastern Europe, like Prague, Warsaw and Budapest, due to the ever-growing pace of tourism in the Czech Republic, Poland and Hungary.

Also due to much bigger travel flows, we started flying to Beijing and Shanghai in 2004. China is one of our major target destinations because of the tremendous potentials that country has in terms of outbound travelers and because we were the first Spanish company to tap into that Asian market. I must say the company´s future growth strategy will always be in sync with the evolution of demand for both travel and business destinations.

CND: Will you continue adding routes in Latin America and the Caribbean?

MT: Well, as we speak, we´re flying to Cuba, Mexico´s Cancun, Santo Domingo, Caracas, plus a temporary leg to Ecuador´s Quito. Of course, we´re not downplaying the possibility of putting some future operations on the board, but I insist they will always be in sync with tourism flows worldwide. We´d like, for example, to add routes to Argentina and to some Brazilian cities.

CND: What do you think of the Cuban market? What evolution do you foresee for it in the upcoming years?

MT: Right now, we have a very popular nonstop flight to Havana and we recently added a connection to the city of Santiago de Cuba. We see the Cuban market brimming with perspectives, especially due to the favorable evolution of the Cuban travel market in recent years.

CND: Can you mention some main economic results in this Caribbean island nation, as well as in Latin America and the Caribbean, that Air Europa has achieved lately?

MT: In the particular case of Cuba, our revenues have surged dramatically over the past three years, and the whole region is faring well. Santo Domingo is also getting stronger as one of our top destinations among European travelers, while Cancun is indeed an excellent route. Lima is also well accepted. That explains why we´ll continue putting our smart money on these regions.

CND: Are you still interested in buttressing your stance as one of Europe´s most high-tech airlines? What are you exactly doing in that sense?

MT: Since 1991, Air Europa has focused its attention on becoming one of Europe´s most high-tech companies, as you put it. We´re going to pull this off by standing up for customers, by giving them the best service money can buy and by making them feel safe with us; by making it up to customers when we fail to meet their expectations, as sometimes happens in this sector with the case of overbooking. Thanks to this philosophy and to the customer “loyalization” process that has been underway in Air Europa, we now count on as many as 130,000 loyal flyers.

The company is also keeping close ties with travel agencies and tour operators we´re dealing with right now. We´re very resilient to them and hear out all of their ideas and suggestions because we know they are closer to customers than we are.

CND: How do you see the future of low-cost carriers in Latin America? Could they hold a candle to companies like yours in terms of competition?

MT. You bet they stand for fierce competition, especially in these times when you see scores of new low-cost carriers popping up all over the region with each passing year. However, we believe regular airlines are here to stay for the kind of safety and alternatives they provide customers with, as well as for the feeling of loyalty they forge among travelers.

CND: How much of a dent have today´s soaring oil prices made in Air Europa?

MT: Like any other airline in the world, we´ve been bound to levy surcharges on airfares, but in very reasonable terms. These inflated fares will start going down as things start moving back to normal.