Nuevo Continente

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Nuevo Continente was an airline based in Lima, Peru. It operated scheduled and charter domestic and international services. It was originally named Aero Continente in 1992 and short after it became Peru's Leading airline, controlling up to 90% of the market at one point.

[edit] Code Data

• IATA Code: N6
• ICAO Code: ACQ

[edit] History

The airline was established as Aero Continente on 4 January 1992 and started operations on 25 May 1992. It was formed in Tarapoto to take advantage of tax incentives for investments in outlying regions. Initial operations focused on charter work in support of oil exploration, but commercial flights were added on 20 July 1993.

During the company's early stages, it faced major competition from Peru's flag carrier, Aeroperu. But Aeroperu faced economic problems and Aero Continente began to gain ground on its main rival. After the demise of Aeroperu in 1999, Aero Continente became Peru's largest international air carrier.

Aero Continente joined forces with a Chilean investment group in late 1999 to launch Aero Continente Chile. However, the Chilean government accused the airline's personnel of using their airplanes for trafficking drugs and subsequently grounded Aero Continente Chile in June 2002 and seized their assets. The airline declared itself bankrupt the following month and accused the Chilean government of working to undermine Aero Continente Chile in order to benefit LAN Chile.

In January 2004 Aero Continente planes were banned from entering United States airspace due to safety concerns of the US government. On June 1, 2004, the United States Treasury Office of Foreign Assets Control added the airline to its Listing of Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons, making it illegal for Americans to trade with the company in any way. The same day, Fernando Zevallos was included on The Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act (the "Kingpin Act") by US President George W. Bush. The United States government had long suspected that Aero Continente was being used to launder money from drug traffickers, but till this day has not been able to prove any of the claims, nor has a trial begun. The airline's directors denied any connection with drug dealing and demanded that the United States government show proof of such accusations. Neither Aero Continente -nor its founder Fernando Zevallos- were ever tried or found guilty of these accusations. Fernando Zevallos has been a Permanent legal resident (green card holder) of the United States for over 15 years, has been quoted of calling his inclusion to The Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act unconstitutional. Since he was denied his given right to due process, right given to all by the 5th amendment. One can find more information regarding the kingpin act, here.[1]

The addition of the airline to the Listing of Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons devastated Aero Continente. Because Global Aerospace, Aero Continente's insurer, is partially owned by Americans, Global Aerospace suspended all business with Aero Continente. Peruvian law requires that airlines operating in Peru have insurance, and Aero Continente had to suspend all flights from 12 July 2004.

After being grounded for ten days, in an effort to save the company and its three thousand employees, the airline restarted operations under a new ownership structure and a new brand called Nuevo Continente. The airline was wholly owned by its employees. The United States Treasury Office of Foreign Assets Control added Nuevo Continente to its list of Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons. As of 2005, Nuevo Continente does not exist. The founder, Fernando Zevallos, is currently challenging the United States government to show proof of their accusations. He was preparing a lawsuit against the Bush Administration in order to be taken out from the list, but since all his assets have been frozen, he no longer has the monetary mean for his defense. Also, many experts and congressman agree that the The Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act is unconstitutional, since it deprives the right to due process. Hence, Zevallos is looking for help to take this to congress and/or Federal Court. The airline was declared bankrupt. No further plans were made to continue with Nuevo Continente. The website www.fernandozevallos.com [2] was began in order to defend himself, but was never completed, due to lack of funding. One can still contact the Zevallos Family thru the website.

[edit] Services

Nuevo Continente operated services to the following domestic scheduled destinations (as of January 2005): Arequipa, Cajamarca, Chiclayo, Cuzco, Iquitos, Juliaca, Lima, Piura, Pucallpa, Puerto Maldonado, Tacna, Tarapoto, Trujillo and Tumbes.