The alerts produced in Argentina by the retention of a plane from the Venezuelan airline Emtrasur quickly crossed into our country. And not only because its pilot, Gholamreza Ghasem, of Iranian nationality, is being investigated for his links with terrorist groups, but also because days later another plane from Caracas landed on national territory that is owned by Conviasa, a subsidiary company of the former. His arrival caused opposition parliamentarians to quickly begin to request information from government authorities, to analyze the matter, and now deputies intend to set up an investigative commission. The reason? Clarify whether or not there is a history of possible risks that this firm operates in Chile and might put the country’s security at risk.
Fear, as graphed through his Twitter account by the lawyer Gabriel Zaliasnikis that by means of these operations the arms trafficking and settle in the region terrorist groups from the Middle East. Everything, according to the professional, “sponsored” by the regime of Nicolás Maduro, which maintains alliances with Iran. Nevertheless, the reports so far issued by different national institutions have not accounted for situations that expose Chile to this type of danger.
A report issued by the PDI shows that the Conviasa flight, corresponding to an Airbus 340-642 patent YV3533, arrived at the Arturo Merino Benítez airport on June 22 at 2:29 p.m. transported 17 crew members, all of Venezuelan nationality, and 89 passengers of different nationalities and different immigration status, none Iranian. It did not bring cargo, only the suitcases dispatched by the users.
According to the detail of the document, which was cited by the undersecretary Manuel Monsalve Tuesday followingnoon before the Defense Commission of the Chamber, 79 of the passengers were Venezuelans, and of them, 71 had temporary residence, five permanent residence and three transitory residence. In addition, there were seven Chileans, two Dominicans (temporary residence) and one Cuban (temporary resident).
Along these lines, the aforementioned letter also reports that the plane took off once more three hours later, at 5:29 p.m., in the direction of Caracas. This time it carried 135 passengers and the same 17 crew members with whom he arrived, who did not descend to Chilean territory during the stopover. As specified, of the passengers, 11 were Chilean, 72 were foreigners with transitory stay and 52 with temporary residence. A Venezuelan citizen might not board because his passport had expired, the report adds.
It has been established, and what would imply the only relationship between the plane held in Argentina and the one that landed in Chile (in addition to the fact that they belong to commercially related airlines), is that both ships belonged in the past to the Iranian company Mahan Air.
For the same reason, Undersecretary Monsalve maintained that, at least for now, “there is no background to initiate an ex officio investigation.” He insisted that they continue to monitor the case, but also that there is no alert for a foreign terrorist threat.
The flight that arrived on Argentine soil, corresponding to a Boeing model 747-300M patent YV3531, does not record landings at Chilean airports, according to data provided by the Air Force. With this, hypotheses of trans-Andean politicians are considered discardedIt is that they have assured on local TV that the plane piloted by Ghasem has made a stopover in our country to refuel.
Although on this occasion the arrival of Conviasa in Chile caused concern, the truth is that This Venezuelan airline has been making flights to and from Santiago since 2021, under the “non-regular” regime.
According to an official letter sent by the commander in chief of the Air Force, Arturo Merino Núñez, to deputies who requested information, the regulations that allow “non-regular” flights are contained in the current aeronautical regulations on “International Operations of companies foreign airlines to and from the territory of Chile. This authorizes this type of company to carry out up to 18 operations within a calendar year.
To receive the permits, the airline in question must request recognition of its Air Operator Certificate, have the approval of insurance issued by the Civil Aeronautics Board (JAC) and before starting the flight must send a copy of the Air Operator Certificate and of the Operating Specifications of each aircraft that will operate to and from Chilean territory. In the particular case, as detailed by the authorities, Conviasa met all the requirements.
For the same, at least this year, the company carried out 13 operations, the last five with the same aircraft A340-642 patent YV3533. However, they did not generate the tension that produced the one on June 22 and following which no new landings have been recorded: the airline ended up suspending its flights scheduled for June 29 and 30 to Santiago.
| Date | Origen | Reason for the Flight | Aircraft |
|---|---|---|---|
| 05-01-2022 | Maiquetia, Venezuela | Passenger, cargo and/or mail | A340-313 patente YV3507 |
| 07-01-2022 | Maiquetia, Venezuela | Passenger, cargo and/or mail | A340-313 patente YV3507 |
| 15-01-2022 | Maiquetia, Venezuela | Passenger, cargo and/or mail | A340-313 patente YV3507 |
| 26-01-2022 | Maiquetia, Venezuela | Passenger, cargo and/or mail | A340-211 patent YV1004 |
| 27-01-2022 | Maiquetia, Venezuela | Passenger, cargo and/or mail | A340-313 patente YV3507 |
| 17-03-2022 | Maiquetia, Venezuela | Passenger, cargo and/or mail | A340-313 patente YV3507 |
| 31-03-2022 | Maiquetia, Venezuela | Passenger, cargo and/or mail | A340-642 patente YV3533 |
| 07-04-2022 | Maiquetia, Venezuela | Passenger, cargo and/or mail | A340-313 patente YV3507 |
| 21-04-2022 | Maiquetia, Venezuela | Passenger, cargo and/or mail | A340-642 patente YV3533 |
| 05-05-2022 | Maiquetia, Venezuela | Passenger, cargo and/or mail | A340-642 patente YV3533 |
| 19-05-2022 | Maiquetia, Venezuela | Passenger, cargo and/or mail | A340-642 patente YV3533 |
| 02-06-2022 | Maiquetia, Venezuela | Passenger, cargo and/or mail | A340-642 patente YV3533 |
| 22-06-2022 | Maiquetia, Venezuela | Passenger, cargo and/or mail | A340-642 patente YV3533 |
The same official letter makes it clear that the bilateral regime between Chile and Venezuela has existed since 1992. Since 2017, its updating was negotiated, which culminated in the signing of an Agreement between the Civil Aeronautics Board and the National Institute of Civil Aeronautics of Venezuela on April 5, 2022. Of course, the negotiation stage ended in December of last year.
According to information reported by Undersecretary Monsalve, Conviasa has no restrictions beyond the possibility of making 18 flights a year. Yes, they know that Being a state-owned company in Venezuela, it is sanctioned by the United States government. and is consigned to the list of “punished” entities of the Office of Foreign Assets Control. The aircraft in question, in any case, does not appear on the list published in the aforementioned sentence.
As a result of the different requests for information, the General Directorate of Civil Aeronautics (DGAC) issued a detailed report on the -now- controversial operation of the Venezuelan airline. They indicate that when the plane landed, they noted that the crew did not descend, but that their performance was adjusted to the development of the functions of preparing the flight and the airplanewhich, as has been said, took off once more at 17:29.
After arrival and as reported by the International Police of the PDI to the Chief of the Santiago Airport, they added, “all passengers were admitted to the country without observations and in compliance with the rigorous protocols. Same situation for those passengers who left the country on that plane.
“The aircraft, during its stay at the Arturo Merino Benítez Airport, was attended by the company AGUNSA to receive the services of this type of flight. There is no knowledge of possible maintenance work on the aircraft. nor of the type of food provided by the Catering company SKY CHEFS. The fuel was provided by the distribution company ESMAX”, the document specifies.
Likewise, they point out, “there is no record of the unloading or loading of cargo; it is only observed that the procedure for unloading and loading passenger luggage was carried out”.
That, in any case, opened a new question, because it was also detailed that the suitcases were around 450, that is, an average of five per passenger. The data was exposed in the Defense Commission and several deputies expressed their surprise. “It is very striking that the average number of suitcases on the trip to Chile is five per person. I think that people come rather to settle in the long run than in the short run,” said the deputy among them. Francisco Undurraga (Evópoli).
“I tend to think that they are people who came to live in the country. No one travels with five suitcases for tourism, “said the deputy Gloria Naveillan (Republicans).
The point was shared by the president of the instance, Andres Jouannet (IND), who is promoting a joint session of the Defense and Security commissions to continue analyzing the case and also the Investigative Commission to fully elucidate what might be happening.
