SANSA (airline)

SANSA (Servicios Aéreos Nacionales S.A.) is a regional airline based in San José, Costa Rica. It operates scheduled passenger services as part of the former TACA Regional system, and was a subsidiary of Avianca Holdings. Its main hub is Juan Santamaría International Airport.^[1]

SANSA

IATA ICAO Call sign RZ LRS SANSA
Founded	1978
Hubs	Juan Santamaría International Airport
Fleet size	10
Destinations	14
Parent company	Regional Airlines Holding LLC
Headquarters	San José, Costa Rica
Website	www.flysansa.com

History

The airline was established in 1978 as a domestic subsidiary of LACSA.^[1]

On May 31, 2019, Avianca Holdings sold SANSA to Regional Airlines Holding LLC, from Delaware, United States.^[2]

Destinations

A SANSA Cessna 208B Grand Caravan at Quepos La Managua Airport in 2015

The destinations of SANSA are:^[3]

Country	City	Airport	Notes	Refs
Costa Rica	Bahía Drake	Bahía Drake Airport
	Barra del Colorado	Barra del Colorado Airport	Terminated
	Coto 47	Coto 47 Airport	Terminated
	Golfito	Golfito Airport
	La Fortuna	La Fortuna Arenal Airport
	Liberia	Daniel Oduber Quirós International Airport
	Limón	Limón International Airport
	Nosara	Nosara Airport
	Palmar Sur	Palmar Sur Airport
	Puerto Carrillo	Carrillo Airport	Terminated
	Puerto Jiménez	Puerto Jiménez Airport
	Punta Islita	Punta Islita Airport	Terminated
	Quepos	Quepos La Managua Airport
	San Isidro de El General	San Isidro de El General Airport	Terminated
	San José	Juan Santamaría International Airport	Hub
	Tamarindo	Tamarindo Airport
	Tambor	Tambor Airport
	Tortuguero	Tortuguero Airport
Nicaragua	Managua	Augusto C. Sandino International Airport		[4]
	Tola	Costa Esmeralda Airport	Terminated

Fleet

Current fleet

SANSA's operations area at Juan Santamaría International Airport, next to the main terminal

As of September 2022, the SANSA fleet includes:^{[citation needed]}

SANSA fleet

Aircraft	In service	Orders	Passengers	Notes
Cessna 208B Grand Caravan	10	—	14
Total	10	—

Former fleet

• 1 Boeing 737-300 (Leased from Islandsflug)
• 3 Douglas C-47 Skytrain
• 3 CASA C-212 Aviocar

Accidents and incidents

• On April 19, 1984, a Douglas C-47 (registered TI-SAA), charter flight coming from San Andrés, Colombia crashed on "Cerro Santa Rosa" (northwest face of the Irazú Volcano), with the death of all 4 people on board.^[5]
• On January 16, 1990, SANSA Flight 32 crashed into the Cerro Cedral, a mountain in Costa Rica, after takeoff from Juan Santamaría International Airport in San José. All 20 passengers and 3 crew on board died in the crash.^[6]
• On August 26, 2000, a Cessna 208B Grand Caravan crashed into the Arenal Volcano, an active volcano in Costa Rica. The Cessna Caravan took off from Juan Santamaría International Airport in San José at 11:38, for a flight to Tamarindo. An intermediate stop at La Fortuna was made at 11:55 to drop off a Japanese tourist. The flight left La Fortuna again at 12:05 for a 35-minute flight to Tamarindo. The aircraft collided with the active 5380 feet (1650 m) high Arenal volcano, at around 656 feet (200 m) below the crater. All 8 passengers and 2 crew on board died in the crash.^[7]
• On November 28, 2001, a Cessna 208B Grand Caravan crashed into the Cerro Chontal, a mountain in Costa Rica. The aircraft crashed into a wooded hillside of the Cerro Chontal approximately four minutes before it was expected to land. The aircraft appeared to be off the usual approach track for Quepos. Both crew members and 1 passenger died; 5 passengers survived the crash and were rescued the next day.^[8]