The nonstop domestic flight in Ecuador of almost 824 miles aboard an Airbus A320 airplane between Aeropuerto Ecológico Galápagos Seymour on the island of Baltra in the Galápagos Islands and Mariscal Sucre International Airport in Quito was my first time as a passenger with Avianca in the economy class cabin — and it was the only flight which I have taken that was operated by the airline.
My First Time As a Passenger With Avianca — and The Verdict Is…
Avianca is both the flag carrier of Colombia and the largest airline of that country — as well as the second largest airline in South America. The airline was founded on Friday, December 5, 1919.
The boarding process was somewhat chaotic and confusing but not unruly or excessively noisy.
Both the front of the aircraft and the rear of the aircraft were used for boarding passengers using portable stairways, as can be typical on the apron of a small airport with no jet bridges. I had no need to visit the lavatory during the flight of two hours and five minutes; so I did not go there to take photographs. No access to Wi-Fi was available aboard the airplane.
108 seats were in the economy class cabin aboard the Airbus A320 airplane. Ample room was available in the overhead storage bins.
Inexplicably, the seats were identified as A, B, and C on the left side of the airplane; and D, E, and K on the right side of the airplane — even though each row comprised of six seats, with three seats on each side. Perhaps this always assures passengers that seats A and K are always by the window — no matter what model of airplane is used?
The amount of pitch between rows of seats in the economy class cabin — which is the distance between the back of your seat and the back of the seat in front of you — and other information pertaining to seating is not disclosed at the official Internet web site of Avianca. I had no complaints about the leg room, as I did not feel restricted or confined in my seat, which was reasonably comfortable.
Inside the seat pocket was a safety information card for the airplane in both Spanish and English; a menu to purchase food and beverages; and a white bag for air sickness. Each seat was equipped with a small round pin that is attached to the side of the seat — presumably to use as a coat hook or on which to hang something — but they were not equipped with an in-flight entertainment system.
Interestingly, the aircraft was equipped with both types of Universal Serial Bus ports — USB Type-A and USB Type-C — below the seats in front.
I purchased a Basic fare, which meant that I needed to purchase the privilege of carrying aboard a bag for an additional cost of $15.00; and I could not choose a seat prior to the departure time of the flight. I was assigned a seat in the very last row of the aircraft, which I thought was a window seat…
…but the seat was located next to a solid wall; so I had no view and very little ambient daylight. As cozy as it was, I did not like that I had no view of the outside of the airplane at all — save for a small sliver from one passenger who had the window shade open next to her seat.
No meal service or beverages — not even water — were provided; but food and beverages were for sale in the economy class cabin. For a flight whose duration was two hours and five minutes, at least water and maybe a cookie or some small snack should have been served at no extra charge. My initial perception of Avianca was not as an ultra-low-cost airline — although I am not sure if a one way ticket from the Galápagos Islands priced at a total of $161.09 is considered ultra low cost.
The overhead control unit was equipped with adjustable air vents. The activation of the reading lights required reaching up to the overhead control unit.
The flight was relatively smooth until we were closing in on Quito; and we were warned by the captain of the aircraft that landing would be quite rough. After negotiating the strong turbulence of clouds, the first attempted landing at the airport was aborted due to the inclement weather. The airplane flew around in the very rough turbulence until the second attempt at landing, which was successful…
…but by then, the airport was closed; and the airplane sat out on the apron for at least 45 minutes before it was finally allowed to taxi to the gate. Because of this experience, I was delayed in picking up the rental car I had reserved by at least 90 minutes — which was, of course, no fault of Avianca.
What I found somewhat disconcerting was experiencing such rough turbulence with no window. I had no idea what the clouds looked like outside or any approximation of when the airplane was going to land, which would have given me some idea of what was going on at that moment.
Interestingly, I could not believe that the weather could be that bad — until I experienced significantly inclement weather while driving on the ground in Quito, which I will delve into more detail in a future article.
Final Boarding Call
Other than the aforementioned inclement weather, traveling as a passenger with Avianca was nothing special, as it was an ordinary experience overall. I would consider flying as a passenger on Avianca in the future solely based on overall price — although I would not go out of my way to do so.
All photographs ©2025 by Brian Cohen.
