Aeromar / Mayan Train
Home > Policy & Economy > Article

Aeromar / Mayan Train

Photo by:   Gobierno de México
Share it!
Paloma Duran By Paloma Duran | Journalist and Industry Analyst - Thu, 02/16/2023 - 12:02

Aeromar. President Andrés Manuel López Obrador emphasized that Aeromar's situation is due to mismanagement to the point of total bankruptcy. He also said that he is taking measures to help former workers. "Much progress has been made to help them. There are about 500 workers and those who bought tickets will have their money returned."

Pilots at regional carrier Aeromar were only scheduled until Feb. 14, 2023, which meant an end of operations on the following day, reports Simple Flying. Through a statement, the company announced that it is closing operations after 35 years due to financial problems and difficulties in closing agreements to operate in the long term. Aeromar has not been able to reach 12,500 flights per year since the COVID-19 pandemic, reports A21. The company owes approximately MX$100 million (US$5.55 million) to pilots and flight attendants.

Mayan Train. Diego Prieto, Director, National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH), emphasized that the archaeological rescue program at the Mayan Train continues, noting that so far 43,333 structures, elements and vestiges have been rescued.

Since 2020, the population has been resisting the construction of the Mayan Train, one of President López Obrador's flagship infrastructure megaprojects, since it could damage karst landscapes, the integrity of cenotes and cause significant deforestation, as well as destroy archaeological and paleontological structures. In 2022, the INAH rescue team completed its work on the first four sections of the Mayan Train. In 2023, rescue works moved to sections 5, 6 and 7. The project is expected to be ready in December 2023.

Cuban Ballast. President López Obrador emphasized that the ballast from Cuba, which will be used for the Mayan Train, was difficult to bring to Mexico due to the blockade on the island. "The agreement is that the ballast will cost the same as in Mexico and that the rest, the other stone that is not ballast, will be sold as gravel or as a byproduct."

Last year, President López Obrador announced the government would purchase additional special materials from Cuba for the construction of the Mayan Train. The government recently acknowledged the logistical challenges of completing the project by 2023, especially because the tons of ballast needed are not available in Mexico. Previously, the National Defense Ministry (SEDENA) said the government needed some 200,000m3 of ballast to complete the project.

For years, López Obrador has demanded that the US ends its "medieval and inhumane" embargo on Cuba, which started in the 1960s. The trade embargo, the most enduring in the modern era, has been on the UN General Assembly’s agenda since 1992. Nevertheless, veto votes have kept it in force despite the assembly’s formal demands to remove it.

Photo by:   Gobierno de México

You May Like

Most popular

Newsletter