Avianca opened its seasonal nonstop service between San Salvador's Monseñor Óscar Arnulfo Romero International Airport (SAL) and Madrid Barajas Airport (MAD) on June 26, 2026, operated on Airbus A330-200 aircraft wet-leased from Spanish carrier Wamos Air (Aviation Week).
The service runs four times per week through September 15, 2026, offering more than 2,300 seats per week. Avianca is the only carrier providing nonstop connectivity between El Salvador and Spain during the summer season, with no competing nonstop operator on the SAL–MAD city pair (Diplomacy News).
The route serves a large Salvadoran diaspora in Spain and Europe alongside Spanish travelers connecting onward to Central America via Avianca's San Salvador hub, which feeds destinations including Guatemala City, San José de Costa Rica, and Mexico City. Avianca first introduced the SAL–MAD pairing in June 2023 as a 3x-weekly summer seasonal route, also operated by Wamos Air with A330-200 equipment (Air Service One). The 2026 resumption increases frequency to four weekly flights, reflecting stronger transatlantic demand.
The Madrid relaunch is part of Avianca's broader summer 2026 expansion, which includes a new San Francisco–Guatemala City service launched June 1 and significant frequency increases across U.S. routes, adding 42 additional weekly flights compared to July 2025.
Sources
- https://www.diplomacynews.com/en/2026/06/20/new-direct-flight-from-avianca-between-madrid-and-san-salvador
- https://aviationweek.com/air-transport/airports-networks/routes-networks-latest-rolling-daily-updates-wc-june-22-2026
- https://www.facebook.com/AirTransportWorld/posts/avianca-opened-seasonal-service-between-san-salvador-el-salvador-and-madrid-the-/1474720791361411
- https://airserviceone.com/new-route-of-the-day-20-june-2023-avianca-between-san-salvador-and-madrid
Things to do at each end of the route
Top-rated tours & experiences in San Salvador and Madrid.