Why LATAM's Secret Strategy Was The Most Genius Move In South American Aviation!

In May 2020, LATAM stopped paying its debts. All $16 billion of them. The stock was delisted, the credit rating was junk, and two of the continent's biggest airlines filed for the same protection that year. Everyone assumed at least one of the three was finished. Three years later, LATAM hadn't shrunk. No government rescued it. It came out the largest airline group in the entire Southern Hemisphere, posting the biggest profit it had ever made. And it got there not by waiting for travel to return, but by making one brutal decision months before the virus existed, and reaching into a foreign courtroom to do what its own country's laws never would. This is the full story of how LATAM chose bankruptcy and saved itself, and why its most ruthless move might have been the smartest one in modern aviation. Timestamps: 00:00 - Intro: The $16 Billion Collapse 00:56 - 1929: The Chilean Mail Plane That Became LAN 01:48 - 1961: TAM, Brazil's Red Carpet Airline 02:48 - The Merger That Created LATAM 04:41 - Congonhas 2007: The Worst Day 06:41 - The 2024 Dreamliner Plunge 07:43 - Why The Popular Story Is Wrong 08:35 - Dumping American For Delta 10:25 - Chapter 11 In A New York Court 12:07 - Walking Out With 35% Less Debt 12:44 - The Airline Today: Fleet And Hubs 14:39 - Record Profits And The NYSE Return 15:53 - The Verdict: Ruthless, Not Lucky 16:43 - Brilliance Or Legal Escape Hatch? Subscribe for in-depth aviation documentaries and aircraft history.    / @explaned1   We’ll cover all you want to know about aviation. Let us know what topic you would like to see! #aviation #latam #latamairlines #avgeek #flight