In Latin America, the vastness of the territory, geographical barriers, and limitations of land communications have emphasized the importance of domestic aviation in promoting economic development and territorial unification. However, this role conflicted with the desire to leave commercial aviation to the market. In this context, the profitability of new airlines, especially those operating in Latin America with imported technology, low traffic, and poor infrastructure, was very limited. To resolve this dilemma, governments experimented with various combinations of private and public capital and implemented different regulations, subsidies, and public guarantees. Diego Barría’s work analyzes some of these aspects on the basis of the long-term history of Chile’s flag carrier, LAN, from its founding in 1929 until its privatization in 1989, during the Augusto Pinochet dictatorship, while the country’s policies evolved from nationalism to developmentalism and from then to neoliberalism.

The historical importance of commercial aviation in Latin America has not been fully reflected in the academic interest it has received on the continent, which is a relatively recent development and still very limited. Barría’s book fills this gap by recounting the history of one of the continent’s flag carriers, building upon his previous analysis of Chilean commercial aviation. As declared by Barría, the main assumption of the book is that, before the open skies, most countries “not only sought to rule their skies through legislation, but also created their own carriers to guarantee national sovereignty by operating domestic routes” (p. 16). It contributes to the growing body of literature on airlines in Latin America, alongside works by Alcides Goularti Filho on Transbrasil, Manuel Contreras on Lloyd Aéreo Boliviano, Federico Lazarín Miranda on Aero México, Melina Piglia and Camila Luna on Aerolíneas Argentinas, and Etienne Morales on Cubana de Aviación, among others (some of this work is reunited in Javier Vidal and Melina Piglia’s Historia de la Aviación Comercial en America Latina [Santa Marta, 2022]) and their special issue article, “Flying the History of Commercial Aviation in Latin America,” Journal of Transport History, 40, no. 1: 3–7). These works have been discussed at various international conferences on economic history, such as the Congresos Latinoamericanos de Historia Económica and the World Congresses of Business History.

The book is clearly written and easy to read. It is divided into seven chronologically organized chapters that outline the stages of the company’s history in relation to major political periods in Chile. Using a wide range of official, corporate, and press sources, the author outlines a complex, nonlinear history. During the analyzed period, Barría describes a consensus on the importance of national control of commercial aviation and its role as a public service and driving force for developing and integrating Chile’s lengthwise extended territory. However, this consensus was much less monolithic when it came to which company or companies should carry out this mission. Consequently, LAN’s existence as a state-owned flag carrier and its monopoly on domestic aviation were repeatedly called into question. In addition, similar to what happened to other flag carriers in the region, LAN was often faced with pressure to operate as both a commercial airline (economically self-sustained) and a noncommercial public service. Of particular interest is the way Barría plays with technological issues. The advent of jet technology improves companies’ profitability, which ultimately erodes aeronautical nationalism. Carriers, even state-owned ones, can do without state support.

In close dialogue with LAN’s history, Barría not only traces the ups and downs of Chilean commercial aviation policy but also analyzes the experiences of privately owned airlines. These airlines coexisted with LAN during those years of aeronationalism and emerged in close conjunction with the geographical and economic disparities between northern and southern Chile—aiming at the lucrative copper mines in the North or the tourist destinations or isolated regions in the South. Private capital entered the domestic air transport market in Chile at an early stage. Initially, private companies were expected to provide connectivity to southern cities not served by the state-owned LAN. However, after experiencing financial difficulties and undergoing corporate mergers, the surviving private carrier, LADECO, focused on a more profitable business model in the 1960s: transporting personnel and supplies to the copper mining area. Technology was once again pivotal: Until the 1970s, only LAN, with its state support, could afford the investment in jet technology, essential for carriers’ economic viability.

This book is an intelligent and stimulating invitation to a transnational dialogue about the history of these companies, their commercial and “political” profitability, and how these factors are affected by Latin America’s unique geographical and demographic conditions. It also contributes to current debates on the revitalized role of the state after the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVD-19) crisis, as well as the challenges of reconciling air connectivity and profitability in Latin American commercial aviation markets.