Tenerife Shipowner Álvaro Rodríguez-López Braun Passes Away

Álvaro Rodríguez-López Braun passed away this afternoon in the capital of Tenerife, just hours after feeling unwell, at the age of 86. His name is directly associated with the history of maritime and air transport in the Canary Islands in the second half of the 20th century, as well as agriculture, fishing, and other important activities.

He was the firstborn of the marriage formed by Conrado Rodríguez López and Ana Braun Funes and the nephew of Álvaro Rodríguez López. He continued the legacy of his uncle and father, associated with coastal shipping using the vessels “Sancho II” and “San Juan de Nepomuceno” and the family businesses controlled by the company Álvaro Rodríguez López, S.A, notably in the farms of the Lomada de Tecina, in Playa de Santiago (La Gomera).

Along with his father and brother Conrado, he promoted the El Revolcadero airfield in La Gomera and Aerolíneas Canarias (AEROCASA), which came to have six planes – including the first Mitsubishi registered in the Spanish aircraft registry. His initiative led to the arrival of the first tourists by air to the Columbian Island and the sports promotion in Canarian boxing of legendary figures such as the Tenerife native Sombrita and the Hispanic-Cuban José Legrá.

Álvaro Rodríguez-López Braun was among the promoters of Ferry Gomera, a shipping company where he served as vice president from 1974 to 1980. His wife, María Angélica Domingo, was the godmother at the christening ceremony of the ferry “Benchijigua,” held in July of that year at the port of San Sebastián de La Gomera. For his outstanding activity in air transport and sports promotion, he was awarded several decorations.

Retired in recent years from all activities and completely removed from any notoriety, we had the opportunity to meet him and discuss in detail the figure of his father and his uncle Álvaro – the most important shipowner in the Canary Islands in the first half of the 20th century – and he provided us with fascinating notes about the business stage of this remarkable Tenerife family, associated with agricultural and fishing exploitation in Playa de Santiago (La Gomera) and Alcalá (Tenerife), coastal shipping, regional aviation, ship agency, and other activities.

May the appreciated and admired friend rest in peace, whom, no matter how much he tried otherwise, we could never stop calling Don Álvaro.

Photo: archive of Juan Carlos Díaz Lorenzo