The new Brazilian airline startup, Itapemirim Transportes Aéreos, had 423 flights during its first month of services. Today, the carrier released its first monthly stats, and we can see how the company fared during its first weeks operating across Brazil.
How many passengers did Itapemirim have?
Itapemirim Transportes Aéreos (or just ITA) is the first of many Latin American startup airlines aiming to launch flights despite the COVID-19 crisis. There are at least eight different carriers looking to start operations in the region.
The new Brazilian carrier started flying on June 29.
In July, the airline carried 38,841 passengers on 423 flights, Itapemirim reported in a statement sent to Simple Flying. The carrier had a fleet of four A320ceo aircraft during the month, but it expects to receive up to ten in the following months. Ita’s fleet has a capacity of 162 passengers per plane.
Furthermore, Itapemirim started with eight destinations across Brazil. These cities were: Belo Horizonte-Confins, Brasilia, Curitiba, Porto Alegre, Porto Seguro, Rio de Janeiro-Galeao, Salvador, and São Paulo-Guarulhos.
In August, Itapemirim increased its route map. It added five more cities: Fortaleza, Florianopolis, Maceió, Natal, and Recife.
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How does Itapemirim compare to other Brazilian carriers?
Eventually, Itapemirim wants to become Brazil’s largest carrier. Obviously, that goal is still some way off. The new startup still has to grow its fleet size, work on its brand and launch many new routes before being a realistic competitor for Azul, LATAM, and GOL.
Nevertheless, Itapemirim is already Brazil’s fourth-largest domestic carrier after one month of operations, the data suggests. The Brazilian Civil Aviation National Authority (ANAC) reported that seven domestic carriers had 4.2 million passengers in June. Brazil’s recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic has been slow but steady.
Azul carried 1.67 million, followed by LATAM with 1.29 million and GOL with 1.20 million. Then came Voepass, a small regional airline that had 31,428 passengers. Then again, those were the numbers in June, and ANAC hasn’t updated them to July. But, if those trends are similar, Itapemirim most likely would have surpassed Voepass in its first month of operations. We’ll have to wait until ANAC releases its latest data.
What can we expect from Itapemirim going forward?
Itapemirim still has a long way to go. The carrier had a punctuality level of 77% and a 62% load factor. Those two stats will have to improve a lot in the following months.
Nevertheless, Itapemirim is working towards setting up its brand across Brazil. While the company is already known because it also runs a bus transportation system, the airline is its latest bet.
Itapemirim’s management said,
“The company shines because it creates a unique and exclusive service in the domestic market, with the possibility of having free luggage service for all its clients and the possibility of choosing their seats without additional cost.”
Itapemirim expects to have a fleet of up to 50 aircraft in the next few years. It also plans to fly to Europe, eventually, although that project remains a mystery at the moment.
What do you think of Itapemirim Transportes Aéreos’ first results? Let us know in the comments below.