Starting today, Brazil’s Civil Aviation National Authority (ANAC) has banned the use of jets at the Fernando de Noronha Airport (FEN), which serves the island of Fernando de Noronha, and is the easternmost hub in Brazil. This decision will primarily impact Azul Linhas Aéreas and GOL Linhas Aéreas.

Jets banned for safety reasons

This week, ANAC announced it had monitored the operations at Fernando de Noronha’s airport for three years and found out that the airport administrator does not comply with safety rules, which has led to the runway not being in an optimal state. It is considered unsuitable by jet planes, although turboprop aircraft are still allowed to land in the airport.

The airport has around 40 commercial flights per week (according to data by Cirium), and it is also employed by private and military aviation (as shown in the picture below). The runway problem at Fernando de Noronha airport dates back to 2019. In an inspection carried out by ANAC in 2019, it was found that portions of the runway faced degradation, which led to the publication of a Corrective Action Plan by the airport operator.

However, as of September 2022, the operator has not yet restored the facility. It has only performed a palliative intervention, with the application of pre-mixed cold mix asphalt, according to local media outlet Aeroin. The test results have indicated functional impairment of the surface because this type of asphalt does not have adequate adherence to the existing asphalt layer. Moreover, it loosens when the area is subjected to stress during the operation of jet aircraft.

Who will feel the impact?

As of October 2022, the Fernando de Noronha Airport has 40 flights per week operated by two airlines, Azul and GOL Linhas Aéreas. The latter will feel the largest impact, because it only has a fleet of Boeing 737 aircraft, meaning it will not be able to fly to this destination. GOL has already announced VoePass will operate the flights to Fernando de Noronha.

GOL operates two daily flights from Recife International Airport (REC) to Fernando de Noronha. Meanwhile, Azul operates 26 weekly flights on two routes (Natal-Fernando de Noronha, one daily flight on Saturdays, and Recife-Fernando de Noronha, 25 weekly flights).

Last week, Azul announced it was working on a contingency plan to minimize the impacts caused to customers and residents of the island. It also pointed out that it has aircraft models whose operation is permitted to the island. Azul employs ATR and Cessna aircraft. Earlier this week, Azul added,

“The new Azul operation in Fernando de Noronha will be carried out with ATR72-600 aircraft, with the capacity to carry up to 70 customers. Azul emphasizes that it continues to work with the Government of Pernambuco, the island's administration, and the airport, to ensure support for all efforts already underway to improve infrastructure there. The company supports the Agency's decision and will continue working throughout the process of changing the operation and improving the infrastructure of Fernando de Noronha's runway, which has already begun.”

Have you ever been to Fernando de Noronha? How did you find the experience? Let us know in the comments below.

Source: Aeroin.