In brief: airport operations in Brazil

Airports

Who owns the airports?

The federal government owns most of Brazil’s major airports. Infraero is the entity through which the government controls and administers the airports. In preparation for the 2014 World Cup and the 2016 Olympic Games, and in response to public demands, the federal government privatised three major airports in Brazil in 2012:

• São Paulo-Guarulhos (Cumbica) airport, sold to a pool of investors called Investimentos e Participações em Infraestrutura SA and South African Airports Company;
• Viracopos airport, located approximately 90km from the City of São Paulo and sold to a pool of investors called Aeroportos Brasil; and
• Brasília airport, sold to a pool of investors called Inframérica, a joint venture composed of Infravix Participações SA and Corporacion America SA.

In 2013, the international airports of Rio de Janeiro (Galeao) and Belo Horizonte (Confins) were also sold, respectively, to a pool of investors called Aeroportos do Futuro, a joint venture composed of Odebrecht Construtora (Brazilian) and Changi (Singaporean), and to a pool of investors called Aerobrasil, a joint venture composed of CCR (Brazilian) and Flughafen Zurich (Swiss). Also, the international airport of Natal (in the state of Rio Grande do Norte) has been under private management since 2011. The international airport of Natal is managed by Inframérica, the same joint venture that manages the airport of Brasília.

In March 2017, the airports of Porto Alegre (in Rio Grande do Sul), Florianópolis (in Santa Catarina), Salvador (in Bahia) and Fortaleza (in Ceará) were privatised. Fraport AG Frankfurt Airport Services purchased the airports of Porto Alegre and Fortaleza, the French company Vinci Airports purchased the Salvador airport and the Swiss company Zurich Airport International AG acquired the Florianópolis airport.

In March 2019, three blocks of 12 airports were privatised:

• four airports located in the state of Mato Grosso, which consist of the international airport of Cuiabá and three regional airports (Sinop, Alta Floresta and Rondonópolis), were bought by a pool of Investors called Aeroeste;
• six in the north east (Maceió/AL, Aracaju/SE, João Pessoa/PB, Campina Grande/PB, Juazeiro do Norte/CE and Recife/PE) were bought by a Spanish investor called Aena Desarrollo Internacional; and
• two in the south east (Vitória/ES and Macaé/RJ) were acquired by Flughafen Zurich, the same entity that purchased the Confins (Belo Horizonte) and Florianopolis Airports in 2013 and 2017 respectively.

On 7 April 2021 the following blocks of airports were privatised: 

• the southern block, formed by the airports of Curitiba/PR, Foz do Iguaçu/PR, Navegantes/SC, Londrina/PR, Joinville/SC, Bacacheri/PR, Pelotas/RS, Uruguaiana/RS and Bagé/RS bought by Companhia de Participações em Concessões (CPC);
• the central block, formed by the airports of Goiânia/GO, São Luís/MA, Teresina/PI, Palmas/TO, Petrolina/PE and Imperatriz (MA), also bought by CPC; and
• the northern nlock, formed by the airports of Manaus/AM, Porto Velho/RO, Rio Branco/AC, Cruzeiro do Sul/AC, Tabatinga/AM, Tefé/AM and Boa Vista/RR, bought by Vinci Airports, which currently owns and manages Salvador Airport/BA.

The pool of investors that acquired the Viracopos Airport, named Aeroportos Brasil, filed for bankruptcy court protection (also known as judicial restructuring) in 2018. The bankruptcy restructuring plan submitted by Aeroportos Brasil under the restructuring process was approved by its creditors. In early 2020, Aeroportos Brasil submitted its request to terminate the concession agreement with the federal government and return Viracopos Airport for re-auctioning.

In March 2020, Inframérica also submitted a request to return the airport of Natal to the federal government for re-auctioning. In June 2020 the National Civil Aviation Agency (ANAC) and the Ministry of Infrastructure approved the re-auctioning of Natal and Viracopos airports to new management groups. On 4 April 2021, ANAC received three offers relating to Natal Airport. The Viracopos' re-auctioning is still pending.

On 06 June 2022, ANAC approved the public notice for the auction of the seventh round of airport concessions. The documents comprise the public notice and contracts for the auction procedure, which is divided into three blocks and will be held on 18 August 2022. The blocks of the seventh round of concessions are divided as follows:

• general Aviation Block: Includes the airports of Campo de Marte and Jacarepaguá with 560 million reais in planned investments, being the initial grant 138 million reais;
• north Block II: integrated by air terminals of Macapá and Bélem. the planned investment is 875 million reais and the initial grant starts on 57 million reais; and
• block SP/MS/PA/MG: Formed by the airports of Congonhas, Campo Grande, Corumba, Ponta Porã, Santarém, Marabá, Carajás, Altamira, Uberlandia, Uberaba and Montes Claros. The total planned investment is 5.889 billion reais with the initial granting starting on 255 million reais.

For 2023 the concession of two airports in the City of Rio de Janeiro – Santos Dumont and the International Airport (known as Tom Jobim or Galeão) – are planned. 

What system is there for the licensing of airports?

Infraero issues licences for the commercial use of airport space, in particular for retail vendors and facility operators (eg, parking operators). ANAC is responsible for implementing concessions, monitoring the state divestment process concerning the airports under the supervision of the Ministry of Infrastructure and approving the airport operation plan of each of the airport operators.

A recently enacted law (No. 14,368) facilitates the licensing of small airports in Brazil by removing from the legislative requirements some restrictions such as a ban on building airports without prior authorisation from ANAC and the need for ANAC approval and registration for its operation. 

Is there a system of economic regulation of airports? How does it function?

Brazilian Law No. 6,009 of 26 December 1973 created the following types of airport charges, which are still valid under Brazilian law:

• domestic boarding;
• international boarding;
• layover;
• landing;
• parking;
• warehousing; and
• cargo handling.

The authority to set the rates of these charges depends on each airport category. 

There are three categories of airports in Brazil, which are airports managed by Infraero, airports managed by private joint ventures under concession agreement executed with the federal government, and airports managed by states of municipalities under a delegation agreement executed with the Ministry of Infrastructure. The determination of the airport fees’ amounts is, in any instance, subject to ANAC regulations.

Law 6,009 also established categories of air navigation charges. The Air Control Department (DECEA), represented by the Air Force Commander, has the legal authority to set and adjust air navigation charge rates periodically. There are currently three types of air navigation charges to be levied on the aircraft owner or operator, which are the Tariff for Usage of Air Navigation Communications and Aid on the Route (TAN), the Tariff for Usage of Air Navigation Communications and Radio-Aid in Approach Control Area (TAT APP), and the Tariff for Usage of Air Navigation Communications and Radio-Aid in Aerodrome Control Area (TAT ADR).

Pursuant to Law 14,034 of August 2020, the federal government deferred the payment of all airport charges due in 2020 and allowed the airport management companies to make these payments by 18 December 2020. The federal government also revoked a surcharge on the international boarding taxes established by Ordinance No. 861/GM-1 of 9 December 1997, issued by the extinct Ministry of Aeronautics, with effect from January 2021.

Are there laws or rules restricting or qualifying access to airports?

Infraero regulates access to different airports and airport areas depending on the type of activities and each airport’s capacity. Access in these airports can be obtained only through Infraero.

The access rules for private airports are stipulated by each operating company, and ANAC is responsible for overseeing activities and compliance with concession agreements and legal requirements.

How are slots allocated at congested airports?

ANAC is responsible for slot allocation in Brazilian level 3-coordinated airports. Currently, there are five Brazilian airports in this category: Congonhas (CGH/SBSP), Guarulhos (GRU/SBGR), Pampulha (PLU/SBBH), Recife (REC/SBRF) and Santos Dumont (SDU/SBRJ). ANAC allocates slots based on an operator’s approved business plans. For disputed slots at congested airports, auctions are held. ANAC also holds as much as 20 per cent of the slots for new entrants.

In the past, ANAC has forced operators to use slots or to risk losing them. Owing to Brazil’s economic crisis, ANAC has increasingly tolerated the failure to use slots.

Are there any laws or rules specifically relating to ground handling? What are they?

ANAC regulates ground handling operations through a published set of regulations. Access to ground handling services is free subject to compliance with the ANAC rules. ANAC Resolution No. 116 of 20 October 2009 provides for the general rules to be followed either by airport authorities and private companies contracted by those airport authorities to perform ancillary services, as well as technical requirements to be met by the latter. Frequently, only one service provider qualifies at particular airports, in which case competition is limited.

Who provides air traffic control services? And how are they regulated?

Air traffic is controlled by DECEA, a department subordinate to the Ministry of Defence and the Brazilian Air Force. Air traffic control and management services are performed by a mix of military and civil air traffic controllers under military supervision. Since 2010, DECEA has been a member of the Civil Air Navigation Services Organization. 

On 19 November 2019, the Brazilian Congress enacted Law 13,903, which authorises the constitution of a state-owned company named NAV Brasil to provide air navigation services. According to this law, NAV Brasil shall manage, operate and commercially exploit air navigation services and infrastructure, to the extent delegated by the Brazilian Air Force.