Brazil’s Azul optimistic about continued recovery

Brazilian airline Azul says business picked up markedly toward the end of the second quarter, and the airline remains positive that the country’s air transport recovery will continue in the coming months. The Sao Paulo-based airline on 12 August reports a R$1.07b ($204m) profit for the second quarter of 2021, driven by foreign exchange gains. Without those gains, the airline would have posted a loss of R$1.17b for the three months that ended on 30 June. Revenue for the quarter came in at R$1.7b, more than four times the R$402m the airline posted in the same quarter a year ago, but still 35% lower than in 2019. Azul says that while Q2 began slow amid a second wave of Covid-19 infections, business picked up, with its domestic load factor rising to 83% in July. Fares, too, are rising, the airline says. “Since [April], the vaccination effort in Brazil has accelerated, leading to a decrease in cases, hospitalisations and daily casualties,” says the airline’s CE John Rodgerson. “The economy has safely started to reopen. Restrictions on businesses, restaurants and other public places have been removed. Schools are back to in-person learning and our corporate customers are returning to the office,” he adds.<br/>