Azul CEO says Brazil aid to airlines key as fuel debacle rages

A $1.2b credit line from the government expected as soon as this month will be key for Brazil’s troubled airlines as they lobby for lower jet fuel costs and for help clamping down on passenger litigation, Azul SA CEO John Peter Rodgerson said. Unlike in the US and Europe, Latin American nations offered little rescue for the sector during the pandemic, leaving the region’s airlines to deal with the crisis on their own. Several buckled: Avianca Holdings SA, Latam Airlines Group SA and Grupo Aeromexico SAB filed for bankruptcy in 2020. Brazil’s Gol Linhas Aereas Inteligentes SA sought protection from creditors in late January after a dozen debt exchanges. Gol’s Chapter 11 filing “changed the dialogue” with the government, Rodgerson said in an interview at Bloomberg’s Sao Paulo offices last week. “Nobody is looking for government aid to get out of the mess.” Azul, Latam and Gol, the country’s three largest carriers, are involved in the talks, and the credit line — of between 4b reais ($807m) and 6b reais ($1.2b) — would be divided among them, according to Rodgerson. Ports and Airports Minister Silvio Costa Filho, who’s leading the talks within the government, shared the details on size and timing of the aid last week, local media reported.<br/>