Brazil has crossed the symbolic 100-million-passenger threshold one month earlier than in 2024, confirming that demand for both domestic and international air travel has roared back to— and in several segments surpassed—pre-pandemic levels. According to figures released on 24 November by the Ministry of Ports and Airports (MPor) and the civil-aviation regulator ANAC, Brazilian airports processed 106.8 million travellers between January and October 2025, a 9.5 percent year-on-year jump. October alone set new highs with nine million domestic and 2.3 million international passengers.
Behind the record are three converging factors. First, Brazil’s three major carriers—Azul, Gol and LATAM—have aggressively redeployed capacity on trunk routes such as São Paulo–Brasília and Rio–Porto Alegre while adding point-to-point regional links made viable by their new-generation Embraer E-Jet E2 and Airbus A220 fleets. Second, a gradual return of long-haul routes—London, Doha and Chicago all resumed this year—has restored connectivity for corporate travellers and exporters. Third, the Lula administration’s fee-reduction programme for regional airports is starting to pay dividends, encouraging airlines to base aircraft in secondary cities such as Belém, Cuiabá and João Pessoa.
![Brazil Hits 106.8 Million Airline Passengers Before Year-End, Setting All-Time Record]()
Business-travel managers should brace for continued load-factor pressure through the southern-summer peak. Seat occupancy averaged 87 percent on domestic flights in October, the highest monthly level since records began in 2000. Companies with time-sensitive rotations—oil-and-gas crews, IT consultants and project engineers—are advised to secure Q-class or higher-flexibility fares well in advance and to monitor ALTA’s slot-coordination bulletins for São Paulo/Guarulhos and Congonhas, which handled 38.2 million and 19.7 million passengers respectively so far this year.
The traffic boom is also sharpening the spotlight on airport infrastructure. São Paulo/Guarulhos has fast-tracked an R$1.2 billion expansion of Terminal 3 immigration halls ahead of COP-30 ministerial meetings, while Infraero has doubled the number of biometric e-gates at Brasília and Recife. Still, analysts warn that some regional airports, notably Porto Seguro and Foz do Iguaçu, will require immediate runway-shoulder upgrades to meet the tougher RBAC 139 standards coming into force in 2026.
For mobility professionals, the headline figure matters because it directly influences slot availability, negotiated corporate fares and ultimately the cost of international assignments. A stronger aviation rebound also gives political weight to discussions around reopening Brazil’s Export Processing Zones (ZPEs), which depend on reliable air links for high-value electronics and pharma exports. In short: more passengers mean more leverage for Brazil in global route-development talks—and potentially smoother mobility for expatriate staff and visiting specialists.
Behind the record are three converging factors. First, Brazil’s three major carriers—Azul, Gol and LATAM—have aggressively redeployed capacity on trunk routes such as São Paulo–Brasília and Rio–Porto Alegre while adding point-to-point regional links made viable by their new-generation Embraer E-Jet E2 and Airbus A220 fleets. Second, a gradual return of long-haul routes—London, Doha and Chicago all resumed this year—has restored connectivity for corporate travellers and exporters. Third, the Lula administration’s fee-reduction programme for regional airports is starting to pay dividends, encouraging airlines to base aircraft in secondary cities such as Belém, Cuiabá and João Pessoa.
Business-travel managers should brace for continued load-factor pressure through the southern-summer peak. Seat occupancy averaged 87 percent on domestic flights in October, the highest monthly level since records began in 2000. Companies with time-sensitive rotations—oil-and-gas crews, IT consultants and project engineers—are advised to secure Q-class or higher-flexibility fares well in advance and to monitor ALTA’s slot-coordination bulletins for São Paulo/Guarulhos and Congonhas, which handled 38.2 million and 19.7 million passengers respectively so far this year.
The traffic boom is also sharpening the spotlight on airport infrastructure. São Paulo/Guarulhos has fast-tracked an R$1.2 billion expansion of Terminal 3 immigration halls ahead of COP-30 ministerial meetings, while Infraero has doubled the number of biometric e-gates at Brasília and Recife. Still, analysts warn that some regional airports, notably Porto Seguro and Foz do Iguaçu, will require immediate runway-shoulder upgrades to meet the tougher RBAC 139 standards coming into force in 2026.
For mobility professionals, the headline figure matters because it directly influences slot availability, negotiated corporate fares and ultimately the cost of international assignments. A stronger aviation rebound also gives political weight to discussions around reopening Brazil’s Export Processing Zones (ZPEs), which depend on reliable air links for high-value electronics and pharma exports. In short: more passengers mean more leverage for Brazil in global route-development talks—and potentially smoother mobility for expatriate staff and visiting specialists.
