Brazil gained its first new trans-continental air link of 2026 when Air Transat flight TS 272 landed at Rio de Janeiro/Galeão at 07:11 local time on 5 February, 51 minutes behind schedule after departing Toronto the previous evening. A sister flight from Montreal commences later the same day, giving Canada its only nonstop connection from Quebec to Brazil.
The leisure-focused carrier will operate the Toronto route twice weekly (Wednesdays and Saturdays) and the Montreal rotation once weekly (Thursdays) with 332-seat Airbus A330 aircraft. Combined, the services add more than 1,800 weekly seats to the Canada-Brazil market—a capacity jump of roughly 12 % according to OAG schedules—just as Rio prepares for its peak Carnival traffic later this month.
For travelers sorting out entry requirements ahead of these new flights, VisaHQ can simplify Brazil visa processing for both tourists and corporate road-warriors. The platform guides Canadian passport holders—and dozens of other nationalities—through online applications, document uploads and consulate scheduling, with expedited options available when timelines are tight. Details are at https://www.visahq.com/brazil/
![Air Transat’s First Toronto & Montreal Flights Touch Down in Rio, Opening New Canada–Brazil Corridor]()
Corporate-mobility teams see immediate upside: Canadian mining, engineering and clean-tech firms with projects in Minas Gerais and Espírito Santo can now bypass time-consuming São Paulo connections. Air Transat has also signed an interline agreement with Brazil’s GOL, allowing single-ticket access to 80 domestic destinations. Introductory round-trip fares are advertised at C$ 799, undercutting Air Canada’s São Paulo services by nearly 20 %.
From a duty-of-care perspective, travel managers should note that Galeão’s Terminal 2 now offers dedicated crew and premium-passenger immigration counters, potentially offsetting the slightly longer ground-transport time into downtown compared with Santos Dumont Airport.
Analysts view the launch as a bellwether for renewed North-South long-haul growth following Brazil’s recovery in inbound arrivals, which surpassed 6 million visitors in 2025 for the first time since the pandemic.
The leisure-focused carrier will operate the Toronto route twice weekly (Wednesdays and Saturdays) and the Montreal rotation once weekly (Thursdays) with 332-seat Airbus A330 aircraft. Combined, the services add more than 1,800 weekly seats to the Canada-Brazil market—a capacity jump of roughly 12 % according to OAG schedules—just as Rio prepares for its peak Carnival traffic later this month.
For travelers sorting out entry requirements ahead of these new flights, VisaHQ can simplify Brazil visa processing for both tourists and corporate road-warriors. The platform guides Canadian passport holders—and dozens of other nationalities—through online applications, document uploads and consulate scheduling, with expedited options available when timelines are tight. Details are at https://www.visahq.com/brazil/
Corporate-mobility teams see immediate upside: Canadian mining, engineering and clean-tech firms with projects in Minas Gerais and Espírito Santo can now bypass time-consuming São Paulo connections. Air Transat has also signed an interline agreement with Brazil’s GOL, allowing single-ticket access to 80 domestic destinations. Introductory round-trip fares are advertised at C$ 799, undercutting Air Canada’s São Paulo services by nearly 20 %.
From a duty-of-care perspective, travel managers should note that Galeão’s Terminal 2 now offers dedicated crew and premium-passenger immigration counters, potentially offsetting the slightly longer ground-transport time into downtown compared with Santos Dumont Airport.
Analysts view the launch as a bellwether for renewed North-South long-haul growth following Brazil’s recovery in inbound arrivals, which surpassed 6 million visitors in 2025 for the first time since the pandemic.
