The airport has regained about 80% of the traffic it was previously seeing before the pandemic.
The Sao Paulo Guarulhos International Airport (GRU) is back to normal with 34 million passengers this year. The airport is also seeing a lot of growth with 29 airlines operating departures.
Guarulhos recovery
Brazil’s Guarulhos International Airport is the main airport in Brazil and is connected to many other countries. It has direct flights to 112 different destinations, including 52 international and 60 domestic destinations. In 2022, three Brazilian cities were the most connected to Guarulhos in the domestic market. Meanwhile, Buenos Aires, Panama City, and Santiago de Chile were the main international destinations. All three of these cities had over 100 departures per week, per Cirium.
Last year, GRU had 243,888 flights with passengers on board. 23.64 million of those passengers were domestic passengers, and 10.8 million were international passengers.
The levels of COVID-19 in Guarulhos (the Brazilian city where the virus was first detected) were lower than the levels seen before the pandemic, but the international segment (where people from all over the world travel) was still much lower than it was before the virus hit.
How does Guarulhos compare to other airports in the region?
It appears that Guarulhos International will likely close in 2022 as the second or third-largest airport in Latin America in terms of passengers. Mexico City International (MEX) is currently leading the way with over 41.96 million passengers by that point in the year. The competition for the second spot is tight, with Bogota International currently holding the lead with over 32.15 million passengers.
Despite being far behind other key hubs in the region, Guarulhos surpassed them all in terms of passenger traffic. In Brazil, Guarulhos Airport continues to be the most popular airport, with 18.73% of the market share as of November 2022. After Guarulhos, Viracopos Airport (VCP) had a 9.84% market share, and Brasília International (BSB) had a 7.33% share.
Guarulhos connectivity
LATAM Airlines Brasil is the largest carrier operating from Guarulhos International Airport in Sao Paulo, and it has a high percentage of departures from GRU.
The company plans to offer more seats on flights out of Guarulhos International Airport in 2023 than in 2022. Additionally, LATAM Brasil plans to launch several new routes in 2023, including a service to Johannesburg, South Africa that was suspended in 2020 because of the pandemic.
In Guarulhos, there are several major airlines flying to various destinations. These airlines include GOL Airlines, Azul Airlines, Copa Airlines, Aerolíneas Argentinas, and American Airlines.
