Porto Alegre–Salgado Filho International Airport (POA) will reopen on October 21, 2024, more than five months after it was closed due to severe flood damage. According to Reuters, the Brazilian government said operations would initially be limited to 128 flights per day, but the facility could return to full capacity by December 21.

The deadly storms hit the Rio Grande do Sul region at the end of April. More than 180 people died in the worst floods in Brazil in over 80 years. Both the airport’s terminal and runway were severely damaged. The runway was only reopened in 2022 after an extension so that it can now handle larger aircraft such as the Boeing 777 and the Airbus A330.

The airport officially ceased operations on May 3. In the meantime, a few flights were allowed to operate from the nearby Canoas Air Force Base, albeit at a greatly reduced rate due to a lack of infrastructure. The local bus network and Port Alegre’s subway system were also shut down, although they have since resumed operations.

More than 7 million passengers last year

Last year, Porto Alegre–Salgado Filho International Airport handled 7.48 million passengers. While that’s a big increase from the pandemic-era low of 3.48 million in 2020, it’s still far from the airport’s all-time high of 8.48 million in 2014. It’s very unlikely that the airport will surpass that number in 2024, as it will be closed for nearly half the year.

Photo: Airbus

Much of the traffic at Porto Alegre-Salgado Filho International Airport is domestic and the facility is connected to most major cities throughout Brazil. Before the closure, the following international routes also operated:

• Buenos Aires (AEP) – Aerolines Argentinas
• Lima (LIM) – Latin America Peru
• Lisbon (LIS) – TAP Portugal
• Montevideo (MVD) – Blue Air Lines
• Panama City (PTY) – Copa Airlines
• Santiago de Chile (SCL) – LATAM Chile and Sky Airline.

Airlines severely affected by airport closure

LATAM Airlines was one of the airlines most affected by the airport closure and has since announced that the flooding has impacted its operating revenue by $25 million in the second quarter of 2024. The airline has already stated that it intends to resume its previous services and most airlines have already started selling tickets. While some airlines have not yet confirmed their intentions, it is likely that the airlines will offer very similar schedules to those before the closure.

Photo: Airbus

For Azul Linhas Aéreas, Rio Grande do Sul accounted for about 10% of its total operations, so the reopening of the state’s largest airport is good news for the airline as well as local travelers. The airline’s planning director, Andre Mercadante, said:

“We will be offering more than 57,000 seats per week, which is 78 percent of the operations the company had there before the floods.”

You might also like:

The top 6 airlines for direct flights from the USA to Brazil in August

The largest airline offers more than 70 flights per week in August.