Pieter C. 5 Report post Posted December 16, 2008 Neeleman's Azul takes off Tuesday December 16, 2008 Some nine months after announcing plans for a new Brazilian airline, JetBlue Airways founder David Neeleman launched Azul Linhas Aereas Brasileiras yesterday with a noon Campinas-Salvador flight. The new airline, which had been targeting a January launch, is starting service with three 118-seat E-195s and two 106-seat E-190s operating twice-daily Campinas-Salvador and twice-daily Campinas-Porto Alegre. Flights will increase to five-times-daily "in the coming weeks," Azul said. It took delivery of its first E-195 on Dec. 11 and is the first Brazilian airline to operate an E-jet. Service from Campinas to Vitoria and Curitiba will begin Jan. 14. "There is tremendous unsatisfied leisure demand for airline seats because fares are too high," Neeleman said. "As a result, 150 million people travel by long-distance bus and business travelers suffer circuitous routings and lack of frequency. With only 40% fewer seats per aircraft, we can provide more frequent and direct service in markets that our competition can't economically serve." The carrier aims to serve 25 Brazilian cities with 16 aircraft in 2009. It has a contract with Embraer for 31 195s and five 190s valued at $1.4 billion, with combined options and purchase rights for another 40. The deal could be valued at up to $3 billion. Azul will receive one aircraft per month for three years and expects to operate 36 by the end of 2011. Its E-jets feature all-leather seats in a 2-by-2 configuration. It said it will be the first Latin American airline to offer live television on seat-back monitors, through JetBlue's LiveTV subsidiary, by the end of 2009. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
