{"id":3816,"date":"2019-11-27T12:00:40","date_gmt":"2019-11-27T11:00:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.revistaitransporte.com\/?p=3816"},"modified":"2019-12-02T07:49:34","modified_gmt":"2019-12-02T06:49:34","slug":"aena-disembarks-in-brazil","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.revistaitransporte.com\/aena-disembarks-in-brazil\/","title":{"rendered":"Aena disembarks in Brazil"},"content":{"rendered":"

In <\/b>2010, the Brazilian government adopted a concession model through international public tendering to manage its airports, which up to that time had been managed by the state-owned enterprise, Infraero. The entity was in charge of the country\u2019s 63 main airports, accounting for 97% of the national aviation business. The first lot was awarded in 2011 and the fifth and most recent was awarded to Aena Internacional in March 2019 for a period of 30 years, consisting of a group of six airports in the Northeast Region of the country: Recife, Macei\u00f3, Jo\u00e3o Pessoa, Aracaju, Campina Grande and Juazeiro do Norte, which in 2018 accounted for 13.7 million passengers.<\/p>\n

Ineco provided Aena Internacional with specialised technical support during the entire process prior to the bid and the handover preparation period that will end in early 2020. This means that the Spanish operator, the world\u2019s largest in terms of passenger volume \u2013more than 280 million in total\u2013 will now manage a total of 23 airports in five countries: twelve in Mexico, one in the United Kingdom, two in Colombia, two more in Jamaica and six in Brazil. It also operates the 46 airports and two heliports in the Spanish network, through which more than 263 million passengers passed in 2018.<\/p>\n

Airports, the key to tourism<\/h4>\n

The Northeast Region of Brazil is one of the country\u2019s five geographic regions, and it contains 9 of the 26 federal states:\u00a0 Alagoas, Bahia, Cear\u00e1, Maranh\u00e3o,
\nPara\u00edba, Pernambuco, Piau\u00ed, Rio Grande do Norte and Sergipe, all of which are on the Atlantic coast. With some 50 million inhabitants, it is the second most populous region after the Southeast, with 77 million, where the large urban centres of Rio de Janeiro and S\u00e3o Paulo are located.<\/p>\n

The Northeast is the most-visited tourist region in the country: the states of Bahia and Pernambuco receive the most visitors, specifically, as sun and beach destinations. Tourism is predominantly domestic, with international tourism yet to achieve its full potential for development: compared to 36.6 million domestic vacationers in 2018, the country received only 6.6 million foreign visitors, a figure that the federal government would like to double by 2021.<\/p>\n

Improving airport infrastructure and management is key to achieving this goal, especially considering that Brazil is also the third largest domestic air market in the world, according to the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO).<\/p>\n

The airports in detail<\/h4>\n
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Location of the six airports managed by Aena in Brazil.<\/p><\/div>\n

1. Recife<\/h4>\n

Recife-Guararapes International Airport (officially Gilberto Freyre International Airport) is the eighth largest airport in Brazil by traffic volume: in 2018, 8,422,566 passengers and 55,838 tons of cargo passed through it. It is located 11 kilometres south of the city of Recife, the capital of the state of Pernambuco. It has a 3,000-metre runway and a passenger terminal that covers 52,000 square metres, in addition to a car park with 2,000 spaces.<\/p>\n

Recife is the fourth largest city in Brazil: it has a population of 1.6 million, or 4 million in the entire metropolitan area made up of 13 towns. It has the country\u2019s largest technological park, called Porto Digital (Digital Port) and the third largest port complex, including a major shipyard that is the largest in the southern hemisphere.<\/p>\n

Tourism is another one of the pillars of the economy of Recife. Established in the sixteenth century, it is one of the oldest cities in Brazil and one of the main destinations for both the domestic and international tourism markets. In 2018, it received 3.3 million visitors, accounting for more than half of the state\u2019s total tourism. The spectacular beaches of its coastline, which are home to the coral reefs that give it its name, the Fernando de Noronha archipelago, are considered a paradise for scuba diving enthusiasts, and celebrations such as Carnival and the Saint John festivals in June, are some of its principal tourist attractions.<\/p>\n

2. Macei\u00f3<\/h4>\n

Zumbi dos Palmares de Macei\u00f3 International Airport began operations in 1928, with a capacity for only six aircraft. In 2005, a major expansion project was carried out that involved the construction of a new 22,000 m2<\/sup> passenger terminal and the lengthening of its runway, which now measures 2,601 metres long by 45 metres wide. The main destinations are Guarulhos, Gale\u00e3o, Recife, Campinas and Brasilia, and, in 2018, it registered a record 2,179,230 passengers, 5.4% more than in 2017.<\/p>\n

Macei\u00f3 is the capital of the state of Alagoas and has a population of 1.1 million inhabitants. Its economy is based on commerce, agriculture, especially the cultivation of sugar cane, and industries such as chemicals and food and the extraction of natural gas and oil, among others. It is also the third most visited national tourist destination for sun and beach holidays.<\/p>\n

3. Jo\u00e3o Pessoa<\/h4>\n

Jo\u00e3o Pessoa-Presidente Castro Pinto International Airport is 12 kilometres from the city centre. In 2018, it handled 1,414,896 passengers, according to data from Infraero. It has a 2,515-metre-long runway and a 9,000-square-metre terminal, with parking for 600 vehicles.<\/p>\n

Jo\u00e3o Pessoa is the capital and main financial and economic centre of the state of Para\u00edba. It has just over 800,000 inhabitants, and 1.2 million if the 11 municipalities of the metropolitan area are counted. Commerce and, above all, sun and beach tourism are the most important economic sectors, and it also boasts an outstanding heritage of well-preserved Baroque buildings, such as the sixteenth-century Convent of Saint Francis, now converted into a cultural centre. The entire old town has been listed as a national heritage site. According to data provided by the state government of Para\u00edba, the city, the easternmost city in the country, is ranked the 10th most visited in Brazil.<\/p>\n