John Rodgerson on stage at Routes Americas 2026.
The Brazilian aviation market has significant growth potential but remains constrained by structural challenges, according to John Rodgerson, CEO of Azul.
Speaking at Routes Americas 2026 in Rio de Janeiro, Rodgerson said the country’s aviation market remains underdeveloped relative to other countries. “In terms of passenger flights per capita, Brazil is about 0.5,” he said. “In the United States, it’s more than two.”
Rodgerson argued that three structural issues are holding back growth: high fuel costs, widespread litigation and limited access to long-term financing. “It has the most expensive fuel in the world. It has the highest [number of] lawsuits in the world. And it has a lack of long-term capital,” he said.
Rodgerson said jet fuel prices are significantly higher than in major U.S. markets. “Fuel to fill up an airplane in Sao Paulo is 25% more expensive than it is in Miami,” he said. “At times it could be two to three times more expensive depending on where the logistics are in Brazil.”
Another major cost burden is litigation. Rodgerson said the aviation sector in Brazil faces a disproportionate share of global passenger lawsuits. The lawsuits are due to favorable legal rulings for consumers and the rise of companies that help convert flight cancellations, delays or overbooking into legal claims.
“The industry spent over 1.5 billion reals ($287 million) last year on lawsuits,” he explained. “We have 3% of the world’s aviation and 98% of the world’s lawsuits.”
Brazilian airlines also face challenges financing aircraft because most revenue is denominated in local currency while many costs are in dollars. “You need to be able to finance yourself in the currency that your revenue comes in,” Rodgerson said.
Rodgerson said that unlike U.S. airlines, which received significant government support during the pandemic, Brazilian carriers largely had to restructure their balance sheets independently. “The United States gave $50 billion to their airlines and then also gave about $50 billion in loans,” Rodgerson said. “Brazil—zero. Nothing given and nothing loaned to the airlines.” Azul exited Chapter 11 in February.
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Despite these challenges, Rodgerson said Brazil still offers significant growth potential for airlines. He said the carrier has grown roughly 50% since 2019 and now holds around 30% of Brazil’s domestic market. The airline’s strategy has focused on expanding service to underserved cities across Brazil rather than competing solely on major trunk routes.
“Azul serves 130 cities in Brazil,” Rodgerson said. “Our next closest competitor is maybe 65 or 70.” He added that the airline’s network strategy has helped expand the country’s aviation market overall rather than simply shifting market share between airlines.
“When I arrived in Brazil [in 2008] the entire market was about 50 million passengers,” Rodgerson said. “Last year we carried about 31 [million] or 32 million passengers ourselves.”
Rodgerson also said Brazil could benefit from stronger domestic tourism and increased international visitation. “There’s a lot of Brazilians that know Paris better than they know Foz do Iguaçu,” he said. “They know New York better than they know the beaches of the northeast of Brazil.”
Encouraging more travel within the country could help stimulate demand and support the growth of the aviation sector, he added. “Brazil is a massive country,” Rodgerson said. “There’s so much more to develop in Brazil.”
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