('''V'''iação '''A'''erea '''RI'''o '''G'''randense) is an
Airline based in
Porto Alegre ,
Brazil . It is Brazil's leading international airline, operating services to 18 countries on two continents, as well as 54 cities in Brazil. Its main hubs are
Guarulhos International Airport (GRU),
São Paulo , and
Galeão International Airport (GIG), Rio de Janeiro, with secondary hubs at
Congonhas Domestic Airport (CGH),
Salvador International Airport (SSA),
Salvador ,
Presidente Juscelino Kubitschek International Airport (BSB),
Brasilia and
Guararapes International Airport (REC),
Recife .
Combined with its subsidiaries Rio-Sul and Nordeste, Varig carries approximately 13 million passengers annually and has over 11,000 full-time employees. In the year ending December 31, 2004, Varig had total operating revenues of $3.4 billion, of which about $3.15 billion was from flight operations. As of May 2005, Varig's share of passengers flying into or out of Brazil was 43% for the South American market, 17% for the United States market, 35% for the European market, and 48% for the Asian market.
Varig was the first airline in Brazil, established on
May 7 1927 at the
Porto Alegre Commercial Association meeting. It was there that Otto Ernst Meyer, a
German immigrant, signed the certificate declaring Varig an airline company.
Varig's first plane was a nine passenger
Dornier Wal flying boat. Its first employee, Ruben Berta, later became the airline's President and led the airline through great expansion until his death in
1966 . The airline started operations on
15 July 1927 . Varig's first flight was from Porto Alegre to
Rio Grande , stopping in
Pelotas .
It originally operated local services in southern Brazil, but added its first international route to
Montevideo on
5 August 1942 . Transatlantic services were started in February
1965 , when the military government decided to shutdown
Panair Do Brasil , the country's flag carrier up until then. The airline took over the giant REAL consortium in
1961 , making it the largest airline in
South America . It acquired a controlling interest in
Cruzeiro Do Sul in June
1975 , which was fully integrated into Varig in January 1993.
Varig wholly owns
Varig Logistica and has shareholdings in
Nordeste Linhas Aereas Regionais (99%),
Rio Sul Serviços Aéreos Regionais (97%), and
Pluna (49%). It is a member of the
Star Alliance and employs 10,572 staff.
Since 1945, Varig has been majority owned by the Ruben Berta Foundation (RBF)
{Link without Title} , a not-for-profit foundation formed in 1945 to provide health, financial, social and recreational benefits to the
employees of the companies. RBF controls VARIG through a holding company, FRB-Par Investimentos S.A.
Long-running discussions to merge Varig with
TAM Linhas Aéreas ended in
2004 .
As of May, 2005, Varig had 87 aircraft (76 passenger, 11 cargo), with an average age of 13.2 years. 83 of the 87 had operating leases; the remaining four had finance leases.
As of June 2005, Varig had a negative net worth of approximately US $2.5 billion, with balance sheet debt of $2.8 billion and off-balance sheet debt of $2.0 billion.
On June 17, 2005, Varig applied to the Commercial Bankruptcy and Reorganization Court in
Rio De Janeiro for the commencement of "judicial reorganization" proceedings pursuant to the New Bankruptcy and Restructuring Law of Brazil, Law No. 11.101, which had become effective only eight days earlier. Under the NBRL, debtors like Vaig are permitted to remain in possession and control of their businesses and properties.
Varig Brazillian airways does however continue to provide service to and from Brazil despite its financial troubles
Varig has had five crashes with fatalities since
1970 :
- 11 July 1973, Flight 820 , near Paris , France , forced landing due to fire in a rear lavatory, 123 deaths and 11 survivors (10 crew, 1 passenger). The aircraft landed 5km short of the runway, in a full-flap and gear down configuration. The great majority of passengers died of smoke inhalation.
- 30 January 1979, Varig 707-323C freighter, registration PP-VLU. Flown by the same captain of Flight 820 disappears over the ocean 30 minutes after taking off from Tokyo . No sign of the crash (wreckage or bodies) was ever found. The aircraft was carrying 153 paintings, worth USD 1.24 million.
- 3 January 1987, Flight 797 , near Abidjan , Côte D'Ivoire , engine failure, 50 deaths, 1 survivor.
- 3 September 1989, Flight 254 , near São José Do Xingu , Brazil. Pilot Navigation al error led to fuel exhaustion and a forced landing in the jungle. Twelve of the 48 passengers were killed in the crash. The survivors were discovered two days later.
- 14 February 1997, Flight 265 , at Carajas Airport, Brazil. Aircraft overran the runway and hit some trees while landing in bad weather. The first officer was killed on impact. The 51 others on board survived.
See article .
The Varig fleet consists of the following aircraft (as of January 2006):
The average age of Varig fleet is 12.7 years old in April 2006.
