GOL And Azul: A Potential Merger On The Cards?
Intro
The Brazilian aviation market is one that is complex, but with one airline controlling most of the market share acrosss South America. Well, the second and third largest carriers in Brazil have been looking into the idea of merging, and I personally think it's a great idea. Here is why.
The Details
For the past while, there have been ongoing reports behind the scenes of how GOL and Azul would want to merge. As of now, the two companies have signed a non-binding memorandum to look into this further. If the merger happened to go through, they would each keep their own branding even with a combined leadership.
If this merger went through, the combined route network would make up 60% of the aviation market, surpassing Latam Brasil. With the potential to have over 400 aircraft between the two airlines, it could become a fortress serving multiple long-haul and short-haul destinations.
My Thoughts
In my opinion, this merger makes sense to me. LATAM has controlled the South American market for quite some time, thus dictating most markets with fares. This addition might be quite good for consumers in the end as there will be some proper competition to work with. Azul has an interesting business model for long-haul flights and could definitely benefit from having another airline serve connecting traffic.
However, I think if this were to work, we might need to see GOL serve a couple of more destinations out of VCP, as that is Azul's main long-haul airport in Sao Paulo. Currently, GOL primarily serves CGH and GRU.
Final Thoughts
A potential merger is on the cards for Brazil's second and third-largest carriers, Azul and GOL. On paper, this would make a lot of sense and, hopefully, will be good for consumers with a larger competition up against LATAM. It's interesting to see that the ownership would be combined, but the airlines will still operate independently.
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