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Emirates plans increase in cargo capacity on Dubai-Sao Paulo route

SAO PAULO (Brazil) — Emirates airline has captured a major share of the air travel on Dubai-Sao Paulo route which may go up further in near future, says Ralf Aasmann, director-general of Emirates for Brazil.

Talking to journalists, who were here on the invitation of the carrier for its direct Dubai-Sao Paulo inaugural flight last week, Aasmann said the Emirates’ intention is to use Dubai as a tourism hub and a distribution centre to the Middle East and Asia.

“The carrier’s main focus is to attract tourists and businessmen not only from Middle East but also from Japan, China and India,” he added.

He said each flight on this route has a transport capacity of 10 tonnes of cargo and first direct flights flew with full cargo capacity and many passengers.

“The airline is also studying the possibility of increasing the cargo capacity in the coming months,” he added.

Aasmann revealed that Emirates has further strengthened its relations with two major Latin American airlines and tour operators to further develop its new service to Sao Paulo. The Dubai-based airline signed interconnection agreements with TAM Airlines and LAN Airlines Group that will help Emirates’ passengers arriving in Sao Paulo to continue their journey to major Latin American capitals on the same Emirates’ ticket. The airline also signed deals with tour operators in Latin America to promote travel to the Middle East region, he added.

Ralf Aasmann said that Brazil has planned to open a bank in Dubai. More Brazilian investors and tourists would visit Dubai in near future for business and tourism purpose.

He said a high-level delegation from the UAE would also visit Sao Paulo shortly for exploring investment opportunities in the various fields.

To a question, he said Rio de Janeiro is a tourist destination and not a business destination, and there are many connections available from Sao Paulo to Rio. So the airline has chosen the Sao Paulo route for this direct flight.

He said the airline is spending more on expansion of its fleet and other infrastructure for competing in the aviation market.

To a question, he said European airlines are our major competitors.

Aasmann said there is a need for a new airport outside of Sao Paulo city for providing the airliners and passengers better facilities as a wide space is available outside the city for this purpose.

The journalists also visited some tourist points in the city, like Ibirapuera Park, the Modern Art Museum (MAM), Bandeirantes Palace, the seat of the state government, the Municipal Theatre, Sé Cathedral, the Municipal Market and some restaurants.

They were also taken to Guaruja, a small port city near Sao Paulo, where they met the Guaruja mayor who briefed them about the tourist points of the city.

They also visited the ‘Big Brother’ having 30 big cameras for tracing criminals on the beach and other areas of this beautiful city.