Viracopos International Airport

Viracopos/Campinas International Airport Aeroporto Internacional de Viracopos/Campinas
IATA: VCP – ICAO: SBKP
Summary
Airport type	Public
Operator	Aeroportos Brasil
Serves	Campinas
Hub for	Azul Brazilian Airlines
Elevation AMSL	661 m / 2,170 ft
Coordinates	23°00′25″S 047°08′04″W / 23.00694°S 47.13444°WCoordinates: 23°00′25″S 047°08′04″W / 23.00694°S 47.13444°W
Website	www.viracopos.com
Map
VCP Location in Brazil
Runways
Direction Length Surface m ft 15/33 3,240 10,630 Asphalt
Statistics (2014)
Passengers 9,846,853 Aircraft Operations 131,531 Metric tonnes of cargo 217,519
Statistics: Viracopos Aeroportos Brasil[1] Sources: Airport Website,[2] ANAC[3]

Viracopos/Campinas International Airport (IATA: VCP, ICAO: SBKP) (sometimes referred to as São Paulo/Campinas) is an international airport serving Campinas, São Paulo, Brazil. On 6 January 1987, the airport name was officially normalized to its present form.^[4] It is named after the neighborhood where it is located.

Since 2012 it is operated by Aeroportos Brasil Viracopos.^[5]

History

The IATA airport code of Viracopos is VCP and the specific city code of Campinas is CPQ. Sometimes both codes are used as one although there is a distinction between them in airline reservation systems: VCP, together with CGH (Congonhas) and GRU (Guarulhos), is part of the multiple airport system set around the city of São Paulo (code SAO). An airline that files services with the code VCP has flights displayed when passengers or travel agents request service from São Paulo, whereas flights filed with the code CPQ are displayed as service from Campinas, not São Paulo. A similar example is New York City (NYC), in which the airport codes LGA (LaGuardia Airport), JFK (John F. Kennedy International Airport), and EWR (Newark Liberty International Airport) are used for the same city, although the latter is located in a different city and state.

There are two versions of the origin of the name Viracopos (Turn glasses). The first indicates in the beginning of the 20th century, during an annual fair, there was a misunderstanding between the parish priest and the residents of the neighborhood. This resulted in excessive drinking and quarrels in which the festival booths were torn down, or overturned, during the confusion. The word Viracopos ("flip glasses") was later used by the priest in sermons, referring to the event. Another version says that, on the site of the present airport, previously there had been a bar where herders had regularly met to exchange views and drink. So "viracopos" was first the name of the district and later of the airport.

Viracopos's origin can be traced to a simple airfield near Campinas built during the 1932 Constitutionalist Revolution in São Paulo. During the 1950s it started being used by cargo companies. In 1960 it was improved with a 3,240 m runway, long enough to accommodate the first generation of intercontinental jet planes such as the Boeing 707, de Havilland Comet, Vickers VC10, Convair 990, and Douglas DC-8, and received its first international flight.^[6] Furthermore, Viracopos served (and still serves) as an alternate airport for Rio de Janeiro-Galeão International Airport and São Paulo airports particularly because it rarely closes due to bad weather conditions (an average of only 5 days per year). Soon airlines such as Varig, VASP and Real established services to Viracopos.^[7]

After 1960, Viracopos became the international airport for São Paulo, because the runway of São Paulo-Congonhas Airport was too short to accommodate intercontinental jet planes. In practice, however, the distance of nearly 100 km from Viracopos to São Paulo made it very inconvenient for passengers and airlines. As a result, direct international passenger service was limited, because most international passengers simply opted to fly instead to Rio de Janeiro-Galeão International Airport and then connect to Congonhas Airport, which is located very close to downtown. At that time, Viracopos even appeared on the Guinness Book of Records as the furthest airport from the city it allegedly served.

The position of international airport of São Paulo was lost in 1985 with the opening of Guarulhos International Airport and Viracopos entered into a decade of stagnation, with all international and most domestic flights transferred to Guarulhos and Congonhas.^[6]

However, recognizing the strategic importance of Viracopos for the economy, Infraero, the airport administrator in 1995 started to implement a master plan of renovations aiming at the building of a new airport, focusing its efforts on the segment of cargo transportation. The first phase was completed in the first half of 2004, when the airport received new passenger departure and arrival lounges, public areas, commercial concessions and a new cargo terminal. The second phase of the passenger terminal expansion project was completed in 2005 and a new control tower was built, storage and processing facilities for the cargo terminal expanded, and the passenger terminal was entirely revamped. A third phase of expansion, which would build a second runway by 2013, was projected. However, since the airport was conceded in 2012, the deadline for the new runway was postponed until 2018.

Being the second busiest cargo airport in Brazil, Viracopos has 77,000 square meters (646,000 square feet) of cargo terminals, 1,700 square meters (18,300 square feet) for animal cargo, and 1,480 cubic meters (52,200 square feet) of refrigerated space. As a major import/export hub, Viracopos enjoys 'express lanes' for courier traffic which are exceptionally quick and unbureaucratic by Brazilian standards.

The region of Campinas, like most of the interior of the state of São Paulo, is one of the most prosperous in Brazil, with an impressive economic output. Its local domestic passenger traffic, combined with the intense domestic and international cargo traffic that also serves São Paulo, is large enough to make Viracopos a relatively busy airport. In fact, between 2008 and 2010 passenger traffic grew, from 1.02 million in 2008 to 7.5 million in 2011. The airport can handle 7 million passengers/year.^[7] The number of flights offered has increased dramatically since Azul Brazilian Airlines made Viracopos its main hub.

Following a decision made on 26 April 2011 by the Federal Government for private companies being granted concessions to explore some Infraero airports,^[8] on 6 February 2012, the administration of the airport was conceded, for 30 years, to the Consortium Aeroportos Brasil composed by the Brazilian Triunfo,^[9] an Investments and Funds Society (45%), UTC Engenharia e Participações,^[10] an Engineering and Investments Society (45%), and the French Aeroports Egis Avia^[11] (10%).^[12] Infraero, the state-run organization, will remain with 49% of the shares of the company incorporated for the administration.^[13][14]

Future developments

On 31 August 2009, the previous operator Infraero unveiled a R$2,814 million (US$1,482.6 million; €1,038.8 million) investiment plan to up-grade Viracopos International Airport focusing on the preparations for the 2014 FIFA World Cup and the Summer Olympics in 2016 which will be held in Brazil. The investment intended to provide infra-structure to the airport, alleviating the air-traffic concentrated at São Paulo-Guarulhos International Airport. The investiment was supposed to be distributed as follows:^[15]

• Construction of a second runway until April 2013
• Construction of phase 1 of a new passenger terminal until May 2015

However, due to legal and bureaucratic issues, the Infraero original plan never occurred. Since the concession to Consortium Aeroportos Brasil, a new investment program focusing particularly on the construction of a new terminal was announced. The phase 1 of the new passenger terminal is scheduled to open in late 2014.^[16]

Airlines and destinations

Passenger

Azul Brazilian Airlines is the biggest operator at Viracopos.

Airlines	Destinations
Azul Brazilian Airlines	Aracaju, Araçatuba, Bauru/Arealva, Belém, Belo Horizonte-Confins, Bonito, Brasília, Caldas Novas, Campo Grande, Cascavel, Caxias do Sul, Chapecó, Corumbá, Cuiabá, Curitiba, Divinópolis, Dourados, Florianópolis, Fort Lauderdale, Fortaleza, Foz do Iguaçu, Goiânia, Ilhéus, João Pessoa, Joinville, Juazeiro do Norte, Juiz de Fora, Lages (begins 18 May 2016), Lisbon (begins 22 June 2016),[17] Londrina, Macapá, Maceió, Manaus, Marília, Maringá, Natal, Navegantes, Orlando–International, Palmas, Passo Fundo, Porto Alegre, Porto Seguro, Porto Velho, Presidente Prudente, Recife, Ribeirão Preto, Rio de Janeiro-Galeão, Rio de Janeiro-Santos Dumont, Salvador da Bahia, São José do Rio Preto, Teresina, Três Lagoas, Uberaba, Uberlândia, Valença, Vitória Seasonal: Punta del Este
Gol Airlines	Brasília, Curitiba, Fortaleza, Natal, Recife, Rio de Janeiro-Galeão, Rio de Janeiro-Santos Dumont, Salvador da Bahia
TAM Airlines	Brasília
TAP Portugal	Lisbon (ends 31 May 2016)[18]

Cargo

Airlines	Destinations
ABSA Cargo Airline	Belo Horizonte-Confins, Caracas, Ciudad del Este, Lima, Medellín, Manaus, Miami, Recife, Porto Alegre, Quito, Salvador da Bahia, Santiago de Chile, Tucumán, Vitória
Atlas Air	Miami
Cargolux	Bogotá, Curitiba, Manaus, Luxembourg, Milan-Malpensa, Quito
Centurion Air Cargo	Miami[19]
Emirates SkyCargo	Dakar, Dubai-Al Maktoum,[20] Frankfurt
Etihad Cargo	Quito
FedEx Express	Buenos Aires-Ezeiza, Memphis, San Juan, Santiago de Chile
Florida West International Airways	Miami, Salvador da Bahia
Korean Air Cargo	Anchorage, Lima, Los Angeles, Miami, Santiago
LAN Cargo	Amsterdam, Buenos Aires-Ezeiza, Caracas, Frankfurt, Iquique, Manaus, Miami, Porto Alegre, Salvador da Bahia, Santiago de Chile, Tucumán, Vitória
LANCO	Bogotá, Miami, Manaus
Lufthansa Cargo	Buenos Aires-Ezeiza, Dakar, Frankfurt, Quito, Tucumán
Martinair	Amsterdam, Miami, Quito
MasAir	Los Angeles, Mérida, Mexico City
TAM Cargo	Manaus
UPS Airlines	Miami, Louisville International Airport

Accidents and incidents

Accidents

• 23 November 1961: an Aerolíneas Argentinas de Havilland DH-106 Comet 4 registration LV-AHR operating flight 322 from Campinas-Viracopos to Port of Spain after reaching an altitude of about 100m lost altitude, collided with a eucalyptus forest and crashed. All 12 crew and 40 passengers on board were killed. The accident was attributed to pilot error.^[21]
• 15 September 2001: a TAM Airlines Fokker 100 registration PT-MRN operating the charter flight 9755, flying from Recife to Campinas-Viracopos, following an uncontrolled engine failure en route to Campinas had 3 cabin windows shattered by fragments of the engine and made an emergency landing at Belo Horizonte-Confins. One passenger was sucked out partly and held by another passenger until the aircraft landed. The passenger in question did not survive.^[22][23]

Incident

• 13 October 2012: a Centurion Air Cargo McDonnell Douglas MD-11 registration N988AR operating flight 425 from Miami to Campinas-Viracopos lost a landing gear while landing on runway 15, causing damage to both the aircraft and runway. No injuries were reported. Following the incident, the airport was closed for 45 hours before the damaged aircraft was removed and the runway reopened. This caused a major traffic disruption with the airlines that operate at the airport.^[24]

Access

The airport is located 82 km (51 mi) northwest of the state capital city of São Paulo and 20 km (12 mi) southwest of downtown Campinas, adjacent to the Bandeirantes-Anhanguera highway complex, which connects the capital city to the interior of São Paulo state.

See also

• List of airports in Brazil

References

1. "Movimento operacional de Viracopos de janeiro a dezembro de 2013" (PDF) (in Portuguese). Viracopos Aeroportos Brasil. Retrieved 25 November 2014.
2. "Airport Official Website" (in Portuguese). Aeroportos Brasil.
3. "Lista de aeródromos públicos" (in Portuguese). ANAC.
4. "Lei n˚7.585, de 6 de janeiro de 1987" (in Portuguese). Câmara dos Deputados. 6 January 1987. Retrieved 21 April 2011.
5. "Conheça o Consórcio Aeroportos Brasil que irá operar em Viracopos" (in Portuguese). Exame. 6 February 2012. Retrieved 13 April 2013.
6. Azul Brazilian Airlines, ed. (2011). "Viracopos, o nosso escolhido". Bem-vindo à bordo (in Portuguese) (Campinas: Azul Brazilian Airlines) (8): 23–25.
7. Torres, Carmen Lígia (2011). "Capital privado dá novo impulso: Plano do governo federal é criar o maior centro aeroportuário do país". Polo de inovação: Centros de pesquisa são a base do desenvolvimento (in Portuguese) (São Paulo: Valor Econômico): 36.
8. Bitencourt, Rafael (26 April 2011). "Governo define concessão de obras em 3 aeroportos, diz Palocci" (in Portuguese). Valor Online. Retrieved 16 May 2011.
9. "Home" (in Portuguese). Triunfo. Retrieved 30 August 2012.
10. "Home" (in Portuguese). UTC Engenharia e Participações. Retrieved 30 August 2012.
11. "Home". Egis Avia. Retrieved 30 August 2012.
12. Rittner, Daniel (7 February 2012). "Cumbica, Viracopos e Brasília são privatizados" (in Portuguese). Valor Econômico. Retrieved 22 March 2012.
13. Salomon, Marta; Monteiro, Tânia (1 June 2011). "Governo pretende privatizar três aeroportos e abrir o capital da Infraero" (in Portuguese). O Estado de S. Paulo: Economia. Retrieved 22 March 2012.
14. "Brazil moves swiftly (at last) to award airport concessions". CAPA. 9 February 2012. Retrieved 5 March 2012.
15. Rittner, Daniel; Braga, Paulo Victor (31 August 2009). "Infraero vai gastar R$5 bi em reforma de aeroportos". Valor Econômico (in Portuguese). pp. A4.
16. "Home" (in Portuguese). Viracopos.
17. "Azul Adds Lisbon Service from late-June 2016". Airline Route. April 6, 2016. Retrieved April 6, 2016.
18. "TAP anuncia fim das operações em Campinas (SP)". Panrotas. 14 April 2016. Retrieved 14 April 2016.
19. http://www.centurioncargo.com/assets/timetable_assets/Americas.pdf
20. "Emirates SkyCargo Freighter Operations get ready for DWC move". Emirates SkyCargo. 2 April 2014.
21. "Accident description LV-AHR". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 27 June 2011.
22. "Accident description PT-MRN". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 23 May 2011.
23. Marra, Lívia (16 September 2001). "Avião da TAM acidentado em Minas havia sido revisado no mês passado" (in Portuguese). Folha Online. Retrieved 23 May 2011.
24. Hradecky, Simon (15 October 2012). "Accident: Centurion MD11 at Sao Paulo on Oct 13th 2012, left main gear collapsed during roll out". Aviation Herald. Retrieved 16 October 2012.

External links

• Airport information for SBKP at World Aero Data. Data current as of October 2006.Source: DAFIF.
• Airport information for SBKP at Great Circle Mapper. Source: DAFIF (effective October 2006).
• Accident history for VCP at Aviation Safety Network
• Viracopos International Airport Photo Archive at airliners.net