Brazilian authorities
suspend ticket sale to
airport crash scene
Brazil's National Civil
Aviation Agency (ANAC)
on Tuesday decided to
suspend sales of all
tickets to Sao Paulo's
Congonhas airport that
saw the nation's
deadliest crash last
week, ANAC announced on
Tuesday.
"Sales will be suspended
until airport movements
can return to normal,"
ANAC president Milton
Zuanazzi told reporters.
The agency will study
ticket sales at other
central Brazilian
airports to prevent
overbooking.
Congonhas's main runway
was closed three times
on Tuesday due to bad
weather, causing 82
flights cancelled and 46
delayed by more than an
hour.
Congonhas has seen the
worst cancellations and
delays in the nation,
which is currently
suffering air chaos. On
Monday, more than 38
percent of Brazil's
flights were delayed and
around 20 percent
cancelled.
Around 200 people died
last week when an airbus
belonging to the TAM air
company failed to land
properly on a wet runway
at Congonhas, crashing
into a fuel depot and
exploding.
Also on Tuesday,
Brazil's Foreign
Minister Celso Amorim
told a press conference
that the measures taken
by the Brazilian
government to relieve
Congonhas airport would
not affect foreign
airlines bound for
Brazil.
"I do not think Brazil
will lose foreign
investment. There are a
great many alternatives
because the airport that
is most affected is used
as a hub for internal
flights," he said.
Brazil will redirect
flights from Congonhas
to airports in Guarulhos,
Campinas, Rio de
Janeiro, Belo Horizonte
and Brasilia.
"This could require
adaptation, but Brazil
is a great business and
tourist destination. Air
companies are going to
continue earning money
flying to Brazil," he
said.
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