LATAM and the Brazilian carriers in 2026: the domestic giant, the pay in reais, the São Paulo base and the Gulf exodus
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#1 Brazilian, flew for a Brazilian carrier, now at TAP in Lisbon, and the Brazilian applicants on this forum ask about LATAM, Gol and Azul and get answered by people who have never flown in Brazil. I have. Here it is.
The carriers
LATAM: the big one, the merged Chilean and Brazilian giant, with the international long haul from São Paulo (Europe, the US, the rest of South America) and a huge domestic operation. Gol: domestic and regional, 737s, low cost origins, a big São Paulo and Rio presence. Azul: the newer one, a mixed fleet from E-jets to A330s, the interior of the country and some international. All three hire constantly because the turnover is high.
The pay in reais
A Brazilian salary. Basic plus flight hours plus per diems, and the honest number for a junior crew member is livable in a shared flat in São Paulo or Rio and not a saving income. Long haul crew at LATAM do better because of the international per diems in dollars and euros. Domestic crew at any of the three do the sector count for a modest month. Inflation and the exchange rate have made the international allowances the thing that separates a good month from a poor one, exactly as Hassan described for PIA and Skyhigh for Turkish.
The São Paulo base
Guarulhos for international, Congonhas for the domestic shuttle. The crew live across the city and the commute is São Paulo traffic, which is its own duty. The crew culture is warm, loud, tactile and funny, and the crew room is a party that occasionally flies. The passengers are the same.
The flying
Domestic is short, full, frequent, with the Rio shuttle every 30 minutes and the northeast beach routes in summer. International from LATAM is the real long haul: Lisbon, Madrid, London, Paris, Miami, New York, with layovers, on 787s and 777s. The Brazilian crew who reach LATAM long haul have the best flying in the continent.
The Gulf exodus
Brazilians are one of the largest nationalities at Emirates and Qatar, and the reason is the pay in reais. The path is: a year or two at a Brazilian carrier, the Gulf assessment in São Paulo or Rio, and the move. The Gulf carriers like Brazilian crew because the service culture is warm and the Portuguese opens the Brazil and Portugal routes. Half my old base is in Dubai.
For Brazilian applicants
Start at home. The training is good and the flying teaches you the job. Then decide: LATAM long haul if you can wait, the Gulf if you want the savings, Europe (TAP, with a passport) if you want the continent. All three paths are real and I have friends on each.
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#2 Brasília, applying, and the 'start at home, then decide' path is the one I am on: Azul application in, Gulf assessment next year. Cecília has written the Brazilian crew career in one post. Obrigado.
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#3 Ex Brazilian crew, now hotels, and the São Paulo traffic being its own duty is the truest sentence about the base. Two hours to Guarulhos on a bad day. The crew who live near the airport are the sane ones.
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#4 Brazilian at Emirates training, and I did exactly this: two years at Gol, the Dubai assessment in São Paulo, and now here. The Gulf carriers do like us. The Portuguese is on the roster. Cecília is right.
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#6 Ex crew, Rio, now dispatch, and the crew room that is a party that occasionally flies is the most accurate description of a Brazilian base I have read. It is also why the passengers love us. The party is the service.
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#7 Chilean, LATAM Santiago, and the Chilean side of LATAM is calmer, colder and better paid in peso terms, and the merged airline is two cultures in one uniform. The Brazilian crew bring the warmth. We bring the punctuality. It works.