✈️ São Paulo Business Aviation Traffic Quietly Restructures: Congonhas Contracts While Guarulhos Expands Against the Trend
The capacity ceiling at the city airport is pushing business aviation traffic toward the international hub. According to Avi-Go data, business aviation movements at São Paulo Congonhas Airport (SBSP) reached 3,250 in Q1 2026, down 8.2% year-over-year from 3,541 in Q1 2025, a reduction of 291 movements. Meanwhile, Guarulhos Airport (SBGR) recorded 1,841 movements in the same period, up 4.9% year-over-year, a net increase of 86 movements. The two airports combined for 5,091 movements, with an overall decline of only 3.9%, but a substantive structural shift has taken place within that figure — SBSP's high-density operating model has encountered an efficiency bottleneck, while SBGR continues to attract long-range business aviation traffic through its international route connectivity advantage. This divergence was already quite pronounced in Q1 2026.
Impact: For FBOs operating at SBSP, tightening slot resources compounded by declining traffic will sustain upward pressure on ground handling revenue; the incremental capacity at SBGR presents a window of opportunity for operators with expansion ambitions, though the operational complexity and coordination costs associated with an international hub are correspondingly higher.
Recommendation: Existing FBOs and ground service providers at SBGR should assess whether their parking positions and ground handling staffing are aligned with incremental demand before Q2 2026, and secure resources in advance. Operators positioned at SBSP would be well advised to review their current slot portfolios, prioritize retention of high-value customer time slots, and consider redirecting a portion of flexible demand to SBGR in order to diversify capacity risk.