Itapemirim Transportes Aéreos suspends all flights

Grupo Itapemirim announced, this Friday night (17), that it has temporarily suspended the operations of its airline, ITA (Itapemirim Transportes Aéreos), for an internal restructuring. In a statement, the company claims that the decision was taken due to the need to make operational adjustments.

The suspension of ITA’s activities, according to the company, will not affect the provision of its road transport service and operations at Viação Itapemirim will continue normally.

The group states that it will provide assistance to impacted passengers and advise customers with trips scheduled for the next few days, so that they can get in touch via email [email protected]. In a statement, the company said that it will be dedicated to resuming its flights “soon” and that it will provide assistance to passengers pursuant to ANAC’s resolution 400, which deals with the rights of air passengers.

Anac (National Civil Aviation Agency) determined that the airline should immediately provide full service to all passengers and communicate, individually, about the cancellation of flights and re-accommodations, in addition to guaranteeing the reimbursement of commercialized air tickets, complying with the rules of the resolution 400.

The regulatory agency recommends that passengers with flights scheduled from this Saturday (18/12) do not show up at airports before contacting Itapemirim. In addition to sending the email to the contact indicated by the company, the agency recommends that passengers register their complaint at Consumidor.gov.br.

The ANAC resolution provides that, in cases of service interruptions, the company must provide alternatives for re-accommodation, reimbursement and execution of the service by another mode of transport, the choice being made by the passenger.

Anac also stated that it suspended the Air Operator Certificate, a document that proves that the company was submitted to the agency’s certification process, by ITA.

After the suspension was announced, which took place on the eve of the end-of-year festivities, a period of greater intensity for air travel, airline passengers protested at Guarulhos airport. Videos circulating on social media show people clapping their hands in the ITA check-in line and shouting “we want to fly” in the lobby of the venue.

According to Itapemirim, ITA has a fleet of seven aircraft, six of which are in operation. Its services are provided in 13 cities across the country.​

The airline, which offered a minimum service on board, was facing a cash shortage, with mismatches in the crew’s payments, which led to actions by the category’s union. In early December, Sidnei Piva, president of the Itapemirim Group, stated, during the 2021 Panrotas Forum, that Itapemirim had air ticket prices that did not cover the operating cost. Even with high inflation and the weak economy in the country, the businessman stated, at the time, that the company was holding back increases.

Itapemirim Transportes Aéreos had its inaugural flight in June this year, from Guarulhos to Brasília, with the plan to serve 35 destinations on its network by June 2022. The launch took place at a time when global airlines were losing customers with the restrictions of the coronavirus pandemic.

The Itapemirim group has been under judicial reorganization since 2016 and has tax debts of almost R$ 2 billion. At the time, the group stated that the airline is not part of the judicial recovery process and that the conglomerate’s investments were authorized by the judge responsible for the process. Months later, the ITA was the target of accusations over employee pay arrears. At the time, the company claimed that a “technical problem” prevented it from centralizing its employees’ payments in a single bank.