GOL Linhas Aéreas Inteligentes S.A. , Brazil’s low-cost airline, celebrates its eighth anniversary of operations, transporting more than 100 million passengers.
São Paulo – Since launching operations in January 2001, the Company has achieved over 40% market share and today serves 59 destinations with 104 airplanes, employs almost 16,000 people and owns five brands – GOL, VARIG, SMILES, Voe Fácil and Gollog. In 2008, the Company completed the incorporation of VARIG. The operational synergies due to this acquisition have already benefitted the Company, as evidenced by a 3Q08 operational profit of R$ 61.2 million and a load factor of 68 percent in December 2008. To further streamline operations, the Company also upgraded its systems to New Skies on January 13. GOL has made – and will continue to make – significant investments in operations that have cemented the Company’s reputation as one of the safest and most efficient companies in the global aviation industry. Today, GOL’s modern, safe and comfortable fleet of Boeing 737 Next Generation aircraft, have an average age of 5.5 years and offer low maintenance costs, low fuel consumption while also providing high operational efficiency. During the last eight years, approximately 1,600 captains and copilots received over 37,500 hours in flight simulators and 240,000 hours of flight. Additionally, 22,500 members of GOL’s maintenance team underwent 20,000 hours of training; construction to expand the Company’s maintenance center in Confins is expected to be completed later this year and will increase the center’s capacity to serve up to 110 aircraft. Technology has always been an important part of GOL’s business model, and the Company revolutionized the Brazilian aviation industry by focusing on the Internet for ticket sales, eliminating the need for traditional paper tickets. GOL also introduced the concept of online check-in, allowing passengers to print their own boarding pass. GOL is also the first Brazilian airline to offer passengers the technology to check-in using just their mobile phone. In 2008, the SMILES program was expanded to include GOL customers, allowing them to accumulate miles by purchasing tickets, or services or products from approximately 115 partner companies in Brazil and abroad. These expanded service offerings – when combined with GOL’s cargo transportation business (Gollog) and its Voe Fácil program (which allows customers to pay for airline tickets in monthly installments), – solidifies GOL as one of the leading and most respected companies in Brazil.
