REAL (Redes Estaduais Aéreas Limitada) was cread in December 1945 and made its first flight on January 7, 1946 between Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro with three C-47. In October, the company added two Bristol 170, the largest aircraft of Brazil in capacity (36 passengers).
In 1948 the Bristol 170 was disabled as a structural flaw was discovered. Also in this year the airline began a big expansion, buying several other companies and reached twenty aircraft.
In 1951 Real began its first international route from Sao Paulo to Asuncion.
In September 1954 the company bought Aerovias Brazil and was renamed as Real-Aerovias. The Aerovias’s purchase can be considered the most important because with that Real expanded its routes to the United States. Another important purchase was Nacional (in 1956), which was the largest domestic airline in Brazil, serving over 70 destinations. Nacional continued to operate independently. However was created a consortium called Real-Aerovias-Nacional. The company also bought 50% of Sadia (later Transbrasil).
In 1957 Real’s fleet reached 117 aircraft! According to IATA, the seventh largest airline in the world by fleet. In the same year Real was the first airline to fly to Brasília, which was not even finished. After that the airline became known as "Real-Aerovias-Brasília".
In the 50s Real was the main competitor of Varig in routes to the United States. Real used low fares as the main strategy, while Varig invested in the quality of service. As a result, Real achieved good occupancy on its flights. In the domestic market, Real was the leader, capturing around 30% of passenger demand in the country.
On July 9, 1960 was inaugurated the flight Rio de Janeiro - Los Angeles - Honolulu - Tokyo with Super H Constellation. In the same year the company bought three Electras II from American Airlines. The company has also studied four Convair 880, but decided by Convair 990. However the Convair 990 and Electra II would not be received by Real.
Real entered the 1960s serving more than one hundred destinations in Brazil, being the first airline to operate in many airports in the country. However, the construction of new roads and the arrival of more modern, but larger and more expensive aircraft, began to make the operation in regional destinations unfeasible. Airlines began to cut loss-making stopovers. Just the opposite of Real's strategy, which operated with a gigantic fleet to various regional destinations. In addition, there were successive increases in air fares caused by rising costs, such as fuel, which dramatically decreased passenger demand. Real's financial situation deteriorated rapidly, putting the company in a difficult position.
In August 1961 the company was purchased by Varig.

 

 

Logos:

 

Founded: 1945
Ceased: 1961
Hubs: Congonhas
Headquarters: Sao Paulo
Code: RL

 

Aerovias Brasil was founded on August 26, 1942, as a TACA project. The company's operations began in the same year with Lockheed L14 aircraft, which made charter flights within Brazil and to the United States.
In 1946 Aerovias finally started regular flights between Brazil and the United States. For this, the company received DC-3 aircraft, which started the route at Santos Dumont airport, in Rio de Janeiro, and headed to Miami with several stops. The flight took no less than 3 days to arrive in Miami and had 3 weekly frequencies. Aerovias was the first Brazilian airline to fly to the United States.
In 1947 Aerovias Brasil already served the entire Brazilian coast, from Porto Alegre to Belém. In that year TACA sold its stake in the company to Brazilians.
In 1948 Aerovias took advantage of NAB's financial difficulties and expanded its presence in the northeast region.
In February 1949 it was purchased by the state of São Paulo.
In 1951 the company arrived in Buenos Aires with the DC-4. In the same year, Aerovias also received C-46 aircraft to carry out cargo flights to the USA. In 1953 started flying to Montevideo.
In 1954 it was bought by Real, which changed its name to Real-Aerovias. In 1961 Real-Aerovias-Nacional was purchased by Varig.

Founded: 1942
Ceased: 1961
Headquarters: Sao Paulo
Current Fleet: Lockheed 14H2, Fairchild 71A, Douglas DC-2, DC-3/C-47, DC-4, Curtiss C-46
Destinations: 29 domestic / 5 international (Santo Domingo, Paramaribo, Port of Spain, Caracas, Miami)

 

 

Nacional Transportes Aéreos was founded in 1946 and began operating in February 1947. The Nacional’s fleet consisted of DC-3/C-47 and Curtiss C-46. Beyond its domestic flights, the airline also had international flights to Asuncion.
In August 1956 it was bought by Real-Aerovias, forming the consortium Real-Aerovias-Nacional.

 

Founded: 1946
Ceased: 1961
Headquarters: Belo Horizonte
Current Fleet: Douglas DC-3/C-47, Curtiss C-46, Convair 440

 

 

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