Top European airline plots Africa, Brazil market amid privatisation drive

Portugal’s flagship carrier TAP Air Portugal is setting its sights on expanding its footprint across Africa and Brazil as it prepares for a major privatisation push, Chief Executive Officer Luis Rodrigues announced at the World Aviation Festival in Lisbon.

• TAP Air Portugal plans to expand operations in Africa and Brazil as part of its global growth strategy.
• CEO Luis Rodrigues says Africa holds vast untapped potential despite structural challenges.
• The Portuguese government is selling a 44.9% stake in TAP to attract a strategic airline partner.
• TAP also targets non-passenger services, such as maintenance and engineering, to diversify its revenue.

The soon-to-be-privatised airline, which already flies to 14 African destinations and 13 Brazilian cities, sees both markets as key engines for its next phase of growth.

“We are fortunate to be well-positioned to tackle both of them. Brazil is a promising country, and there’s still a huge opportunity there,” Rodrigues said.

Brazil’s tourism sector currently contributes only about 6% to its GDP, far below Portugal’s 16%, leaving what Rodrigues described as “a huge untapped opportunity” for the Portuguese carrier.

“In a country that is 20 times as big as Portugal, the opportunity is huge,” he noted.

Africa’s skies offer long-term promise, says TAP CEO

Africa, he added, presents even greater long-term promise despite lingering economic and infrastructural challenges.

“Africa is bigger than that,” Rodrigues remarked, acknowledging that while growth might be slower, the continent’s demand for reliable air connectivity continues to expand.

TAP already connects major African hubs, including Luanda, Maputo, Dakar, and Accra, positioning it as one of Europe’s leading carriers serving the continent.

Rodrigues said the airline’s diversified network, spanning North and South America, Europe, and Africa, provides resilience and flexibility, ensuring that “not all routes look good or bad at the same time.”

Beyond passenger traffic, TAP is also eyeing expansion into maintenance and engineering services to boost revenue streams.

Privatisation opens the door to global partnerships

Portugal’s government relaunched TAP’s long-delayed privatisation in July, aiming to sell a 44.9% stake to a strategic airline partner, with an additional 5% reserved for employees.

Rodrigues welcomed the move, saying, “The time of being proudly alone is gone. I’d be happy to be integrated into a larger group.”

The government hopes the new partner will strengthen TAP’s position as a truly global operator, one with deep roots in the Lusophone world but growing ambitions across Africa’s rapidly evolving aviation landscape.