Category Archives: TAP Portugal

TAP Air Portugal opens three new connections in the Americas with the Airbus A321LR

Lisbon-Maceió, Lisbon-Montreal and Lisbon-Ponta Delgada-Boston are TAP’s new routes.

Unbeatable economy and efficiency of new aircraft drive the Company’s growth.
In four years, TAP already serves the same number of North American cities as it does in Brazil.

TAP continues to invest heavily in the Americas and once again expands its network of transatlantic destinations with the launch of three new routes: Maceió, in Brazil; Montreal, Canada; and Lisbon-Ponta Delgada-Boston, in the United States, all starting next year.

The Company’s three new connections reinforce TAP’s growth commitment in Brazilian and North Atlantic markets.

A321LR allows expansion of operation in Brazil

Relative to Brazil, this is the first time in five years that the Portuguese Company announces a new route.

Maceió

In 2020, Maceió, capital of the northeast state of Alagoas, is the latest city in Brazil to be served by TAP’s new generation Airbus NEO aircraft, thus becoming TAP’s 11th Brazilian destination.

Maceió is a great destination for families and lovers of sun, sea and culture. Warm, turquoise beaches for all tastes, golden sand and coconut tree-lined roads are some of the undeniable beauties of the this exciting new destination in TAP’s Brazilian network.

The route will have three weekly frequencies. Departures from Lisbon are at 17:15 with arrival at the Brazilian destination at 21:15, on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays.

Investment in the most modern, efficient and comfortable equipment, notably the introduction of the new A321LR aircraft, allows TAP to also increase frequencies for the cities of Natal and Belém, increasing from three to five flights per week for each one. TAP’s A321LR is an exceptionally efficient aircraft in terms of fuel consumption and reduced carbon emissions. The aircraft’s smaller size and lower trip costs permits TAP to operate profitability in smaller markets that cannot be regularly served by larger widebody aircraft.

With the strengthening of the network in Brazil next year, TAP will operate in this market a total of 92 weekly frequencies, 15 more than in 2015.

Despite increasing competition in the Brazilian market, TAP maintained its market share at around 26%, with the European Company offering more routes and providing more seats. In 2018 alone, TAP carried 89% of passengers with direct flights between Brazil and Portugal.

TAP grows from three to 11 North Atlantic routes

The inauguration of the Lisbon-Montreal and Ponta Delgada-Boston route shows the achievement of one of the strategic paths outlined since the beginning of TAP’s transformation process: the conquest of the North Atlantic.

The Canadian City with French Feeling: Montreal

Canada’s second largest city is TAP’s newest North Atlantic destination. Montreal is multicultural, cosmopolitan and has French feeling. Due to its historical heritage, the official language of the city is French, being the second largest francophone city after Paris in France.

To weather the cold and heavy snow during the winter, Montreal has one of the largest underground cities in the world, extending practically all over the city, with over 1500 stores and over 2000 restaurants. There are more than 30 kilometers of tunnels that make it easy to connect the main points of interest in the city.

The Airline will operate six weekly frequencies between Lisbon and Montreal. Flights depart to the new destination in North America from the Portuguese capital every day, except Wednesdays, at 2:55 pm and arrive in the Canadian city at 5:40 pm. And will be available for sale from November 25, with operations beginning next year.

In total, TAP will operate 82 weekly frequencies in the North American market next year, which represents a significant increase in supply compared to 2015, when the Company operated only 16 weekly frequencies. In Portugal, the Company will also increase the number of connections between Lisbon and Ponta Delgada, from 4 to 5 daily.

Ponta Delgada-Boston is one of the strategic routes that reinforce the Company’s growth in the North Atlantic. From 2020, Portugal will have, from Lisbon and Ponta Delgada, two direct routes to Boston, hub city of TAP partner JetBlue, which will allow the Portuguese company to carry even more passengers from various points of the US.

With these new connections and remaining supply increases, TAP expects to carry an additional 390,000 North Americans between Portugal and the North Atlantic next year, increasingly contributing to the national economy and the growth of the tourism. TAP currently carries close to one million passengers from North America to Europe.

North America is already one of the Company’s three main international markets. From 2015 to October 2019, the total number of Customers transported to and from North America has increased by 250%.

Top Copyright Photo: TAP Portugal – Air Portugal Airbus A321-251N WL CS-TJI (msn 8270) LHR (Tony Storck). Image: 947178.

TAP aircraft slide show:

TAP launches the Porto-Munich route

TAP began direct flights between Porto and Munich, Germany’s third-largest city last Sunday. Daily flights to the Bavarian city depart Porto at 11:30 a.m. and arrive at 5:45 p.m.

TAP aircraft photo gallery:

TAP honors Portugal’s first queen

TAP Air Portugal made this announcement:

On Thursday, August 1, TAP baptized one of its new Airbus A330neo aircraft (registration number CS-TUA) with the name “D. Maria I”, in tribute to Portugal’s first queen regnant.

D. Maria I, eldest daughter of D. José I, received the title Princess of Brazil when her father was crowned king in 1750. The aircraft named after her is part of the Airline’s long-haul fleet, and as such will also be flying to the destination of her title – Brazil – which she held until she was crowned as queen in 1777.

The reign of D. Maria I was marked by significant investment in culture and science, with scientific missions being sent to Brazil and Africa, including countries such as Angola, Cape Verde and Mozambique. There was also investment in education, through the creation and revitalisation of institutions such as the Royal Academy of Sciences, the Naval Academy, the Public Library and Casa Pia, among others.

The “D. Maria I” aircraft is set to cross the Atlantic for the first time this Wednesday, on flight TP259 to Toronto, Canada.

The new “D. Maria I” also joins other personalities from Portuguese history who TAP has commemorated in its long-haul fleet, such as D. João de Castro, D. Francisco de Almeida, D. Maria II, João Vaz Côrte-Real and João XXI, among many others.

Photo: TAP.

TAP Air Portugal grows by 4.8% in the first six months of 2019

TAP Air Portugal carried 8 million passengers in first half 2019

Number of passengers carried rises in the Company’s total network
North America recorded the largest increase (+ 9.6%)
European routes, excluding Portugal, with the highest number of passengers carried (4.8 million)
Azores and Madeira with 4.9 percent increase in traffic

In the first six months of the year, TAP Air Portugal carried around 8 million passengers (7.9 million), representing a growth of 4.8 percent over the previous year.

The Company was able to record passenger increases in all network sectors it operates (except South and Central Atlantic), especially North America, with 9.6 percent more passengers transported, for a total of 428 thousand, and Africa, where TAP grew 8.5 percent to 586,000 passengers.

Brazil experienced a slight slowdown, with 2 percent fewer passengers in the first half, but with the most recent months already showing signs of a recovery. In June, for example, TAP carried 3.4 percent more in Brazilian routes than in the same month of 2018.

On European routes – excluding Portugal – TAP had the highest absolute growth, reaching 4.8 million passengers, 227 thousand more, or 4.9 percent, than in the first six months of the previous year.

In flights between mainland Portugal airports (Lisbon, Porto and Faro), TAP grew 1.8 percent. In the Azores and Madeira routes, the national airline increased by 4.9 per cent, reaching 633,000 passengers on all routes to and from the Autonomous Regions.

Also noteworthy is the Lisbon-Porto “Ponte Aérea”, with growth in the first half of 5.8 percent for the 400,000 passengers.

It is recalled that, traditionally, the first semester always has lower records than the second semester. Additionally, TAP launched new routes during the first half (Tel Aviv, Basel and Dublin on March 31, Chicago, Washington, San Francisco, Naples and Tenerife throughout June) and some already in the second half in July (Conakry and Porto-Brussels), with their impact on traffic growth only fully felt in the second half of the year.

In September, the Company will also open flights between Porto and Munich and Lyon and between Lisbon and Banjul. The effect of the new routes, coupled with the traditional higher traffic of the second half, allows TAP to state that in 2019 the airline will surpass all records in the number of passengers carried.

All photos by the airline.

TAP Portugal retires its last Airbus A330-300

TAP Portugal – Air Portugal has operated its last Airbus A330-300 revenue flight. The type has been replaced with newer Airbus aircraft.

The pictured Airbus A330-300 CS-TOX operated flight TP22 from Salvador, Brazil to the Lisbon hub on July 12, 2019, arriving the next day in Lisbon.

The fleet is being sold to Air Canada.

TAP aircraft slide show:

TAP Air Portugal introduces Porto – Brussels flights

TAP Air Portugal has made this announcement:

TAP inaugurated nonstop flights from Porto to Brussels on July 1. There will be two flights from Porto to the Belgian capital every day, at 7:00 a.m. and 5:35 p.m., arriving in Brussels at 10:30 a.m. and 9:05 p.m. respectively.

This is a special week for the airline in Porto because, apart from inaugurating the Porto-Brussels flight routes, TAP is also celebrating the 30th anniversary of its northern base this Tuesday.

As of September 1, TAP is also going to inaugurate two new routes from Porto to Lyon and Munich. With these new routes being launched from Porto airport, TAP will be operating 19 direct flights from Porto to other European destinations, the United States and Brazil. With a total of 288 flights a week, this is 25% more than the 234 flights the airline operated from Porto in 2015 before it was privatised.

The new routes that TAP inaugurated this year from Porto represent a 34% increase in direct flights from Porto to Europe compared to last year. It is further recalled that the airline had increased its connections to Europe in 2018 with the start of the operations to Barcelona, London City, Milan and Ponta Delgada.

This TAP investment in Porto was only possible due to its larger fleet size. TAP is going to receive 37 new aircraft by the end of this year and 71 by 2025. With this new fleet, the airline will be able to fly to new destinations and offer more flights on existing routes. The flights to new destinations in North America that are already in operation are San Francisco, Washington and Chicago. In addition, TAP has already started running medium-haul flights to Naples, Tenerife, Telavive, Dublin and Basil in 2019.

TAP launches Airbus A321LR service from Porto to New York

TAP Air Portugal yesterday (June 1) launched its first Airbus A321LR trans-Atlantic service from Porto to New York.

The airline is wrongly claiming this is the world’s first A321LR trans-Atlantic revenue flight but this was already accomplished by Air Transat on May 15, 2019, from Montréal (Trudeau) to Nantes, France.

All photos by TAP.

TAP to fly to Banjul, Gambia

TAP will begin flying to Banjul, the capital of The Gambia, on October 26, 2019. TAP will offer three flights per week from Lisbon.

This is another example of the national airline strengthening its service to Africa, a market in which TAP has recorded significant growth.

The service will use Airbus A320 aircraft, with three flights per week, leaving Lisbon at 20:55 on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays and arriving in Banjul at 00:10 the next day. The flights will then leave Banjul at 01:05 (on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays), arriving at Humberto Delgado Airport at 06:05 (all times local).

TAP flies to the following destinations in Africa: Morocco (Marrakesh, Casablanca, Tangier and Fez), Cape Verde (Sal, Praia, S. Vicente and Boa Vista), Senegal (Dakar), Guinea-Bissau (Bissau), Ivory Coast (Abidjan), Togo (Lomé), Ghana (Accra), S. Tomé and Príncipe (S. Tomé), Angola (Luanda) and Mozambique (Maputo) – a total of 16 cities in 10 countries.

The new destination of Banjul, in The Gambia, and the recently announced start of flights to Conakry, in Guinea, bring the number of African countries and cities the national airline directly serves from Portugal to 12 and 18, respectively.

TAP carried more than 1.1 million passengers on its African routes in 2018, an increase of 11.3% compared to the previous year. TAP continues its growth in Africa with these new destinations for 2019.

Top Copyright Photo: TAP Portugal – Air Portugal Airbus A320-214 WL CS-TNT (msn 4095) LIS (Ton Jochems). Image: 946599.

TAP aircraft slide show:

For the first time in it’s 74 year history, TAP has 100 aircraft

TAP has released this statement:

TAP has received yet another Airbus A330neo, bringing the total number of aircraft of the company’s fleet to 100;
The new aircraft have enabled record growth to be achieved in the United States. TAP was the fastest growing European airline over the past four years on routes between Europe and the United States;
On average, each new TAP aircraft results in €28 million in duties and taxes each year to the Portuguese economy. And more than 750 jobs in Portugal.

On May 20, TAP marks a historic day in its 74 year history. With the arrival of another A330neo – CS-TUI, which has been named King Afonso Henriques – the company has 100 aircraft in its fleet for the first time.

The renovation of the TAP fleet, with 71 new aircraft due to arrive by 2025, is one of the main pillars of the new shareholders’ Strategic Plan. This was presented and approved by the Portuguese State when the company was privatised in 2015. A significant part of TAP’s transformation and modernisation rests on these latest generation aircraft, offering more seats and lower costs.

The new aircraft allow new routes to be opened and help TAP diversify its income streams. The company continues to grow in Brazil, a market in which it retains market leadership for connections to Europe, with a 22.8% increase in the number of passengers carried between 2015 and 2018. We also have a strong commitment to the North Atlantic market, where there has been a 176.5% growth in passenger numbers between 2015 and 2018, alongside almost four-fold growth in the number of seats available in four years.

TAP was the fastest growing European airline on routes to the United States, offering 245,000 more seats compared to 2015.

The new fleet is also an important contribution to the country. Each new TAP airline makes a significant contribution to the country’s GDP, generating an average of €28 million in duties and taxes each year for the Portuguese economy and creating more than 750 jobs in Portugal, on average.

The growth in TAP’s fleet has, in just four years, put the company above the average of other leading European airlines in terms of growth: TAP’s fleet grew by 21% between 2015 and 2018, while other European airlines have grown 13% on average, according to data from Flight Global.

TAP’s passenger numbers have also grown faster than the average of other leading European airlines: The number of passengers carried between 2015 and 2018 is up 39%, compared to the average of 19% for our European competitor airlines.

TAP will continue receiving new aircraft for the rest of this year, and will open new routes – flights to Chicago, San Francisco and Washington start in June. TAP will also bring more tourists to Portugal. In 2018, TAP brought 4 million tourists to Portugal, who contributed more than €5.5 billion to the national economy.

TAP Air Portugal to add Conakry in July

TAP Air Portugal will begin to fly between Lisbon and Conakry from July 3 onwards, offering three weekly flights between the two capitals.

Flights will depart from Lisbon on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays at 7.25 pm and arrive in Conakry at 11.10 pm. In the opposite direction, flights will depart from Guinea’s capital on Mondays, Thursdays and Sundays at 12.05 am and arrive in the Portuguese capital at 5.30 am (local time).

With the launch of this new route to the African continent, TAP will cover 17 African cities in 11 countries. In addition to Conakry (Guinea), the carrier also flies to Luanda (Angola), Maputo (Mozambique), S. Tome (Sao Tome and Principe), Bissau (Guinea-Bissau), Praia, Sal, Sao Vicente and Boa Vista (Cape Verde), Marrakesh, Casablanca, Tangier and Fez (Morocco), Dakar (Senegal), Abidjan (Côte d’Ivoire), Accra (Ghana) and Lomé (Togo).

In 2018, TAP’s African routes saw a significant rise in the number of passengers: 116,000 more than in 2017, totaling 1.1 million passengers, which is a growth of 11.2% compared to the previous year.