Santos Dumont Airport will be closed on November 18th and 19th, during the G20 summit, which will bring together, in Rio de Janeiro, the heads of state of the world’s main economies.
The information was officially released this Friday (8), by the Ministry of Ports and Airports and the National Civil Aviation Agency (Anac).
The department informed, in a note, that it complied with the request from the city of Rio de Janeiro. The decision, according to the mayor of Rio, Eduardo Paes, was motivated by security issues and the need to restrict access to the area around Santos Dumont, due to the blockades for the movement of authorities and foreign delegations.
Santos Dumont Airport is located in the center of Rio, 550 meters from the Museum of Modern Art (MAM Rio), where the G20 meeting will be held.
According to the Ministry of Ports and Airports, commercial operations scheduled for Rio’s central airport may be redirected to Galeão Airport, in accordance with airline operational guidelines and the operational capacity of that airport.
Passenger rights
In view of the temporary closure, Anac reinforced that airlines must also observe, in terms of serving passengers who will have their flights canceled or changed, the rules set out in Resolution No. 400/2016, which deals with the general conditions of air transport in the country.
Among the rules envisaged is that passengers must be informed of changes at least 72 hours in advance. In cases of cancellation or lack of communication, they may be reaccommodated, reimbursed and, if applicable, choose another mode of transport.
Galeão Airport
Located in the North Zone of the city, Tom Jobim International Airport, known as Galeão Airport, is expected to absorb the flights scheduled for Santos Dumont.
In a note, RIOgaleão informed that it is prepared for the demand expected for the G20. Between the 14th and 20th of November, the airport is expected to receive more than 341 thousand passengers, which represents an increase of 76% compared to the same period in 2023, and 2,534 flights, an increase of 121% compared to 2023.
“The air network will be updated in the coming days. To accommodate the movement, the concessionaire renovated the space to receive delegations, reinforced the cleaning and maintenance teams, in addition to requesting an extra fleet of taxis and app cars during the event period”, he said.
G20
Between the 14th and 19th of November, Rio de Janeiro will host a series of events related to the G20, the Urban 20 (U20), the G20 Social and the G20 Leaders’ Summit.
According to the city council, the first two meetings are expected to attract an estimated audience of 40 thousand people per day to Complexo Mauá, in the port area, from November 14th to 17th. On the 18th and 19th, 55 delegations, from 40 countries and 15 international organizations, are expected at MAM.
The Group of Twenty (G20) is the main forum for international economic cooperation. It is made up of Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Republic of Korea, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey, the United Kingdom and the United States, in addition to European Union.
G20 members represent around 85% of global Gross Domestic Product (GDP, the sum of all goods and services produced by a country), more than 75% of global trade and around two-thirds of the world’s population.
Since 2008, countries have taken turns presiding over the group. This is the first time that Brazil presides over the G20 in its current format.
