Cargo operations at Guarulhos Airport (GRU) in São Paulo, Latin America's largest air cargo hub, are nearing total collapse.
Airline industry groups have urged the federal government to implement emergency measures, including a temporary five-day embargo on dry cargo, in a desperate attempt to prevent the breakdown of cargo operations at the airport.
Video footage from the airport shows cargo warehouses overflowing, with pallets spilling out into open areas and even occupying aircraft parking spaces.
In a letter to the Minister for Ports and Airports, the Brazilian Association of Airlines, the Latin American Air Transport Association, and the Board of Airline Representatives International Airlines in Brazil have called for urgent intervention in the face of a “calamitous situation” resulting from a severe backlog in cargo processing.
The letter emphasizes that warehouses at GRU are “no longer capable of accepting cargo,” forcing pallets to be stored outdoors in open yards and even in aircraft parking areas. One airline alone reportedly has over 600 full containers awaiting processing.
“This situation has reached a critical point, creating an unsustainable and chaotic environment with an imminent risk of air operations collapsing, and serious safety concerns at Brazil’s busiest airport,” the letter warns.
The associations argue that the root cause of the crisis lies in a “shortage of labor at the handling agents,” compounded by slow and bureaucratic processing by various government agencies, including ANVISA (National Health Surveillance Agency), Federal Revenue, and VIGIAGRO (Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock). Additionally, the lack of essential equipment, such as dollies and ULDs (unit load devices), is further exacerbating the issue. As a result, arriving aircraft are unable to offload their cargo, which in turn reduces space for export goods and passenger luggage.
The impact on passenger traffic is also significant.
To prevent a total collapse of cargo operations, the airline associations are calling for immediate measures, including the imposition of a five-day embargo on dry cargo—particularly e-commerce shipments. During this period, only perishables, pharmaceuticals, aircraft parts for emergency repairs, and transit cargo should be allowed, with strict separation from cargo intended for GRU.
One airport user, writing in a blog post, emphasized the urgency of diverting cargo to other Brazilian airports to avoid further congestion.
In addition to the embargo, the airline groups are calling for the immediate creation of a task force consisting of employees from relevant authorities. This team would work alongside GRU Airport, which manages the airport under concession, to clear the backlog and restore normal cargo and baggage flows.
Another key recommendation is to allow bonded truck operations, enabling cargo to be transported to other airports for customs processing, which could help alleviate pressure at GRU.
The airline groups also noted that repeated letters had been sent to the airport’s concessionaire and other relevant agencies, such as the National Civil Aviation Agency, to warn them about the worsening situation at GRU.
While the current crisis is unprecedented in scale, it brings to mind a similar set of issues last year. By early December, large volumes of cargo had built up at GRU, with some shipments exposed to the elements outside the terminal. In some cases, goods were stuck at the airport for over two weeks, leading some international airlines to temporarily suspend operations.
At the time, Guarulhos Airport attributed the problems to the confluence of several holidays, including Black Friday, and the “intermittent” failure of the cargo and transit control systems at the beginning of the month, which delayed processing at the receiving, storage, and release areas.
Despite last year’s disruptions, authorities seem to have made no significant changes in response to the problems at GRU. In late October, Brazil’s Federal Accounting Court approved a 16-month extension of GRU Airport’s concession agreement, in exchange for a series of investments. The National Civil Aviation Agency also endorsed the agreement.
However, the issues at GRU could have wider implications for international partnerships. Management at Rome’s Leonardo da Vinci Airport, which signed an MoU with GRU in February to establish a certified pharmaceutical trade lane, may now be rethinking its collaboration with Brazil’s busiest airport. Pharmaceutical shippers, in particular, may be growing increasingly concerned about the reliability of cargo operations at GRU.