Cape Town – Latam Airlines has launched its inaugural direct service between Cape Town and São Paulo, marking a significant expansion of air connectivity between South Africa and Latin America.
Cape Town International Airport welcomed the inaugural flight on Friday, July 3, 2026. The service will operate three times a week on Mondays, Thursdays and Saturdays, and is expected to support tourism growth, facilitate trade and investment, and strengthen Cape Town’s position as a gateway to the region.
Speaking at the arrival of the inaugural flight in Cape Town, South Africa’s Tourism Minister Patricia de Lille said the new service reflected growing confidence in the country’s tourism market and aligned with government’s cabinet approved Tourism Route Development Marketing Plan. 
“Air route development is not simply about adding flights. It is about unlocking economic growth, creating jobs and making South Africa more accessible to the world,” she said.
De Lille said Brazil had emerged as one of South Africa’s fastest growing tourism markets. According to the latest international arrivals data, visitor numbers from Brazil increased by 40.6 percent in May 2026 compared with the same month last year, while arrivals between January and May rose 32 percent year on year to 29,920 visitors.
She noted that in May 2026, the USA topped the list of overseas arrivals to South Africa, surpassing the UK, which traditionally provides the biggest overseas source market. The country welcomed 41,846 Americans compared to 22,160 arrivals from the UK.
As fellow BRICS partners, she said, South Africa and Brazil share a commitment to building stronger South-South cooperation, deepening trade and investment, and advancing people to people exchange. She added that Brazil’s advocacy for South Africa stretches as far as the corridors and meeting rooms of the G20, with President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva having been resolute in protesting the barring of South Africa from the 2026 G20.
De Lille recalled the words of President Lula da Silva during the State Visit by President Cyril Ramaphosa earlier this year: “the Atlantic ocean doesn’t separate us, it actually connects us.”
It was during that visit that De Lille and Brazilian Minister of Tourism Gustavo Feliciano signed the 2026 to 2029 Action Plan to implement the Memorandum of Understanding between the two nations. The areas of cooperation include joint destination marketing, exchange of information on tourism product development, and collaboration on air access, including supporting the sustainability of direct flight routes.
She said she also held a workshop with tour operators in Brazil during the state visit to unpack the potential in the Action Plan, adding that South Africa will participate in various trade shows, while the annual South African, South American Trade Show will mark its ninth anniversary next year.
South African Tourism is already working closely with Latam Airlines through joint marketing initiatives designed to increase destination awareness and support Brazilian travel trade partners in packaging and promoting South Africa.
“This partnership demonstrates what becomes possible when government creates an enabling environment and the private sector responds with confidence and investment,” De Lille said.
Cape Town Air Access, powered by Wesgro, said the new route would strengthen tourism, trade and investment between the Western Cape and Latin America. More than 42,000 two way passengers travelled directly between São Paulo and Cape Town in 2025, while a further 61,000 travelled via connecting hubs, showing strong demand for greater direct connectivity.
Wesgro chief executive Wrenelle Stander said the new route reflected years of engagement between Cape Town Air Access and Latam Airlines.
“Expanding direct air connectivity is central to Wesgro’s mission of growing tourism, trade and investment, and this new service strengthens Cape Town and the Western Cape’s links to Brazil, Latin America and beyond through Latam’s extensive network,” Stander said.
Western Cape Minister of Agriculture, Economic Development and Tourism Ivan Meyer said the new route would help unlock tourism opportunities while supporting exporters and the province’s economic growth.
“Improved air access remains a key driver of economic growth and job creation in the Western Cape. Research shows that every 100 international passengers travelling to the province support approximately two local jobs, while every 100 visitors from South America generate around R1.67 million in foreign direct spend,” Meyer said.
The new route is also expected to strengthen air cargo opportunities. Cape Town International Airport’s air cargo volumes have increased from 56,000 tonnes to 98,000 tonnes over the past decade, while Africa’s air cargo trade with Latin America has more than doubled over the same period.
Through Latam’s São Paulo hub, travellers will gain access to destinations across Latin America as well as onward connections to Florida, while the additional capacity supports Cape Town’s long term ambition of becoming a strategic gateway linking South America, Southern Africa, Western Australia and Southeast Asia.
