Iberia eyes 25% more Brazil capacity in 2026, boosted by Airbus jets

By Gabriel Araujo

SAO PAULO (Reuters) -Spanish airline Iberia aims to expand substantially in Brazil for the second year in a row in 2026, an executive said, as new Airbus jets help the IAG carrier open more routes in Latin America's largest country.

The company forecasts 25% growth in seats available on its flights between Brazil and Spain, Corporate Director Juan Cierco said in an interview, following a 27% expansion this year.

Iberia is launching routes connecting Madrid to Fortaleza and Recife, two popular beach destinations in northeast Brazil.

The carrier also plans to increase its Rio de Janeiro service to daily flights from five a week, in addition to its two daily flights to Sao Paulo.

"Brazil has always been a very important destination for Iberia," Cierco said on Tuesday. "The commitment is a very solid, long-term one."

Major European airlines, including Air France-KLM and TAP, have been expanding in Brazil as air travel demand grows in the country despite high operating costs and ticket prices.

According to industry group IATA, this year Brazil's international traffic rose 18% in January-September from the year-ago period.

Much of Iberia's expansion in Brazil will be driven by the long-range narrowbody Airbus A321XLR aircraft for which the Spanish carrier was the launch customer last year.

The A321XLR can serve routes previously reserved for larger widebody jets, allowing airlines to fly longer routes without having to fill a larger plane. Iberia has said it will fly the plane on both the Fortaleza and Recife routes.

(Reporting by Gabriel Araujo; Editing by Brad Haynes and Richard Chang)