Jaguaruna Airport Flight Cap For Safety Upgrades

Published on Nov 26, 2025, 1:09 pm CST

9 min read

Key points

ANAC has capped Humberto Ghizzo Bortoluzzi Southern Regional Airport in Jaguaruna at 12 commercial flights per week until 28 March 2026 while safety upgrades are completed
The cap applies to code 4C aircraft and is tied to RBAC 139 requirements such as runway width, runway end safety areas, and PAPI approach lighting at seven regional airports
LATAM recently expanded Jaguaruna to 12 weekly Airbus A320 flights to São Paulo Guarulhos, meaning the airport now operates at the new ceiling with high load factors
There is no immediate cut to existing flights, but peak summer dates are likely to sell out faster and price higher, pushing some travelers to Florianopolis or other gateways
Forquilhinha’s Diomicio Freitas Airport is pursuing the return of commercial flights by early 2026, which could eventually ease pressure on Jaguaruna if plans stay on track
Travelers headed to Santa Catarina beach towns and the Port of Imbituba should book flights and ground transfers earlier than usual and keep flexible back up plans

Impact

Where Impacts Are Most Likely: Pressure will be highest on Jaguaruna to São Paulo links serving southern Santa Catarina beach towns, Tubarão and Criciúma, and Port of Imbituba traffic, because the airport now sits at its 12 flight weekly cap
Best Times To Fly: Midweek and shoulder season dates should remain easier to book, while Friday and Sunday peaks through March 28, 2026 are more likely to sell out or price up quickly under the cap
Connections And Misconnect Risk: With limited direct seats from Jaguaruna, more travelers may connect via Florianopolis or São Paulo, increasing exposure to missed connections and longer total journey times if something goes wrong
Onward Travel And Changes: Visitors may need to combine flights to Florianopolis or, later, Forquilhinha with bus, shuttle, or rental car legs, and should choose fares and hotels with reasonable change or cancellation terms
What Travelers Should Do Now: Book Jaguaruna flights early for December through March trips, compare routings via Florianopolis, monitor airline and ANAC updates on RBAC 139 works, and build extra time into ground transfers

Some of the links and widgets on this page are affiliates, which means we may earn a commission if you use them, at no extra cost to you.

Travelers using southern Brazil's Jaguaruna corridor now face a hard ceiling on air capacity into the region, because Brazil's civil aviation regulator ANAC has capped Humberto Ghizzo Bortoluzzi Southern Regional Airport (JJG) at 12 commercial flights per week while safety upgrades are completed, a restriction that runs until 28 March 2026. The Jaguaruna airport flight cap hits just as summer demand grows for Santa Catarina's beach towns, Tubarão's industrial cluster, and Port of Imbituba projects, and it applies mainly to larger code 4C jets. The immediate seat map does not collapse, but passengers should expect popular dates to sell out faster, prepare to route via Florianopolis or other gateways if JJG is full, and allow extra time for ground transfers along the coast.

In plain terms, the Jaguaruna airport flight cap is a precautionary ANAC measure that freezes weekly commercial traffic at a small regional hub while the operator widens runway and safety areas, improves overrun zones, and installs or upgrades approach lighting to match RBAC 139 standards, with a clear deadline and the possibility of early removal once works are certified.

What ANAC Changed And Why

ANAC's October 2025 decision came in the form of three portarias that limit weekly commercial frequencies at seven regional airports until 28 March 2026. For Jaguaruna, Portaria 17.993/2025 sets a maximum of 12 weekly flights for code 4C aircraft such as the Airbus A320 class. Similar caps apply at Araçatuba, Presidente Prudente, São José do Rio Preto, Passo Fundo, Caxias do Sul, and Fernando de Noronha, each with its own ceiling aligned to current infrastructure.

The goal is not to punish regional communities, but to force long delayed work on runway geometry, safety buffers, and landing aids that RBAC 139 has required for years. ANAC's own explanation highlights four main problem areas at affected airports, including matching runway width to the aircraft they receive, keeping runway strips clear of obstacles, carving out proper runway end safety areas (RESA), and installing Precision Approach Path Indicator (PAPI) systems. The agency also bars night operations where PAPI is missing or inoperative, except for medical emergencies, which further nudges operators toward compliance.

In Jaguaruna's case, state and local reports confirm that the main outstanding issue is adapting the runway to consistently handle category 4C jets, with RESA and PAPI work folded into the upgrade plan. Authorities stress that the cap is temporary and that restrictions can be lifted as soon as RBAC 139 criteria are fully met, even before the March 2026 sunset date.

What This Means For Jaguaruna Flights

Humberto Ghizzo Bortoluzzi Southern Regional Airport was already in growth mode before ANAC intervened. LATAM's 2025 expansion plan took its Jaguaruna operation from 7 to 12 weekly flights over the year, all linking the region to São Paulo Guarulhos with Airbus A320 aircraft, and local coverage puts average load factors around 85 percent. That means the new cap locks JJG at essentially the expanded schedule that just came online.

When ANAC announced the portarias in mid October, Jaguaruna was handling about 10 weekly commercial flights, below the new ceiling, and state officials argued that the limit would not immediately cut service. LATAM's late October additions, however, now push the airport right up to the 12 flight threshold for the core Guarulhos route. The effect for travelers is subtle but real. Airlines cannot add further frequencies for peak dates, experiment with new destinations like Campinas, or bring in a second carrier without either using smaller aircraft or sacrificing existing rotations.

Azul's withdrawal from Jaguaruna in August 2025, part of a broader retreat from several smaller Brazilian cities, already concentrated scheduled service in LATAM's hands. For now, there is no public sign that Azul or GOL will re enter JJG while the cap is in place, and some of the more speculative commentary about consolidating multiple Azul or GOL frequencies into larger jets is out of date, because Azul no longer flies there and GOL does not operate regular scheduled service from the airport.

This leaves Jaguaruna as a single airline, single destination gateway in the short term, one that nonetheless serves roughly 900,000 residents in surrounding microrregions and functions as the main aviation link for Tubarão, Criciúma, and a good slice of the southern Santa Catarina coast. The cap does not change that role overnight, but it does mean the airport has no headroom to grow until safety works catch up.

Alternatives Via Florianopolis And Other Gateways

For travelers who cannot find workable seats into Jaguaruna under the new ceiling, the most practical alternative is usually Florianopolis Hercilio Luz International Airport (FLN), the main hub for domestic and international flights into Santa Catarina. From Florianopolis, it is roughly a two to three hour drive to many of the same beach towns that Jaguaruna serves, depending on traffic and exact destination, with multiple bus companies and rental car options.

Criciúma's Diomicio Freitas Airport (CCM) is another piece of the puzzle. It currently handles only general aviation, aeromedical, and executive flights, but the municipality has taken over management and is working on a plan to restore commercial links to São Paulo, with Azul seen as the leading candidate to operate ATR services as early as 2026. If those plans materialize on schedule, business travelers to Criciúma and nearby industrial towns could gain an alternative to Jaguaruna just as ANAC's cap is due to expire, easing pressure on JJG's limited slots.

Until then, some visitors to resorts like Laguna, Imbituba, and Praia do Rosa may find that a mixed itinerary, flying into Florianopolis or, eventually, Forquilhinha, then covering the last leg by bus, private transfer, or rental car, is more realistic than waiting for last minute availability into Jaguaruna. A growing ecosystem of shuttle and private transfer operators already advertises links between Jaguaruna, Criciúma, Tubarão, and coastal towns, and similar services on the Florianopolis axis make those overland legs easier to manage.

For global mobility planners and port related travelers, it is also worth watching how the cap interacts with continued growth at the Port of Imbituba, which is moving record cargo volumes in 2025 and drawing more technical and managerial staff into the region. A tight air seat supply into Jaguaruna may translate into higher reliance on road shuttles from Florianopolis or on more complex multi leg itineraries via São Paulo or Curitiba.

How The Cap Fits Into Brazil's Regional Airport Upgrade Push

Jaguaruna's restrictions are not an isolated case. ANAC's portarias cover a cluster of smaller regional airports where runway layouts, safety areas, or landing aids have lagged behind the aircraft types now scheduled to use them. The common thread is RBAC 139, which formalized Brazil's modern airport certification regime and set out minimum infrastructure standards for public civil aerodromes a decade ago.

In practice, that rulebook requires airports to demonstrate safe runway strips, proper RESA design, compliant runway and taxiway widths, and working approach aids as a condition for full operational certification. ANAC has sometimes used provisional certificates and risk studies to keep traffic flowing while works are planned, but the October 2025 caps signal a harder line, especially for airports that host larger narrow body jets or operate in challenging weather environments.

For travelers, the upside is long term. Once work at Jaguaruna and its peers is finished, runways and safety areas should be better aligned with modern aircraft fleets, and reliable PAPI systems should support safer and more predictable approaches, including in lower visibility. The short term pain is that, until those projects are funded and delivered, airports that were counting on growth will be stuck at temporary ceilings, and airlines will be reluctant to invest in new routes or capacity that could be constrained again later.

Booking Strategies For Southern Summer 2025-26

Given the finite number of seats into Jaguaruna, travelers heading for Santa Catarina's southern beaches, Tubarão, Criciúma, and Port of Imbituba projects between now and late March 2026 should treat JJG as a destination where last minute bargains are unlikely. LATAM's current timetable of two daily flights on most weekdays plus weekend services, operated with 174 seat A320 aircraft, can still move significant numbers of people, but with load factors already high it will not take much additional demand to fill them.

Practical steps include booking flights as soon as dates are firm, especially for Friday departures and Sunday returns in December, January, and February, and considering midweek or shoulder dates where demand is softer. Travelers who live near multiple Brazilian airports can also compare pricing and availability into Florianopolis or, later, Forquilhinha, then factor in the cost and time of ground transfers versus accepting a longer multi stop itinerary through São Paulo.

Because ANAC's cap is tied to physical works with some uncertainty around timing, flexible booking rules matter. Choosing fares with reasonable change fees, pairing flights with hotels that offer free or low cost date changes, and buying travel insurance that covers missed connections or schedule changes can all reduce the sting if works finish early, airlines adjust schedules, or weather and national holiday peaks combine with the cap to create rolling disruptions.

For corporate travelers and project planners tied to the Port of Imbituba or industrial clients in Tubarão and Criciúma, it may be worth formalizing new travel policies that treat Jaguaruna as "capacity constrained," with preferred backup routings via Florianopolis and São Paulo and a stronger emphasis on early booking and minimum connection times. That approach lines up with the reality that ANAC is unlikely to relax the Jaguaruna airport flight cap until physical evidence shows that RBAC 139 standards are fully met.