Latin America · Brazil

Handling at São Paulo Congonhas (SBSP)

We handle overflight permits, slots, flight plans, fuel, customs and the turnaround at São Paulo Congonhas. One coordinator owns the stop at São Paulo Congonhas, from the first filing to wheels up.

AERODROME

--:-- local

ICAO: SBSP
IATA: CGH
Elevation: 2,631 ft
Position: -23.628, -46.655

RUNWAYS

17R/35L1,940 m / 6,365 ftAsphalt
17L/35R1,495 m / 4,905 ftAsphalt

Reference only, not for flight planning. Lengths are full declared runway length rather than declared distances, and this page is not amended on the AIRAC cycle. Check the current AIP and NOTAMs, or ask the desk and we will check them for you.

The field

What SBSP is actually like

Congonhas sits inside São Paulo and is the closest airport to the business district in the largest city in the southern hemisphere. It is physically constrained, surrounded by the city, and one of the busiest fields in Latin America.

Operating brief

What we handle before you file

Permits

Brazil's ANAC handles foreign operator authority, and CIV documentation requirements apply. Brazilian filing is detailed and lead times are real.

Slots and parking

Slot coordinated and severely capacity constrained. The runways are short by international standards and that alone rules out a good deal of the long-range fleet, so the first question on a Congonhas request is not whether a slot exists but whether the aircraft can legally use the field at all. Operating restrictions apply on top, and business aviation frequently ends up at the alternates regardless of what was originally asked for.

Customs and border

Congonhas handles primarily domestic traffic. International arrivals clear at Guarulhos or Viracopos and reposition, and that should be planned rather than discovered.

When it gets tight

The Brazilian business calendar year round, plus the Formula One weekend at Interlagos in November and Carnival in February, which moves the whole country.

On the ground

Off the aircraft and into the car

Congonhas is inside São Paulo and twenty minutes from Faria Lima, which no other option in the city comes close to matching. That location is the entire argument for a field whose runways and slots argue against it.

Alternates

Where we go when SBSP will not take the trip

Every one of these is a field we would put to you with the reason attached, not a list of nearby runways.

SBMT
São Paulo Campo de Marte
The city's general aviation field, close in, and the usual business aviation answer for São Paulo.
SBJD
Jundiaí
North of the city, business aviation focused, and a common parking base.
SBGR
São Paulo Guarulhos
The international gateway, with full customs and the capacity Congonhas lacks.

What we handle here