Varig Brazilian Airlines, the largest air carrier in Latin America and the anchor for Star Alliance in the region, announced today that it will increase its flight schedule between both New York and Miami to Brazil on December 15th, the beginning of the peak summer season in South America.

Varig, which has been immersed in seemingly unsurmountable economic crisis including a filing for bankruptcy protection, said it would expand its New York to São Paulo service from daily flights to 11 per week by adding 4 daylight departures from John F. Kennedy International Airport.

The airline will utilize the newest aircraft in its fleet, and its largest in terms of capacity, the three-class Boeing 777, on the New York route.

From Miami, flights will nearly double with the addition of 6 weekly offerings, bringing the number of flights to 13 per week. All of these flights will be on MD-11 aircraft providing three classes of service. From Miami, Varig will offer both night and day time departures.

All flights will connect to Rio de Janeiro, Varig’s second largest hub. From São Paulo and Rio, the carrier has an extensive schedule of flights within Brazil and to most major cities of South America.

The carrier also has service from Los Angeles to São Paulo, and is celebrating 50 years of service from the United States (New York – Idlewild) to Brazil this year.

In addition to its broad offering of flight schedules, which includes services to the Orient, Europe, Caribbean, Mexico and the United States, Varig has a subsidiary Hotel Company, Tropical Hotels, and a maintenance sister company, Varig Engineering and Maintenance (VEM) as well a cargo subsidiary, VarigLOG.

Varig Brazilian Airlines – www.varig.com.br