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Oil Leak Halts Operations at Rio’s Santos Dumont Airport

An overnight inspection vehicle spilled oil near the runway threshold, triggering safety measures that disrupted flights across Brazil.

Overview

  • Infraero reported growing impacts through the morning, with Extra citing 23 departures and 23 arrivals canceled and 10 diversions to Galeão by 9:55 a.m. local time.
  • Aena Brasil said Congonhas logged 18 cancellations tied to the Rio hub, with some São PauloRio services redirected to Galeão.
  • Viracopos confirmed at least two cancellations on flights originating from Santos Dumont, and its operator said departures to Rio were cleared after 10 a.m.
  • Runway cleaning was underway after the spill at the critical approach end, and a NOTAM was published to alert operators while no firm timeline for full normalization was given.
  • Airlines had yet to provide broad public updates as terminals reported delays, cancellations and diversions following the precautionary suspension.