Gol Linhas Aéreas Inteligentes facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
GOL Linhas Aéreas Inteligentes S.A.

A Boeing 737-800 of GOL
Founded	2000; 25 years ago (2000)
Commenced operations	15 January 2001; 24 years ago (2001-01-15)
AOC #	12,669 - 2 October 2023
Hubs	Brasília Rio de Janeiro–Galeão São Paulo–Congonhas São Paulo–Guarulhos
Focus cities	Salvador Fortaleza Rio de Janeiro–Santos Dumont
Frequent-flyer program	Smiles
Fleet size	128
Destinations	74
Parent company	Abra Group
Headquarters	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Key people	Celso Ferrer (President & CEO)
Revenue	R$ 7.4 billion (2021)
Net income	US$ -200.8 million (2018)
Employees	13,969 (2021)

The airline's previous logo used from 2001-2015

GOL Linhas Aéreas Inteligentes S.A. is a major Brazilian airline. It is often called "GOL Intelligent Airlines S.A." or VRG Linhas Aéreas S/A. The airline is based in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

GOL is one of the largest airlines in Brazil. It carries many passengers on flights within Brazil and to other countries. GOL mainly competes with other big airlines like LATAM Brasil and Azul.

The airline operates many flights both inside Brazil and to other countries. Its main busy airports, called "hubs," are São Paulo–Guarulhos International Airport, Rio de Janeiro–Galeão International Airport, and Tancredo Neves International Airport near Belo Horizonte. GOL also has important operations at other airports like Rio de Janeiro-Santos Dumont Airport and São Paulo-Congonhas Airport.

The name "GOL" comes from the English word "goal," like in association football. The company's slogan in Portuguese means New GOL. New times in the air.

History of GOL Airlines

The Boeing 737-700 airplane used in GOL's second commercial flight, showing the company's brand

GOL ticket counter at Brasilia International Airport

GOL started as GOL Transportes Aéreos S.A. in 2000. Its first flight was on January 15, 2001, from Brasília to São Paulo. The airline is part of a larger Brazilian company called Grupo Áurea. This group also owns Brazil's biggest long-distance bus company. The Constantino family owns Grupo Áurea.

In 2007, GOL was owned by several companies, including AeroPar Participações and American International Group. The Constantino family became very wealthy because GOL's stock price grew a lot.

GOL decided not to join a big airline group like Oneworld. Instead, it chose to work with different airlines through special agreements. For example, GOL and Aerolíneas Argentinas planned to share flights and frequent flyer programs.

In 2010, GOL made its maintenance center bigger at Tancredo Neves International Airport. This allowed them to fix more airplanes each year. They also started fixing planes for other airlines.

In 2011, Delta Air Lines bought a small part of GOL's shares. They also agreed to share flights and frequent flyer benefits. In 2012, GOL ordered 60 new Boeing 737 MAX airplanes.

GOL started special seasonal flights to Miami and Orlando in 2012. These flights were mainly for people who used GOL's frequent flyer program.

In 2014, Air France–KLM invested money in GOL. This happened before big events like the 2014 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 Olympics in Brazil.

GOL calls itself a "low-cost carrier." This means it tries to offer cheaper flights. However, some experts say GOL's costs are similar to other airlines.

In 2019, Delta Air Lines sold its shares in GOL. This happened after Delta bought a part of LATAM Airlines Group.

In 2022, GOL announced it would join with Avianca to create a new group called Abra Group. Celso Ferrer became the CEO of GOL in July 2022.

In March 2023, GOL changed its flight schedule in Fortaleza and closed its hub there.

In January 2024, GOL faced financial challenges and filed for a special type of bankruptcy protection in New York. This allowed the airline to keep flying while it worked to manage its debt. GOL continued to operate flights normally during this process. The airline successfully exited this process in June 2025. It plans to add new routes and more Boeing planes to its fleet.

Buying Other Airlines: Varig

Varig Boeing 737-700

In March 2007, GOL bought part of the company that owned the famous Varig airline brand. This new company was called VRG Linhas Aéreas. GOL paid US$320 million for it. The original Varig airline was going through financial trouble at the time.

GOL decided to keep using the Varig brand name for some flights. For a while, VRG Linhas Aéreas operated flights under both the GOL and Varig names. However, most flights were always under GOL flight numbers. The Varig brand was used for some international flights. This plan was later changed.

Buying Other Airlines: Webjet Linhas Aéreas

Webjet Boeing 737-300

In July 2011, GOL announced it would buy another airline called WebJet Linhas Aéreas. The deal was completed in October 2012. GOL started to combine Webjet's services with its own. However, in November 2012, Webjet suddenly stopped flying. All its flights were then taken over by GOL. The Webjet brand no longer exists. GOL also returned Webjet's Boeing 737-300 planes to their owners.

Working with TwoFlex

In April 2019, GOL started a partnership with TwoFlex. TwoFlex operated smaller flights for GOL in certain Brazilian states. These flights were sold by GOL but flown by TwoFlex. This helped GOL reach more places. However, in January 2020, Azul Brazilian Airlines bought Twoflex, ending the partnership.

Buying MAP Linhas Aéreas

MAP ATR 72

In June 2021, GOL announced it would buy MAP Linhas Aéreas. This deal included important flight slots at São Paulo–Congonhas Airport. MAP's operations in the Amazon region and most of its planes were transferred to another airline called Voepass.

Working with Voepass Linhas Aéreas

Between August 2021 and May 2023, GOL and Voepass had an agreement. Voepass operated some flights for GOL during this time.

Where GOL Flies

As of December 2024, GOL Linhas Aéreas Inteligentes flies to many places.

GOL also offers special bus services for its passengers between São Paulo airports.

Airlines GOL Works With

GOL has agreements to share flights with these airlines:

GOL's Airplanes

GOL Boeing 737-800

Current Airplanes

As of June 2025, GOL uses only Boeing 737 airplanes. Here's what they have:

Past Airplanes

GOL used to fly these airplanes:

Smiles: GOL's Loyalty Program

Smiles is GOL's special program for frequent flyers. It started in July 2006. When you fly with GOL or its partner airlines, you can earn points. You can use these points for things like:

• Flights
• Upgrades to a better seat
• Holiday packages
• Hotel stays
• Car rentals

Smiles was originally part of the Varig company that GOL bought. GOL kept the program and honored all the points people had earned. In 2013, Smiles became its own separate company.

Safety and Incidents

• On September 29, 2006, GOL Flight 1907, a Boeing 737-800, was flying from Manaus to Brasília. It crashed in the Amazon rainforest after hitting a smaller business jet in the air. All 154 people on board the GOL plane sadly died. The other jet landed safely. This was the only fatal accident in GOL's history.
• On April 29, 2022, a GOL Boeing 737 bumped into an Azul Brazilian Airlines plane while moving on the ground at Viracopos International Airport. No one was hurt, but both planes had some damage.
• On February 11, 2025, GOL Flight G3-1674, a Boeing 737 MAX 8, hit a maintenance vehicle while getting ready for takeoff at Galeão Airport. The plane stopped, and passengers safely left the aircraft. No injuries were reported.

See also

In Spanish: Gol Transportes Aéreos para niños

• List of airlines of Brazil