BH Airport celebrates 40 years of strategic connections and positive impact on the Minas Gerais economy

On March 28th, the airport completes four decades of transformation, leaving a legacy of tourism, social and economic growth for Minas Gerais

When members of the Department of Roads and Highways (DER) and the Brazilian Air Force (FAB) flew over farms and plantations in the North Vetor of Belo Horizonte, on a secret mission to find the best area for the construction of a new airport, at the end of In the 70s, the miners still didn’t know, but one of the most important connection hubs in Brazil would be built there: BH Airport.

The area of 15 million square meters in the municipality of Lagoa Santa chosen because of its good topography, for offering safer climatic and terrain conditions, its easy access to an expressway and for its safe distance from inhabited areas, would receive years later, the largest take-off and landing strip built in Brazil until then, in addition to a modern terminal, through which 90 thousand passengers would travel in the first year of operation.

Today, about to turn 40 years old, on March 28th, BH Airport is consolidating itself as a national and international reference in the quality of airport service provision, having received 10.5 million passengers and handled 28 thousand tons of cargo in 2023 Through almost 70 national and international destinations, BH Airport connects Minas Gerais to the world and contributes to the State’s connectivity and economic growth, employing around 6 thousand people.

“Celebrating 40 years of BH Airport is celebrating four decades of encouraging the development of Minas Gerais, through the induction of tourism and its entire chain and the attraction of new companies interested in the connectivity provided by the terminal. Over the last 10 years, under the BH Airport concession, we have also advanced in the provision of services and today we operate as a large shopping center with a commercial mix of 130 stores, in addition to services for the surrounding population, such as issuing documents, emergency passports and Mail. We are also the first airport in Brazil to be recognized for its commitment to customer satisfaction by the Airport Customer Experience Accreditation program”, says Daniel Miranda, CEO of BH Airport.

Sustainability on the agenda

In recent years, BH Airport has also stood out in Brazil and around the world for its practices in favor of the environment and was recognized by the National Civil Aviation Agency (Anac) as the most sustainable airport in Brazil. In 2023, BH Airport became the first carbon neutral airport in Brazil, through level 3+ certification from the Airport Carbon Accreditation. In addition, it received recognition as a green airport three times in a row, by Green Airport, from the Airports Council International (ACI).

“We are committed to the positive legacy that we want to leave not only for the local community and the Minas Gerais economy, but also for the world. In this sense, we have developed several environmental impact mitigation actions, such as the 400Hz + PCA project, which provides electrical energy certified as a renewable source, during aircraft boarding and disembarking services. In addition, we replaced LPG and diesel-powered forklifts with electric ones. In total, the reduction in carbon emissions has already accumulated more than 5 thousand tons, which represents 48% of the emissions that BH Airport recorded in the base year in 2017”, says Daniel Miranda.

The best airport in Brazil

All these advances made BH Airport a reference in service and gave the terminal the best result in quality of services provided by concession airports. The measurement is carried out annually by Anac, based on service indicators such as thermal comfort, time in the inspection queue, baggage refund, cleanliness, among others. BH Airport achieved an index of 2%, the best result of the Q Factor, a service quality instrument that evaluates performance from -7.5% to 2%.

Furthermore, BH Airport reached first position in the ranking of the best airports in Brazil serving between 5 and 10 million passengers. The classification is from the National Passenger Satisfaction Survey, referring to the fourth quarter of 2023, conducted by the National Civil Aviation Secretariat of the Ministry of Ports and Airports. The airport achieved a score of 4.56, on a scale of 1 to 5, considering several aspects, such as service, infrastructure, cleanliness, security and convenience.