GOL To Launch Paraguay’s First Direct U.S. Flight Since 2021

GOL CEO Celso Ferrer stood beside Paraguayan President Santiago Peña at the Mburuvicha Róga presidential residence on February 10 to announce what Asunción’s business community and diaspora had been waiting for since 2021: a nonstop air bridge to the United States. The Brazilian carrier will operate four weekly round-trip flights between Silvio Pettirossi International Airport and Miami International Airport beginning in early June, pending final authorization from Paraguay’s civil aviation authority DINAC.

The announcement caps weeks of diplomatic groundwork. Paraguay‘s Ambassador to the United States, Gustavo Leite, brokered the initial meetings between GOL executives and the Peña administration after publicly declaring the route’s return “almost a certainty” in early February. Ferrer described the new service as addressing a historic demand after more than 20 years of GOL operations linking Paraguay to Brazil.

The timing is strategic on multiple fronts. Paraguay’s national football team faces the United States in the World Cup opener on June 12 in Los Angeles, and the broader tournament — spread across 16 North American cities through July 19 — is expected to generate a surge in travel demand from South American fans. GOL is positioning itself to capture that traffic at a moment when no other carrier offers a nonstop Paraguay–U.S. connection.

Paraguay reconnects to U.S. skies

The route also marks a technical milestone. At 6,154 kilometers with an estimated flight time of eight hours, the Asunción–Miami service will surpass GOL‘s existing Brasília–Orlando run as the longest ever operated by the airline’s Boeing 737 MAX fleet, pushing the narrowbody aircraft close to its maximum range capabilities.

None of this would have been possible without a crucial regulatory step. In January, the U.S. Transportation Security Administration certified Silvio Pettirossi Airport as meeting international security standards required for direct flights to American soil — the first such clearance since the route’s suspension during the pandemic. DINAC is now pursuing FAA Category 1 status, which would certify Paraguay’s entire civil aviation oversight system as compliant with international standards and could attract additional U.S. carriers.

American Airlines, which previously served the route before discontinuing it, has reportedly expressed interest in returning. For now, GOL has the market to itself, with ticket sales expected to begin in the coming weeks through its website, app, and Smiles loyalty program.

Related coverage: Brazil’s Morning Call | Mexico’s Extortion Crisis Deepens Despite Tough New Law