Serviços Aéreos Cruzeiro do Sul

IATA ICAO Call sign SC CRZ CRUZEIRO
Founded	1927 as Syndicato Condor
Commenced operations	1928
Ceased operations	1993
Parent company	Varig
Headquarters	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Key people	Fritz W. Hammer (1927–1930) Paul Moosmeyer (1930–1942) José Bento Ribeiro Dantas (1942–1969) Leopoldino Cardoso de Amorim Filho (1969–1993)

Serviços Aéreos Cruzeiro do Sul was the second oldest airline of Brazil, tracing its origins to 1927, when it was founded asSyndicato Condor, a subsidiary ofDeutsche Luft Hansa. Syndicato Condor retained rights and interests of a former German trade company,Condor Syndikat, which previously operated passenger and mail services in Brazil. It was renamedServiços Aéreos Cruzeiro do Sul in 1943. In 1975,Varig, a Brazilian airline which shared very similar origins, acquired its controlling shares. In 1993, it was finally merged into Varig.

The first phase in the history of Cruzeiro do Sul is related to the German influence and can be dated from 1927 until 1943. During this time the airline was called Syndicato Condor, then Sindicato Condor and finallyServiços Aéreos Condor. Condor was founded inRio de Janeiro, on 1 December 1927, by the three former German directors ofCondor Syndikat, including Fritz W. Hammer, and the Brazilian Count Pereira Carneiro, owner ofJornal do Brasil and a shipping company. Syndicato Condor is considered to be the heir of Condor Syndikat, a German trade company that operated air services within Brazil and from which it inherited equipment, concessions, rights and particular interests. From the start it had a strong German influence, operating German aircraft and supporting the interests ofDeutsche Luft Hansa in South America. The Brazilian government recognized it as an airline on 20 January 1928, granting rights to operate in the whole Brazilian territory and to extend services toUruguay andArgentina. Those services were of utmost importance for the future plans of the mother-company Deutsche Luft Hansa in South America. In fact, between 1 June 1927, when Condor Syndikat ceased to exist, and the foundation of Syndicato Condor, services were never interrupted.

Seaplane services from Rio de Janeiro toPorto Alegre with intermediate stops that had been operating on an informal basis became official began almost immediately. It consisted of a twice-weekly flight, operated with aseaplaneJunkers G-24^[1] and took two days with an overnight stop. On 14 April 1934, the route was extended to include Montevideo and Buenos Aires and on 28 September 1935, it reachedMendoza andSantiago de Chile. Those services were eventually upgraded to the modernJunkers Ju 52 and later the sophisticatedFocke-Wulf Fw 200 Condor aircraft.

On 15 July 1928, a new service from Rio de Janeiro toSalvador viaBelmonte andIlhéus, operated with a seaplaneJunkers F-13, was inaugurated. Less than two years later, the route would be modified to includeVitória,Caravelas, Belmonte and Ilhéus and extended from Salvador toMaceió,Recife,Parahyba (now João Pessoa) andNatal. In December 1935, the service was further extended toFortaleza; in April 1936, it reachedBelém. The trip from Rio de Janeiro to Belém took two days with an overnight stop inRecife.

On 8 September 1933, Condor established services between Rio de Janeiro,São Paulo,Corumbá andCuiabá. This service was a major break-through because previously an overland journey toMato Grosso took several days. In 1936, Condor made an interline agreement withLloyd Aéreo Boliviano – LAB and established an international connection to the main cities ofBolivia, particularlyPuerto Suárez,Santa Cruz de la Sierra,Cochabamba, andLa Paz, using Corumbá as connecting point.^[2] The aircraft of Condor and LAB met in Corumbá during the overnight stop and exchanged passengers. Later, in Brazil, Condor extended its services beyond Cuiabá, reachingPorto Velho,Rio Branco andCruzeiro do Sul.

Therefore, by 1936 Syndicato Condor had established two trunk routes with increasing frequencies: Belém/Rio de Janeiro/Porto Alegre/Montevideo/Buenos Aires/Santiago and São Paulo/Corumbá/Cuiabá, with connecting services to Bolivia. Condor was thus able to face the fierce competition imposed byPanair do Brasil, the Brazilian subsidiary ofPan American. Condor had however one great advantage: it had better aircraft which could operate both as seaplanes and land-planes, and not only as seaplanes as did Panair do Brasil. Condor was then not restricted to navigate following the coast or rivers.

As part of the project of Deutsche Luft Hansa to establish direct mail and passenger services to South America and in competition with the FrenchAéropostale which had been providing such services since 1927, Condor and Luft Hansa jointly operated a service that involved the use ofrigid airships and aircraft. Between 1931 and 1937, while Condor's aircraft provided connecting services in Brazil and to Uruguay, Argentina, and later Chile and Bolivia for the Luft Hansa passengers, Luft Hansa operated services using theGraf Zeppelin or theHindenburg flying betweenFriedrichshafen, Natal and Recife in three days. The journey continued to Rio de Janeiro and was completed in another two days. Passengers could leave in any of the Brazilian ports-of-call and continue in Condor's aircraft and vice versa. In Rio de Janeiro, a custom-made facility was built to accommodate the airships. It was calledBartolomeu de Gusmão Airport. However, in 1941, it was taken over by theBrazilian Air Force and renamedSanta Cruz Air Force Base. It remains one of the most important bases of the Brazilian Air Force. The hangar of the airships is still standing and in perfect condition.

Administratively, Fritz Hammer left the company in September 1930 and another German citizen, Paul Moosmeyer, took the office of General Director. He held the position until 1942.

On 19 August 1941, Syndicato Condor officially changed its name to Serviços Aéreos Condor because of a legal technicality. The same year, as the United States joined the Allies in fighting World War II, supplies became scarce, particularly in terms of petrol and replacement parts. Because it used German equipment, Condor faced particular difficulties. The situation got worse on 22 August 1942, as Brazil declared war against theAxis and joined theAllies in the conflict. Since Condor was still controlled by the German state-owned airline Deutsche Lufthansa and had a majority of German directors, the Brazilian government, particularly PresidentGetúlio Vargas decided to nationalize Condor. Such act happened on 25 August 1942, and all German (natural, descendants and Brazilian naturalized) directors were replaced by Brazilian citizens. In fact the personnel with German descent were persecuted.

On 16 January 1943, following a complete administrative reorganization, which attempted to erase its German culture and identity, Condor had its name changed to Serviços Aéreos Cruzeiro do Sul. This change marks the beginning of a new phase in the life of the airline or more realistically a new airline born from the ashes of made-defunct Condor.^[3]

The nationalization and the new name mark the beginning of the second phase, which lasted until 1975. Nationalized, most of its operational problems were solved as Cruzeiro got petrol on loan from the Air Force Ministry. However, problems with the German aircraft and acquisition of spare parts for maintenance persisted. For this reason, Cruzeiro do Sul started a gradual replacement of its German aircraft for aircraft manufactured in the United States, mostly war surplus. The work-horseJunkers Ju 52s were replaced byDouglas DC-3s. The first one arrived on 24 September 1943 and by 1953 Cruzeiro had a fleet of 38 such aircraft flying.

Cruzeiro participated in the war effort by transporting material and troops along the Brazilian coast, and rubber from the Amazon region.

With the end of the war, Cruzeiro opened new services, competing withPanair do Brasil andVarig. Varig greatly increased its operations beyond the states ofRio Grande do Sul andSanta Catarina where it was the dominating carrier. In response, Cruzeiro bought two airlines that operated in the area and increased its participation in this regional market. They wereSAVAG – Sociedade Anônima Viação Aérea Gaúcha andTAC – Transportes Aéreos Catarinense. Cruzeiro also opened new routes from Rio de Janeiro to Belém following theAraguaia andTocantins rivers, and opened new connections toManaus viaSantarém in direct competition with Panair do Brasil. Furthermore, the route to Manaus was extended toBoa Vista andGeorgetown and the line toBelém extended toCayenne andParamaribo. Services toBuenos Aires,Montevideo andSantiago de Chile were maintained.

On 2 October 1947, Serviços Aéreos Cruzeiro do Sul was chosen by the Brazilian government to be the second Brazilian airline authorized to fly to the United States, following a concession already granted to and operated byAerovias Brasil. Cruzeiro could serveSan Juan de Puerto Rico, Washington, D.C., and New York City. In order to operate those services, Cruzeiro bought threeDouglas DC-4s and operated 30 experimental flights between 1948 and 1949. However, those services were dropped in 1949 due to lack of financial and other assistance from the Brazilian government. The Douglas DC-4s were sold and the money was used to buy four newConvair CV-340s. The concession to fly to the United States was revoked and granted to Varig.

On 6 July 1959, Cruzeiro,Varig andVASP initiated theair shuttle services betweenRio de Janeiro-Santos Dumont andSão Paulo-Congonhas airports, the first of its kind in the world. The three companies coordinated their schedules, operations, and shared revenue. The service was a direct response to the competition imposed byReal Transportes Aéreos. The idea, baptized as Air bridge (Ponte Aérea in Portuguese), inspired on theBerlin Airlift was so successful that it was abandoned only in 1999.^[4] Flights operated on an hourly basis initially byConvair 240 (Varig),Convair 340 (Cruzeiro) andSaab 90 Scandia (VASP). In a matter of a few months the shuttle service led by Varig won the battle against Real, which was anyway bought by Varig in 1961.Sadia Transportes Aéreos joined the service in 1968. Between 1975 and 1992 it was operated exclusively by Varig'sLockheed L-188 Electra which for sometime and for the sake of neutrality did not have the name Varig on the fuselage.

Cruzeiro management gave up the idea of operating long-distance flights and concentrated its efforts in creating an extensive domestic and regional network, in which flights toBolivia,Paraguay,Peru,Ecuador andVenezuela were added. In January 1963, Cruzeiro entered the jet age when the operations with theSE.210 Caravelle started. Cruzeiro bought four of such aircraft. Following the closure ofPanair do Brasil in 1965, Cruzeiro received another three of its Caravelles as well as threeConsolidated Catalinas.

On 3 January 1971, the first of fourBoeing 727-100s entered into service and put to operate the trunk route Buenos Aires–Rio de Janeiro–Brasília. In 1975 the firstBoeing 737-200 entered into service.

As a consequence of serious economic difficulties, on 22 May 1975 Serviços Aéreos Cruzeiro do Sul was bought byRuben Berta Foundation, the institution that also controlled Varig. That day Cruzeiro lost its independence and started to operate with Varig as aconsortium, with Varig being the leading partner.^[5]

On 22 May 1975 begins the third phase, when Ruben Berta Foundation, the owner of Varig acquired a majority of shares in Cruzeiro do Sul. Although Varig and Cruzeiro do Sul were kept as separate companies operating as a consortium, in reality frequencies and fleets were integrated and rationalized in order to avoid duplication of services. Since in 1975 there had been only 4 national airlines operating in Brazil (Varig, Cruzeiro, Vasp and Transbrasil) and the market was rigidly regulated, the government allocated a maximum of 45% of the market share to the consortium Varig/Cruzeiro being the remaining divided between the other two airlines. The consortium had however monopoly of international routes and operated in all major Brazilian cities.

In 1979 Cruzeiro bought twoAirbus A300B4s. On 14 June 1983 Cruzeiro using its concessions opened new international services toPort of Spain andBridgetown and maintained existing ones to Montevideo, Buenos Aires, La Paz, Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Iquitos, Paramaribo and Cayenne. In 1986 the fleet of Cruzeiro consisted of 2 Airbus A-300, 6 Boeing 727-100 and 6 737-200.

In the economic arena however, the deficit, since the purchase by Varig never ceased to grow. Finally, on 1 January 1993 Serviços Aéreos Cruzeiro do Sul ceased to exist when it was fully absorbed into Varig. In 1997 the last 737-200 still painted with the Cruzeiro color scheme and with Cruzeiro registration received Varig colors. This aircraft ceased to operate in 2001.^[6]

According to the April 1975 Cruzeiro do Sul system timetable, the airline was operating scheduled passenger service to the following destinations in South America with an all-jet fleet composed ofBoeing 727-100,Boeing 737-200 andSud Aviation Caravelle aircraft:^[7]

• Bahia
• Belém
• Belo Horizonte
• Boa Vista
• Bogotá
• Brasília
• Buenos Aires
• Campo Grande
• Cayenne
• Cruzeiro do Sul
• Cuiabá
• Curitiba
• Fortaleza
• Iquitos
• Leticia
• Lima
• Macapa
• Manaus
• Montevideo
• Paramaribo
• Porto Alegre
• Porto Velho
• Recife
• Rio Branco
• Santa Cruz de la Sierra
• Santarém
• Sao Luis
• São Paulo
• Rio de Janeiro
• Tabatinga
• Tefe

Major accidents involving fatalities:

• 3 December 1928: a flying boatDornier Wal registration P-BACA crashed onGuanabara Bay. The crash was caused by a wing collapsing as a result of a violent maneuver to avoid a collision against another aircraft of the same company, during a celebratory flight upon the arrival ofAlberto Santos Dumont to Rio de Janeiro on a passenger liner. All ten passengers, prominent Brazilians, and four crew members died. This was the first accident with an aircraft registered in Brazil, that caused victims other than the crew and that received wide media coverage.^[9][10][11]
• 11 September 1931: a flying boatDornier Wal registration P-BALA while on take-off procedures from Potengi river inNatal collided against a boat. Three crew members died.^[9][12]
• 3 May 1934: aJunkers W-34 registration PP-CAR crashed during landing procedures atRio de Janeiro. Two crew members died. The plane was recuperated and suffered a second accident on 16 April 1944 which is listed under Cruzeiro do Sul.^[13]
• 22 May 1938: a floatplaneJunkers Ju 52/3m registration PP-CBC flying fromSantos toParanaguá crashed due to rough waters while take-off procedures in Santos. Two passengers died.^[13][14]
• 15 August 1938: a floatplaneJunkers Ju 52/3m registration PP-CAT suffered an accident while take-off procedures fromGuanabara Bay. All five passengers and four crew died.^[13][15]
• 13 January 1939: aJunkers Ju 52/3m registration PP-CAY en route fromVitória toRio de Janeiro crashed into Sambé peak nearRio Bonito,Rio de Janeiro. Four crew members and five passengers died.^[13][16]
• 24 February 1942: aJunkers W-34 registration P-BAOA/PP-CAO crashed while attempting an emergency landing at Riachão,Maranhão. Two crew members died.^[13]

• 16 April 1944: aJunkers W-34 registration PP-CAR crashed during and emergency landing atRio de Janeiro-Santos Dumont. Two crew members died.^[13]
• 13 March 1948: aDouglas C-53D-DO registration PP-CBX flying toSão Paulo-Congonhas crashed on Cantareira Mountains, near São Paulo. All 6 passengers and crew aboard died.^[17]
• 22 March 1951: aDouglas C-53D-DO registration PP-CCX while landing atFlorianópolis crashed following an overshoot in bad weather and an engine failure. Of the 14 passengers and crew, 3 died.^[18]
• 12 September 1954: aDouglas C-47A-70-DL registration PP-CDJ flying fromRio de Janeiro-Santos Dumont toSão Paulo-Congonhas was forced to return to Rio de Janeiro due to technical problems and bad weather at São Paulo. On finals to Rio de Janeiro the aircraft came in too high. An overshoot was attempted but the aircraft descended and crashed into theGuanabara Bay. Six passengers out of 30 occupants died.^[19]
• 26 August 1955: aDouglas C-53D-DO registration PP-CBY en route fromRio de Janeiro-Santos Dumont toCaravelas struck a peak onCaparaó Mountains, located nearCastelo, Espírito Santo. The flight was outside the airway and the peak was not clearly marked on the chart. All 4 crew and 9 passengers died.^[20][21]
• 1 December 1955: aDouglas C-47B-28-DK registration PP-CCC after takeoff fromBelém-Val de Cans lost power on engine no.1. Consequent technical problems led the aircraft to lose altitude and the left wing struck a tree and broke off. The aircraft stalled, hit the ground and caught fire. All 6 passengers and crew died.^[22]
• 11 January 1958: aFairchild C-82A-FA Packet registration PP-CEH on a training flight, while on initial climb fromRio de Janeiro lost altitude, struck a barrier and crashed inGuanabara Bay. Two of the crew members died.
• 16 January 1958: a cargoFairchild C-82A-FA Packet registration PP-CEF crashed nearBelém-Val de Cans when no.1 engine caught fire after take-off. The crew of 3 died.^[23]
• 16 June 1958: aConvair 440-59 registration PP-CEP flying fromFlorianópolis toCuritiba-Afonso Pena was on final approach procedures to land at Curitiba in bad weather when it was caught in windshears. The aircraft descended and struck the ground. Of the 27 passengers and crew aboard, 24 died including ex-presidentNereu Ramos.^[24][25]
• 12 April 1960: aDouglas C-53 registration PP-CDS belonging toVarig and operating a flight fromPelotas toPorto Alegre collided with two other aircraft, crashed and caught fire after it deviated to the right on take-off and an over correction caused a sharp turn to the left. Of the 22 passengers and crew aboard, 10 died.^[26][27]
• 9 May 1962: aConvair 240-D registration PP-CEZ on final approach toVitória struck a tree at a height of 40m, 1,860m short of the runway. It should have been at 150m. Of the 31 passengers and crew aboard, 28 died.^[28][29]
• 15 January 1963: aConvair 240-D registration PP-CEV on approach toSão Paulo-Congonhas crashed into houses in the neighborhood ofJabaquara after an engine failed. Of the 45 passengers and crew aboard, 6 died. Seven persons on the ground were also killed.^[30][31]
• 3 May 1963: aConvair 340-59 registration PP-CDW flying fromSão Paulo-Congonhas toRio de Janeiro-Santos Dumont had to return to São Paulo after no.2 engine caught fire. When on finals to touch down, the aircraft nosed up 45°, stalled and struck a house. Of the 50 passengers and crew aboard, 37 died.^[32][33]
• 19 October 1966: aConsolidated PBY-5A Catalina registration PP-PEC, while doing a training flight in theBelém region crashed. All 4 crew members died.
• 20 October 1968: aDouglas C-47 A-25-DK registration PP-SAD had an engine failure and crashed after take-off and while trying to return toFeijó. All 19 passengers and crew died.^[34]
• 28 September 1971: aDouglas DC-3 A-414A registration PP-CBV crashed after take-off fromSena Madureira bound toRio Branco. The aircraft suffered an engine failure at climb-out. The pilot tried to return to the airport but because the turn was done at very low altitude, the right wing struck trees causing the aircraft to crash. All 32 passengers and crew died.^[35][36]
• 1 June 1973: aSud Aviation SE-210 Caravelle VIN registration PP-PDX operating flight 109 fromBelém-Val de Cans toSão Luís crashed on approach to São Luís. Engine no.1 lost power and the aircraft attained an extreme nose-up attitude. It stalled and crashed 760m to the right of the runway. All 23 passengers and crew died.^[37][38]

• 8 October 1969: aSud Aviation SE-210 Caravelle VI R en route fromBelém-Val de Cans toManaus-Ponta Pelada was hijacked by 4 persons who demanded to be flown toCuba. The hijack lasted less than a day and there were no victims.^[39]
• 12 November 1969: aNAMC YS-11/11A en route fromManaus-Ponta Pelada toBelém-Val de Cans was hijacked by a person who demanded to be flown toCuba. There were no victims.^[40]
• 1 January 1970: aSud Aviation SE-210 Caravelle VI R en route fromMontevideo toRio de Janeiro-Galeão, with 33 occupants aboard, was hijacked by 6 persons who demanded to be flown toCuba. The flight was diverted toLima,Panama City-Tocumen and arrived inHavana two days later. There were no victims.^[41]
• 1 July 1970: theSud Aviation SE-210 Caravelle VI R registration PP-PDX en route fromRio de Janeiro-Galeão toSão Paulo with 31 occupants was hijacked by 4 persons who demanded the release of political prisoners that were to be taken toCuba. The aircraft was stormed and the hijackers arrested. There were no victims and the hijacking lasted less than a day.^[42]
• 4 July 1970: aNAMC YS-11 en route fromBelém-Val de Cans toMacapá was hijacked by 1 person and flown toCayenne,Georgetown,Trinidad and Tobago,Antigua andJamaica.^[43]
• 3 February 1984: anAirbus A300B4-203 operatingflight 302 en route fromSão Luís toBelém-Val de Cans with 176 passengers and crew aboard was hijacked by 3 persons who demanded to be taken toCuba. The flight reachedCamagüey in less than a day. There were no deaths among the victims.^[44]

• Condor Syndikat
• Deutsche Luft Hansa (1926–1945)
• Varig
• List of defunct airlines of Brazil

• Beting, Gianfranco; Beting, Joelmir (2009).Varig: Eterna Pioneira (in Portuguese). Porto Alegre and São Paulo: EDIPUCRS and Beting Books. pp. 12–20,160–166.ISBN 978-85-7430-901-9.
• Instituto Histórico-Cultural da Aeronáutica (1990).História Geral da Aeronáutica Brasileira: de 1921 às vésperas da criação do Ministério da Aeronáutica (in Portuguese). Vol. 2. Belo Horizonte and Rio de Janeiro: Itatiaia and Instituto Histórico-Cultural da Aeronáutica. pp. 384–388.
• Instituto Histórico-Cultural da Aeronáutica (1991).História Geral da Aeronáutica Brasileira: da criação do Ministério da Aeronáutica ao final da Segunda Guerra Mundial (in Portuguese). Vol. 3. Belo Horizonte and Rio de Janeiro: Villa Rica Editoras Reunidas. pp. 299–303.
• Instituto Histórico-Cultural da Aeronáutica (2005).História Geral da Aeronáutica Brasileira: de janeiro de 1946 a janeiro de 1956 após o término da Segunda Guerra Mundial até a posse do Dr. Juscelino Kubitschek como Presidente da República (in Portuguese). Vol. 4. Rio de Janeiro: GR3 Comunicação & Design. pp. 348–349.

Wikimedia Commons has media related toCruzeiro do Sul (airline).

• Cruzeiro Accidents as per Aviation Safety Database
• Timetable images Syndicato Condor
• Timetable Images of Cruzeiro
• Cruzeiro do Sul Photo Archive at airliners.net
• Ruben Berta Foundation
• Dornier Wal Documentation Center

• Varig
• Defunct airlines of Brazil
• Airlines established in 1927
• Airlines disestablished in 1993
• Defunct seaplane operators
• 1993 disestablishments in Brazil
• 1927 establishments in Brazil

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• Articles with short description
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