Contributor - South America

Richard Pedicini

José Eduardo Brandão, CEO of Brazil-based business aircraft sales and service provider Synerjet, spoke with AIN last week at LABACE 2026 about the South American business aviation market, adapting to limited product availability, airshows, and eVTOLs. Synerjet has been Pilatus’ exclusive representative in Brazil since 2012, expanding its territory to cover the rest of Central and South America.
According to Brandão, his marketing department added up 39 events that Synerjet will be participating in this year, and “it’s very expensive. To what point does it help?” Sales are back to pre-pandemic levels, but he added, “The pandemic taught us how to sell without events.” Still, Synerjet exhibited last week at LABACE 2026, “with the investment a bit lower this year. But it’s good to participate.”
Brandão laid out the challenges Synerjet is facing, given the capacity limits faced by manufacturers. While Synerjet adapted its strategy, “No industry can offer [us] the same margins as Pilatus. With the expectation of an increase [in the Pilatus fleet in the region], we increased our capacity to meet demand. We have service centers here, as well as in other countries. We made investments with the expectation of a larger supply of aircraft than we have. And the factory can’t meet demand.”
Synerjet was one of the first to adopt Catarina Executive Airport as its base, just before the pandemic, a decision with which Brandão is “super happy, 100%.” It has other wholly owned service centers in Goianápolis (Brazil); Asunción, Paraguay; Medellín, Colombia; and Guatemala, as well as with partners in Chile and Argentina.
“We are diversifying as far as we can, including into preowned aircraft, especially but not solely Pilatus. That serves to create client loyalty until [new-production] aircraft arrive.”
<h2>Geographic and Cultural Diversity</h2>
“We work in other Latin American countries, and there are different patterns,” he said, describing the need to understand and adapt to different cultures. Even in Brazil, despite challenges such as U.S. trade retaliation and Chinese fluctuations, the market has continued climbing.
“Argentina is showing its claws; Paraguay is a good client for us. Bolivia for the first time is awakening. Guatemala is strong. Chile is discreet but constant.” Brandão added that it’s a good market “if you’re willing to understand it and the various regimes, whether on the left or on the right.”
In establishing service centers, he has had far better experiences with private airports, notably Catarina and Liberty in Goianápolis. He lauded the ability to negotiate and, even more, to ask a question and get an answer.
<h2>Drones and eVTOLs</h2>
Drones are another area where Synerjet has diversified—both small and large. The electric Pelican agricultural aircraft is one with which Synerjet has had “much, much success. Although it’s smaller than an Embraer Ipanema agplane, it flies at night,” which is more efficient because of less evaporation.
Brandão had expected the market to be small producers, but instead the Pyka Pelican is being used by large agricultural operators in Brazil such as SLC Agrícola and Amaggi. “There’s a strong demand for autonomous vehicles,” he said. “They are green, and they eliminate human work, which is important because agriculture is notoriously one of the most hazardous flying environments.”
Synerjet is also representing smaller vehicles, including Wingcopter, which has been used for medical deliveries.
In Brandão’s view, eVTOLs are “not for today or tomorrow,” but “light helicopters are today.” He sees a demand for light helicopters for intracity transportation, but views eVTOLs as “things to come—but not tomorrow.”

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