The new programme, which was unveiled at the Lisbon Tourism Fair (BTL), aims to encourage European passengers who choose Brazil as a destination "to discover two Brazilian destinations in one trip, without additional fare costs". The launch was timed to coincide with celebrations for TAP’s 74th anniversary.

Asked about how much the new programme could boost passenger numbers, Neves, said that the company "has no predictions [for this] because it also depends heavily on the execution of the marketing that is done". However, he cited "as a reference" the fact that the company’s equivalent Portugal stopover is snapped up by 150,000 to 200,000 passengers a year.

"I believe there is no reason why Brazil should not be of the same order," he said.

According to TAP, stopover customers will be able to stay between one and five nights in Brasilia, Recife, Rio de Janeiro, Fortaleza or Salvador, before flying on to another Brazilian city. Special offers are also to be available in these stopover cities.

The new programme, Neves said, "reinforces the company's position" as a leading company in the Brazil market, taking advantage of the geostrategic advantages of TAP's hub in Lisbon.

Of the 16 million passengers carried by TAP in 2018, according to the company, "almost two million travelled between Portugal and Brazil, to and from the 10 cities where the company operates in the latter country, which represents an increase of 8% compared to the previous year".

Also at the BTL, a memorandum of understanding was signed between TAP and the Brazilian states of Bahia, Ceará, Pernambuco and Rio de Janeiro and the federal district of Brasilia, foreseeing the launch of the stopover programme and committing both sides to work together.

Also on Thursday, TAP received in Lisbon another new Airbus A330-900neo, which thus joins its four existing aircraft of this “latest generation” model, as the company described it in a statement. By the end of this year, the company is to have a total of 19 Airbus A330-900neo aircraft as part of its plans to expand its long-haul operation.