News Release

Flapper expects helicopter charters for São Paulo F1 GP to grow 40% this year

For the last three years, Brazilian air mobility platform Flapper has been offering shared flights and on-demand charters to the São Paulo Formula 1 Grand Prix in Interlagos.

On November 5th, the Autódromo de Interlagos hosts this year's São Paulo F1 GP, with qualifying stages on the 3rd and 4th. Located about 20 kilometres from the centre of São Paulo, chartering helicopters through the Flapper platform is a solution for those who don't want to waste time in heavy traffic. Demand is strong this year, with a 40% growth forecast compared to 2022, when 30 shared flights took place.

To provide more comfort to spectators, Flapper offers charter options to São Paulo and helicopter transfers to the event location. For those already in the capital of São Paulo, the most popular service is the helicopter transfer, departing from the Blue Tree Helipad (SSOA), on Av. Faria Lima. Operated on the reliable Airbus Écureuil helicopter, the shared flights will be offered on two frequencies and are now available on the company's website:

- Departure times for Saturday's training will be at 12:00pm and 12:30pm, with return times at 5:30pm and 6:00pm.

- On the day of the GP, departure will be at 11:00am and 11:30am, returning at 5:00pm and 5:30pm.

The price per seat is R$2,990.00 per person one way. On-demand charter customers can choose from more than six different types of aircraft, including the Écureuil B2 and B3 models and Airbus EC135, H145 and EC155, Agusta A109 and Bell 429 twin-turbine helicopters.

In addition to these fixed operations, Flapper will continue to operate with exclusive or shared charters from other regions of São Paulo. In total, there will be more than 20 helipads in the region, including locations such as Guarulhos, Catarina Airport, Avenida Paulista, Alphaville, Osasco and Grande ABC, which can be requested through the application itself.

All Flapper flights will feature complimentary beers provided by Heineken, one of F1's sponsors. The partnership between the brands, which began during this year's music festival The Town, will continue at all other events of the year, where Flapper acts as a helicopter supplier.

For this edition, Flapper also offers aircraft charter for those who want to come from other states to attend the event. According to the quotation system available on the Flapper website, a flight of up to one hour aboard a Citation CJ2 jet will cost at least R$39,000. Leaving Ribeirão Preto, the tip is to charter a Pilatus PC-12 for R$ 29,900, with up to eight seats.

For Paul Malicki, CEO of Flapper, demand is strong. “We are anticipating a 40% increase in the booking of both aircraft and helicopters for this year's edition. The data collected during our on-demand operations will be used for the future launch of autonomous flights operated by hybrid-electric vertical takeoff (eVTOL) aircraft.”