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Sometimes Azul Airlines appears to defy gravity. In just four short years, the Brazilian startup captured 10% of the world’s fourth largest aviation market. A pending merger will give it in total 15% market share and revenues of $2.1 billion.
巴西蔚蓝航空公司（Azul Airlines）正在蓬勃发展。在短短4年的时间里，这家刚成立不久的公司占据了10% 世界航空市场，市场占有率位居第四。而且，一项计划中的并购将使公司的市场份额达到15% ，年收入达到21亿美元。
Azul’s CEO David Neeleman said the secret to success was thinking small. Short hubs to under-service cities in a continent-size country.
Azul 公司总裁David Neeleman透露，成功的秘密就是从小处思考。这个占据近整个南美洲的国家，正以短辐射面积，向没有通航的城市提供航班服务。
“So we have service between cities that didn't exist. We have service to cities that didn't have their airline service. We have 43 cities that nobody else flies to but us.”
“我们为那些彼此不通航的城市开设航线，我们向那些没有航班的城市开设航线。有43座城市只有我们的航线。”
Neeleman, also the founder of American low-cost flyer JetBlue Airways, says the strategy for Azul was unique.
Neeleman同时也是美国低成本航空公司捷蓝航空的创立者，他认为Azul所采取的战略是独一无二的。
“83% of the flights in Brazil have 120 people or less on them. So we have a plan to hold 118 people.”
“巴西83%的航班，每架飞机上载客120人或不到120。因此我们计划开设118乘客的航班。”
They shunned traditional aircraft like 737s, opting instead for small Brazilian-made Embrears and ATR turbo-props that could land in airports the competition couldn’t. They give pilots extra training in specialized flight simulators. The runway at Rio de Janeiro's airport, for example, is one of the shortest in the hemisphere. Without access to cover at the airports in Sao Paulo city, Azul established its main hub in the wealthy, agricultural heart-land of Sao Paulo state. We boarded a round-trip flight from Campinas to Rio to get a close-up look.他们关闭了737 s之类的传统飞机，作为
其替换品，他们选择的是巴西自已制造的小型Embrears机和ATR涡轮螺旋桨式飞机, 这些习机能够在竞争对手无法降落的地方着陆。公司的飞行员需要经过在专门制造的模拟飞行机上进行额外的训练。比如，里约热内卢机场的跑道，就是南半球上最短的跑道之一。圣保罗市各机场没有起降面积，Azul便在这个富有、以农业为中心的圣保罗州建立了自己的主要航线枢纽。我们现在登上了一架从坎皮纳斯到里约的往返航班，来对其做个特写。
“Their planes are small. They only have 118 seats. But each passenger has their own TV screen, and of course the snacks are free.”
“他们的飞机都很小，只有118个座位。但是每位乘客的座位都配有电视屏幕，当然还有免费的各种小吃。”
Azul’s client base is growing quickly.
Azul客户群数量正在迅速增长。
“It’s more practical for where I live, and the service at Azul has been fantastic,” she says.
“Azul提供的航班非常适合我住的地方，而且它的服务也棒极了。”一名女乘客说道。
“Before, we went by car or bus,” he says, “it was six hours and with toss and gas, it’s more expensive than flying.”
“之前，我们的出行依靠汽车或公车，”一名男乘客说“那时要花费6小时，还有油钱和通行费，比坐飞机还贵。”
A slow in Brazil’s economy dealt a blow to the country’s airlines, especially dominant players Gol and Tam. Both reported net losses and slashed domestic routes. Azul has scaled back expectations, but it’s still expanding.
巴西的经济低迷沉重打击了本国各大航空公司，特别是行业老大Gol 和Tam公司。两家公司均报告净亏损，并大幅缩减国际航线。Azul也降低了各种预期值，但它仍在扩张业务。
“This year we are gonna be about 20% growth and next year I think we are looking at 10 to 15%.”“今年的年增长率大约为20%，明年我想我们期望达到10 至15%。”
Once its merger with a regional carrier Trip is complete, Azul will service 100 Brazilian cities, more than Gol and Tam combined. No international flights on the radar yet, but Azul could be in a good position to change its mind as the Campinas airport expands and the World Cup looms closer.
一旦完成与区域运输公司Trip的合并，Azul将向巴西100座城市提供服务，这将比有Gol 和Tam公司航班的城市加起来还要多。目前还没有那家国际航空公司使用雷达飞机，但是随着坎皮纳斯机场扩张并且世界杯的临近，Azul正处于有利时机改变战略。
