Condor Syndikat
Encyclopedia
Condor Syndikat was a German trade company, with headquarters in Berlin
, that operated airline services in Brazil while also providing aircraft, maintenance and aviation information. It is also the mother company of the Brazilian airlines Varig
and Syndicato Condor, which later became Serviços Aéreos Cruzeiro do Sul
. They were the two oldest airlines in Brazil.
to create the Condor Syndikat. SCADTA was interested in establishing international passenger services linking Colombia
to other countries in Central America and to the United States
. Deutscher Aero Lloyd, on the other hand, wanted to establish a base for a future transatlantic service to South America, while selling aircraft manufactured in Germany, aviation equipment and maintenance services.
With this intention, two Dornier Do J Wal
seaplanes were bought and were put into service for SCADTA. Services however were not as successful as planned, particularly because of the resistance of American authorities. The seaplanes were thus returned to Germany. The failure however became a golden opportunity for AeroLloyd to implement its own plans. A few months later two planes, one of them named Atlântico, were sent by ship to Montevideo
and flown to Buenos Aires
.
On November 17, 1926, a German commercial mission was organized by the Pilot, Engineer and General-Director of Condor Syndikat Fritz W. Hammer, with the presence of Dr. Hans Luther
, a former chancellor
of the German Reich, at the time of the Weimar Republic
took-off from Buenos Aires. Though officially an enterprise of Condor Syndikat, in reality it was heavily subsidized by the German Government via Deutsche Luft Hansa. This commercial mission flew first from Buenos Aires
to Porto Alegre
via Montevideo
and then on to Rio de Janeiro
, where it arrived on November 27, 1926. On January 1, 1927 the aircraft flew back to Florianópolis
with a few illustrious guests aboard. Among them were journalists, a minister, and a cinematographer. As a result of this successful demonstration, on January 26, 1927, Condor Syndikat received a provisory one-year authorization to operate air services in Brazil.
Those services had three different routes: one linked Rio de Janeiro
to Porto Alegre
via Santos
, Paranaguá
, São Francisco do Sul
, and Florianópolis
. The second service linked Porto Alegre to Rio Grande
via Pelotas
. The third was between Porto Alegre and Santa Vitória do Palmar
, on the border with Uruguay
. This service could, pending authorization from the Uruguayan authorities, be extended to Montevideo
. The first flight between Rio de Janeiro and Porto Alegre took-off one day later, on January 27, 1927 operated by the Dornier Do J Wal Atlântico, still with the German registration D-1012. It arrived in Porto Alegre two days later. Later, the Atlântico would be the aircraft to receive the first Brazilian registration: P-BAAA.
On February 22, 1927, Condor Syndikat operated the first flight between Porto Alegre and Rio Grande in which the Atlântico carried crew, three passengers and mail. Those flights continued to be operated with great success and the German name Condor Syndikat became informally known by its Portuguese translation: Syndicato Condor.
Meanwhile, in Germany, Deutsche Luft Hansa
was formed on January 6, 1926, with the forced merger of Deutsche Aero Lloyd with Junkers Luftverkehr to form one German national airline. The transaction included subsidiaries such as Condor Syndikat, which officially ceased to exist on July 1, 1927. In order to care for the on-going interests of Luft Hansa in Brazil, on December 1, 1927 a Brazilian company was officially formed and named Syndicato Condor.
On June 10, 1927 the Brazilian Government authorized a businessman from Porto Alegre, Otto Ernst Meyer-Labastille, to establish an airline that could operate in the States of Santa Catarina
and Rio Grande do Sul
, and to extend the services, with the necessary governmental authorizations, to Uruguay
. This airline was named Viação Aérea Rio-Grandense – Varig
, which had the support of Condor Syndikat, including share-holding. In order to facilitate start-up operations, Condor Syndikat transferred to Varig its rights for the route Porto Alegre - Rio Grande and the seaplane Atlântico. Flights started on June 22, 1927. Until that date, Condor Syndikat had already made 63 flights and carried 800 passengers and tons of post between the two cities.
On January 20, 1928, the Brazilian Government authorized the establishment of an airline called Syndicato Condor. Its first share-holders were the three directors of Condor Syndikat, including Fritz W. Hammer, and the Brazilian Count Pereira Carneiro, owner of Jornal do Brasil
and a shipping company. It could operate in all Brazilian territory and extend services, with the necessary governmental authorizations, to Uruguay
and Argentina
. In fact, between the end of Condor Syndikat and the birth of Syndicato Condor, services never stopped and Syndicato Condor naturally, informally and later formally took over the rights and interests of Condor Syndikat. Condor Syndikat and later Syndicato Condor kept the rights and operations between Rio de Janeiro and Porto Alegre, and further to Montevideo and Buenos Aires, because this route was of utmost interest for the future plans of Deutsche Luft Hansa in South America. Later, Syndicato Condor extended the route north to Recife
and connected its network to the one of Deutsche Luft Hansa.
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
, that operated airline services in Brazil while also providing aircraft, maintenance and aviation information. It is also the mother company of the Brazilian airlines Varig
Varig
VARIG was the first airline founded in Brazil, in 1927. From 1965 until 1990 it was Brazil's leading and almost only international airline...
and Syndicato Condor, which later became Serviços Aéreos Cruzeiro do Sul
Serviços Aéreos Cruzeiro do Sul
Serviços Aéreos Cruzeiro do Sul, was the second oldest airline of Brazil, tracing its origins to 1927, when it was founded as Syndicato Condor, a subsidiary of Deutsche Luft Hansa. Syndicato Condor retained rights and interests of a former German trade company, Condor Syndikat, which previously...
. They were the two oldest airlines in Brazil.
History
On May 5, 1924, the German airline Deutsche Aero Lloyd established a partnership with the Colombian company Sociedad Colombo-Alemana de Transporte Aéreo – SCADTASCADTA
The Colombian-German Air Transport Society , or SCADTA, was the world's second airline, and the first airline of the American continent, operating from 1919 until World War II. After the war, SCADTA merged with Colombian regional carrier Colombian Air Service , or SACO. Together, SCADTA and SACO...
to create the Condor Syndikat. SCADTA was interested in establishing international passenger services linking Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
to other countries in Central America and to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Deutscher Aero Lloyd, on the other hand, wanted to establish a base for a future transatlantic service to South America, while selling aircraft manufactured in Germany, aviation equipment and maintenance services.
With this intention, two Dornier Do J Wal
Dornier Do J
The Dornier Do J Wal was a twin-engine German flying boat of the 1920s designed by Dornier Flugzeugwerke. The Do J was designated the Do 16 by the Reich Air Ministry under its aircraft designation system of 1933....
seaplanes were bought and were put into service for SCADTA. Services however were not as successful as planned, particularly because of the resistance of American authorities. The seaplanes were thus returned to Germany. The failure however became a golden opportunity for AeroLloyd to implement its own plans. A few months later two planes, one of them named Atlântico, were sent by ship to Montevideo
Montevideo
Montevideo is the largest city, the capital, and the chief port of Uruguay. The settlement was established in 1726 by Bruno Mauricio de Zabala, as a strategic move amidst a Spanish-Portuguese dispute over the platine region, and as a counter to the Portuguese colony at Colonia del Sacramento...
and flown to Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...
.
On November 17, 1926, a German commercial mission was organized by the Pilot, Engineer and General-Director of Condor Syndikat Fritz W. Hammer, with the presence of Dr. Hans Luther
Hans Luther
Hans Luther was a German politician and Chancellor of Germany.-Biography:Born in Berlin, Luther started in politics in 1907 by becoming the town councillor in Magdeburg. He continued on becoming secretary of the German Städtetag in 1913 and then mayor of Essen in 1918...
, a former chancellor
Chancellor
Chancellor is the title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the Cancellarii of Roman courts of justice—ushers who sat at the cancelli or lattice work screens of a basilica or law court, which separated the judge and counsel from the...
of the German Reich, at the time of the Weimar Republic
Weimar Republic
The Weimar Republic is the name given by historians to the parliamentary republic established in 1919 in Germany to replace the imperial form of government...
took-off from Buenos Aires. Though officially an enterprise of Condor Syndikat, in reality it was heavily subsidized by the German Government via Deutsche Luft Hansa. This commercial mission flew first from Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...
to Porto Alegre
Porto Alegre
Porto Alegre is the tenth most populous municipality in Brazil, with 1,409,939 inhabitants, and the centre of Brazil's fourth largest metropolitan area . It is also the capital city of the southernmost Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul. The city is the southernmost capital city of a Brazilian...
via Montevideo
Montevideo
Montevideo is the largest city, the capital, and the chief port of Uruguay. The settlement was established in 1726 by Bruno Mauricio de Zabala, as a strategic move amidst a Spanish-Portuguese dispute over the platine region, and as a counter to the Portuguese colony at Colonia del Sacramento...
and then on to Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America, boasting approximately 6.3 million people within the city proper, making it the 6th...
, where it arrived on November 27, 1926. On January 1, 1927 the aircraft flew back to Florianópolis
Florianópolis
-Climate:Florianópolis experiences a warm humid subtropical climate, falling just short of a true tropical climate. The seasons of the year are distinct, with a well-defined summer and winter, and characteristic weather for autumn and spring. Frost is infrequent, but occurs occasionally in the winter...
with a few illustrious guests aboard. Among them were journalists, a minister, and a cinematographer. As a result of this successful demonstration, on January 26, 1927, Condor Syndikat received a provisory one-year authorization to operate air services in Brazil.
Those services had three different routes: one linked Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America, boasting approximately 6.3 million people within the city proper, making it the 6th...
to Porto Alegre
Porto Alegre
Porto Alegre is the tenth most populous municipality in Brazil, with 1,409,939 inhabitants, and the centre of Brazil's fourth largest metropolitan area . It is also the capital city of the southernmost Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul. The city is the southernmost capital city of a Brazilian...
via Santos
Santos (São Paulo)
-Sister cities: Shimonoseki, Japan Nagasaki, Japan Funchal, Portugal Trieste, Italy Coimbra, Portugal Ansião, Portugal Arouca, Portugal Ushuaia, Argentina Havana, Cuba Taizhou. China Ningbo. China Constanţa, Romania Ulsan, South Korea Colón, Panama* Cadiz, Spain...
, Paranaguá
Paranaguá
Paranaguá is a city in the state of Paraná in Brazil. Founded in 1648, it is Paraná's oldest city.It is known for its excellent port facilities, being the sea port for Curitiba, the capital of Paraná....
, São Francisco do Sul
São Francisco do Sul
São Francisco do Sul is a municipality in the Brazilian state of Santa Catarina. It covers an area of 493 km² and had an estimated population of 37,725 in 2005.. It was founded as a village by the Portuguese in 1658...
, and Florianópolis
Florianópolis
-Climate:Florianópolis experiences a warm humid subtropical climate, falling just short of a true tropical climate. The seasons of the year are distinct, with a well-defined summer and winter, and characteristic weather for autumn and spring. Frost is infrequent, but occurs occasionally in the winter...
. The second service linked Porto Alegre to Rio Grande
Rio Grande, Rio Grande do Sul
Rio Grande is the oldest city in the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul and also the former state capital from 1835 to 1845...
via Pelotas
Pelotas
Pelotas is a Brazilian city and municipality , the third most populous in the southern state of Rio Grande do Sul. Pelotas is located 270 km from Porto Alegre, the capital city of the state, and 130 km from the Uruguayan border...
. The third was between Porto Alegre and Santa Vitória do Palmar
Santa Vitória do Palmar
Santa Vitória do Palmar is a city in the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul. To the west of the municipality is the Lagoa Mirim and beyond that is Uruguay; to the east is the Atlantic Ocean and to the north is the city of Rio Grande...
, on the border with Uruguay
Uruguay
Uruguay ,officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay,sometimes the Eastern Republic of Uruguay; ) is a country in the southeastern part of South America. It is home to some 3.5 million people, of whom 1.8 million live in the capital Montevideo and its metropolitan area...
. This service could, pending authorization from the Uruguayan authorities, be extended to Montevideo
Montevideo
Montevideo is the largest city, the capital, and the chief port of Uruguay. The settlement was established in 1726 by Bruno Mauricio de Zabala, as a strategic move amidst a Spanish-Portuguese dispute over the platine region, and as a counter to the Portuguese colony at Colonia del Sacramento...
. The first flight between Rio de Janeiro and Porto Alegre took-off one day later, on January 27, 1927 operated by the Dornier Do J Wal Atlântico, still with the German registration D-1012. It arrived in Porto Alegre two days later. Later, the Atlântico would be the aircraft to receive the first Brazilian registration: P-BAAA.
On February 22, 1927, Condor Syndikat operated the first flight between Porto Alegre and Rio Grande in which the Atlântico carried crew, three passengers and mail. Those flights continued to be operated with great success and the German name Condor Syndikat became informally known by its Portuguese translation: Syndicato Condor.
Meanwhile, in Germany, Deutsche Luft Hansa
Deutsche Luft Hansa
Deutsche Luft Hansa A.G. was a German airline, serving as flag carrier of the country during the later years of the Weimar Republic and throughout the Third Reich.-1920s:Deutsche Luft Hansa was founded on 6 January 1926 in Berlin...
was formed on January 6, 1926, with the forced merger of Deutsche Aero Lloyd with Junkers Luftverkehr to form one German national airline. The transaction included subsidiaries such as Condor Syndikat, which officially ceased to exist on July 1, 1927. In order to care for the on-going interests of Luft Hansa in Brazil, on December 1, 1927 a Brazilian company was officially formed and named Syndicato Condor.
On June 10, 1927 the Brazilian Government authorized a businessman from Porto Alegre, Otto Ernst Meyer-Labastille, to establish an airline that could operate in the States of Santa Catarina
Santa Catarina (state)
Santa Catarina is a state in southern Brazil with one of the highest standards of living in Latin America. Its capital is Florianópolis, which mostly lies on the Santa Catarina Island. Neighbouring states are Rio Grande do Sul to the south and Paraná to the north. It is bounded on the east by...
and Rio Grande do Sul
Rio Grande do Sul
Rio Grande do Sul is the southernmost state in Brazil, and the state with the fifth highest Human Development Index in the country. In this state is located the southernmost city in the country, Chuí, on the border with Uruguay. In the region of Bento Gonçalves and Caxias do Sul, the largest wine...
, and to extend the services, with the necessary governmental authorizations, to Uruguay
Uruguay
Uruguay ,officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay,sometimes the Eastern Republic of Uruguay; ) is a country in the southeastern part of South America. It is home to some 3.5 million people, of whom 1.8 million live in the capital Montevideo and its metropolitan area...
. This airline was named Viação Aérea Rio-Grandense – Varig
Varig
VARIG was the first airline founded in Brazil, in 1927. From 1965 until 1990 it was Brazil's leading and almost only international airline...
, which had the support of Condor Syndikat, including share-holding. In order to facilitate start-up operations, Condor Syndikat transferred to Varig its rights for the route Porto Alegre - Rio Grande and the seaplane Atlântico. Flights started on June 22, 1927. Until that date, Condor Syndikat had already made 63 flights and carried 800 passengers and tons of post between the two cities.
On January 20, 1928, the Brazilian Government authorized the establishment of an airline called Syndicato Condor. Its first share-holders were the three directors of Condor Syndikat, including Fritz W. Hammer, and the Brazilian Count Pereira Carneiro, owner of Jornal do Brasil
Jornal do Brasil
Jornal do Brasil, widely known as JB, is a daily newspaper published by Editora JB in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It was founded in 1891 and is the third oldest existent Brazilian paper, after the Diário de Pernambuco and O Estado de São Paulo....
and a shipping company. It could operate in all Brazilian territory and extend services, with the necessary governmental authorizations, to Uruguay
Uruguay
Uruguay ,officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay,sometimes the Eastern Republic of Uruguay; ) is a country in the southeastern part of South America. It is home to some 3.5 million people, of whom 1.8 million live in the capital Montevideo and its metropolitan area...
and Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
. In fact, between the end of Condor Syndikat and the birth of Syndicato Condor, services never stopped and Syndicato Condor naturally, informally and later formally took over the rights and interests of Condor Syndikat. Condor Syndikat and later Syndicato Condor kept the rights and operations between Rio de Janeiro and Porto Alegre, and further to Montevideo and Buenos Aires, because this route was of utmost interest for the future plans of Deutsche Luft Hansa in South America. Later, Syndicato Condor extended the route north to Recife
Recife
Recife is the fifth-largest metropolitan area in Brazil with 4,136,506 inhabitants, the largest metropolitan area of the North/Northeast Regions, the 5th-largest metropolitan influence area in Brazil, and the capital and largest city of the state of Pernambuco. The population of the city proper...
and connected its network to the one of Deutsche Luft Hansa.
Fleet
| Aircraft | Total | Years of Operation |
|---|---|---|
| Dornier Do J Wal Dornier Do J The Dornier Do J Wal was a twin-engine German flying boat of the 1920s designed by Dornier Flugzeugwerke. The Do J was designated the Do 16 by the Reich Air Ministry under its aircraft designation system of 1933.... |
4 | 1924–1927 |
| Junkers G-24 | 1 | 1926–1927 |
See also
- Deutsche Luft HansaDeutsche Luft HansaDeutsche Luft Hansa A.G. was a German airline, serving as flag carrier of the country during the later years of the Weimar Republic and throughout the Third Reich.-1920s:Deutsche Luft Hansa was founded on 6 January 1926 in Berlin...
- VarigVarigVARIG was the first airline founded in Brazil, in 1927. From 1965 until 1990 it was Brazil's leading and almost only international airline...
- Syndicato Condor
- Serviços Aéreos Cruzeiro do SulServiços Aéreos Cruzeiro do SulServiços Aéreos Cruzeiro do Sul, was the second oldest airline of Brazil, tracing its origins to 1927, when it was founded as Syndicato Condor, a subsidiary of Deutsche Luft Hansa. Syndicato Condor retained rights and interests of a former German trade company, Condor Syndikat, which previously...