TAM Maintains Leadership in Both Domestic and International Markets for September

• Press Release
• Source: TAM
• On 11:47 am EDT, Thursday October 15, 2009

SAO PAULO, Oct. 15 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- TAM (NYSE: TAM; BOVESPA: TAMM4) announces its operating data for September 2009 as disclosed by the Brazilian National Civil Aviation Agency (ANAC) today.

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As the Company had predicted, the domestic market was strongly stimulated during the month of September as a result of the competitive dynamic. In this environment, TAM observed a growth of 8.6% in domestic demand, while domestic supply grew by 7.4% compared with the same period in 2008. With this, TAM's load factor increased by 0.8 p.p. compared to September 2008 and presented a strong recovery of 2.6 percent compared to August of 2009, reaching 65.4%. In September, industry demand grew 29.9%, while supply increased 19.9%. Domestic market share (RPK) was 44.1% for the period.

The competitive scenario for September impacted domestic yield for the quarter, so that it declined between 5 and 10% compared to the second quarter of 2009. As of the first weeks into October, the Company has observed a slight tariff recovery in comparison to the previous month.

In the international market, TAM achieved a growth of 15.0% in demand compared with the same period in 2008, while the growth in supply stood at 21.4%. TAM's market share for September was 87.3%. The international load factor was 76.1%, remaining 2.4 percent above the market average, which was 73.7%.

In the international market, which is already showing greater rationality and a stronger recovery, the Company estimates an increase between 10 and 15% in the yield in dollars for the third quarter, compared with the preceding quarter.

    See the operational data for September below:

    Operating data           September   September   Var. %   August    Var. %
                               2009        2008       YoY     2009       MoM
    Domestic Market
      ASK (millions) - Supply  3,165       2,948       7.4%   3,140       0.8%
      RPK (millions) - Demand  2,070       1,906       8.6%   1,972       5.0%
      Load Factor              65.4%       64.6%   0.8 p.p.  62.80%   2.6 p.p.
      Market share             44.1%       52.8%  -8.7 p.p.  43.80%   0.3 p.p.

    International Market
      ASK (millions) - Supply  2,015       1,660      21.4%   2,131      -5.4%
      RPK (millions) - Demand  1,534       1,334      15.0%   1,570      -2.3%
      Load Factor              76.1%       80.4%  -4.3 p.p.  73.70%   2.4 p.p.
      Market share             87.3%       82.1%   5.2 p.p.  89.40%  -2.1 p.p.

    Operating data                Jan-Aug-2009    Jan-Aug-2008    Var. %
    Domestic Market
      ASK (millions) - Supply        28,617          26,083         9.7%
      RPK (millions) - Demand        18,373          18,040         1.9%
      Load Factor                     64.2%           69.2%      -5 p.p.
      Market share                    46.4%           50.3%    -3.9 p.p.

    International Market
      ASK (millions) - Supply        18,683          15,231        22.7%
      RPK (millions) - Demand        13,411          11,716        14.5%
      Load Factor                     71.8%           76.9%    -5.1 p.p.
      Market share                    86.8%           72.4%    14.4 p.p.

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