American, Gol codeshare deal to give Brazilian airline long-haul reach

American Airlines and Gol said they intend to enter a codeshare agreement "in the near future" and will initiate a frequent-flyer accord from Aug. 1 that will allow members of AA's AAdvantage and Gol's Smiles programs to cross-access benefits. Passengers from the two programs will be able to earn miles on each airline's flights and in the fall will begin to be allowed to redeem miles on each. Gol CEO Constantino de Oliveira Jr. added, "Not only are we offering Smiles members service across the United States, but we're also providing access to destinations in all continents through [AA]." Gol no longer operates flights to North America or Europe. AA operates 58 weekly flights to/from Brazil. In November 2008 it began service from its Miami hub to Belo Horizonte, Recife and Salvador.