Varig economic difficulty. This purchase not only made Varig the largest airline in South America but also granted rights to other cities in Latin America, Miami, the West Coast of the United States and to Japan. European services started on . Varig had been lobbying for European concessions for more than ten years, but after the sudden shutdown of Panair do Brasil by the Brazilian military government Varig was granted rights previously held by Panair and was ordered to immediately operate all scheduled services, including Panair's flight scheduled to depart that very night from Rio de Janeiro-Galeão to Recife, Lisbon, Paris-Orly
Varig "old" Varig expired. Before and after relaunch in December 2006, "new Varig" struggled greatly to find a strategic partners, due to lack of credibility, affecting aircraft contracts, network and personnel inherited from "old" Varig. "New" Varig was facing monthly losses as high as US$20 million, and MattlinPatterson was unwilling to invest more money in the company, putting "new" Varig in extreme economic difficulties. On , Gol Airlines purchased "new Varig" (VRG Linhas Aéreas) for US$320 million, and announced that VRG Linhas Aéreas, the operator of the brand VARIG, would continue to operate under its original name. The transaction was completed