Varig from the assets of Condor Syndikat. This aircraft, named "Atlântico", was also the first aircraft registered in Brazil as P-BAAA. Operations started on with a flight from Porto Alegre to Rio Grande via Pelotas. Varig inherited the route rights from Condor Syndikat which since had operated the service. VARIG slowly but consistently in spite of difficulties added aircraft and destinations to its network initially focusing on the state of Rio Grande do Sul. On Varig began its first international route from Porto Alegre to Montevideo using its de Havilland DH 89 Dragon Rapide. On 1941, as the United States declared
Varig the first change since 1955 - and the membership of Varig on Star Alliance, as of . Varig was its sixth member airline, and first to join after it was launched only 5 months earlier. In spite of some success in the re-organization of the company, Pinto did not have full support of Ruben Berta Foundation, the controller of Varig and, as a consequence, he left the Presidency of Varig on . That same year he became the CEO of TAP Portugal and successfully re-organized that airline. Pinto was succeeded by Ozires Silva, former president of the Brazilian aircraft manufacturer