ITA Airways Adds Rio Stop to Buenos Aires Route

Why Your Next Flight Out of Buenos Aires Has a Detour

Anyone flying ITA Airways from Argentina to Rome this autumn is in for an unexpected Brazilian pit stop. The Italian carrier just tweaked its schedule, inserting a temporary commercial and technical layover into what's normally a straight shot across the Atlantic. For roughly three weeks, travelers leaving Buenos Aires will touch down in Rio de Janeiro before pointing the nose toward Europe.

Mark the dates: the change targets flight AZ681 between October 25 and November 11, 2026. Instead of flying directly from Ezeiza International Airport to Rome Fiumicino, the jet will pause at Rio’s Galeão International. Nobody loves adding hours to an overnight flight, but there's a silver lining here—mostly because of what you'll be flying on.

At Least You're on the A350

First, the relief for anyone heading south: the westbound leg from Rome down to Buenos Aires remains completely non-stop. The Rio detour only catches passengers making the trek back to Italy. To cover the revised route, ITA is putting its flagship Airbus A350-900 on the South American corridor for the duration of that window.

That aircraft makes a real difference. The A350 runs whisper-quiet, has better cabin pressure, and uses ambient lighting that takes the edge off a brutal red-eye. Ground crews in Rio will turn the jet around quickly before heading out over the Atlantic for the long haul back to the Mediterranean.

Mind Your Rome Connections

Keep in mind that an extra takeoff and landing stretches out total travel time, so take a hard look at your morning schedule in Italy. If you booked a tight train out of Fiumicino or an onward hop across Europe, make sure you still have enough breathing room. ITA has already updated its booking engines, so anyone looking at seats for that late October through mid-November stretch will see the Rio stop listed on the itinerary.

Routing shifts like this are standard playbooks for airlines juggling fleet rotations, aircraft availability, and shifting autumn demand. Tagging Rio keeps capacity moving between South America and Europe without cutting the frequency entirely. Grab a window seat for the descent over the Brazilian coast, pack an extra podcast, and let the A350 do the rest.