Val de Cans/Júlio Cezar Ribeiro International Airport — Belém, Brazil

Val de Cans/Júlio Cezar Ribeiro International Airport carries the IATA code BEL and sits where the Amazon basin meets the Atlantic in Belém, the capital of Brazil's Pará state, just 54 feet in elevation beside the Guajará Bay estuary. Two runways handle a mix of domestic routes across the Amazon region and connections to Brazil's major southern cities, making BEL the primary air gateway to the country's northern reaches. Part of the airport's full name honors Júlio Cezar Ribeiro, a Brazilian priest remembered as an early airship pioneer, while Val de Cans refers to the district where the field was built. Belém functions as a major river port where Amazon cargo transfers to ocean-going ships, and the city drew worldwide attention hosting the COP30 United Nations climate summit in November 2025. Sitting almost on the equator, the region sees heavy humidity and frequent afternoon downpours year-round, conditions that shape daily flight operations at this tropical gateway.