Líder Taxi Aéreo was established on 12 November 1958 in Belo Horizonte with three Cessna 170A four-seat single-engine aircraft.[4] By 1961 the company had grown to 20 employees and 12 Cessna 180s and 182s and that year added the first twin-engine aircraft to the fleet, a BeechcraftD18S.[4] Operations were concentrated on the Belo Horizonte - Ipatinga route and the company also provided support flights during development of the mining region of Minas Gerais.[4] In 1963 three Aero Commander 500Bs entered service and the company expanded into sales and maintenance with a new hangar at Belo Horizonte's Pampulha Airport.[4] After opening of a branch at the Santos Dumont Airport in Rio de Janeiro the following year, the company's fleet played a strategic role during construction of the Três Marias and Salto Grande Dams, by connecting the sites to the country's main cities.[4] In 1965 Líder established a base at Congonhas and was also floated as a public company.[4] In 1968 the company imported the first business jet into Brazil, a Learjet 24. The following year saw further expansion, with the opening of a branch in the new capital city Brasília and increased freight traffic between Belo Horizonte and Rio de Janeiro, carrying newspapers out of Rio and beer on the return flights.[4]
In 1971 Líder was appointed by Learjet as its sales agent in Brazil. In 1973 the company commenced offshore helicopter operations on behalf of Petrobras, linking oil-drilling platforms along the Brazilian coast.[4] In 1978 the company entrenched itself in Belo Horizonte when it moved into a new central administration office building in the city. In the 1980s Líder expanded its partnerships with US aerospace organisations, becoming the Brazilian agent for Bell Helicopter Textron, Garrett AiResearch and a number of avionics manufacturers, and entering a partnership with FlightSafety International. By 1988 Líder employed over 600 people.[4]
In 1995 Líder terminated its sales agreement with Learjet in favour of a new relationship with the Raytheon Aircraft Company (RAC), at that time the manufacturer of Beechcraft and Hawkerpiston engine, and corporate turboprop and jet aircraft.[4] That year the company moved into the-then largest hangar in South America, at Congonhas Airport; it was built with space for 40 business jets and 30 helicopters. The company also took delivery of its first Sikorsky S-76 helicopter. In 1999 Líder placed orders for three Bell/Agusta BA609s.[4] In 2002 the fleet was 18 fixed-wing aircraft and 29 helicopters. That year the company opened bases in Belém and Recife.[4]
