Tap on the Lis route
Chinapattern: Agree. There is plenty of emphasis on onward flights through European hubs with legacy carriers, but little to the west. I sought a little help recently in travel into Brazil, the upshot being that it was financially more advantageous to start with National Express to Heathrow to link up with Tap for Lisbon and then Rio. Direct Bhx - Lis with Tap would make life a lot easier for those on business in Brazil. I believe it would work.
Remember, the Brazilian economy is now bigger than the UK....