According to Brazilian daily newspaper Estado, the Brazilian Navy (Marinha do Brasil) has just decided to decommission its sole aircraft carrier Sao Paulo (hull number A12) acquired from France in 2000. Brazil has long been considering a modernization plan for the aircraft carrier with French naval shipbuilding group DCNS, but according to Estado, "modernization costs were considered excessive by the admiralty".
Modernization plans included the replacement of the entire propulsion system, catapults and combat system. According to Estado, the modernization would have cost in excess of 1 Billion Brazilian Reals ($324 Million USD approx.).

The decommissioning process is set to begin immediately and will only be completed by 2020. The three-step procedure would require 10 years of work. The remaining A-4 Skyhawk fighters of the Sao Paulo airwing will continue to operate from the Sao Pedro da Aldeia Base. The final fate of A-12 is not set yet. The Minas Gerais, an aircraft carrier that preceded São Paulo, was eventually sold as scrap on the international market.