Portuguese Air Force

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National insignia

A Portuguese F-16A

An upgraded FAP F-16

The Portuguese Air Force or FAP (Força Aérea Portuguesa) is the air force of Portugal.

The history of Portuguese military aviation dates back to 1911, when a Balloon Company was founded as part of the Army Telegraphic Service and received a handful of aircraft. During WW I, Portugal had no aircraft but Portuguese airmen flew in French squadrons.

In 1918 the 'Military Aviation Service' was founded, including a flying school, the OGMA workshops at Alverca, which still exists under this name, and the first operational squadrons.

After that period, many domestic and international incidents had dramatic influences on Portuguese military aviation.

These include the Revolution in 1926, the Spanish Civil War in the late 1930s, WW II in which Portugal was not directly involved but during which various allied aircraft entering Portuguese airspace were commandeered. Portugal joined NATO in 1949. The Military Aviation Service was merged with the 'Naval Aviation Service' to form the 'Portuguese Air Force' in 1952.

The military coup in 1974 was partly caused by the revolutions in Mozambique, Angola and Portuguese Guinea during the 1960s. It in turn led to these countries' independence in 1975. The turmoil of the revolution and the end of the war in the African colonies, which had involved 150,000 personnel, brought about a major reorganisation which reduced the 850 aircraft inventory of the FAP in 1974 to only one third of that in 1976.

Since then Portugal has gradually regained its balance and changed the organisation of the FAP in the interest of efficiency. Some of the noteworthy changes during the last decade include the closure of BA3 Tancos and BA7 Aveiro, the re-introduction of an independent naval helicopter squadron, the acquisition of modern aircraft such as the F-16 Fighting Falcon, which replaced the A-7 Corsair II, the relocation of several squadrons to other bases, the intention to acquire helicopters for the Army, possibly to be based at Tancos, and the privatization of the OGMA workshops. At this moment, the F-16A/B's from the second batch are slowly being converted into F-16AM/BM's, with the first four already on the flightline at Monte Real, while at the Montijo base the first 8 of the 12 ordered EH101's have now entered active service.

Order of battle

An upgraded F-16 on the ground

Other bases:

• Alverca (LPAR) Museu do Ar (Air Force Museum), Various
• O.G.M.A. - Oficinas Gerais de Material Aeronáutico, Various
• FAP Storage - Deposito Geral de Material de Força Aérea (DGMFA), Various
• Ota (LPOT) C.F.M.T.F.A. - Centro de Formação Militar e Técnica da Força Aérea, Various

References