Montijo Air Base ( pt, Base Aérea do Montijo) - officially known as Air Base No. 6 (''Base Aérea n.º 6'') or BA6 - is a military air base located in Montijo, Portugal. The base is home to three transport squadrons and one helicopter

search and rescue Search and rescue (SAR) is the search for and provision of aid to people who are in distress or imminent danger. The general field of search and rescue includes many specialty sub-fields, typically determined by the type of terrain the search ...

squadron and provides logistic support to the Portuguese Navy's helicopters based there.

History

The Montijo Air Base started to be built by the Portuguese Navy, before World War II, to replace its Naval Aviation base of Bom Sucesso in Lisbon. The War prevented the good progress of the works and the base ended only to be inaugurated in 1952, as the "Sacadura Cabral" Naval Aviation Centre. The inauguration of the base happened during the process of the creation of the independent

Portuguese Air Force , colours = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = 1 July , equipment = , equipment_label ...

(PoAF) and the transference of the Naval Aviation from the control of the Navy to the new branch. On March 3, 1953, the Naval Aviation Centre was officially re-designated as Air Base No. 6. However, within the PoAF an independent group originating from the Naval Aviation units, known as "''Forças Aeronavais''", continued to operate from BA6 in the

anti-submarine An anti-submarine weapon (ASW) is any one of a number of devices that are intended to act against a submarine and its crew, to destroy (sink) the vessel or reduce its capability as a weapon of war. In its simplest sense, an anti-submarine weapo ...

role. Only by late 1956, early 1957, was the integration of these units in the PoAF complete, with some personnel returning to the Navy and others staying in the air force. In 1993, with the arrival of the Portuguese Navy's first Westland Super Lynx Mk.95 for the ''Vasco da Gama''-class frigates, the air base became home to a naval helicopter squadron. The Air Force Survival Training Center ( pt, Centro de Treino de Sobrevivência da Força Aérea, CTSFA) is based at BA6 with the mission of training PoAF personnel in survival and individual rescue, including in

nuclear Nuclear may refer to: Physics Relating to the nucleus of the atom: * Nuclear engineering *Nuclear physics *Nuclear power *Nuclear reactor *Nuclear weapon *Nuclear medicine *Radiation therapy *Nuclear warfare Mathematics *Nuclear space *Nuclear ...

, radiologic,

biological Biology is the scientific study of life. It is a natural science with a broad scope but has several unifying themes that tie it together as a single, coherent field. For instance, all organisms are made up of cells that process hereditary in ...

or chemical warfare environments, as well Explosive Ordnance Disposal. In 2018 it was announced that the base would also become a civil airport (serving

Lisbon Lisbon (; pt, Lisboa ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 544,851 within its administrative limits in an area of 100.05 km2. Grande Lisboa, Lisbon's urban area extends beyond the city's administr ...

) for low cost carriers by 2022.

Tenant units

Portuguese Air Force , colours = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = 1 July , equipment = , equipment_label ...

** 501 Sqn. "''Bisontes''" (Bisons) — tactical transport squadron ** 502 Sqn. "''Elefantes''" (Elephants) — tactical and general transport squadron ** 504 Sqn. "''Linces''" (Lynxes) — VIP and MEDEVAC transport squadron ** 751 Sqn. "''Pumas''" (Pumas) — search and rescue squadron * Portuguese Navy ** ''Esquadrilha de Helicópteros da Marinha'' (Navy Helicopter Squadron)

References

Notes

Sources

* * * *

External links