Latest news and stories about aviation in infrastructure in Portugal for expats and residents.
The government will extend the current ground handling licenses held by Menzies at Lisbon, Porto, and Faro airports. This decision follows an injunction filed by a competing company, with officials aiming to prevent potential operational issues during the busy summer season.
TAP Air Portugal has resumed direct flights to Caracas, Venezuela, following a six-month suspension due to a United States-issued security alert. The resumption marks the airline's 50th anniversary of operating the route, which officials describe as vital for the Portuguese diaspora. TAP plans to increase service in July with a new weekly direct flight to Funchal.
TAP Air Portugal is Portugal’s flag-carrier airline, founded on 14 March 1945 as Transportes Aéreos Portugueses. It began operations in 1946 with Lisbon–Madrid and quickly opened the long “Linha Aérea Imperial” to Angola and Mozambique, symbolically linking mainland Portugal to its overseas territories. TAP entered the jet age in the 1960s, became Europe’s first all‑jet airline in 1967, and rebranded as TAP Air Portugal in 1979. Nationalised after the 1974 Carnation Revolution, it went through cycles of partial privatisation and renationalisation, remaining a strategic state‑controlled company due to its role in connectivity, tourism, exports, and the Portuguese diaspora, especially to Brazil, Africa, and North America. Today TAP operates an all‑Airbus fleet from its Lisbon hub, marketing itself as a bridge between Europe, Africa, and the Americas and as a key economic and symbolic asset for Portugal.
The race to privatise the national airline TAP Air Portugal has narrowed to two bidders, Lufthansa and Air France-KLM, following the withdrawal of the International Airlines Group (IAG). IAG, which owns Iberia and British Airways, stated that pursuing a minority stake in the Portuguese carrier did not align with its shareholders' interests. The government agency Parpública now has 30 days to review the remaining proposals.
Parpública is a state-owned holding company (Parpública - Participações Públicas, SGPS, S.A.) that manages the Portuguese government's equity interests in various companies. It acts as the state's vehicle for handling privatization processes, such as the ongoing sale of a stake in the national airline, TAP Air Portugal.
The Regional Government of the Azores (Governo Regional dos Açores) has directed the airline group SATA to begin a new privatization process for Azores Airlines through private negotiation. This move follows a previous unsuccessful attempt and aims to find a stable private partner for the carrier. Travelers to and from the archipelago should note that the government seeks to reduce its financial burden while maintaining essential air links.
SATA is the Azores regional airline group that operates inter‑island services and international routes under the Azores Airlines brand, and is the primary air carrier linking the Azores with mainland Portugal and parts of Europe. For expats living in or visiting the islands, SATA provides the main year‑round connections and is often the only practical option for travelling between islands or to the continent.
Infrastructure limitations at Lisbon airport (Aeroporto de Lisboa) have resulted in 12% of requested flight slots for the summer season going unfulfilled. The National Air Navigation (Navegação Aérea de Portugal or NAV) warned that these capacity constraints are penalizing the tourism sector. Travelers should note that the lack of slots may limit flight options and keep ticket prices high during the peak season.
NAV Portugal (Navegação Aérea de Portugal) is the state-owned authority responsible for air traffic control and management in Portuguese airspace. It manages flight slots at major airports like Lisbon, where current infrastructure limits prevented the approval of 12% of requested slots for the upcoming summer season. Travelers should note that these capacity constraints frequently contribute to delays during peak periods.
