The No. 1 Air Base, in Sintra, received tens of thousands of people on the day it opened its doors. Kids and grown-ups could see the aircraft up close and get to know the base where the Air Force pilots are trained. “I’m in the Universe! This will never end!” Shouting, the young man is overflowing with information. He is trying out a simulator with Virtual Reality glasses and is totally immersed, to the delight of all those watching and laughing.
The Open Base day was like that: a day of emotions and good mood.
The No. 1 Air Base opened its doors and prepared a cracking programme for the many who visited. The planes were the main reason, but there were activities for all tastes and ages. There were demonstrations by the Air Force dogs, classic cars, live pictures with 2nd World War and Vietnam uniforms. There were baptisms of flight, for which those who brought food supplies that the military will deliver to charities were eligible. And the base was almost non-stop being flown over by aircraft.
This was a day where good humour reigned and where the men and women who serve there were joined by tens of thousands of people, entire families, groups of friends, aviation enthusiasts.
Colonel Luís Serôdio, commander of Air Base No. 1 and one of the most experienced pilots in the Air Force, with more than 1,000 flight hours, told us that he felt “mission accomplished by the smiles of the children and those who accompany them” on a day that aims to “allow the Portuguese to get to know their Air Force better.
At the entrance, visitors were directed to the Air Museum. The mobile phones and cameras were magically in the hands of hundreds of people, amazed with the extension and quality of an aircraft collection that is considered one of the best in Europe, and that shows some of the most important moments of aeronautics in Portugal. And after passing the museum’s three hangars, they arrived at the runway. And here the exhibition continued. Fighters, heavy planes, light planes, all with the Air Force symbol were on display.
And to the surprise of all those who participated for the first time in an open base day, it was possible to enter many of the planes. Pilots, technicians and cadets answered every question. If a child wanted to sit at the controls of an Alpha Jet with the colours of the Asas de Portugal aerobatics squadron, they could do so; if an adult wanted to see the inside of a P3 Orion coastal patrol aircraft, they were invited to do so. And even the simulators where the pilots train could be experienced.
Of course there was a queue for all the activities, but this was a burden that everyone welcomed with a smile on their lips. What’s more, the day was sunny without excessive heat.
The show also took place in the air. The Chipmunks and the Epsilon evolve in formation, there are civil planes that also cross the skies over the Sintra base and the moment that everyone has been waiting for and that was received with expressions of joy: the F-16 fighter planes.
The open base is a way of commemorating the anniversary of the Portuguese Air Force and is repeated annually. Throughout the month of September all the air bases open their doors to the public. Next week it is Monte Real’s turn.
