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Montijo Air Base, on the south bank of the Tagus estuary in Setúbal District, is home to the Portuguese Air Force's Base Aérea Nº 6 and a Portuguese Navy helicopter squadron. Its two long, lit hard runways and military transport and search-and-rescue traffic make it a distinctive fixture in the Lisbon area for any simulator pilot exploring Portuguese airspace.
Montijo Air Base (ICAO: LPMT), officially Air Base No. 6 or BA6, is a Portuguese Air Force installation on the south side of the Tagus estuary opposite Lisbon. It hosts three transport squadrons, a search-and-rescue helicopter squadron, and provides logistic support to Portuguese Navy helicopters based there, giving it a busy and varied military flying programme that will interest simulator pilots wanting something other than a civil airliner hub.
The base lies at Montijo, in the Setúbal District of Portugal, on the southern shore of the Tagus estuary facing Lisbon across the water. It sits at an elevation of 26 feet and its position close to the capital places it within the wider Lisbon terminal airspace environment, though as a military base its own airspace and procedures are governed by the Portuguese Air Force rather than civil ATC structures.
Montijo has two paved runways. Runway 08/26 is 8,012 feet long with a hard surface and runway lighting. Runway 01/19 is 7,156 feet long, also hard-surfaced and lit. There is no ILS at the field.
Ground movements are handled on 142.4 MHz and tower on 134.1 MHz. No instrument landing system is available at Montijo.
The base began life before the Second World War as a Portuguese Navy project intended to replace the Naval Aviation base at Bom Sucesso in Lisbon, though wartime conditions delayed construction. It was finally inaugurated in 1952 as the Sacadura Cabral Naval Aviation Centre, coinciding with the creation of an independent Portuguese Air Force and the transfer of Naval Aviation to the new branch. On 3 March 1953 the centre was formally redesignated Air Base No. 6, though an independent naval-derived unit known as the Forças Aeronavais continued anti-submarine operations from the base until its integration into the Air Force was completed by late 1956 or early 1957. In 1993 the base became home to a Navy helicopter squadron following the arrival of the first Westland Super Lynx Mk.95 helicopters for the Vasco da Gama-class frigates. The Air Force Survival Training Center is also based at Montijo, training personnel in survival, rescue, and explosive ordnance disposal, including in nuclear, radiological, biological and chemical environments. In 2018 it was announced that the base would additionally become a civil airport serving Lisbon for low-cost carriers by 2022.
Montijo remains an operational Portuguese Air Force base, home to 501 Squadron ('Bisontes'), 502 Squadron ('Elefantes'), 504 Squadron ('Linces') and 751 Squadron ('Pumas'), alongside the Portuguese Navy's helicopter squadron. As an active military installation, prior permission is required for any visiting flight.
