Prime Minister António Costa said this Wednesday that despite the “deep” Portuguese-Brazilian cooperation, “tremendous potential” remains to be explored and there is still a need to “renew” relations between the two countries.
“There is still a need to renew our political, economic, cultural and scientific relations with this pioneering spirit and with a strong technological focus,” António Costa said at a ceremony to officially name Faro Airport Aeroporto Gago Coutinho as part of the celebrations for the bicentenary of Brazilian independence.
The new name was chosen in honor of Admiral Gago Coutinho, born in San Bras de Alportel, Algarve, who made the first aerial crossing of the South Atlantic while traveling between Lisbon and Rio de Janeiro in 1922.
The official airport renaming ceremony was presided over by António Costa, in a celebration attended by Infrastructure and Housing Minister Pedro Nuno Santos, Navy, Air Force and Army Chiefs of Staff, mayors and politicians. , region and national civil and commercial aviation organizations.
The ceremony on the airport sign was also attended by the new C390 Millenium military aircraft from the Brazilian company Embraer, which will enter service in Portugal for the Armed Forces in October.
“The presence at this ceremony of the C390 aircraft, equal to five, which will begin to arrive annually from October. […] is an example of how we can and should strengthen the friendship between the two countries,” the head of the Portuguese administration said.
António Costa explained that the construction of this aircraft was the result of a “unique partnership between Portugal and Brazil”, with “important parts” of the aircraft produced in a European country and then assembled in a South American country.
“This is an example of how together we can fly around the world,” the prime minister stressed, adding that “the renewal of the fleet of strategic air vehicles” is one of the “structural projects in which Portugal and the government are betting on modernizing the Armada” .
The seaplane flight, completed 100 years ago, began on the Tagus River in Lisbon on March 30, 1922, and ended at Guanabara Bay in Rio de Janeiro on June 17.
Admiral Gago Coutinho was navigator on this 4,500 nautical miles (8,300 kilometers) voyage, while Captain Sacadura Cabral piloted the seaplane.
António Costa called the Faro ceremony “high symbolic value” and called Gago Coutinho “an outstanding soldier and scientist, a great Algarve and a national hero”.
The Prime Minister compared the trip to that which “many” make, crossing the Atlantic in both directions “in search of a dream of personal fulfillment.” […] opportunity to lead a better life.”
Another word for those who fled from one country to another, fleeing the dictatorships that have been in Portugal or Brazil throughout their history.
António Costa also wanted to “fix” that the airport’s name change “coincides with a year marked by a strong recovery in tourism in Portugal and especially in the Algarve.”
The current Gago Coutinho airport recorded in 2019, a year before the start of the covid-19 pandemic, a record of 9.1 million passengers, according to the French company Vinci Airports, the airport’s main operator. in the country of the world, which manages the development and operation of more than 50 airports, including those in Portugal.
Opened in 1965, this airport is Portugal’s main tourist airport and plays an important role in the economic development of the country.
Author: Lusa
Source: CM Jornal
