Força Aérea Portuguesa

From mid 1960 until mid 1970, while many European nations were divesting themselves of colonial responsibilities (and costs), Portugal had determined to hang on to theirs. Military campaigns in Guinea-Bissau, Angola and Mozambique were costly and the vast distances involved, both between Portugal and the Ultramar coupled with initially, almost non-existent infrastructure in the colonies themselves, made prosecuting these counter-insurgencies complex, time-consuming and expensive.

In order to support and re-supply the diverse ground campaigns, the country demanded innovative operations from the PAF, that made the most of obsolete types, developed new doctrine and tactics using helicopters, peppered the areas with new airfields and airstrips and do all of this while keeping the drain on the countrys economy to a minimum.

In the meantime, its obligations to NATO also had to be maintained.