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1927-1943: Beginnings to World War II


1927-1943: Beginnings to World War II

The forerunner of the modern airline, Serviços Aéreos Portugueses Limitada, was founded on 19 May 1927 with a stock capital of 50,000 escudos supplied by private parties. In the race to obtain official landing rights in Portugal and its overseas areas, as well as full governmental financial support, the stock capital was increased to 1,000,000 escudos on 4 May 1929.

In May 1929, the Portuguese company received its first aircraft, a Junkers F 13 that was allotted the registration C-PAAC (c/n 2042) and christened Lisboa. On 10 June 1929, Portuguese pilot Amado de Cunha began joyriding flights out of Lisbon, which he continued to do so throughout the year. During the first two months he flew 89 passengers; by the end of the year, 347 flights were operated carrying a total of 1,026 passengers. Its Junkers F 13 flew 20,605 kilometres and made 146 flying hours.

Due to the uncertain situation in Spain and Portugal, SAP was not able to fly any service during the period between 1930 and 1936. The Junkers F 13 returned to Sweden in July 1930.

Among SAP's owners was the firm J Wimmer & Co. This was a German firm in Portugal, of which its director possessed Portuguese nationality. Antonio Alberto d’Eca de Quiroz was director at the Ministry of Propaganda in Portugal and Josée Vieira da Fonseca was the aide-de-camp of the Prime Minister of the Portugal, Antonio de Oliviera Salazar. The president of the Board of Directors was J Wimmer, and the directors were Vieira da Fonseca and Count Baroldingen. The main object of the company was to act as a general sales agent for Deutsche Luft Hansa AG and to lobby with the Portuguese government when a concession for a North Atlantic route was to be awarded.

But the company cost the Germans dearly. In 1943 Deutsche Luft Hansa AG decided not to pay any subsidy to SAP, as the danger was that tax had to be paid over profit. The company therefore recorded a loss in 1943. The income that existed during those years were out of commission received on the sales of tickets in Portugal. SAP never opened any services during that period, nor did it own any aircraft. What would happen over the next two years is unknown, and the company stopped its work after the departure of the last DLH-owned aircraft from Portugal and Spain in April 1945. In the wake of World War II, SAP was quietly dissolved.

Registration: C-PAAC
Aircraft name: Lisboa



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    How's the template?

    Quite rare to see the good ol' Junkers on here! Good work!