NAV Portugal

NAV Portugal is the air navigation service provider for Portugal. It works on the mainland and in the Azores and Madeira, and its head office is next to Lisbon Airport. Its stated mission is to provide air traffic services in the two flight information regions (FIRs) under Portuguese responsibility, Lisbon and Santa Maria.

Airspace

• Lisbon FIR: more than 660,000 square kilometres, including the Lisbon control centre and the towers at Cascais, Faro, Funchal, Lisbon, Porto and Porto Santo. The company reports 719,180 movements controlled in 2024.
• Santa Maria FIR: more than 5.1 million square kilometres, including the Oceanic Control Centre and the towers at Flores, Horta, Ponta Delgada and Santa Maria. The company reports 197,897 movements controlled in 2024.

Facilities

Beyond the Lisbon Air Traffic Control Centre, the Santa Maria Oceanic Control Centre and its training centre next to Lisbon Airport, NAV Portugal operates radar, radio and communications stations at several points on the mainland and in the autonomous regions. Its site mentions an oceanic air traffic management system on Santa Maria and the phased introduction of a new generation of air traffic management systems in Lisbon.

Goals of air traffic control

• Allow an effective flow of air traffic
• Give flights information and advice for safety
• Avoid collisions between aircraft and with obstacles on the ground
• Alert and assist search and rescue bodies when an aircraft is in an emergency