With the type approaching its 75th anniversary, it is remarkable that Portuguese Air Force student pilots are still going solo on the DHC Chipmunk
Two of the Força Aérea Portuguesa’s six remaining Chipmunk Mk20s cavort for the camera over the Atlantic Ocean, west of their Sintra base.
Modern military aviation has long been dominated by a constant quest to establish operational structures that are at once financially sound and technologically superior. Shrinking budgets, increasing out-of-area commitments, the constant exodus of experienced and highly trained people and challenging conditions for recruitment force the need to be economical with scarce resources.
