rather than permanently station forces at
various locations.”
Coronel Caldas took part, recalling: “We
had a Portuguese officer, General Nico,
being mentored to become a joint force air
commander, and we were very involved in
that exercise.
“Every single day we carried out
offensive TASMO against a NATO Naval
Task Group, composed of an aircraft carrier,
several frigates and the C2 [Command
and Control] warship USS Mount Whitney,
where General Nico and his staff were
planning and executing the missions. In
terms of complexity and number of players,
it was the major TASMO exercise that I
participated in.”EXERCISES AND EXCHANGES
Among the most signi cant exercises for
the FAP and its Corsairs was the Tactical
Leadership Programme (TLP) for aircrew.
Each four-week course trains ight leads
to be quali ed to plan, brief and conduct
multinational fast-jet formations.
The A-7P squadrons embraced TLP
with enthusiasm and dedication. The
diverse experiences provided by the
practical aspects of the programme were
distinguished by their realism and the
volume of NATO combat and supportaircraft involved as well as a variety of air
defence systems.
TLP courses were at the time normally
held at Florennes AB in Belgium, however
Monte Real hosted a course. João Caldas,
who took part, said: “We did one in Monte
Real and it was an enjoyable exercise
because we directed the training towards
our primary TASMO mission.”
Squadron exchanges between the A-7P
units and their NATO counterparts took
place regularly. Coronel Caldas said: “We
used to do squadron exchanges with the
F-16 community from northern Europe,
nominally the Danish, the Belgians and theDutch; and also with the German Tornados,
which also had TASMO as a primary
squadron role, and with UK Tornados and
Jaguars. All the unit exchanges were good
because we had the chance to experience
missions in different landscapes.
“The most enjoyable exchange for me
was with the Jaguars from RAF Coltishall.
The missions own were very complete and
demanding. We had the chance to go to an
electronic range in UK and we practised
air-to-ground gunnery at a range. We
participated in countering air-to-air threats;
and last, but not least, we enjoyed the social
occasions, which were also important.”
Although the A-7Ps were capable of
air-to-air refuelling, it wasn’t undertaken
in the early years of the aircraft’s service.
The opportunity to practise the skill
arose in 1988 when, on an exchange
with the Luftwaffe’s JBG 38 at Jever,
the commander of Esquadra 304’s A-7
detachment successfully refuelled a TA-7P
from a Tornado.
On another exchange with a Luftwaffe
Tornado IDS unit – JBG 34 at Memmingen- in 1991, several pilots had the opportunity
to practise ‘buddy’ refuelling. It had been
intended that the Tornados would be
‘tanking’ from each other at the end of the
day’s mission, and Esquadra 304’s aircrew
Visitors to the Royal International Air Tattoo at Fairford in 1998 were treated to a rare sight – a
pair of FAP A-7Ps from Esq 304. Corsair 15521 is illustrated at the event – the other aircraft in
attendance was 15512. Key Collection80 Aviation News incorporating Jets November 2018
Above: Portugal’s eet of two-seat trainers
wore the same tactical camou age as their
single-seat sisters. Key Collection
Left: Corsair 15512 on the ramp at Monte Real.
Note the empty CRV-7 FFAR pod on the port
wing. Key Collection