Every year, Portugal suffers from wildfires. Forests destroyed, homes lost, lives changed – and, sadly, some even lost.

The Portuguese government invests millions of euros in the rental of aerial units, when many believe it should start thinking about having its own resources to safeguard the population.

That’s where the Portuguese Air Force and the reactivation of the 551 Squadron – ‘Panteras’ – comes in.

Squadron reborn

The 551 Squadron originated in 1978, was stationed at Air Base No 6 – Montijo and operated the Alouette III helicopter. During its years of operation, it had several deployments spread from north to south of the country, between the beginning of July and the end of September, to support the fight against wildfires. However, in 1986 the squadron was deactivated and merged with the 552 Squadron.

In 2018, the Portuguese government transferred the management of aerial firefighting units to the Portuguese Air Force and subsequently authorized the acquisition of its own assets.

Following this, in 2022, an agreement worth around €43 million was signed with Arista Aviation Services (now United Aero Group) that included the supply of six UH-60A Black Hawk helicopters (ex-US Army), which have undergone structural and technological refurbishment, including the installation of the ACE DECK G5000H flight deck by Ace Aeronautics. In addition, pilot training was included, alongside maintenance packages and technical training.

The first two units were officially presented on 22 November 2023, and two days later, on 24 November, the reactivation of 551 Squadron, then known as the Panteras, was made official.

This Squadron has the Air Base No 8, in Maceda, Ovar, as its ‘home’. It was chosen because it was the most northerly base in Portugal, an area usually hit hardest by forest fires, along with the central area.

Intensive training and firefighting capacity

Fighting forest fires from the air is an operation that requires precision and coordination, allied with a huge amount of operational preparation. The 551 Squadron is actively carrying out various training sessions, both in the vicinity of the base and in mountainous terrain, to achieve operational capacity.

In 2025, two mountain deployments have already taken place, based at the Seia Aerodrome, with the Serra da Estrela as their training ground.

The combination of demanding topography, high altitudes, and thermal and wind variations allows the crews to gain experience while performing training exercises like landings in unprepared and/or confined areas, operations with a suspended load, and water scooping with the Bambi Bucket system.

The squadron is expected to reach initial operational capability by November 2025 and full operational capability by November 2027.

Expansion and future of the Squadron

In 2023, Ace Aeronautics won a new procurement process that was open for the acquisition of three more medium helicopters, to reinforce the six already ordered.

It is going to supply the UH-60L version, which is more advanced and has significant improvements in avionics, more powerful engines, and greater operational efficiency.

With this expansion, the 551 Squadron not only strengthens its capacity but also paves the way for more demanding missions. Despite little being said about the Squadron’s future beyond fighting wildfires, there are talks that it could be employed in other missions. For example, the L models will be equipped with a weather radar and an external winch, which could mean that they will also be able to carry out search and rescue missions.

One thing is certain: these new helicopters are a step towards building a fully modern fleet capable of responding to current and future challenges.