Portimão-Bragança air link was suspended in September 2024
The much-anticipated return of the air link connecting Bragança and Portimão is awaiting approval from Portugal’s Court of Auditors, which has requested additional documentation to approve the new concession contract.
The contract was submitted to the court by the Secretary of State for Infrastructure on December 23, 2024 but was returned on January 7 with a request for clarification and financial documentation, the court said in a statement to Lusa news agency. The missing information includes updates on financial provisions to cover expenses that transition from 2024 to 2025.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Infrastructure assured that the required information is being reviewed with urgency, with hopes of restarting the air service within a month.
The air link, often described as a lifeline for Portugal’s interior regions, connects the northern inland towns of Bragança, Vila Real and Viseu to Cascais, near Lisbon, and Portimão, in the Algarve. The service, operated by the Sevenair Group, was suspended on September 30, 2024 due to the non-payment of the service by the State, which has amassed a total debt of €3.8 million.
In recent months, the government has paid approximately half of the outstanding debt to Sevenair. However, the company was also required to reserve €600,000 for a bank guarantee – a condition for signing the new contract.
The current four-year concession was awarded after a public tender concluded in late 2024, with Sevenair as the sole bidder.
