100 Years of the First Transatlantic Flight

One of the three Fairey III biplane floatplanes used by Gago Coutinho and Sacadura Cabral on the first crossing of the South Atlantic by air, from Lisbon to Rio de Janeiro in 1922. Along the left edge: the commemorative inscription "TRAVESSIA DO ATLÂNTICO SUL". Below the design: the issuing state "PORTUGAL", the anniversary dates "1922 – 2022" and the Southern Cross. Lower right: the designer's credit "Esc. JJ BRITO" and the name of the Portuguese mint "CASA DA MOEDA".

In 1922, Gago Coutinho and Sacadura Cabral accomplished one of the boldest pioneering feats in early aviation history: the first crossing of the South Atlantic by aeroplane. The two Portuguese naval officers set off from Lisbon on 30 March 1922 and, after several stopovers on Atlantic islands and along the West African coast, landed in Rio de Janeiro on 17 June 1922 — having covered more than 8,000 kilometres in total. They flew Fairey III seaplanes adapted for use over the ocean. Coutinho, a skilled naval navigator, refined the astronomical sextant for aerial navigation for the flight and developed his own sextant tailored to the needs of air navigation — a technical contribution whose impact went far beyond the flight itself. The route was chosen deliberately: Portugal wanted to demonstrate a direct air link to the largest Portuguese-speaking nation in the world.

The Atlantic crossing forms part of a broader history of Portuguese exploration and pioneering achievement: as early as the 15th and 16th centuries, Portuguese navigators had charted the West African coast and the sea routes to Brazil. Coutinho and Cabral deliberately followed in this legacy, now covering the same Atlantic route by air. In Brazil, the two aviators were celebrated as national heroes; in Portugal, their flight is still regarded as a defining moment in aviation history. To mark the 100th anniversary of this achievement, Portugal issued a 2-euro commemorative coin in 2022 recalling the historic first crossing of the South Atlantic.