A few years ago whilst departing for (yet) another flight, and in front of the panel of azulejos (ceramic tiles) dedicated to Bartolomeu de Gusmão which welcomes passengers at Lisbon Airport, someone said to José Saramago that it would be amazing if an aircraft were to be named Blimunda in honour of the woman who lived amongst the people and gathered wishes so that the passarola aircraft was able to fly.

Now on a TAP initiative it will not be the name of Blimunda that will be flying through the skies, rather that of the writer and Nobel Prize for Literature winner himself. The aircraft is an Airbus A320, registered as CS – TNW, and it will start flying for the airline this summer. It is one of the new aircraft that is reinforcing the TAP fleet this year enabling it to expand its operating network with 11 new destinations in 2014.

“Naming one of the aircraft in our fleet José Saramago is a huge honour for the Portuguese airline which is symbolically paying homage to one of the greatest exponents of the Portuguese language, evoking the Nobel Prize across the skies of the world and carrying on its wings the name of José Saramago to dozens of cities in Europe and Africa” stated Luiz da Gama Mór, Executive Director of TAP.

To mark its inauguration into service on long-haul flights during June, July and August, there will be a screening of the film José Saramago, o tempo de uma memória, directed by Carmen Castillo in order to celebrate the naming of the new TAP aircraft.