Dos Afonsos - Campo delio Jardim de Mattos

Layout

The airfield is surrounded by walls and military camps. The eastern most ramps are occupied by the active units, centre south is the Parque Material Afonsos overhaul centre, and the MUSAL is in the south-west corner of the airfield.

Getting There

By public transport

How to get here is rather hard to explain. There is a bus stop two blocks away from the museum’s entrance and that bus runs to suburban railway station Cascadura (Estação Cascadura), still an hours bus trip away. Coming from the train station, you will have to exit on the south side and walk northbound underneath the overpass towards the Terminal Deputado José de Souza Marques and take bus 745 towards Bangu. It will be an Onibus Urbano, which is a small bus run by the company Viação Andorinha. This will take you along Av.Mal.Fontenelle which borders the base on the South side. Also, bus 917 runs over the railway track and there are stops on Viaduto de Cascadura and Av Dom Helder which is to the north of the railway track. This bus runs to Mallet along Av.Mal. Fontenelle as well, to get back to Cascadura the direction is Bonsucesso. It is operated by Viação Novacap.

Taking a cab all the way from one of Rio's bus stations to the airfield and taking the bus back, is probably the easiest option. Although not many Rio cabbies know exactly were they have to be in this area...

By car, from the west

Equally cumbersome, but do-able nonetheless. The base is just south of Avenida Brasil, the extension of BR-101. Coming from the west, simply keep following Avenida Brasil after BR-101 ends. When the suburb of Nilopolis is to your left the airfield is to you right. Take the exit to Estr.Mal. Alencastro, go south. It is instrumental to take this exit or else you will pass the railway track and water and there will be no exit for miles. After exiting, the Estr.Mal. Alencastro will bend left at the Praca Teniente Sobral and become Estr. san Pedro de Alcantara that ends at the south side of the railway station. The main road with separated lanes going south from the station, this is the Avenida Duque de Caxias. The second major crossing will be R. San Sebastião, go left here. This road will take you past the paratroopers' barracks were a C-119 is used as trainer. This road leads back to the railway tracks and merges with R. João Vicente just before that. You could also take João Vicente from Duque de Caxias immediately as this is the first road when leaving the station, but you will not pass the C-119 then. Anyway, from João Vicente take a right when the suburb starts again, this is R. Xavier Curado. That one bends left and leads past the north east perimeter wall of Afonsos.

By car, from the east

This will be the route when coming from Galeão or São Pedro da Aldeia. From Galeão get onto Avenida Brasil by taking Avenida Brg.Trompowski exiting Pres. João Goulart. Follow the Avenida Brasil, you will pass the connection with Pres. Duta / BR-116, the one you will be one while arriving from the north and northwest by the way. Stay on Brasil until you have passed the railway. This can hardly be missed, it is a long over pass with a river, the railway and a small river again. Get off Brasil and onto Estr.Mal. Alencastro, the rest of the directions are the same as mentioned above.

Around the Airport

Frequencies

Based Operators

Preserved

More Info

Order of Battle Brazil

Other Airfields