The municipality of Loulé belongs to the district of Faro, in the Algarve region, with an area of 765,12 km2 and 59.158 inhabitants (in 2001), being the most populous in Algarve. It’s divided into 3 freguesias (parishes). In Portugal there are two helicopter bases in permanent service and one of them is in Loulé. This base, belonging to the Ministry of Internal Administration, is under the operational management of the National Civil Protection Authority in partnership with Loulé since 1998.