Aviation in the Azores an era that was tumultuous, the democratic politicians debated a proposal in Portuguese National Assembly to regionalize the provision of services to the Azores and Madeira. Following these events, the increasingly autonomous governments of the Azores, between 1981 and 1983, built several airports to provide expanded service to the remaining islands. In addition to improvements at Horta Airport, the government of the Azores finalized construction of: Since the 1940s, the Portuguese flag carrier Transportes Aéreos Portugueses (today's TAP Portugal) operated regular flights to the Azores through the gateways in Ponta Delgada, Lajes and Vila do Porto. Meanwhile, a group of
Azores hotspot plume has been suggested to be located 100 to 200 km east of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge near the island of Faial. The Azores domain comprises the Azores Plateau and the Azores archipelago (formed of 9 islands extending a distance of 480 km) which has been volcanically active for around 7Myr. The archipelago lies on the lateral branch of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge near the junction of three major tectonic plates; the North American Plate, the Eurasian Plate and the African Plate. This unique location causes the area to have ridge-hotspot interaction with a variation of volcanic processes. The Azores archipelago rises