Illegitimate son of Garcia de Sousa Chichorro (alcaide of Trás-os-Montes from 1491 to 1496, member of the Counsel during the reigns of King Manuel I and King John III, and superintendent of the Royal Hospital of All Saints after 1527).

Aires was the first member of the Sousa Chichorro lineage to set sail for the Orient. He left in 1506 aboard the armada commandeered by Tristão de Cunha. At the beginning of the following year, he participated in the attack on the city of Brava, on the eastern coast of Africa. His successful military efforts led Afonso de Albuquerque to award him the title of squire, on a par with other young noblemen. His exact contribution to the second significant effort of this armada is not known, as it tried to take the island of Socotorá and build a fortress to control access to the Red Sea. When part of the squadron was conferred to Albuquerque, Aires de Sousa Chichorro accompanied him to the Persian Gulf and collaborated in the attempts to take Ormuz in 1508. His career overseas seems to have come to an end in 1509, when he returned to Portugal as captain of a vessel of the annual armada.

Bibliography:
PELÚCIA, Alexandra, Martim Afonso de Sousa e a sua Linhagem – A Elite Dirigente do Império Português nos Reinados de D. João III e D. Sebastião, Lisboa, UNL-FCSH, 2007, dissertação de doutoramento policopiada.