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Argentine Air Force

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The Argentine Air Force (Fuerza Aérea Argentina, FAA) is the national Air force or aviation branch of the armed forces of Argentina.

Service Emblem of the Argentine Air Force
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Service Emblem of the Argentine Air Force

Contents

History

The Argentine Air Force´s history begins with the establishment of the Escuela de Aviación Militar (Military Aviation School) on August 10 1912. Several military officers were amongst the pioneers of Argentine aviation, including Jorge Newbery, a retired Argentine Navy officer. The School began to turn out several military pilots who participated in milestone events in Argentine aviation, such as the crossing of the Andes mountains. In 1927 the Dirección General de Aeronáutica (General Directorate of Aeronautics) was created to coordinate the country´s military aviation. In that same year, the Fábrica Militar de Aviones (Military Aircraft Factory, FAM) was founded in Córdoba, which would become the heart of the country´s aviation industry.

By the 1940s there were several air units in the Army and the Navy, and the first step towards an independent force came on February 11 1944 with the establishment of the Aeronautical Command, which would go on to become the Argentine Air Force on January 4th, 1945, an independent force on par with the Army and the Navy.

Immediately after the end of World War II, the Air Force began a process of modernization, incorporating aircraft such as the Gloster Meteor jet fighter, thus becoming the first air force in Latin America equipped with jet-propelled aircraft. Also a number of Avro Lincoln and Avro Lancaster bombers were acquired, creating a powerful strategic force in the region. The Air Force, in collaboration with German technicians, also began to develop its own aircraft, such as the Pulqui I and Pulqui II, making Argentina the 1st country in Latin America and the 6th in the world to develop jet fighter technology on its own.

In 1952 the Air Force began flights to supply the early Antarctic scientific bases, expanding its activities in the Antarctic continent and establishing Marambio Base on September 25 1969.

During the 1970s the Air Force reequipped itself with modern aircraft for the period, including the Mirage III interceptors, IAI Dagger multi-role fighters (Israeli derivatives of the Mirage V), A-4 Skyhawk attack aircraft and C-130 Hercules cargo planes. Also, a counter-insurgency airplane, the Pucará, was used in substantinal numbers.

The 1982 Falklands/Malvinas War took a great toll on the Air Force, which lost more than 80 aircraft. Due to the deteriorating economic situation, international opposition and political distrust upon the military, the Air Force was denied the resources needed to replace the war losses. This, coupled with diminishing budgets, led to a period of reduced activity and growing materiel obsolescence.

In the 1990s, the British embargo was officially eliminated and after economic and political failure attempts of getting surplus IAI Kfirs or F-16As, the United States sold 36 refurbished A-4M Skyhawk known as A-4AR Fightinghawks. Since their reception, the A-4AR demonstrated being a worthy replacement of the Bravos and Charlies that fought during the war.

On early 2005 the top seventeen brigadiers of the Air Force, including the Chief of Staff, Brigadier General Carlos Rohde, were sacked by President Néstor Kirchner following a drug traffic scandal through Ezeiza International Airport. Kirchner cited failures in the security systems of Argentine airports (which were overseen by the National Aeronautic Police, a branch of the Air Force) and cover-ups of the scandal, even though it later became known that many government agencies, among them the Interior Ministry, the Customs Administration and the Secretariat of State Intelligence knew about the drug traffic operations. The Air Force´s current Chief of Staff is Brigadier Eduardo Schiaffino.

The primary concerns of the Air Force nowadays are the establishment of a radar network for control of the country´s airspace, the replacement of its older combat aircraft (Mirage III, Mirage V) and the incorporation of new technologies. The possibility of purchasing surplus French Air Force Mirage 2000C fighters, like the option chosen by the Brazilian Air Force, has been considered.

Since the last decade, the FAA had established good relations with neighbours Brazilian Air Force and Chilean Air Force. They annually meet, on a rotation basis, in the join exercises Cruzex in Brasil, Ceibo in Argentina and Salitre in Chile.

Organization

The Argentine Air Force is one of the three branches of the Argentine military, in an equal footing with the Army and the Navy. The President of Argentina is Commander-in-Chief of the Air Force as well as of the other branches of the military.

The Air Force is headed by the Chief of the General Staff (Jefe del Estado Mayor General), directly appointed and removed by the President. The Air Force Chief of Staff usually holds the rank of Brigadier General, the highest rank of the Air Force. The Chief of Staff is seconded by a Deputy Chief of the General Staff and four senior officers in charge of the Air Force's four Commands: the Air Operations Command, the Air Regions Command, the Personnel Command and the Materiel Command.

The Air Operations Command (Comando de Operaciones Aéreas) is the branch of the Air Force responsible for aerospace defense, air operations, planning, training, technical and logistical support of the air units. Subordinate to the Air Operations Command are the Air Brigades (Brigadas Aéreas), the Air Force's major operative units. A total of eight Air Brigades are currently operational. Brigades are headquartered at Military Air Bases (Base Aérea Militar, commonly abbreviated "BAM").

Each Air Brigade is made up of three Groups, All Groups bear the same numeral as its mother Brigade:

The Personnel Command (Comando de Personal) is responsible for the training, education, assignment and welfare of Air Force personnel. Under the control of the Personnel Command are the Military Aviation School (which educates the future officers of the Air Force), the Air Force NCO School and other educational and training units.

The Materiel Command (Comando de Material) deals with planning and executing the Air Force's logistics regarding flying and ground materiel. Materiel Command includes "Quilmes" and "Río Cuarto " Materiel Areas (repairing and maintenance units) and "El Palomar" Logistical Area.

Air Regions Command (Comando de Regiones Aéreas) is responsible for the control of air traffic, weather forecasting, aircraft and pilot registration (civilian), accident investigation (both civilian and military) and air communications. It is worth noting that Air Regions Command serves as the national authority regarding air transportation.

Ranks

Officers

Officers wear their rank insignia in their sleeves, in the pattern depicted below. There are also shoulderboards with the same insignia (albeit in gray) for the ranks between Alférez and Comodoro. Brigadiers wear different shoulderboards.

NATO Rank Code Insignia Argentinian Rank Transliteration US Air Force equivalent
OF-9 Arg-airforce-OF9.png Brigadier General Brigadier General General
OF-8 Arg-airforce-OF8.png Brigadier Mayor Major Brigadier Lieutenant General
OF-7 Arg-airforce-OF7.png Brigadier Brigadier Major General
OF-6       Brigadier General
OF-5 Arg-airforce-OF5.png Comodoro Commodore Colonel
OF-4 Arg-airforce-OF4.png Vicecomodoro Vice Commodore Lieutenant Colonel
OF-3 Arg-airforce-OF3.png Mayor Major Major
OF-2 Arg-airforce-OF2.png Capitán Captain Captain
OF-1 Arg-airforce-OF1a.png Primer Teniente First Lieutenant First Lieutenant
OF-1 Arg-airforce-OF1b.png Teniente Lieutenant Second Lieutenant
OF-D Arg-airforce-OFD.png Alférez Ensign no equivalent

Enlisted men and Non-Commissioned Officers

Insignia Argentinian Rank Transliteration
50px Suboficial Mayor Senior Sub-Officer
50px Suboficial Principal Master Sub-Officer
50px Suboficial Ayudante Staff Sub-Officer
50px Suboficial Auxiliar Assistant Sub-Officer
50px Cabo Principal Master Corporal
50px Cabo Primero First Corporal
50px Cabo Corporal
50px Voluntario Primero First Volunteer
50px Voluntario Segundo Second Volunteer

Order of battle

  1. 1st Air Transport Squadron (C-130 Hercules)
  2. 2nd Air Transport Squadron (Fokker F-28)
  3. 5th Air Transport Squadron (Boeing 707)
  • 2nd Air Brigade (Paraná Military Air Base, Entre Ríos Province)
  • 2nd Reconnaissance Squadron (Learjet 35A)
  • 4th Air Transport Squadron (Fokker F-27)
  • 3rd Air Brigade (Reconquista Military Air Base, Santa Fe Province)
  • 2nd Attack Squadron (IA-58A Pucara)
  • 3rd Attack Squadron (IA-58A Pucara)
  • 4th Air Brigade (El Plumerillo Military Air Base, Mendoza Province)
  • 1st Training Squadron (MS-760 Paris)
  • 2nd Fighter Squadron (IA-63 Pampa)
  • 3rd Search and Rescue Squadron (SA-315B Lama)
  • 4th ´Cruz del Sur´ Acrobatics Squadron (Su-29)
  • Fighter School
  • 5th Air Brigade (Villa Reynolds Military Air Base, San Luis Province)
  • 1st Fighter-Bomber Squadron (A-4AR Fightinghawk)
  • 2nd Fighter-Bomber Squadron (A-4AR Fightinghawk)
  • 6th Air Brigade (Tandil Military Air Base, Buenos Aires Province, Mirage IIIEA/DA, Mirage 5PA, IAI Dagger)
  • 1st Fighter-Bomber Squadron (Mirage V)
  • 2nd Air Interceptor Squadron (Mirage IIIEA/DA)
  • 7th Air Brigade (Moreno Military Air Base, Buenos Aires Province)
  • 1st Search and Rescue Squadron (Bell 212)
  • 2nd Tactical Squadron (Hughes 500D)
  • 3rd Squadron (UH-1H)
  • 4th Squadron (UH-1H, Hughes 500D)
  • 9th Air Brigade (Comodoro Rivadavia Military Air Base, Chubut Province)
  • 6th Air Transport Squadron (Fokker F-27)
  • 7th Air Transport Squadron (DHC-6 Twin Otter)
  • Military Aviation School (Cordoba, Córdoba Province)
  • Glider Flight
  • Services Squadron
  • Mentor Squadron (T-34 Mentor)
  • Tucano Squadron (Embraer EMB-312 Tucano)
  • Agrupación Aérea Presidencial, Presidential transportation Unit

    • Chiefs of the Argentine Air Force

    Commanders of the Army Military Aviation (1912-1919) Commanders of the Army Aeronautical Service (1919-1927) Commanders of the General Directorate of Aeronautics (1927-1941) Commanders of the First Air Division (1936) Commanders of the Army Air Forces (1936-1939) Commanders of the Army Aviation Command (1938-1944) Commanders-in-Chief of the Aeronautica (1944) Commanders of the Argentine Air Force (1945-1947) Commanders-in-Chief of the Argentine Air Force (1947-1973) General Commanders of the Argentine Air Force (1973-1976) Commanders-in-Chief of the Argentine Air Force (1976-1983) Chiefs of the General Staff of the Argentine Air Force (1983-present)

    See also

    External links

    Military of Argentina
    Argentine Navy | 
Argentine Army | 40px Argentine Air Force

     

    From Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Original article here. Support Wikipedia by contributing or donating.
    All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License See Wikipedia Copyrights for details.

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