The Chilean Air Force () is the

air force An air force in the broadest sense is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an army aviati ...

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...

and branch of the Chilean military.

History

The first step towards the current FACh is taken by Teniente Coronel training as a pilot in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. Although a local academy was created, the first officers were sent to France for their training as well. One of them,

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

Manuel Ávalos Prado, took command over the Chilean military aviation school, which was officially established in February 1913, and remained in command until 1915. The Military Aviation School () was named in honor of him in 1944, and still carries that name today. In those early years many aviation milestones were achieved; conquering the height of the

Andes The Andes ( ), Andes Mountains or Andean Mountain Range (; ) are the List of longest mountain chains on Earth, longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range ...

was one of the main targets as well as long distance flights. Typical aircraft of that era were

Avro 504 The Avro 504 is a single-engine biplane bomber made by the Avro, Avro aircraft company and under licence by others. Production during World War I totalled 8,970 and continued for almost 20 years, making it the most-produced aircraft of any kind ...

, Bleriot XI, Bristol M.1C, DH.9, and SE5a. In the following decade, the Airmail Line of Chile () was created on 5 March 1929 as a branch of the military aviation. This postal airline later developed into the National Airline () that is still the leading airline in Chile today. Shortly afterwards, on 21 March 1930, the existing aviation elements of the army and navy were amalgamated into a dedicated department: the Department of the Air Force () effectively creating the current independent Air Force. It was initially named National Air Force (). The international airport of Chile carries the name of Lan's founding father and first commander of the air force, Air Commodore Arturo Merino Benítez. Its baptism of fire was in the 1931 sailors' rebellion in Coquimbo, where Air Force attack aircraft and bombers and 2 transport planes converted into bombers contributed to its failure. The first outlines of the organization of the current air force were visible in 1945 with the inception of Transport Group 1, later renumbered Group 10, with two C-45s and a single T-6 Texan at Los Cerrillos. Two years later the first FACh flight to

Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean (also known as the Antarctic Ocean), it contains the geographic South Pole. ...

was performed. The fifties meant entry into the jet age for the FACh, and Grupo 7 was the first unit to receive them in 1954. Chile got its aircraft from both the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

and

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

. The American supply consisted of Lockheed F-80,

Lockheed T-33 The Lockheed T-33 Shooting Star (or T-Bird) is an American subsonic jet trainer. It was produced by Lockheed and made its first flight in 1948. The T-33 was developed from the Lockheed P-80/F-80 starting as TP-80C/TF-80C in development, then d ...

, Beech

T-34 Mentor The Beechcraft T-34 Mentor is an American propeller-driven, single-engined, military trainer aircraft derived from the Beechcraft Bonanza, Beechcraft Model 35 Bonanza. The earlier versions of the T-34, dating from around the late 1940s to the ...

, Cessna T-37, Cessna A-37 Dragonfly and Northrop F-5E/F for example, whereas the British supplied

Hawker Hunter The Hawker Hunter is a transonic British jet propulsion, jet-powered fighter aircraft that was developed by Hawker Aircraft for the Royal Air Force (RAF) during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It was designed to take advantage of the newly dev ...

s and the French delivered various helicopters and Dassault Mirage 50 aircraft. During the

military coup d'état A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. Militaries are typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with their members identifiable by a d ...

on September 11, 1973, the Chilean Air Force conducted Operation Silence, Hunters from the 7th Aviation Squadron destroyed several transmission antennas belonging to pro-government radio stations. After accomplishing their mission, the aircraft performed attack runs on the presidential residence at Las Condes and the

presidential palace A presidential palace is the official residence of the president in some countries. Some presidential palaces were once the official residences to monarchs in former monarchies that were preserved during those states' transition into republics. ...

, a pilot mistakenly opened fire on the Air Force Hospital when attacking the residence, no casualties were reported. The Chilean air force hosted the joint exercise Salitre with other friendly nations in 2014. It also participated in several United Nations peacekeeping missions overseas in 5 occasions. The Chilean Air Force reported one of its C-130 Hercules transport aircraft carrying 38 people en route to

missing on December 9, 2019. The aircraft was on its way to Antarctica’s King George Island to provide logistic support to a military base when radio contact was lost. On 11 December 2019, aircraft debris was located 18 miles South of where the plane last made contact and no survivors were found. The cause of the crash is unknown.

Commanders-in-chief

Order of battle

Personnel = 10,600 (including 700 conscripts) Office of the Commander in Chief

Combat Command of the Air Force

First Air Brigade with headquarters in Los Cóndores Air Base (Base Aérea Los Cóndores) in

Iquique Iquique () is a port List of cities in Chile, city and Communes of Chile, commune in northern Chile, capital of both the Iquique Province and Tarapacá Region. It lies on the Pacific coast, west of the Pampa del Tamarugal, which is part of the At ...

* 1st Aviation Squadron * 2nd Aviation Squadron * 3rd Aviation Squadron * 24th Air Defense Squadron * 34th Telecommunications Squadron * 44th Aviation Infantry Squadron Second Air Brigade with headquarters in Pudahuel Air Base () in

Santiago Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile (), is the capital and largest city of Chile and one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is located in the country's central valley and is the center of the Santiago Metropolitan Regi ...

* 9th Aviation Squadron * 10th Aviation Squadron * Air Defence and Special Forces Regiment () * 32nd Telecommunications Squadron Third Air Brigade with headquarters in El Tepual Air Base () in

Puerto Montt Puerto Montt (Mapuche: Meli Pulli) is a port city and commune in southern Chile, located at the northern end of the Reloncaví Sound in the Llanquihue Province, Los Lagos Region, 1,055 km to the south of the capital, Santiago. The commune ...

* 5th Aviation Squadron * 25th Air Defense Squadron * 35th Telecommunications Squadron Fourth Air Brigade with headquarters in Chabunco Air Base () in

Punta Arenas Punta Arenas (, historically known as Sandy Point in English) is the capital List of cities in Chile, city of Chile's southernmost Regions of Chile, region, Magallanes Region, Magallanes and Antarctica Chilena. Although officially renamed as ...

* 6th Aviation Squadron Chilean F-16 Fidae 2006

* 12th Aviation Squadron * 23rd Air Defense Squadron * 33rd Telecommunications Squadron * 19th Antarctic Exploration Squadron Fifth Air Brigade with headquarters in Cerro Moreno Air Base () in

Antofagasta Antofagasta () is a port city in northern Chile, about north of Santiago. It is the capital of Antofagasta Province and Antofagasta Region. According to the 2015 census, the city has a population of 402,669. Once claimed by Bolivia follo ...

* 7th Aviation Squadron * 8th Aviation Squadron * 21st Air Defense Squadron * 31st Telecommunications Squadron * 41st Aviation Infantry Squadron

Personnel Command

Education Division * Air Force School "Captain Manuel Ávalos Prado" * Air Force NCO School "Flight Sergeant Adolfo Menadier Rojas" * Advanced NCO School * Air War Academy * Air Force Polytechnical Academy * Air Photographic Surveying Service Health Division
General Hospital of the Air Force
Air Force High Command Prefecture

Logistics Command

Maintenance Division
Administration Division
Infrastructure Division The Air Force also maintains the Air Force Special Forces (), comparable to a

United States Air Force Combat Control Team The United States Air Force Combat Control Teams, singular Combat Controller (CCT) ( AFSC 1Z2X1), are an elite special operations force (specifically known as "special tactics operators") who specialize in all aspects of air-ground communicatio ...

. They may be up to 350 strong, and their roles include assault, reconnaissance,

Air Traffic Control Air traffic control (ATC) is a service provided by ground-based air traffic controllers who direct aircraft on the ground and through a given section of controlled airspace, and can provide advisory services to aircraft in non-controlled air ...

Fire Support Fire support is a military tactics term used to describe weapons fire used to support friendly forces by engaging, suppressing, or destroying enemy forces, facilities, or materiel in combat. It is often provided through indirect fire, though th ...

, and Command, control, and communications.

Aircraft

F-16C Block 50M de la Fuerza aerea de Chile

Current inventory

Industry

Chile also maintains its own aviation industry, ENAER. The design of the T-35 Pillán trainer, based on the Piper PA-28R Saratoga, is the best known example, seeing some export success as well. Furthermore, the assembly of the A-36/T-36 Halcón (CASA C-101) was achieved as well. Performing maintenance on most types in the current inventory, such as minor modifications on F-5E aircraft for example, the industry is of significant importance to the air force. ENAER is reported to be in talks with Embraer of Brazil to codesign the first indigenous South American military transport plane. Also, under the Pacer Amstel programme, with initial Dutch support, and later locally ENAER upgraded an F-16 combat jet, which for the Chilean Air Force is an advance for their maintenance of the F-16 fleet (becoming the 5th country to modify their jets under authorization).

Ranks

;Officers ;Enlisted

Badges

Officers

Non-commissioned officers and airmen

Officers' cap badges

Chilean Air Force officers wear the following cap badges in their peaked caps.

Notes

Bibliography

External links

Fuerza Aérea de Chile
official website
Fuerza Aérea de Chile
at Chilean Defense Ministry, official website
Fuerza Aérea de Chile website
old at Archive.org
Ranks of Fuerza Aérea de Chile website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chilean Air Force Military units and formations established in 1930 1930 establishments in Chile 1930 in Chilean law