Peruvian Air Force / Fuerza Aerea del Peru
The FAP had a total personnel strength of about 15,000 in 1990, including some 7,000 conscripts, with 116 combat aircraft and 24 armed helicopters. This compared with some 10,000 air force personnel in 1980 and 138 combat aircraft. Of Peru's three services, only the FAP had made a significant commitment to include women volunteers in regular enlisted service. As of May 1986, there were 2,100 women in the ranks, including 20 senior airwomen, 60 airwomen first class, 300 airwomen, and 1,720 airwomen basic. Basic training courses were the same as those provided to men. Most women served in administrative positions, including secretarial, teletype, nursing, meteorology, and supply assistance.
The FAP commander, with headquarters in Lima, was responsible to the minister of defense and oversaw a service divided, as of 1990, into some nine groups and twenty-two squadrons across Peru's three air defense zones. The FAP's principal bases were at Iquitos in the north jungle; Talara, Piura, Chiclayo, and Trujillo on the north coast; Huánuco in the central highlands and Lima/Callao, Las Palmas, and Pisco on the central coast; and La Joya and Arequipa in the south. Secondary bases included Cajamarca in the north highlands; Ancón and Limatambo on the central coast; San Ramón, Ayacucho, and Cusco in the central and south-central highlands; and Puerto Maldonado in the south jungle.
The six groups with combat equipment were distributed among the major bases: Attack Group 7 (three squadrons of Cessnas) at Piura and Chiclayo; Bomber Group 9 (two squadrons of Canberras) at Pisco; Fighter Group 11 (including one squadron of Fitter-Js) at La Joya; Fighter Group 12 (two squadrons of Fitter-Fs) at Talara; and Fighter Group 13 (two squadrons of Mirages) at Chiclayo, with deployments to La Joya and elsewhere. The other combat group was Helicopter Group 3, which was based at Callao but deployed at various bases throughout the country, including an attack squadron, which as of 1990 was probably assigned to the army for counterinsurgency duty.
FAP responsibilities during the 1980s also included increasing activities to support the government's effort to reduce drug trafficking, particularly illegal flights to Colombia from clandestine air strips in the north central region of the Upper Huallaga Valley. In addition, the FAP continued to fulfill its long-standing mission of providing air links to remote parts of Peru that lacked roads, particularly the eastern jungle areas. Transportation Group 42, based in Iquitos, operated the National Jungle Air Transport (Transportes Aéreos Nacionales Selváticos-- TANS) service with C-47s, DHC-6s, and PC-6s. Transport Group 8 was based at Lima's Jorge Chávez International Airport to perform similar duties, as well as to service some of the military's own air supply and training needs, with L-100-20 Hercules, DHC-5s, AN-26s, AN-32s, Beech 99s, Queen Air 80s, and King Air 90s. The president's fleet, including a Fokker F28 and Falcon 20F, was also a part of Transportation Group 8.
Some of the helicopter squadrons were deployed at various bases to assist in such nonmilitary missions as the support of oil exploration activities, medivac, and sea-air rescue; others concentrated on military support activities, particularly against guerrilla operations. Peru's location astride the Andes and its multiple ranges, with a jungle area comprising over half the national territory and a heavily populated coast largely cut off from the rest of the country, required a substantial air force presence. The national airline, Air Transport Company of Peru (Empresa de Transporte Aéreo del Perú--Aeroperú), was considered an auxiliary of FAP.
The tendency of the country to be located in a very difficult geographical area has made disasters diverse, and the trend continues to grow, which is why services and therefore user requirements tend to increase more and more within the scope internal, requiring a greater response capacity from the Air Force, which is essential and a vital tool to achieve excellent results in a highly demanding environment.Fuerza Aerea del Peru - Modernization
The government's allocation to the Air Force is within low margins, due to the process of increasing the cost of services and having a very reduced budget, which reduces the action of the institution to being only an operational entity and not far-sighted without greater capacity for action and therefore for administrative and operational management.
Like the Peruvian navy, the FAP underwent a substantial modernization during the 1968-80 military government that continued into the elected civilian administrations of the 1980s. Unlike the navy, however, much of the modernization involved the acquisition of Soviet equipment, the extension of a long-standing air force policy of diversifying material sources rather than relying primarily on a single country.
Peru received the first batch of T-33 in the 1950s and a second batch of eleven T-33As in 1962. Some 6 Sabre F-86F were purchased in 1963. A total fo 16 Mirage 5P were purchased in 1968, the first supersonic aircraft in South America. The first of 32+4 Su-22 Fitter-F arrived in July 1977, and were almost immediately "upgraded" with Western avionics. The second batch of 16 Su-22M/UM devices (with enlarged spine) was commissioned in 1979. They were the first aircraft with variable geometry wings in South America. Both lots came with the AA-2-2 Atoll's firing capability. The A-37B Dragonfly was first purchased in 1974.
Peru purchased 16 Aermacchi MB-339A in 1981. The FAP entered into an agreement with Italy's Aermacchi (Aeronàutica Macchi--Macchi Aviation Company) in 1980 to assemble in Peru sixty-six MB-339 AB trainers and MB-339K light attack planes, with the wings, rear fuselage, and tail unit manufactured in Peru. Construction began in November 1981 of an Aeronautics Industry Public Enterprise (Empresa Pública de la Industria Aeronáutica--Indaer-Perú) factory at Collique with Aermacchi assistance, but financial problems forced its cancellation in late 1984.
Peru purchased 10 Mirage-2000P and 2 two-seat Mirage-2000DP, which were received between 1986 and 1987. Peru bought 18 Su-25 fighters in 1996, of which 8 were Su-25 UB two-seaters, it is considered the most specialized AIRCRAFT in CAS in Latin America. In addition, it allowed faP to be the pioneer in Latin America in the use of anti-war missiles, through Raduga Kh-58 missiles in the Su-25 UB. The MiG-29 Fulcrum-C were delivered in 1996 after the government of Alberto Fujimori, they were for a short time, the best fighter in South America, being also the first to use BVR missiles, with the R-27 and R-77.
In addition, the FAP made substantial purchases of planes and helicopters from other countries. Although this remarkable diversity posed major logistical and maintenance challenges, by the late 1980s Peru had the third largest air force in Latin America and the most advanced equipment of them all.
The 'Strategic Plan to 2021' of the Air Force, known by the officers as 'Plan Quiñones', was prepared in 2003. It is not a war plan or an operational plan, but it represents a long-term projection of what the FAP was pursuing with a view to 2021, when the country's 200 years of independence will be completed.
In 2006, the execution of the Basic Defense Core was approved, which includes the recovery of the operation of a part of the combat aircraft fleet: 12 Mirage-2000, 19 Mig-29 and 18 Sukhoi-25. In response , Chile added to the 10 F-16s it bought from the US, another 28 F-16 units from the Netherlands. After the revelation in 2009 of the espionage carried out by the non-commissioned officer of the Peruvian Air Force, Víctor Ariza Mendoza, in favor of Chile, the FAP Intelligence Directorate began an investigatio It is obvious that after learning about the characteristics of the Basic Defense Core, most likely with information sold by Ariza, Chile doubled its arms purchases.
By 2015 Peru’s modernization policy also included the Air Force, which was co-manufacturing KT1s and acquiring C27 cargo planes, in addition to 24 helicopters to help in transportation and monitoring duties within the VRAEM.
The brand new Commander General of the Peruvian Air Force (FAP), Dante Antonio Arévalo Abate, on 26 December 2015 stressed that the Air Force had a great responsibility with "defense and national development", and therefore will continue with the implementation of the Quiñones Plan, which seeks to modernize the institution to respond to the expectations and demands of the country. "Our compatriots expect a lot from our institution, therefore we will demand ourselves, to respond to these expectations by doing much more for our country and the Air Force, driven by the authentic desire to form a just, fraternal, inclusive and supportive nation," he added.
At Las Palmas Air Base, the 79th anniversary of the immolation of Captain FAP José Quiñones Gonzales, Peruvian Air Force Day, was conmemorized 23 July 2020. In his order speech, the Commander General of the Air Force, General of the Air Force Rodolfo García Esquerre, stated that "the Peruvian Air Force, as a fundamental pillar of aerospace military power, represents an amalgam of capabilities, which together with the professionalism of its men are permanently at the service of the demands of the state, aimed at meeting the needs of our compatriots". He indicates that "the institution has taken on its challenge in the development of the aerospace industry, having made significant progress through the co-production of the KT-1s and in the assembly of the CH-2000 Alarus. These two types of instructional aircraft have been used in the formation of new pilots. For the same purpose, we have been working on aircraft maintenance and electronic components, in the manufacture of flight and shooting simulators, in the manufacture of braking parachutes for combat aircraft and for cargo launch, and in the production of unmanned aerial vehicles."
Finally, General García Esquerre stated that "the use of aerospace power and cyberspace in favor of defense, security and national development is and should always be our main contribution. For this to be feasible, it is necessary to have a number of operational and logistical capabilities that are reflected or projected through a certain magnitude and structure of force", adding that "in that sense, thinking about the future, is that we have an Institutional Plan that implies clear and quantifiable strategic objectives.
"This is the Plan Quiñones. In order to achieve these medium- and long-term institutional objectives each year, we establish a set of priority activities through which we adequately guide our efforts and the use of budgetary resources, having recently managed to increase our capacities with the acquisition of 8 CH-2000 Alarus primary education aircraft, 4 Instruction helicopters Enstrom F-280FX and a Boeing 737-300 aircraft, to which is added the effort of the defense sector to be able to have in a short time a Boeing 737 (fast change of cargo to passengers), as well as two KC-130 hercules aircraft and ambulance aircraft. At the same time, efforts in the area of maintenance and modernization are helping to maintain our means, highlighting the digitization of the cabins of two of our L-100-20 Hercules (one completed and the other in process), the maintenance of 3 Bell 212 helicopters, the major maintenance of Mi-17 (4 completed and two in process), the repair of an Antonov An-32B aircraft, the continuity in the repair of our Sukhoi Su-25s, the digitization of our radars, as well as the logistical support for the Learjet 45, DHC-6-400 Twin Otter and Leonardo C-27J Spartan aircraft."
Important in the sphere of the Air Force, there is currently no adequate logistics and technology, both on the ground and in the air, to maintain equipment and support systems in the face of natural disasters.
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Air Wing No. 1 | ||
| Grupo Aéreo No. 6 | Chiclayo | |
| 612 Air Squadron “Gallos” | MiG-29S/SE/SMP/UBP | |
| Air Group No. 7 | Piura | |
| 711 Air Squadron "Scorpion" | Cessna A-37 Dragonfly | |
| Air Group No. 11 | Talara | |
| 112 Air Squadron «Tigres» | Su-25M / Su-25UB | |
Air Wing No. 2 | ||
| Air Group No. 3 | Callao | |
| 315 Helicopter Squadron | MBB Bo 105 | |
| 332 Helicopter Squadron | Bell 212, Bell 412 | |
| 341 Helicopter Squadron | Mi-8MTV-1, Mi-17H/1B / Mi-171Sh | |
| Air Group No. 8 | Callao | |
| 841 Transport Squadron | B737-200, B737-500 | |
| 842 Transport Squadron | L-100-20 Hercules | |
| 843 Transport Squadron | An-32B | |
| 844 Transport Squadron | C-27J Spartan | |
| Directorate of Aerial Surveillance and Reconnaissance (DIVRA) -ex DIRAF-Servicio Aerofotográfico Nacional (SAN) | Lima | |
| 330 Air Squadron | UAS FAP Mk1 thru Mk6 | |
| 331 Air Squadron | Learjet 35 | |
| 334 Airlift Squadron | C-26 Metroliner, Twin Commander 690B. | |
| EFOPI - Pilot Training School (ex- Air Group No. 51) | Pisco | |
| 510 Airlift Squadron (basic) | Schweizer S-300C | |
| 511 Air Squadron (primary) | Zlín Z-242, Alarus CH-2000 | |
| 512 Air Squadron (basic) | KAI KT-1P | |
| 513 Airlift Squadron (advanced) | KAI KT-1P | |
Air Wing No. 3 | ||
| Air Group No. 2 | Vítor ( Arequipa ) | |
| 211 Air Squadron «Air Dragons» | Mi-25 D / DU and Mi-35 P | |
| Air Group No. 4 | La Joya ( Arequipa ) | |
| 412 Air Squadron "Falcons" | Mirage 2000 P / DP | |
| FAP Command School | La Joya ( Arequipa ) | |
| Puerto Maldonado Air Base | ||
| Tacna Air Detachment | ||
Air Wing No. 5 | ||
| Air Group No. 42 | Iquitos | |
| 421 Airlift Squadron | DHC-6 | |
| ..... | 422 Air Squadron | PC-6 |
| Santa Clara Air Base | Iquitos | |
Fuerza Aerea del Peru - History
In January 1911, Juan Bielovucic flew the first plane in Peru. In Paris, Peruvians Jorge Chavez and Juan Bielovucic competed and won contests of the nascent aviation and shared experiences with the pioneering giants of global aeronautics. After the death of Jorge Chavez in 1910, in Europe; here in Peru, an intense activity in favor of national aeronautics in the commercial and military aspect. In the military field- nationals and foreigners consider the advancement of this aeronautical technology as a new weapon, indispensable element in the defense of Peru.
Thus, on January 28, 1919, the government created Army Military Aviation Service, by supreme decree signed by the President Republic, José Pardo. In addition, the head of state, manages before the French government, the sending of a military mission to organize the first School of Aviation Military Aviation in Peru. Similarly, on December 9 of that year, the Navy Hydrokination Service February 8, 1920, the Ancon Seaplane School as a unit of the Navy Peruvian.
On July 23, 1922, the army's new aviation school was opened as "Jorge Chávez" in Las Palmas. On May 20, 1929, the Peruvian Aviation Corps was created, i.e. a third institute was born Armed. Until then, the Political Constitution Peru (1920) noted that the armed forces were made up of the Army and Navy. Between 1919 and 1929, according to the Political Constitution of 1920, the Peruvian Armed Forces were constituted only by the Army and Navy. On May 20, 1929, the Peruvian Aviation Corps was created as the third armed service.
On August 17, 1931, the General Staff of Aviation, the current EMGRA. In 1936, the Peruvian Aviation Corps changed appellation by the Aeronautical Corps of the Peru. On April 5, 1941, the General Aeronautics Inspection of the CAP, the current INSPE, was created. On February 22, 1933 the AVIATION CORPS OF PERU had its baptism of fire during Peru's Armed Conflict with the Republic of Colombia, fighting German mercenaries. In 1941, CAP, already as THE AERONUTICO BODY OF PERU, acted directly in the Armed Conflict with the Republic of Ecuador, between July 5 and October 2, 1941 and that epic of 1941, delivered their lives in defense of the Fatherland, Lieutenants CAP, Renán Elías Olivera and José Quiñones Gonzáles as well as the 2nd Master NCO. CAP Manuel Polo Jiménez, superhumously promoted to the upper immediate degree.
Finally, in 1950, it changed to the name today: Peruvian Air Force. By Law No. 16126 of May 10, 1966, Captain José A. Quiñones Gonzáles was declared a national hero, immolated in Quebrada Seca and it was determined that July 23 will be the "The Day of Military Aviation".
The Air Force of Peru in 1981, in the Armed Conflict with the Republic of Ecuador, on the eastern flank of the Cordillera del Condor, called "Falso Paquisha" evicted the invader with his planes and helicopters, forcing him to leave our invaded territory to the environment of the Comaina River, giving mainly the FAP, victory to Peru. In 1995, during the Armed Conflict with that same Republic, in the area called the "Upper Cenepa", the FAP evicting the invader with its aircraft, nine of its members lost their lives in defense of the homeland, which is why the Nation promoted them to the highest immediate degree.
Consequently, celebrating May 20, 1929 as "The Day of the Creation of the Peruvian Air Force", does not interfere, with the celebration of July 23, the "The Day of Military Aviation", recalling the immolation on July 23, 1941 in the War with Ecuador, of Captain FAP José Abelardo Quiñones Gonzáles, to which , by Law No. 16126 of May 10, 1966, he was declared a National Hero and 41 years later by congressional law No. 29160 of December 19, 2007 is called: Captain FAP José Abelardo Quiñones Gonzáles, Grand General of the Air of Peru.
Peru's Air Force, like almost all in the world, originated from the weapons that preceded them; then consolidates as new military weapon and there are reorganizations that have led to what it is today: A weapon decisive for victory, a military institution in the service of defence and in support of development national of the homeland.
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