The Colombian Aerospace Force (FAC, ) is the air force of the

Republic of Colombia Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country primarily located in South America with insular regions in North America. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the north, Venezuela to the east and northeast ...

. The Colombian Aerospace Force is one of the three institutions of the Military Forces of Colombia charged, according to the 1991 Constitution, with working to exercise and maintain control of Colombia's air and to defend its sovereignty, territorial integrity, and constitutional order. It is one of the largest air forces in the

Americas The Americas, sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North America and South America.''Webster's New World College Dictionary'', 2010 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio. When viewed as a sing ...

(after the United States and Brazil) and has increased its activity due to important roles in the fight against narco-terrorism. Its main force includes 21 IAI Kfirs as defense fighters and 12

Cessna A-37 Dragonfly The Cessna A-37 Dragonfly, or Super Tweet, is a jet-powered, light attack aircraft designed and produced by the American aircraft manufacturer Cessna. It was developed during the Vietnam War in response to military interest in new counter-i ...

plus 24 Embraer 314 Super Tucano for counterinsurgency. The FAC has been used in observation and aerial combat missions since the Colombian-Peruvian war of 1932 and also operated during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

in the islands of San Andrés. On 8 November 2024, through an act of

legislation Legislation is the process or result of enrolling, enacting, or promulgating laws by a legislature, parliament, or analogous governing body. Before an item of legislation becomes law it may be known as a bill, and may be broadly referred ...

, the institution changed its name to Colombian Aerospace Force.

History

Creation

Military aviation began in Colombia in 1919 with the creation of a military aviation school for the

Colombian Army The National Army of Colombia () is the land warfare service branch of the Military Forces of Colombia. With over 361,420 active personnel as of 2020, it is the largest and oldest service branch in Colombia, and is the second largest army in the ...

. Previously by

Law 15 of 1916 Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior, with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been variously described as a science and as the art ...

of September 7 two commissions were sent overseas to study new technological advancements in aviation, infantry, cavalry, engineering and trains. Officers pertaining to the Colombian Army were also sent to take a course on flight training on techniques and tactics. The school was then created in Colombia along with the Colombian National Army Aviation as a fifth regiment by Law 126 of 1919 of December 31 authorized by

President of Colombia The president of Colombia (President of the Republic) is the head of state and head of government of Colombia. The president heads the executive branch of the Government of Colombia, national government and is the commander-in-chief of the Mil ...

Marco Fidel Suárez Marco Fidel Suárez (April 23, 1855 – April 3, 1927) was a Colombian political figure. He served as president of Colombia from 1918 to 1921. He was born on April 23, 1855, in the town of Hatoviejo, Antioquia. His parents were Rosalía Suárez a ...

. The unit was officially activated on February 15, 1921 in Flandes,

Department of Tolima Tolima () is one of the 32 departments of Colombia, located in the Andean region, in the center-west of the country. It is bordered on the north and the west by the department of Caldas; on the east by the department of Cundinamarca; on the ...

with the support of a French mission led by Lieutenant Colonel Rene Guichard. The Aviation School initially had 3 Caudron G.3 E-2, 3 Caudron G.4 A-2 and four Nieuport Delage 11 C-1. The school was closed due to financial hardships in 1922. The School of Military Aviation was reopened on November 8, 1924 in

Madrid Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...

Department of Cundinamarca Department of Cundinamarca (, ) is one of the departments of Colombia. Its area covers (not including the Capital District) and it has a population of 2,919,060 as of 2018. It was created on August 5, 1886, under the constitutional terms pre ...

with the support of a Swiss mission headed by Captain Henry Pillichody. The

aircraft An aircraft ( aircraft) is a vehicle that is able to flight, fly by gaining support from the Atmosphere of Earth, air. It counters the force of gravity by using either Buoyancy, static lift or the Lift (force), dynamic lift of an airfoil, or, i ...

used for training were 4 Wild WT and 8 Wild X performing the first air review on August 7, 1927. Then on December 28, 1928 the first combat aircraft was shown in Colombia, the Curtiss Falcon O-1.

War with Peru

On September 1, 1932,

Peru Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...

vian civilians crossed into Colombian territory and invaded the town of Leticia in the Colombian Amazon claiming that the town was Peruvian territory. The Colombian military aviation only had 11 instructors, four Curtiss-Wright CW-14R Osprey air combat support planes and one Curtiss Falcon O-1. The military aviation then received full financial support from the

Congress of Colombia The Congress of the Republic of Colombia () is the name given to Colombia's bicameral national legislature. The Congress of Colombia consists of the 108-seat Senate, and the 188-seat Chamber of Representatives, Members of both houses are e ...

. Colombia bought aircraft from Germany and the United States, while others were activated from the airline operating in Colombia

SCADTA Sociedad Colombo Alemana de Transportes Aéreos (SCADTA; ), was the world's second airline, and the first airline in Latin America, operating from 1919 until World War II. After the war, SCADTA merged with Colombian regional carrier Colombian Air ...

(Sociedad Colombo-Alemana de Transporte Aéreo) and their pilots, which included some German citizens, one of these was Major Herbert Boy. The imported aircraft were 4 Junkers F.13, 4

Junkers W 34 The Junkers W 34 was a German-built, single-engine, passenger and transport aircraft. Developed in the 1920s, it was taken into service in 1926. The passenger version could take a pilot and five passengers. The aircraft was developed from the ...

and 3

Junkers K 43 The Junkers W 34 was a German-built, single-engine, passenger and transport aircraft. Developed in the 1920s, it was taken into service in 1926. The passenger version could take a pilot and five passengers. The aircraft was developed from the ...

, 6

Junkers Ju 52 The Junkers Ju 52/3m (nicknamed ''Tante Ju'' ("Aunt Ju") and ''Iron Annie'') is a transport aircraft that was designed and manufactured by German aviation company Junkers. First introduced during 1930 as a civilian airliner, it was adapted int ...

, 2 Dornier Merkur II, 4

Dornier Wal The Dornier Do J ''Wal'' ("whale") is a twin-engine German flying boat of the 1920s designed by ''Dornier Flugzeugwerke''. The Do J was designated the Do 16 by the Reich Air Ministry (''RLM'') under its aircraft designation system of 1933. De ...

, 20 Curtiss Falcon F-8F and 30 Curtiss Hawk II F-11C. The contingent was then sent to southern Colombia to fight Peruvian forces with the main mission of delivering supplies to the front lines, aerial reconnaissance and air to land attacks. The fleet was divided into three squadrons with Puerto Boy as the main camp site. Support bases were in Caucaya airstrip (

Puerto Leguízamo Puerto LeguízamoPuerto Leguízamo official website
() is a town and m ...

El Encanto El Encanto is a town and municipality in the ''Amazonas Department'' of Colombia. It is located in the mouth of the Cara Paraná River, a tributary of the Putumayo River (Içá). El Encanto can be reached by air or river. The local navy base has ...

Puerto Arica Puerto Arica is a town and municipality in the Colombian Department of Amazonas. As of 2015, the population of Puerto Arica was 1,350. History Originally founded by Peruvian refugees from the War of the Pacific, it was awarded to Colombia afte ...

, La Pedrera and

Tarapacá San Lorenzo de Tarapacá, also known simply as Tarapacá, is a town in the region of the same name in Chile. History The town has likely been inhabited since the 12th century, when it formed part of the Inca trail. When Spanish explorer Diego ...

. The main combat operations started on February 14, 1933 in

where the Peruvian garrison was bombed by seven Colombian aircraft and later assaulted by land forces. Later, on March 26, in the village of Guepi eleven Colombian planes and two cannon boats (MC Cartagena y MC Santa Marta) bombarded Peruvian positions and took over the town. The last military actions of the conflict with Peru were on May 8, 1933 and in which there was an aerial engagement between the two forces. Peruvian planes were attacking the fluvial fleet of Colombia over the Algodón River and were surprised by the Colombian squadron. One of the Peruvian aircraft, a Douglas O-38P was gunned down and taken to Colombian territory. On May 24, 1933 a cease fire was declared after an agreement was reached with the intervention of the

League of Nations The League of Nations (LN or LoN; , SdN) was the first worldwide intergovernmental organisation whose principal mission was to maintain world peace. It was founded on 10 January 1920 by the Paris Peace Conference (1919–1920), Paris Peace ...

. The town of Leticia was returned to Colombia. The captured plane was then returned to Peru. As a result of the war, four pilots died in four accidents during non-combat related actions. Among these was one of the German pilots. Four planes were lost in these accidents a Falcon O-1, an Osprey C-14, a Junkers F-13 and a Curtiss F-11.

World War II

The diplomatic breach between Colombia and the Axis countries (Germany, Italy and Japan) was declared on December 18, 1941, when President Eduardo Santos took the decision following the Japanese attack on military bases, naval and U.S. carriers at

Pearl Harbor Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the Reci ...

, Hawaii. Thereafter, the Colombian government introduced special measures to limit and counter the Axis military action in areas of national jurisdiction. On June 23, 1942 a German submarine attacked and sank the Colombian schooner ''Resolute'', 50 miles northwest of the island of San Andrés. The same schooner had rescued some Marine officers and 23 British Royal Navy survivors of a capsized ship, 200 miles north of Cartagena just five days before. Following these events, the government decided to patrol and monitor the Pacific Coast and the Colombian Caribbean coast. The Palanquero Air Base commanders moved one fighter squadron and a Combat Reconnaissance Squadron, consisting of F-8 Falcon aircraft, to Barranquilla. In 1943, the Falcons were relieved of their mission and replaced by the

AT-6 Texan The North American Aviation T-6 Texan is an American single-engined advanced trainer aircraft, which was used to train pilots of the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF), United States Air Force (USAF), United States Navy, Royal Air Force, Ro ...

. This squadron was active until 1945, when the AT-6 were transferred back to Palanquero Air Base.

Early 1930s to present

* In 1936 the first combat monoplanes made of aluminum were purchased by the Colombian Air Force; 3 Seversky P-35/2PA Guardsman. * While the war was ongoing in southern Colombia, the Air Force built bases in the towns of Buenaventura and Cartagena. The base in Buenaventura was dubbed Air Base of the Pacific and covered the area of the Colombian Pacific region by the

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five Borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is ...

and began operations on January 26, 1933. The main purpose of this base was to protect the Pacific coast from any maritime intervention since there were reports that the Peruvian

protected cruiser Protected cruisers, a type of cruiser of the late 19th century, took their name from the armored deck, which protected vital machine-spaces from fragments released by explosive shells. Protected cruisers notably lacked a belt of armour alon ...

BAP Almirante Grau was patrolling the area, as well as two submarines. The Buenaventura base closed in 1949 while the base in Cartagena was handed over to the

Colombian Navy The Colombian Navy, officially the Colombian National Navy (), also known as the ''"Armada Nacional"'' or just the ''"Armada"'' in Spanish, is the naval branch of the Military Forces of Colombia, military forces of Colombia. The Navy is responsi ...

in 1936 becoming the

ARC Bolívar Naval Base Arc may refer to: Mathematics * Arc (geometry), a segment of a differentiable curve ** Circular arc, a segment of a circle * Arc (topology), a segment of a path * Arc length, the distance between two points along a section of a curve * Arc (pr ...

, the most important naval base in Colombia. * Once the conflict with Peru was over the bases in the Amazon basin were dismantled and the troops sent to new bases like

Tres Esquinas Air Force Base Tres may refer to: * Tres (instrument), a Cuban musical instrument * Tres, Trentino, municipality in Italy * ''Tres'' (2014 film), a Filipino anthology drama film based on short stories * "Tres" (song) by Juanes *"Tres", a song by Líbido from thei ...

in the Department of Caqueta, Palanquero Air Force Base in the

and San José del Guaviare in the Department of Guaviare. Meanwhile, the School of Military Aviation was moved to

Cali Santiago de Cali (), or Cali, is the capital of the Valle del Cauca department, and the most populous city in southwest Colombia, with 2,280,522 residents estimate by National Administrative Department of Statistics, DANE in 2023. The city span ...

, and leaving in

the Radiotelegraphy and Maintenance Schools. * During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, North American

T-6 Texan The North American Aviation T-6 Texan is an American single-engined advanced trainer aircraft, which was used to train pilots of the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF), United States Air Force (USAF), United States Navy, Royal Air Force, R ...

s and Boeing PT-17 Stearmans were received from the US for pilot training. Soon after World War Two, the Aviación Militar became an independent part of the armed forces, and the Colombian Air Force was created. * During the period of

La Violencia ''La Violencia'' (, The Violence) was a ten-year civil war in Colombia from 1948 to 1958, between the Colombian Conservative Party and the Colombian Liberal Party, mainly fought in the countryside. ''La Violencia'' is considered to have begu ...

, The Air Force had the necessity to expand its radius of action, so in 1947 the aeródromo nacional de Apiay was created, named the 17 of November 1948 Base Aérea de Apiay, today it home of the Comando Aéreo de Combate No. 2. In this period, the Air Force became more involved in counterinsurgency tasks and B-26C Invaders were acquired. Also, in 1954, the jet age began for the Colombian Air Force with the arrival of 6 Silver Star T-33 and six Canadian Sabre Mark IV F-86 in 1956. The F-86 were retired from service 1966, while the T-33 continued to operate until 1972 when 18

Mirage 5 The Dassault Mirage 5 is a French supersonic attack aircraft/fighter-bomber designed by Dassault Aviation during the 1960s and manufactured in France and other countries. It was derived from Dassault's popular Mirage III fighter and spawned seve ...

fighters arrived in three different versions. Sixteen F-80 Shooting Stars were also delivered. * In 1952,

Hiller UH-12 The Hiller OH-23 Raven is a two, three, or four-place, military light observation helicopter based on the Hiller Model 360. The Model 360 was designated by the company as the UH-12 ("UH" for United Helicopters), which was first flown in 1948. ...

helicopters arrived to the country, initially acquired for the Ministerio de Obras Públicas, but later assigned to the Air Force. In consequence, in 1954, the first helicopter base was created in Melgar, Tolima. Nowadays this base is known as Base Aérea “Capitán Luis F. Gómez Niño”, home of the Comando Aéreo de Combate No. 4 and the Joint Helicopter School of the Armed Forces. In 1959, with the inauguration of the

El Dorado International Airport El Dorado International Airport is an international airport serving Bogotá, the capital of Colombia, and its surrounding areas. The airport is located mostly in the Fontibón district of Bogotá, although it partially extends into the Engat ...

, the Base Aérea de Transporte Militar was created, later renamed as Base Aérea “Brigadier General Camilo Daza”, home today of the

Comando Aéreo de Transporte Militar Air Command for Military Transportation (English for ''Comando Aéreo de Transporte Militar'', CATAM) is major military airfield for the use of the Colombian Aerospace Force. Is located in the outskirts of Bogotá within the vicinity of El Dorad ...

(CATAM). In 1962 in order to integrate economically and socially the furthest regions of the country the Servicio Aéreo a Territorios Nacionales

Satena SATENA (Spanish acronym of ''Servicio Aéreo a Territorios Nacionales'') is a Colombian airline based in Bogotá, Colombia. It is majority-owned by the Government of Colombia which operates it to provide connectivity to less connected areas of th ...

was created. * Around 1960 the military transport element expanded, with the acquisition of the

C-130 Hercules The Lockheed C-130 Hercules is an American four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft designed and built by Lockheed Corporation, Lockheed (now Lockheed Martin). Capable of using unprepared runways for takeoffs and landings, the C-130 w ...

, other types incorporated during the sixties were, the

UH-1 Huey The Bell UH-1 Iroquois (nicknamed "Huey") is a utility military helicopter designed and produced by the American aerospace company Bell Helicopter. It is the first member of the prolific Huey family, as well as the first turbine-powered helico ...

T-37 Tweet The Cessna T-37 Tweet (designated Model 318 by Cessna) is a small, economical twin-engine jet trainer aircraft. It was flown for decades as a primary trainer of the United States Air Force (USAF) as well as in the air forces of several other nati ...

and

T-41 Mescalero The Cessna T-41 Mescalero is a military version of the popular Cessna 172, operated by the United States Air Force (USAF) and United States Army, Army, as well as the armed forces of various other countries as a Trainer (aircraft), pilot-training ...

. * In 1977, to increase control in the northern part of the country, the Grupo Aéreo del Norte was created in Malambo, Atlántico, home today of the Comando Aéreo de Combate No. 3. In 1979, the Grupo Aéreo del Caribe (GACAR) was created, to defend the sovereignty of San Andrés and Providencia from the pretensions of Nicaragua. In 1983, the Grupo Aéreo de Oriente was created in Marandúa, Vichada to exert more control of the airspace in the eastern part of the country. * Further expansion took place in the eighties with considerable deliveries of the

A-37 Dragonfly The Cessna A-37 Dragonfly, or Super Tweet, is a jet-powered, light attack aircraft designed and produced by the American aircraft manufacturer Cessna. It was developed during the Vietnam War in response to military interest in new counter-i ...

, which had earned fame over Vietnam. At the end of the decade a batch of Kfir C2 fighters was delivered from Israel and subsequently upgraded to Kfir C7 by the Comando Aéreo de Mantenimiento (CAMAN) in Madrid in the nineties. The Mirages were upgraded to the same standard by CAMAN, with the installation of canards and improved fuel systems. Both types are also equipped for air-to-air refuelling from the FAC's sole

Boeing 707 The Boeing 707 is an early American long-range Narrow-body aircraft, narrow-body airliner, the first jetliner developed and produced by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. Developed from the Boeing 367-80 prototype, the initial first flew on Decembe ...

tanker and transport aircraft. The nineties saw the delivery of specialised COIN-aircraft like the OV-10A Bronco and Embraer Tucano trainers, some of the latter are able to carry bombs and unguided rockets. These aircraft operate mainly over the east of the country, where the Los Llanos region has a high level of guerrilla activity. They regularly deploy to

Puerto Carreño Puerto Carreño (), translation is the departmental capital city, and a municipality combined of the department of Vichada in the Llanos of Colombia located on the Orinoco River. Puerto Carreño is best-known as a tourist gateway to hundreds ...

under the command of the Grupo Aéreo del Oriente formed in 2000. To deal with continuing guerrilla activity, Escuadrones Aerotácticos (tactical squadrons) were formed at the main FAC bases in the late nineties, consisting of several types of helicopters and

AC-47 The Douglas AC-47 ( "Puff, the Magic Dragon") was the first in a series of fixed-wing gunships developed by the United States Air Force during the Vietnam War. It was designed to provide more firepower than light and medium ground-attack airc ...

gunships supplied by their respective Grupos. * Finally in 1990 the Base Aérea de

Rionegro Rionegro () is a city and municipality in Antioquia Department, Colombia, located in the subregion of Eastern Antioquia. The official name of the city is Ciudad Santiago de Arma de Rionegro. Rio Negro means "Black River" in Spanish, as the cit ...

Antioquia Antioquia is the Spanish form of Antioch. Antioquia may also refer to: * Antioquia Department Antioquia () is one of the 32 departments of Colombia, located in the central northwestern part of Colombia with a narrow section that borders th ...

is activated, center of operations of the

UH-60 Black Hawk The Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk is a four-blade, twin-engine, medium-lift military utility helicopter manufactured by Sikorsky Aircraft. Sikorsky submitted a design for the United States Army's Utility Tactical Transport Aircraft System (UTTAS) ...

, today this base is called Comando Aéreo de Combate No. 5. * The 1999 'Plan Colombia' emphasizes on technology, rather than on large numbers of new aircraft being procured, although several new

helicopters entered FAC service in recent years, including a dedicated attack variant developed by the Colombian Air Force in conjunction with

Elbit Systems Elbit Systems Ltd. is an Israel-based international military technology company and defense contractor. Founded in 1966 by Elron, Elbit Systems is the primary provider of the Israeli military's land-based equipment and unmanned aerial v ...

and

Sikorsky Sikorsky or Sikorski may refer to: * Sikorsky (comics), a Marvel Comics character * Sikorsky (crater), a lunar crater * Sikorsky Aircraft, an American aircraft manufacturer People with the surname * Brian Sikorski (born 1974), Major League Basebal ...

, the AH-60L Arpía. Other recently acquired types include Schweizer SA2-37A Condors and Cessna 560 Citations equipped with cameras and sensors to monitor guerrilla and narcotic related activities. Technology upgrades are scheduled for the Bronco fleet, the venerable AC-47 gunships and Huey-helicopters. * The Colombian Air Force monitors the country's airspace and intercepts suspicious flights, occasionally forcing non-compliant aircraft to the ground. A

Hawker 800 The Hawker 800 is a mid-size twinjet corporate aircraft. It is a development of the British Aerospace 125, and was assembled by Hawker Beechcraft. Development In April 1981, the British Aerospace (BAe) board sanctioned the programme to improve t ...

carrying 1.2 tonnes of

cocaine Cocaine is a tropane alkaloid and central nervous system stimulant, derived primarily from the leaves of two South American coca plants, ''Erythroxylum coca'' and ''Erythroxylum novogranatense, E. novogranatense'', which are cultivated a ...

was shot to the sea in 2015.

Organization

Combat Air Commands (''Comando Aéreo de Combate'' or CACOM): * Comando Aéreo de Combate No. 1 (CACOM 1) "CT.

Captain Germán Olano Moreno Air Base Captain Germán Olano Moreno Air Base () is a Colombian military base assigned to the Colombian Aerospace Force (''Fuerza Aeroespacial Colombiana'' or FAC) Combat Air Command No. 1 (''Comando Aéreo de Combate No. 1'' or CACOM 1). The base is lo ...

"
in Palanquero /

Puerto Salgar Puerto Salgar () is a municipality and town of Colombia in the northwestern part of the department of Cundinamarca. It came to international attention when the US ambassador in Colombia announced the Palanquero Air Base had entered a recertifica ...

, Cundinamarca ** Grupo de combate Nº 11 *** Escuadrón de Combate 111 ''Dardos'' ( Kfir C12) *** Escuadrón de Combate Táctico 113 ''Fantasma'' ( AB212 Rapaz, AC-47T Fantasma, AH-60L Arpía IV) *** Escuadrón de Combate 116 ''Tango'' ( T-37B, T-37C) * Comando Aéreo de Combate No. 2 (CACOM 2) "CT. Luis Fernando Gómez Niño"
in Apiay /

Villavicencio Villavicencio () is a city and municipality in Colombia. The capital of Meta Department, it was founded on April 6, 1840. The municipality had a population of 531,275 in 2018. The city is located at 4°08'N, 73°40'W, 75 km (about 45 ...

Meta Meta most commonly refers to: * Meta (prefix), a common affix and word in English ( in Greek) * Meta Platforms, an American multinational technology conglomerate (formerly ''Facebook, Inc.'') Meta or META may also refer to: Businesses * Meta (ac ...

** Grupo de Combate Nº 21 *** Escuadrón de Combate 211 ''Grifos'' ( A-29B Supertucano) *** Escuadrón de Combate 212 ''Tucanos'' ( AT-27 Tucano) *** Escuadrón de Combate Táctico 213 ( AH-60L Arpía IV, C212-300, C208-675, SA2-37B Vampiro, SR-560) ** Grupo de Combate Nº 22 located in

Yopal Yopal () is a municipality and capital city of the department of Casanare in Colombia and the second most populated and important city in the Orinoquía region after Villavicencio. History Before the period of the Spanish colonization of the ...

, Casanare. * Comando Aéreo de Combate No. 3 (CACOM 3) "MG. Alberto Pauwels Rodríguez"
in Malambo /

Barranquilla Barranquilla () is the capital district of the Atlántico department in Colombia. It is located near the Caribbean Sea and is the largest city and third port in the Caribbean region of Colombia, Caribbean coast region; as of 2018, it had a popul ...

, Atlántico ** Grupo de Combate 31 *** Escuadrón de Combate 311 ''Dragones'' (

). *** Escuadrón de Combate 312 ''Drakos'' ( A-29B Supertucano). *** Escuadrón de Combate Táctico 313 ( AC-47T Fantasma, Bell 212 Rapaz, C-95A, SA2-37B Vampiro, UH-1 Huey II). * Comando Aéreo de Combate No. 4 (CACOM 4) "TC. Luis Francisco Pinto Parra"
in Melgar, Tolima ** Grupo de Combate 41 *** Escuadrón de Combate 411 ''Rapaz'' (

Bell 212 The Bell 212 (also known as the ''Bell Two-Twelve'') is a two-blade, twin-engine, medium helicopter that first flew in 1968. Originally manufactured by Bell Helicopter in Fort Worth, Texas, United States, production was moved to Mirabel, Queb ...

). *** Escuadrón de Asalto Aéreo 412 ( Bell UH-1H/P). *** Eccuadron de Ataque 413 ''Escorpión'' ( MD 500/530). ** Grupo CSAR. ** Escuela de Helicópteros de las Fuerzas Armadas. *** Escuadrón de Vuelo ( Bell UH-1H,

Bell 206 The Bell 206 is a family of two-bladed, single- and twin-engined helicopters, manufactured by Bell Helicopter at its Mirabel, Quebec, plant. Originally developed as the Bell YOH-4 for the United States Army's Light Observation Helicopter progr ...

Bell OH-58 Kiowa The Bell OH-58 Kiowa is a family of single-engine single- rotor military helicopters used for observation, utility, and direct fire support. It was produced by the American manufacturer Bell Helicopter and is closely related to the Model 20 ...

). * Comando Aéreo de Combate No. 5 (CACOM 5) "GR. Arturo Lema Posada"
in

** Grupo de Combate 51 *** Escuadrón de Combate 511 ( AH-60L Arpía IV) *** Escuadrón de Operaciones Especiales 512 ( Ce208-675, UH-60A/L Halcón) *

Comando Aéreo de Combate No. 6 Captain Ernesto Esguerra Cubides Air Base () , also known as Tres Esquinas Air Base, is a Colombian military base assigned to the Colombian Aerospace Force (''Fuerza Aeroespacial Colombiana'' or FAC) Combat Air Command No. 6 (''Comando Aéreo de C ...

(CACOM 6) "CT. Ernesto Esguerra Cubides"
in Tres Esquinas, Caquetá ** Grupo de Combate 61 *** Escuadrón de Combate 611 ( AT-27 Tucano, A-29B Supertucano) *** Escuadrón de Combate Táctico 613 ( AC-47T Fantasma, Bell 212 Rapaz, C212-300, SA2-37B Vampiro, UH-1H-II, Scan Eagle UAV) Transportation and Maintenance: *

(CATAM) "BG. Camilo Daza Álvarez"
in

Bogotá Bogotá (, also , , ), officially Bogotá, Distrito Capital, abbreviated Bogotá, D.C., and formerly known as Santa Fe de Bogotá (; ) during the Spanish Imperial period and between 1991 and 2000, is the capital city, capital and largest city ...

D.C. ** Grupo de Transporte Aéreo 81 *** Escuadrón de Transporte 811 ( C-130B/H, C295M/100) *** Escuadron de Evacuación Médica. ** Grupo de Vuelos Especiales 82 *** Escuadrón de Transporte Especial 821 ( B707-323C, B737-74V, Beech 300

ELINT Signals intelligence (SIGINT) is the act and field of intelligence-gathering by interception of ''signals'', whether communications between people (communications intelligence—abbreviated to COMINT) or from electronic signals not directly u ...

, Beech 350, Bell 412HP, C-95A, Ce208B, Ce550, F28-3000(C), PA-42-720, PA-42T, RC690D, RC695) * Comando Aéreo de Mantenimiento (CAMAN) "MY. Justino Mariño Cuesta"
in

, Cundinamarca ** Grupo de Transporte Aéreo 91 *** Escuadrón de Transporte 911 (Beech C90, C212-300) Air Groups: * Grupo Aéreo del Caribe (GACAR) "TC. Benjamín Méndez Rey"
on San Andres Island, San Andrés, Providencia y Santa Catalina ** Escuadrón de Combate 101 *** Escuadrilla de Combate Táctico 1013 (Beech C90) * Casanare Air Group (GACAS) - Grupo Aéreo de Casanare ** Embraer A-29B Super Tucano * Grupo Aéreo del Oriente (GAORI) "CR. Luis Arturo Rodríguez Meneses"
in Marandúa, Vichada ** Grupo de Combate 111 *** Escuadrilla de Combate Táctico 1113 ( AC-47T Fantasma, AB212 Rapaz, UH-1H, Scan Eagle UAV) Training: * Escuela Militar de Aviación (EMAVI) "

"
in

Santiago de Cali Santiago de Cali (), or Cali, is the capital of the Valle del Cauca department, and the most populous city in southwest Colombia, with 2,280,522 residents estimate by National Administrative Department of Statistics, DANE in 2023. The city span ...

, Valle del Cauca ** Grupo de Educación Aeronáutica *** Escuadrón Básico ** Grupo de Combate 71 *** Escuadrón de Combate Táctico 713 * Escuela de Suboficiales FAC (ESUFA) "CT. Andrés María Díaz Díaz"
in

, Cundinamarca * Instituto Militar Aeronáutico (IMA) "CT. José Edmundo Sandoval"
in

D.C. Airline: * Servicio de Aeronavegación a Territorios Nacionales (SATENA)

Personnel

As of 2010, the Aerospace Force fields approximately 13,500 personnel, including 2,171 officers, 3,304 Non-commissioned officers, 903 student officers, 4,673 soldiers, these usually allocated to base security, Military Police etc., and 2,382 civilians, the latter usually dedicated to specialized technical or professional activities, e.g. medical, communications, etc.

Ranks and insignias

The tables below display the rank structures and rank insignias for the Colombian Aerospace Force personnel. Colombia is not a member of

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO ; , OTAN), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental Transnationalism, transnational military alliance of 32 Member states of NATO, member s ...

, so there is not an official equivalence between the Colombian military ranks and those defined by NATO. The displayed parallel is approximate and for illustration purposes only.

Officers

Non-commissioned officers and airmen

Aircraft

Current inventory

Former aircraft

Previous aircraft operated were the

Gavilán G358 The Gavilán 358 (English language, English: ''Sparrow Hawk (disambiguation), Sparrow Hawk'') is a Colombian light utility transport aircraft of the 1990s. A high-winged monoplane powered by a piston engine, small numbers of Gaviláns were produce ...

, OV-10A Bronco,

IAI Arava The Israeli Aircraft Industries Arava (, "Willow" or "Steppe" or "Desert", named after the Aravah of the Jordan Rift Valley) is a light STOL utility transport aircraft developed and produced by Israeli aerospace company Israel Aerospace Industri ...

Aircraft identification

The aircraft used by the Colombian Aerospace Force are identified with the letters "FAC" followed by three or four numbers that are painted on the tail, nose and nose landing gear doors. The serial numbers are assigned according to the aircraft's primary role as follows: * 001 Avión Presidencial * 002 to 100 trainer * 101 to 200 liaison * 201 to 300 helicopter * 301 to 500 miscellaneous * 501 to 600 light transport * 601 to 700 transport * 701 to 800 advanced trainer * 801 to 900 fighter-bomber * 901 to 1000 crew-trainer * 1001 to 1300 transport * 2001 to 2300 Close support * 2501 to 2600 bomber * 3001 to 3100 Fighter * 3101 to 3200 COIN * 4001 to 4600 helicopter * 5001 to 5600 liaison * 5701 to 5800 recon/ELINT

Notes

References

External links

Air Force Bases in Colombia
at GlobalSecurity.org *
Fuerza Aérea Colombiana
*
Colombia: Seguridad & Defensa, Unofficial site
*

{{Authority control Military of Colombia