Venezuela Air Force
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The Air Force of Venezuela (Fuerza Aérea Venezolana, FAV) is a professional armed body designed to defend Venezuela's sovereignty and airspace. It is a component in the Venezuelan armed forces.
[edit] History
The birth of the FAV goes back to December 10, 1920. On that date the Military Aviation school of Venezuela was formed. Early aircraft included Farman and Caudron G-3 as well as the amphibian Caudron G-4. The first decades of the FAV saw mainly French, German and Italian influence. After the Second World War, the Air force was reorganised with American aid, eventually leading to the formal inception of the Fuerza Aérea Venezolana, as we know it today, on June 22, 1946.
Most current airbases were built in the 1960s; main fighter types in those years were Venom, Vampire, and F-86. Bomber squadrons typically operated B-25 Mitchell aircraft. The 70s and 80s saw a considerable increase in capacity, mainly because the rising oil prices enabled the FAV to re-equip most of its units. The mixture of various aircraft types was maintained and Mirage IIIE and V, VF-5A and D, T-2D, OV-10A and E, T-27 were introduced. Venezuela was one of the first export customers for the F-16 which arrived in 1983 to equip the newly formed Grupo Aéreo de Caza 16 at El Libertador airbase. [1][2]
[edit] Aircraft in use
Recently Venezuela has acquired 30 Russian Sukhoi Su-30s.
