Ecuadorian Air Force

The Ecuadorian Air Force (Fuerza Aérea Ecuatoriana, FAE) is the air branch of the Armed Forces of Ecuador.

Mission
To develop the military air wing, in order to execute institutional objectives which guarantee sovereignty and contribute towards the nation's security and development.

Vision
To be a dissuasive Air Force, respected and accepted by society, pioneering within the nation's air-space development.

History
The FAE was officially created on October 27, 1920. However, like in many other countries, military flying activity started before the formal date of birth of the Air Force. The history of Ecuador is marked by many skirmishes with its neighbour Peru. As a direct result of the 1910 Ecuador-Peru crisis the members of Club de Tiro Guayaquil decided to expand their sporting activities into aviation as well. Renamed Club de Tiro y Aviación, they started an aviation school. Cosme Rennella Barbatto, an Italian living in Guayaquil, was one of the first members of Club de Tiro y Aviación. In 1912 Barbato was sent to his native Italy for training where he successfully graduated as a pilot. He later returned to Europe a second time in 1915, where he participated in World War I. In 152 combat sorties he scored 18 victories, although only 7 were confirmed. When he returned to Ecuador, his experiences served as motivation for a reduced group of Ecuadorian pilots, who moved to the Aviation School in Turin, Italy, with the objective of graduating as the first Ecuadorian pilots of the nascent Ecuadorian Military Aviation.

By 1939 the Ecuadorian Air Force was still limited to about 30 aircraft and a staff of about 60, including 10 officers. Military aviation did not start in earnest until the early forties when an Ecuadorian mission to the United States resulted in the delivery of an assortment of aircraft for the Aviation school at Salinas. Three Ryan PT-22 Recruits, six Curtiss-Wright CW-22 Falcons, six Fairchild PT-19A Cornells and three North American AT-6A Harvards arrived in March 1942, considerably boosting the capacity of the Escuela de Aviación at Salinas.

The 1950s and 1960s saw a further necessary buildup of the air force, gaining more units and aircraft. Meanwhile, efforts were made in enhancing the facilities at various airbases. In May 1961 the First Air Zone with its subordinate unit Ala de Transportes No.11 was founded. The Second Air Zone controlled the units in the southern half of Ecuador, Ala de Combate No.21 at Taura, Ala de Rescate No.22 at Guayaquil and Ala de Combate No.23 at Manta as well as the Escuela Superior Militar de Aviación "Cosme Rennella B." (ESMA) at Salinas.

The Ala 11 has its own commercial branch, like in many other South American countries, the Transporte Aérea Militar Ecuatoriana (TAME). Besides military transport aircraft, it also uses commercial airliners. Flying to locations off the beaten track, TAME provides an additional service to the people of Ecuador.

The FAE saw action on several occasions. A continuous border dispute with Peru flared up in 1981 and 1995. Today the FAE faces the war on drugs as well as many humanitarian and logistic missions into the Amazon-region of the country.

Structure
This is the current structure of the Ecuadorian Air Force:


 * 21 Combat Wing (Ala de combate 21) - Taura Air Base
 * 2112 Combat Squadron Cheetah (Esc. de combate 2112 "Cheetah") - operating Atlas Cheetah
 * 22 Combat Wing (Ala de combate 22) - Simon Bolivar Air Base
 * 2211 Combat Squadron (Esc. de combate 2211) - operating Cessna 206
 * 2212 Combat Squadron (Esc. de combate 2212) - operating TH-57
 * 23 Combat Wing (Ala de combate 23) - Eloy Alfaro Air Base
 * 2311 Combat Squadron Dragons (Esc. de combate 2311 "Dragones") - operating A-29 Super Tucano
 * 11 Transport Wing (Ala de transporte 11) - Cotopaxi Air Base
 * 1111 Transport Squadron Hercules (Esc. de transporte 1111 "Hercules") - operating C-130H/L100-30
 * 1112 Transport Squadron Avro (Esc. de transporte 1112 "Avro") - operating CASA 295
 * 1113 Transport Squadron Twin Otter (Esc. de transporte 1113 "Twin Otter") - operating DHC-6 Twin Otter
 * 1114 Transport Squadron Sabreliner (Esc. de transporte 1114 "Sabreliner") - operating Sabreliner
 * Air Force Academy Cosme Rennella (Escuela Superior Militar de Aviacion "Cosme Rennella") - Salinas Air Base - operating Diamond DA20

Retired
Previous notable aircraft flown included the Gloster Meteor, English Electric Canberra, SEPECAT Jaguar, BAC Strikemaster, Republic P-47,  PBY Catalina, Hawker Siddeley HS 748, Lockheed T-33, T-28 Trojan, H-13 Sioux,  and the HAL Dhruv helicopter