Fixed-wing aviation (pre-1941)

Anniversary of the Military Aviation School in 1936

The Brazilian Army's first aeronautical experience was the use of observation balloons in 1867 during the Paraguayan War.^[2] Then, at the beginning of the 20th century, new airplane technology entered the agenda of military reforms.^[3] The country did not have an aeronautical industry, and it was difficult to create an aviation school. The army's first airplane pilot was lieutenant Ricardo Kirk, licensed in France in 1912. He flew reconnaissance missions in the Contestado War, where he died in an accident in 1915.^[4]

After the end of the First World War, Brazil managed to hire French instructors and import surplus planes. In 1919, the Military Aviation School was created in Campo dos Afonsos, Rio de Janeiro, to train aviators, observers and mechanics. Aviation was elevated to branch status in 1927.^[5] It was the great novelty in the army in the 1920s.^[6] It was used on a large scale for the first time in the Constitutionalist Revolution of 1932.^[7] From 1933 onwards, its operational units were installed throughout the country,^[8] and in 1941 it already had 330 aircraft, although many were obsolete or inoperable, with insufficient personnel and structures for national defense.^[9]

Army, naval and commercial aviation existed independently. Military aviators became increasingly different from their counterparts on land and sea, developing an ethos of their own. In the 1930s, a movement emerged proposing the unification of aviation into a "Ministry of Air". They had ambitious plans for air power and considered the separation of their assets inefficient. The Brazilian Air Force, created in 1941, absorbed Army Aviation, Naval Aviation and other aerial organizations.^[10] Its creation was a political decision, as the new institution was a third weight in the rivalry between the army and navy.^[11] The Ministry of the Navy was against the measure, while the Ministry of War was in favor. Some generals wanted a transitional Air Ministry; military aviation would be unified in a sub-secretariat subordinate to the army. President Getúlio Vargas did not give in to the army's intention, and the Air Force consolidated itself as a new branch.^[12] The Military Aviation School would become the current Air Force Academy, and the former army air units correspond to the FAB Air Bases/Wings.^[13]

Reactivation (1986)

Bell "Huey" helicopter from the air force, a model that operated with the army in Araguaia

After airplanes, another great technological innovation emerged in the Korean War and especially in the Vietnam War, in the 1960s: the military helicopter. Capable of crossing any terrain, it proved to be versatile in the transport and close air support of ground forces and it was used on a large scale by the U.S. Armed Forces, where the concept of "air cavalry" emerged. The U.S. Army and Air Force disputed what would be the hierarchical relationship between ground forces and helicopters and reached the Johnson-McConnell Agreement of 1966: rotary-wing aircraft would remain with the army, and fixed-wing aircraft with the air force.^[14] In Brazil, the army enjoyed the support of Bell UH-1 Iroquois helicopters from the FAB in the fight against the Araguaia Guerrilla.^[15] The Army High Command was not unaware of the aviation of the other South American armies, and some Brazilian officers witnessed helicopter maneuvers by the American and French armies.^[16]

Brazilian cavalry officers, inspired by the American example, already imagined the helicopter as a future evolution after armored vehicles in 1965. This ambition was never realized, as Brazilian helicopters would not appear in the cavalry.^[17] The 1970 Army Reorganization Master Plan provided for the recreation of army aviation. Officials did not want to depend on the FAB for logistics, troop transport and airmobile operations. The aviation envisaged in this plan would have a mix of helicopters and planes and decentralized distribution, unlike the aviation implemented in 1986. Many reforms were implemented in the 1970s, but not aviation.^[18] In 1977, the Army General Staff (EME) began studies on organic aviation.^[19]

It was the experience of the Falklands War in 1982 that definitively pushed the military authorities to decide on helicopters. The Argentine Armed Forces, the most advanced on the continent, had been defeated, and one of the many aspects was the smaller number of helicopters. The Brazilian gap in the operational, technological and human areas became clear and worrying. The army planned Ground Force 90 (FT-90), deployed from 1986 to 1990, as the first part of a modernization program. The necessary investments were heavy and the country was going through the lost decade, but president José Sarney, needing political support from Army Minister Leônidas Pires Gonçalves, provided the necessary resources. 500 million extrabudgetary dollars were allocated to the army in 1986–1987. Much of this effort did not bear fruit, but in the technological area Army Aviation and electronic warfare were successfully introduced.^[20][21]

Among the broken paradigms was the traditional aircraft monopoly held by the FAB.^[19] The navy and air force had already fought a long battle over embarked aviation on the aircraft carrier Minas Gerais. The "Castelo Branco corollary", of 1965, allowed the navy to operate helicopters, but kept the planes with the FAB.^[22][23] A new dispute arose when the army unsuccessfully attempted to purchase Bell H-1H helicopters in 1969.^[24] But Army Aviation, also made up of helicopters, was created without fanfare or contrary campaign.^[25] Air Force officials already recognized the tactical need for helicopters in the army and navy.^[26] Army Aviation was formally recreated on 3 September 1986.^[27]

Implantation

Brazilian army, air force and navy helicopters

Aviation was the "most hyped part of modernization" and the "flagship of the FT-90",^[28] but its introduction was difficult. It required a heavy financial and logistical burden and highly specialized human resources. Even with a sufficient budget, the project would take at least a decade. General Leônidas remarked the incredulity of a government interlocutor: "an army that does not even have combat boots wants to have a helicopter!" Aircraft were purchased and the initial personnel trained in the navy and air force. To preserve the army's organizational culture, those sent were former captains and sergeants. The most time-consuming part would be the employment doctrine, as it could not be copied from another country. As aircraft arrived before doctrine, aviation underwent five major restructurings from its formal creation in 1986 until 1994; the important thing for the Army Minister was to take advantage of the favorable situation.^[29]

In the Ajuricaba Mission, in October 1990, the helicopters were presented to garrisons in Minas Gerais, Brasília, the Center-West and the North, covering nine thousand kilometers from Taubaté. Difficulties in long-distance travel and operation in hot and humid regions, with restricted landing areas, were assessed.^[30] In 1991, the training of human resources within the army began with the creation of the Army Aviation Instruction Center.^[29] Budget cuts hit the Armed Forces hard in the early 1990s. AvEx was one of the few areas spared the effect of cuts by the Army High Command.^[31] It became part of the army's "core of modernity", as did the 12th Light Infantry Brigade (Airmobile).^[32] This brigade, converted in 1995, emerged parallel to aviation as a unit capable of operating in its helicopters. The "Delta Doctrine", adopted by the army in 2000, by valuing flank and rear operations, attributed great importance to airmobile operations.^[33] AvEx became one of the army's Strategic Deployment Forces, with immediate mobilization capabilities.^[34]

Activities

HM-1 Pantera used in security at the 2016 Olympics

The "baptism of fire" of the newly created Army Aviation was Operation Traíra in 1991,^[35] a joint offensive by the Brazilian and Colombian Armed Forces against the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia on the border. HA-1 Esquilo and HM-1 Pantera helicopters and supply and maintenance personnel took part in the operation.^[36][37] They took supplies to the base on the Traíra River, transported the 1st Special Border Battalion and infiltrated and exfiltrated patrols from the 1st Special Forces Battalion. The operation revealed the need to introduce instrument flight rules, GPS navigation and an aviation base in the Amazon.^[38][39]

Throughout the 1990s, Army Aviation participated in operations against illegal mining and organized crime in Rio de Janeiro and conventional presence missions on the border with Venezuela. The first international mission was the Military Observer Mission between Ecuador and Peru (MOMEP), in 1997, with the participation of four helicopters in the zone of territorial dispute between the two countries.^{[lower-alpha 1]} In the 21st century, the use of Army Aviation in ensuring law and order and collaboration with security agencies is increasing. In the federal intervention in Rio de Janeiro in 2018, helicopters were used for command and control, reconnaissance and troop landing.^[40][41]

The operations go beyond military purposes, as the helicopters also cooperate with civilian ministries and public bodies such as IBAMA, the Federal Police and Civil Defense;^[42][43] for example, in floods and landslides on the north coast of São Paulo in 2023, there was coordination between the Ministry of Defense, army, São Paulo Fire Department, Military Police and Civil Defense. Six helicopters from the 1st and 2nd BAvEx transported firefighters and participated in search and rescue operations.^[44][45] In the same year, FAB and AvEx helicopters were used in the government response to the Yanomami humanitarian crisis. They served for the logistics of supplies and aeromedical evacuation of the affected population, in addition to transporting military personnel and civilians from the agencies involved in the operation.^[46][47]

New aircraft categories

General purpose helicopter (Super Cougar) between two reconnaissance and attack helicopters (Esquilo)

Army Aviation was created with attack helicopters (HA-1 Fennec or Esquilo), in reconnaissance and attack squadrons, and maneuver helicopters (HM-1 Pantera and later HM-2 Black Hawk, HM-3 Cougar and HM-4 Jaguar), in general deployment squadrons. Both can use side machine guns for their defense, but the reconnaissance and attack ones also have axial weapons such as machine guns and rocket launchers. General purpose helicopters are larger and have greater transport capacity.^[48][49][50]

The Brazilian Army does not have a dedicated attack helicopter like those used in France (Tiger) and the United States (Apache), whose firepower is superior to the Brazilian HA-1.^[51] This gap was addressed in the army's Strategic Aviation Program, formalized by EME in August 2017. The army's strategic guidelines now include AvEx programs,^[34] including the acquisition of dedicated attack helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft for logistics.^[52] 12 new-build attack helicopters would be purchased by 2031.^{[lower-alpha 2]}

The fixed-wing aircraft program was controversial. Dissatisfied with the air force's logistics, the army intended to acquire eight Short C-23 Sherpa planes to supply its Special Border Platoons in the Amazon. A presidential decree allowed the army to possess fixed-wing aircraft in 2020, but it was revoked just two days after its publication. The acquisition was harshly opposed by air force officers and even some army officers. They considered the heavy expenditure on these aircraft inopportune at a time of scarce resources, preferring that investment be made in the FAB's idle planes.^[53][54][55]

The army and FAB's demand for remotely piloted aircraft systems had already been noted in the press since 2013. The army's interest was in monitoring borders and strategic points, such as the Itaipu Dam, and in the security of major events.^[56] The doctrine in Brazil in this area is new. Drones can serve as more economical alternatives to the HA-1 Esquilo in the reconnaissance role.^[57] Outside of AvEx, the Parachute Precursor Company was already using the technology in 2016.^[58] In Taubaté, larger drones were incorporated at the end of 2022.^[59] The army chose CIAvEx as the human resources training unit in the drone area.^[60]

Citations

Bibliography