Air shows & aviation events

Chilean military aviation centennial

Carlos Ay

Commemorating the creation of the El Bosque-based Military Aeronautics School and their first military flight in early 1913, Chile’s Air Force celebrated 100 years of military aviation in the first week of March 2013. Summarizing a century of aviation progress in words and facts, the centennial was marked by a formal ceremony held at El Bosque, an open day held at Pudahuel and a host of other social and cultural events elsewhere. The main activities were covered by Gaceta Aeronáutica correspondents on-site and a complete debriefing is presented inside.

Defence & security

The 2004 Argentine Exercises Index

Carlos Ay

In one more Argentine military aviation exercises index, we disclose an updated version of our original Aeromilitaria Argentina index for year 2004. This more complete alternative reviews nearly 50 exercises, simulations and drills totalling at least 240 days of activity on the field. Another “international” year, 2004 was packed full of combined exercises, including exceptional events such as two different UNITAS phases, a Gringo Gaucho carrier qualification tour onboard USS Ronald Reagan and a (now) rare Argentine-British maritime search and rescue cooperation exercise.

Defence & security

The 2005 Argentine Exercises Index

Carlos Ay

The second Argentine military aviation exercises index in the “Gaceta Aeronáutica Age” is actually an updated version of our original Aeromilitaria Argentina index for 2005. This more complete variant reviews more than 35 exercises, simulations and drills totalling more than 220 days of activity on the field. An apparently “international” year, 2005 is full of combined exercises where Argentine armed forces tested their combat fitness with foreign forces in “trade-mark” exercises such as Plata, Panamax, Fraterno, UNITAS and Viekaren; as well as the one-off Ceibo 2005. Homeland training was also fairly active, with services deploying throughout the nation for both internal and joint manoeuvres.

Defence & security

The 2010 Argentine Exercises Index

Carlos Ay

The first Argentine military aviation exercises index in the “Gaceta Aeronáutica Age” comes packed with over 70 exercises, simulations and drills totalling at least 329 days of activity on the field. In spite of ever present budgetary limitations and a couple of congressional mishaps, Argentine armed and paramilitary forces managed to complete an interesting menu of exercises throughout 2010, including named classics such as Valkyria III and Ícaro III (Air Force specific), Rio III and Tanque (Argentine/Uruguayan) as well as Gringo Gaucho/Southern Seas, UNITAS LI, Fraterno XXVIII, Panamax and Atlasur VIII (naval air cooperation manoeuvres, in a variety of flavours).

Air shows & aviation events

FIDAE 2012 day by day…

Carlos Ay

Gaceta Aeronáutica correspondents were in place and started gathering information and images four days before the show’s official opening on Tuesday 27 March 2012. Take a look at our “quick daily log” reviewing the most relevant activities recorded day by day, a selection of images captured on-site and our complete table of aircraft participating in the XVII International Air & Space Fair (FIDAE 2012).

Air shows & aviation events

FIDAE 2012 “on short final”!

Carlos Ay

The wait is now nearly over! With little over two weeks to go before the show opens on 27 March, the outlook for FIDAE 2012 is taking final shape, although much of its contents will remain under wraps until later in the month. In the third of three instalments on the forthcoming edition of this traditional Chilean air, space, defence & security fair, we disclose our last news round-up summarizing information gathered in the last two months. Then, we’ll start packing-up before heading out to Pudahuel for our initial on-the-spot reports!