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{{Infobox military unit
{{Infobox military unit
|unit_name= 1º Esquadrão de Aviões de Interceptação e Ataque
|unit_name = 1º Esquadrão de Aviões de Interceptação e Ataque
|image= File:VF-1 Emblem.jpg
|image = VF-1 Emblem.jpg
|image_size= 200px
|image_size = 200px
|caption=
|caption =
|dates={{Start date and age|1998|10|02|df=yes}}<ref name=23a/>
|dates = {{Start date and age|1998|10|02|df=yes}}<ref name=23a/>
|country={{BRA}}
|country = {{BRA}}
|allegiance=
|allegiance =
|branch={{navy|BRA}}
|branch = {{navy|BRA}}
|type = Fighter/Attack
|type = Fighter/Attack
|role =
|role =
|size =
|size =
|command_structure = [[Brazilian Naval Aviation]]
|command_structure = [[Brazilian Naval Aviation]]
|garrison = [[São Pedro da Aldeia Naval Air Base]]
|garrison = [[São Pedro da Aldeia Naval Air Base]]
|current_commander =
|current_commander =
⚫
|nickname = ''Falcões'' ("Falcons")
|ceremonial_chief=
|patron =
|colonel_of_the_regiment=
⚫
|motto = ''In Are Defensio Maris'' ("In the air, the defense of the sea")<ref name=23a/>
⚫
|nickname= ''Falcões'' ("Falcons")
|colors =
|patron=
|march =
⚫
|motto=''In Are Defensio Maris'' ("In the air, the defense of the sea")<ref name=23a/>
|mascot =
|colors=
⚫
|battles =
|march=
⚫
|anniversaries =
|mascot=
⚫
|aircraft_fighter = [[Douglas_A-4_Skyhawk#Upgraded,_modified_and_export_variants|A-4KU Skyhawk]]<ref name=23a/>
⚫
|battles=
⚫
|anniversaries=
⚫
|aircraft_fighter=[[Douglas_A-4_Skyhawk#Upgraded,_modified_and_export_variants|A-4KU Skyhawk]]<ref name=23a/>
}}
}}
The '''1st Interceptor and Strike Fighter Squadron''' ({{lang-pt|1º Esquadrão de Aviões de Interceptação e Ataque}}; VF-1), known as "Hawk Squadron", is the [[Brazilian Naval Aviation]] unit created to fly McDonnell [[Douglas A-4 Skyhawk]] fighters on aircraft carriers of the [[Brazilian Navy]] (MB). The decommissioning of [[Brazilian aircraft carrier São Paulo|NAe ''São Paulo'']] in 2017, after more than a decade inoperative, limits the squadron to taking off from land-based runways, especially its headquarters at the São Pedro da Aldeia Naval Air Base (BAeNSPA), Rio de Janeiro, where it is subordinate to the Naval Air Force Command. Its planes had the designations AF-1 (single-seater) and AF-1A (two-seater), later changed after modernization in 2015–2022 to AF-1B and AF-1C. The VF-1 operates the only fighters in Brazil outside the [[Brazilian Air Force]] (FAB). It was the last squadron in the world to fly the Skyhawk from aircraft carriers and, together with the [[Argentine Air Force]], is the last military operator of that plane.
The '''1º Esquadrão de Aviões de Interceptação e Ataque''' (VF-1) ''Falcões'' is an aviation unit of the [[Brazilian Navy]] based at [[São Pedro da Aldeia Naval Air Base]], [[Rio de Janeiro (state)|RJ]]. Established in 1998, the squadron was originally assigned to the aircraft carrier {{ship|Brazilian aircraft carrier|São Paulo||2}} until its decommissioning.
⚫
It remains the only fighter squadron of the [[Brazilian Navy]].<ref name=23a/>


The Brazilian Navy's desire for embarked fighters has existed since the 1982 [[Falklands War]], when the importance of the navy's air defense against aircraft and anti-ship missiles, which can reach surface assets in a few minutes, became evident. The interceptor planes would be one of the elements of the embarked air wing and would be part of a "layered defense" of the ships. On land, they could provide close air support to the [[Brazilian Marine Corps|Marine Corps]]. The opportunity to acquire fighter jets arose in the 90s, when the FAB deactivated its 1st Embarked Aviation Group (GAE) aboard the aircraft carrier ''[[Brazilian aircraft carrier Minas Gerais|Minas Gerais]]''. Since the "[[Embarked aviation issue|Castelo Branco corollary]]" of 1965, Naval Aviation was restricted by law to helicopters, but the navy overcame political resistance in the FAB and obtained a new presidential decree authorizing its planes. Since then, relations with the FAB have improved, and there is frequent joint training. The chosen plane was a batch of 23 Skyhawks purchased from Kuwait in 1998. The Skyhawk originates from the 1950s and was not designed as a fighter/interceptor, although it can be used in that role.

The investments required in personnel and infrastructure were heavy. Pilots, called "hunters", take almost four years to train, including periods in the United States [[United States Air Force|Air Force]] and [[United States Navy|Navy]]. The squadron only started flying from ''Minas Gerais'' in 2001, but that ship was too limited for fighters and was replaced in that same year by NAe ''São Paulo''. Shipborne operations, focused on training a critical mass of pilots, reached a peak in 2003, but both the aircraft carrier and fighters suffered serious availability issues. In addition to being difficult to maintain, the planes were outdated: there were no modern weapons such as guided bombs, beyond-visual-range air-to-air missiles and anti-ship missiles, nor in-flight refueling planes and early aerial warning to make fighters more efficient. Only eight pilots were qualified for embarked operations in 2005.

[[Embraer]] was contracted in 2009 to modernize twelve Skyhawks; thus, half of the original fleet would already be retired. After the official decommissioning of ''São Paulo'' in 2017, the contract was reduced to just six aircraft, which were delivered from 2015 to 2022. The expected useful life is until 2030, and its successors studied by the navy are the [[Saab JAS 39 Gripen|Gripen NG]], also chosen by the FAB, or the [[McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet|F/A-18 Hornet]]. However, if the squadron becomes like any other land-based fighter unit, an argument may arise for its deactivation. The modernization gave the squadron the most advanced variant of the Skyhawk ever developed, with modern sensors and digital instruments, but the purchase of weapons was only in the study phase. The Brazilian Navy still values ​​these aircraft in maritime reconnaissance, as they can reach the limit of the country's [[Exclusive economic zone of Brazil|exclusive economic zone]] in 30 minutes and, with their new radar, identify naval targets 160 kilometers away. The VF-1 still sends fighters to exercises across the country.

== Creation ==

⚫
=== Demand for fighter jets in the Brazilian Navy ===
Observation of the Falklands War, fought between Argentina and the United Kingdom in 1982, made the Brazilian Navy realize its weakness in a hypothetical conflict in the South Atlantic.<ref name="falconi">{{Cite thesis|last=Falconi|first=Paulo Gustavo|year=2009|title=Aviação naval brasileira: rivalidades e debates|url=https://www.franca.unesp.br/Home/Pos-graduacao/falconi.pdf|degree=Dcotorate|publisher=UNESP|place=Franca}}</ref>{{rp|180}} Argentine aircraft sank or damaged several British ships with anti-ship missiles and bombs, and only did no more damage due to the heavy casualties they suffered to British aircraft with air-to-air missiles. By offering air superiority and power projection over land and sea, aircraft carriers confirmed their importance as the core of fleets. Brazil had the aircraft carrier ''Minas Gerais'', acquired in 1956, but its function was anti-submarine warfare; it did not have the ideal size and capabilities to operate jets.<ref name="svartman">{{Cite book|last1=Svartman|first1=Eduardo Munhoz|last2=Pivatto Junior|first2=Dilceu Roberto|year=2021|chapter=The Falklands/Malvinas War and the Brazilian naval strategy: autonomy for a blue-water navy|title=The Falklands/Malvinas War in the South Atlantic|publisher=Palgrave Macmillan|doi=10.1007/978-3-030-65566-2}}</ref>{{rp|176-177}}

Officers in academic positions in the 1980s, breaking with this paradigm, began to defend a fleet with power projection, equipped with its own fighters.<ref name="falconi" />{{rp|181}}Soon after the war, in 1983, Minister of the Navy Maximiano Eduardo da Silva Fonseca presented a statement of reasons for the purchase of 12 A-4 Skyhawk aircraft to president [[João Figueiredo]].<ref name="nogueira">{{Cite thesis|last=Nogueira|first=Wilson Soares Ferreira|year=2014|title=A estratégia naval brasileira e o desenvolvimento de sua base logística de defesa|url=https://app.uff.br/riuff/bitstream/handle/1/26197/NOGUEIRA_%20WILSON%20-EST.%20NAV.DESNV.BLD.-MESTR.-%2022.08.14.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y|degree=Masters|publisher=UFF|place=Niterói}}</ref>{{rp|133}} The seller would be the [[Israeli Air Force]], but there were no financial and political conditions for the purchase.<ref name="falconi" />{{rp|216}} Still before the war, at the turn of the 70s to 80s, the purchase of Israeli Skyhawks, to be operated by the FAB aboard ''Minas Gerais'', was vetoed by the [[Ministry of Planning, Budget and Management|Ministry of Planning]].<ref>{{Cite web|last=Galante|first=Alexandre|date=22 April 2022|title=Como era a Marinha do Brasil na época da Guerra das Malvinas|url=https://www.naval.com.br/blog/2022/04/22/como-era-a-marinha-do-brasil-na-epoca-da-guerra-das-malvinas/|website=Poder Naval|access-date=5 February 2023}}</ref> Another possibility, the development of an onboard version of the Alenia/Aermacchi/Embraer [[AMX International AMX|AMX A-1]] attack aircraft, was announced, but was canceled in 1985.<ref name="falconi" />{{rp|192}}

The following decade brought more arguments in favor of having fighters on board. With the end of the [[Cold War]], the hypothesis of using ''Minas Gerais'' to defend maritime commerce against Soviet submarines no longer had a place.<ref name="fgv">{{Cite book|author=FGV Projetos|title=100 anos da Aviação Naval|year=2016|url=https://fgvprojetos.fgv.br/sites/fgvprojetos.fgv.br/files/pdf_baixa_-_aviacao_naval_0.pdf|place=Rio de Janeiro|publisher=FGV Projetos e ComForAerNav}}</ref>{{rp|137}} The goal changed to a "balanced squadron", with air coverage for its surface assets sailing far from the coast.<ref name="alsina">{{Cite journal|last=Alsina Jr|first=João Paulo Soares|year=2003|title=A síntese imperfeita: articulação entre política externa e política de defesa na era Cardoso|url=https://www.scielo.br/j/rbpi/a/Wqq4fBtTtJWSZphBT3qgjYR/abstract/?format=pdf&lang=pt|journal=Revista Brasileira de Política Internacional|volume=46|issue=2}}</ref>{{rp|65}} It was also argued based on the performance of the naval force in exercises and air support for Marine Corps contingents sent on [[United Nations]] peacekeeping missions.<ref name="pesce">{{Cite thesis|last=Pesce|first=Eduardo Ítalo|year=2016|title=Navios-aeródromo e aviação embarcada na estratégia naval brasileira|url=https://www.repositorio.mar.mil.br/bitstream/ripcmb/26357/1/00001567.pdf|degree=Masters|publisher=EGN|place=Rio de Janeiro}}</ref>{{rp|118}} The end of the useful life of the FAB planes embarked in ''Minas Gerais'', and of the aircraft carrier itself, was approaching, opening up an opportunity for the navy. The Brazilian Air Force had no plans for a replacement for its maritime patrol [[Grumman S-2 Tracker|P-16 Trackers]], organized in the 1st Embarked Aviation Group (GAE).{{Efn|The P-16 Trackers were decommissioned in 1996. The FAB purchased the [[Lockheed P-3 Orion|P-3 Orion]], an aircraft for land bases. See {{Cite journal|last=Freitas|first=Wilmar Terroso|year=2018|title=Aviação de Patrulha: história e tradição de segurança e defesa nas águas jurisdicionais brasileiras|url=https://www.portaldeperiodicos.marinha.mil.br/index.php/ighmb/article/view/3410/3299|journal=Revista do IGHMB|volume=77|issue=105}} p. 76.}} It was going through one of the worst moments in its history and had higher priorities, such as [[Amazon Surveillance System|SIVAM]].<ref name="falconi" />{{rp|210-211}}In the absence of the 1st GAE, ''Minas Gerais'' was reduced to the role of a helicopter carrier.<ref name="falconi" />{{rp|20}}

== Notes ==
{{Notelist}}


==References==
==References==
Line 35: Line 49:
<ref name=23a>{{cite web|url=https://www.defesaaereanaval.com.br/aviacao/esquadrao-vf-1-completa-23-anos|title=Esquadrão VF-1 completa 23 anos|author=Guilherme Wiltgen|date=2 October 2021|access-date=17 October 2023|publisher=Defesa Aerea & Naval|language=portuguese}}</ref>
<ref name=23a>{{cite web|url=https://www.defesaaereanaval.com.br/aviacao/esquadrao-vf-1-completa-23-anos|title=Esquadrão VF-1 completa 23 anos|author=Guilherme Wiltgen|date=2 October 2021|access-date=17 October 2023|publisher=Defesa Aerea & Naval|language=portuguese}}</ref>
}}
}}



[[Category:Military units and formations established in 1998]]
[[Category:Military units and formations established in 1998]]
[[Category:Brazilian Naval Aviation]]
[[Category:Brazilian Naval Aviation]]

{{Brazil-mil-stub}}

Revision as of 14:09, 19 October 2023

1º Esquadrão de Aviões de Interceptação e Ataque
Active2 October 1998; 26 years ago (1998-10-02)[1]
Country Brazil
Branch Brazilian Navy
TypeFighter/Attack
Part ofBrazilian Naval Aviation
Garrison/HQSão Pedro da Aldeia Naval Air Base
Nickname(s)Falcões ("Falcons")
Motto(s)In Are Defensio Maris ("In the air, the defense of the sea")[1]
Aircraft flown
FighterA-4KU Skyhawk[1]

The 1st Interceptor and Strike Fighter Squadron (Portuguese: 1º Esquadrão de Aviões de Interceptação e Ataque; VF-1), known as "Hawk Squadron", is the Brazilian Naval Aviation unit created to fly McDonnell Douglas A-4 Skyhawk fighters on aircraft carriers of the Brazilian Navy (MB). The decommissioning of NAe São Paulo in 2017, after more than a decade inoperative, limits the squadron to taking off from land-based runways, especially its headquarters at the São Pedro da Aldeia Naval Air Base (BAeNSPA), Rio de Janeiro, where it is subordinate to the Naval Air Force Command. Its planes had the designations AF-1 (single-seater) and AF-1A (two-seater), later changed after modernization in 2015–2022 to AF-1B and AF-1C. The VF-1 operates the only fighters in Brazil outside the Brazilian Air Force (FAB). It was the last squadron in the world to fly the Skyhawk from aircraft carriers and, together with the Argentine Air Force, is the last military operator of that plane.

The Brazilian Navy's desire for embarked fighters has existed since the 1982 Falklands War, when the importance of the navy's air defense against aircraft and anti-ship missiles, which can reach surface assets in a few minutes, became evident. The interceptor planes would be one of the elements of the embarked air wing and would be part of a "layered defense" of the ships. On land, they could provide close air support to the Marine Corps. The opportunity to acquire fighter jets arose in the 90s, when the FAB deactivated its 1st Embarked Aviation Group (GAE) aboard the aircraft carrier Minas Gerais. Since the "Castelo Branco corollary" of 1965, Naval Aviation was restricted by law to helicopters, but the navy overcame political resistance in the FAB and obtained a new presidential decree authorizing its planes. Since then, relations with the FAB have improved, and there is frequent joint training. The chosen plane was a batch of 23 Skyhawks purchased from Kuwait in 1998. The Skyhawk originates from the 1950s and was not designed as a fighter/interceptor, although it can be used in that role.

The investments required in personnel and infrastructure were heavy. Pilots, called "hunters", take almost four years to train, including periods in the United States Air Force and Navy. The squadron only started flying from Minas Gerais in 2001, but that ship was too limited for fighters and was replaced in that same year by NAe São Paulo. Shipborne operations, focused on training a critical mass of pilots, reached a peak in 2003, but both the aircraft carrier and fighters suffered serious availability issues. In addition to being difficult to maintain, the planes were outdated: there were no modern weapons such as guided bombs, beyond-visual-range air-to-air missiles and anti-ship missiles, nor in-flight refueling planes and early aerial warning to make fighters more efficient. Only eight pilots were qualified for embarked operations in 2005.

Embraer was contracted in 2009 to modernize twelve Skyhawks; thus, half of the original fleet would already be retired. After the official decommissioning of São Paulo in 2017, the contract was reduced to just six aircraft, which were delivered from 2015 to 2022. The expected useful life is until 2030, and its successors studied by the navy are the Gripen NG, also chosen by the FAB, or the F/A-18 Hornet. However, if the squadron becomes like any other land-based fighter unit, an argument may arise for its deactivation. The modernization gave the squadron the most advanced variant of the Skyhawk ever developed, with modern sensors and digital instruments, but the purchase of weapons was only in the study phase. The Brazilian Navy still values ​​these aircraft in maritime reconnaissance, as they can reach the limit of the country's exclusive economic zone in 30 minutes and, with their new radar, identify naval targets 160 kilometers away. The VF-1 still sends fighters to exercises across the country.

Creation

Demand for fighter jets in the Brazilian Navy

Observation of the Falklands War, fought between Argentina and the United Kingdom in 1982, made the Brazilian Navy realize its weakness in a hypothetical conflict in the South Atlantic.[2]: 180  Argentine aircraft sank or damaged several British ships with anti-ship missiles and bombs, and only did no more damage due to the heavy casualties they suffered to British aircraft with air-to-air missiles. By offering air superiority and power projection over land and sea, aircraft carriers confirmed their importance as the core of fleets. Brazil had the aircraft carrier Minas Gerais, acquired in 1956, but its function was anti-submarine warfare; it did not have the ideal size and capabilities to operate jets.[3]: 176–177 

Officers in academic positions in the 1980s, breaking with this paradigm, began to defend a fleet with power projection, equipped with its own fighters.[2]: 181 Soon after the war, in 1983, Minister of the Navy Maximiano Eduardo da Silva Fonseca presented a statement of reasons for the purchase of 12 A-4 Skyhawk aircraft to president João Figueiredo.[4]: 133  The seller would be the Israeli Air Force, but there were no financial and political conditions for the purchase.[2]: 216  Still before the war, at the turn of the 70s to 80s, the purchase of Israeli Skyhawks, to be operated by the FAB aboard Minas Gerais, was vetoed by the Ministry of Planning.[5] Another possibility, the development of an onboard version of the Alenia/Aermacchi/Embraer AMX A-1 attack aircraft, was announced, but was canceled in 1985.[2]: 192 

The following decade brought more arguments in favor of having fighters on board. With the end of the Cold War, the hypothesis of using Minas Gerais to defend maritime commerce against Soviet submarines no longer had a place.[6]: 137  The goal changed to a "balanced squadron", with air coverage for its surface assets sailing far from the coast.[7]: 65  It was also argued based on the performance of the naval force in exercises and air support for Marine Corps contingents sent on United Nations peacekeeping missions.[8]: 118  The end of the useful life of the FAB planes embarked in Minas Gerais, and of the aircraft carrier itself, was approaching, opening up an opportunity for the navy. The Brazilian Air Force had no plans for a replacement for its maritime patrol P-16 Trackers, organized in the 1st Embarked Aviation Group (GAE).[a] It was going through one of the worst moments in its history and had higher priorities, such as SIVAM.[2]: 210–211 In the absence of the 1st GAE, Minas Gerais was reduced to the role of a helicopter carrier.[2]: 20 

Notes

  1. ^ The P-16 Trackers were decommissioned in 1996. The FAB purchased the P-3 Orion, an aircraft for land bases. See Freitas, Wilmar Terroso (2018). "Aviação de Patrulha: história e tradição de segurança e defesa nas águas jurisdicionais brasileiras". Revista do IGHMB. 77 (105). p. 76.

References

A VF-1 Skyhawk lands on São Paulo.
  1. ^ a b c Guilherme Wiltgen (2 October 2021). "Esquadrão VF-1 completa 23 anos" (in Portuguese). Defesa Aerea & Naval. Retrieved 17 October 2023.
  2. ^ a b c d e f Falconi, Paulo Gustavo (2009). Aviação naval brasileira: rivalidades e debates (PDF) (Dcotorate thesis). Franca: UNESP.
  3. ^ Svartman, Eduardo Munhoz; Pivatto Junior, Dilceu Roberto (2021). "The Falklands/Malvinas War and the Brazilian naval strategy: autonomy for a blue-water navy". The Falklands/Malvinas War in the South Atlantic. Palgrave Macmillan. doi:10.1007/978-3-030-65566-2.
  4. ^ Nogueira, Wilson Soares Ferreira (2014). A estratégia naval brasileira e o desenvolvimento de sua base logística de defesa (PDF) (Masters thesis). Niterói: UFF.
  5. ^ Galante, Alexandre (22 April 2022). "Como era a Marinha do Brasil na época da Guerra das Malvinas". Poder Naval. Retrieved 5 February 2023.
  6. ^ FGV Projetos (2016). 100 anos da Aviação Naval (PDF). Rio de Janeiro: FGV Projetos e ComForAerNav.
  7. ^ Alsina Jr, João Paulo Soares (2003). "A síntese imperfeita: articulação entre política externa e política de defesa na era Cardoso". Revista Brasileira de Política Internacional. 46 (2).
  8. ^ Pesce, Eduardo Ítalo (2016). Navios-aeródromo e aviação embarcada na estratégia naval brasileira (PDF) (Masters thesis). Rio de Janeiro: EGN.
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