Estonian Air Force

Estonian Air Force Eesti Õhuvägi
Estonian Air Force emblem
Founded	1918
Country	Estonia
Size	250 (+400) personnel
Command HQ	Tallinn Õhuväe Staap Ämari Lennubaas
March	"Lennuväepoiste laul"
Anniversaries	21 November 1918 16 December 1991
Engagements	Estonian War of Independence
Commanders
Commander of the Estonian Air Force	Colonel Jaak Tarien
Insignia
Roundel
flag

The Estonian Air Force (Estonian: Eesti Õhuvägi,  listen ) is the aviation branch of the Estonia Defence Forces. The air force traces its history to 1918, and was established in its current form in 1991.

As of 2016, the Estonian Air Force has a strength of 300 personnel, eight unarmed aircraft and several radar systems. Its main tasks are to provide surveillance of Estonian air space and support the country's ground forces. In addition, the air force hosts units from other NATO countries at its single operational air base.

The roots of the current organization go back to the Russian revolution of February 1917, after which the Estonian state obtained a degree of autonomy within Russia, which included the establishment of national armed forces. Thus many Estonians in the Russian Army returned home to take up arms for their homeland. The Estonian Declaration of Independence in early 1918 was not recognized by Germany, which invaded and occupied the country during 1918. The Estonian armed forces were disbanded.

After the armistice on 11 November 1918, the Estonian Provisional Government immediately set about establishing a military aviation unit. On 21 November 1918 Voldemar Victor Riiberg, the Commander of the Engineering Battalion, assigned August Roos to organize a flight unit. The Aviation Company of the Engineer Battalion began to establish air bases near Tallinn for seaplanes and land planes, but it was not until January 1919 that the first operational aircraft was acquired – a captured Soviet Farman F.30.