Peruvian Air Force Fuerza Aérea del Perú |
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Coat of arms of the Peruvian Air Force
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Active | 1929 (as Peruvian Aviation Corps) |
Country | Peru |
Part of | Peruvian Ministry of Defense |
Nickname(s) | "FAP" |
Engagements |
Colombia–Peru War 1932 – 1933 Ecuadorian-Peruvian war (1941) Paquisha War 1981 Falklands War 1982 Cenepa War 1995 Internal conflict in Peru 1980– 2015 |
Commanders | |
Commander-In-Chief | Dante Antonio Arévalo Abate |
Chief of Staff | Julio Valdez Pomareda |
Inspector General | Javier Ramírez Guillen |
Insignia | |
Roundel | |
Flag | |
Aircraft flown | |
Attack | Su-25, A-37B |
Fighter | MiG-29, Mirage 2000 |
Attack helicopter | Mi-25D, Mi-35P |
Patrol | C-26B |
Reconnaissance | Learjet 36 |
Trainer | MB-339, EMB-312, Zlin 242L |
Transport | An-32B, C-130 Hercules, Y-12, Boeing 737, DHC-6, PC-6 |
The Peruvian Air Force (Spanish: Fuerza Aérea del Perú, FAP) is the branch of the Peruvian Armed Forces tasked with defending the nation and its interests through the use of air power. Additional missions include assistance in safeguarding internal security, conducting disaster relief operations and participating in international peacekeeping operations.
On May 20, 1929, the aviation divisions of the Peruvian Army and Navy were merged into the Cuerpo de Aviación del Perú (Peruvian Aviation Corps, abbreviated CAP). During the Colombia-Peru War of 1933, its Vought O2U Corsair and Curtiss F11C Hawk planes fought in the Amazon region. The CAP lost three aircraft to the Colombian Air Force . The corps was renamed Cuerpo Aeronáutico del Perú (Peruvian Aeronautical Corps, also abbreviated CAP) on March 12, 1936.
In 1941, the CAP participated in the Peruvian-Ecuadorian War. At that time, the CAP were equipped with Caproni Ca.114 and North American NA.50 Torito fighters, Douglas DB-8A-3P attack aircraft, and Caproni Ca.135 Tipo Peru and Caproni Ca.310 Libeccio bombers, among others.
The Peruvian Air Force had also established a paratroop unit during the war and used it to great effect by seizing the strategic Ecuadorian port city of Puerto Bolívar, on July 27, 1941, marking the first time in the Americas that airborne troops were use in combat.