Military aviation in Argentina can be traced back to the
Paraguayan War when, on 8 July 1867, Staff Sergeant Roberto A. Chodasiewicz used an
observation balloon during the
battle of Humaitá. Since then, the army has been the main driving force behind the national aeronautical development. The use of enthusiastic students who relied on the selfless support of civil institutions and air clubs, saw the creation of the
Military Aviation School at
El Palomar in 1912. The establishment of the
Army Aviation Service (in Spanish,
Servicio de Aviación del Ejército) saw a great expansion of Argentine air power in the 1912–1945 period, and supported the development of civil aviation in Argentina. The creation of the first aviation units and the foundation of the
Fábrica Militar de Aviones in the 1920s were the beginning of a process that lead to the creation of the
Argentine Air Force in 1945, to which the Army transferred its aircraft and related installations.
Re-establishment In 1956, Army Aviation was re-established within the Army and began a major expansion, incorporating new types of aircraft and opening new bases around the country. In 1965, using a
Cessna U-17 they performed their first expedition to the
South Pole. During the 1970s the service consolidated itself as an important branch of the Army receiving aircraft such as the
Aeritalia G.222 transport which caused friction with the Argentine Air Force. The expansion plans continued in the early 1980s with the incorporation of the
Agusta A109 utility and the
Boeing CH-47 Chinook heavy-lift helicopters. The
dictatorship that took power in 1976 increased
tensions with Chile which reached their highest point during the 1978
Operation Soberanía where the Army Aviation performed major deployments.
Falklands War "Huey" helicopters, at
Port Stanley Airport; after transport to the islands by
C-130H "Hercules"; rotors not yet reattached In 1982, the
Military Junta invaded the
Falkland Islands () triggering a ten-week-long war against the
United Kingdom. The Argentine Army Aviation deployed 2
CH-47 Chinooks, 3
Agusta A109, 6
SA330 Pumas and 9
UH-1Hs to the islands, where they performed 796 general support flights under harsh operating conditions. Their helicopters were also extensively used in
Patagonia and the Army also took over the
provincial police's
MBB Bo 105s during the conflict. Six Army aviation members died in the war. Two army helicopters were shot down, six destroyed on the ground, and ten were captured. Some of these captured were used by British Army and other used as targets for RAF ground attack training.
Present Day Lipan Indigenous design After the war, the
Aerospatiale Super Puma was incorporated, mainly for
Antarctica support duties operating from Navy's icebreaker
ARA Almirante Irizar. In 1998, Argentina was granted
Major Non-NATO ally status by United States President
Bill Clinton and the Army Aviation began an expansive program that included the reception of
OV-1 Mohawks and surplus
UH-1H from the
US Army. The US also authorized the delivery of 12
AH-1F Cobra gunships but the operation was halted by the Argentine Government. In the 1990s, the Aviation Army began its
Unmanned aerial vehicle program, the Lipan series.picture In 2007, the
Ministry of Defense evaluated the Chinese
Changhe Z-11 (Argentine index
AE-350) and 40 are to be built. Also in 2007, the Army unveiled the indigenous
Cicaré CH-14 Aguilucho scout prototype video. A major update program is currently underway refitting the Hueys to the
Huey II variant. In March 2010 it was announced the purchase of five Bell 206 for the Joint
armed forces school. Army aircraft with tactical camouflage have adopted high-visibility yellow markings (
Spanish for “Army”) in order to encourage the national press to stop referring to them as belonging to the
air force. In the 2014 celebration of the Argentine Army Aviation day, the following actions to improve capabilities were confirmed: • purchase of 1 Cessna Citation and 4 Grand Caravan aircraft • purchase of 2 CASA C-212 aircraft • replacement of Mohawk by Diamond 42 aircraft • purchase of second hand Italian AB206 helicopters (agreement reached but never signed until new government took power in 2016) • upgrade of remaining UH-1 helicopters to Huey II standard (due to budget restrictions purchase of new helicopters was abandoned). • refurbishing of Super Puma helicopters. Currently, Argentina has expressed interest in buying surplus US equipment and authorization granted by US government. This may involve transport or scout helicopters. The Army Aviation Command was renamed as “Army Aviation Directorate” (
Dirección de Aviación de Ejército). Eight years later recovered its previous name, while going to depend of the
Army Enlistment and Training Command. == Organisation ==