The Brazilian Army Aviation (; AvEx) is the air segment of the Brazilian Army, operating rotary-wing aircraft (helicopters) in conjunction with surface forces such as the 12th Light Infantry Brigade (Airmobile). Originally founded with aircraft in 1919, it ceased to exist in 1941, re-emerging in its current form in 1986. It has mainly transport aircraft in addition to light attack helicopters, but does not use dedicated attack helicopters. Its command (CAvEx) in Taubaté, São Paulo, is linked to the Land Operations Command, in Brasília, and the Southeastern Military Command. CAvEx only has subordinates in the 1st and 2nd battalions, also in Taubaté. The 3rd and 4th are respectively in Campo Grande and Manaus, subordinate to the Western and Amazonian Military Commands, and there is a detachment in Belém, in the Northern Military Command.

The original Army Aviation, based on fixed-wing aircraft, became the army's fifth branch in 1927, but was united with Naval Aviation in 1941 to form the Brazilian Air Force (FAB). Later, the Brazilian Army recreated aviation with a new military technology, helicopters. There had been interest since the 1960s, but army aviation only returned in the 1980s, when it was the star of the modernization program, "Land Force 90", requiring heavy investments and the training of highly specialized workforce. As part of the army's "core of modernity", AvEx was protected from budget cuts in the following decade and became a strategic force, capable of rapid mobilization to any part of Brazil. Precisely for this reason it was created in Taubaté, in the central nucleus of the country and close to the aeronautical industry in the Paraíba Valley. Later, the units were deconcentrated, but the bulk of the personnel remains in Taubaté.

AvEx is especially important for mobility in the Amazon, where it had its "baptism of fire" in Operation Traíra, in 1991. In the 21st century it is widely used in the security of large events and operations to guarantee law and order. Helicopters operate in close coordination with ground forces in logistics, reconnaissance, fire support and troop transport roles. Its priority function was originally conceived as air assault, inserting troops from the 12th Brigade behind enemy lines, but the number of helicopters is a limitation. Pilots and specialists (such as flight mechanics) are respectively officers and sergeants trained at the Army Aviation Instruction Center (Centro de Instrução de Aviação do Exército, CIAvEx). Helicopter logistics are complex and depend on imported technology. The Maintenance and Supply Battalion (Batalhão de Manutenção e Suprimento, BMS), in Taubaté, has the mission of keeping 70% of the helicopters available for immediate use, while the Taubaté Aviation Base (Base de Aviação de Taubaté, BAvT) manages the infrastructure and carries out air traffic control. The fleet corresponded to 13% of the aircraft of the Brazilian Armed Forces in 2022.

The aviation battalions are mixed, with reconnaissance and attack squadrons, with helicopters such as the HA-1 Esquilo (Eurocopter Ecureuil and Fennec), and general use, with maneuver helicopters such as the HM-1 Pantera (Eurocopter Panther). HA-1 Esquilo is also the standard model for training. These two models were the first to be purchased, but the HA-1 did not meet the army's ambitions for air-to-ground or air-to-air combat, and the HM-1 for transport capability. The army acquired new maneuver helicopters, the HM-2 Black Hawk (Sikorsky UH-60), HM-3 Cougar (Eurocopter Cougar) and HM-4 Jaguar (Eurocopter Caracal), respectively in 1997, 1999 and 2011. HA-1, HM-1 and HM-4 are assembled by Helibras. The Army Strategic Aviation Program, formalized by the Army General Staff (Estado-Maior do Exército, EME) in 2017, included AvEx in the army's project portfolio, with plans such as the acquisition of dedicated attack helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft for logistics; however, the intention to acquire planes was prevented by pressure from the FAB in 2020. CIAvEx was chosen to train the army's remotely piloted aircraft system operators (SARP) and several were received in 2022.

History

Fixed-wing aviation (pre-1941)

The Brazilian Army's first aeronautical experience was the use of observation balloons in 1867 during the Paraguayan War. Then, at the beginning of the 20th century, new airplane technology entered the agenda of military reforms. The country did not have an aeronautical industry, and it was difficult to create an aviation school. The army's first airplane pilot was lieutenant Ricardo Kirk, licensed in France in 1912. He flew reconnaissance missions in the Contestado War, where he died in an accident in 1915.

After the end of the First World War, Brazil managed to hire French instructors and import surplus planes. In 1919, the Military Aviation School was created in Campo dos Afonsos, Rio de Janeiro, to train aviators, observers and mechanics. Aviation was elevated to branch status in 1927. It was the great novelty in the army in the 1920s. It was used on a large scale for the first time in the Constitutionalist Revolution of 1932. From 1933 onwards, its operational units were installed throughout the country, and in 1941 it already had 330 aircraft, although many were obsolete or inoperable, with insufficient personnel and structures for national defense.

Army, naval and commercial aviation existed independently. Military aviators became increasingly different from their counterparts on land and sea, developing an ethos of their own. In the 1930s, a movement emerged proposing the unification of aviation into a "Ministry of Air". They had ambitious plans for air power and considered the separation of their assets inefficient. The Brazilian Air Force, created in 1941, absorbed Army Aviation, Naval Aviation and other aerial organizations. Its creation was a political decision, as the new institution was a third weight in the rivalry between the army and navy. The Ministry of the Navy was against the measure, while the Ministry of War was in favor. Some generals wanted a transitional Air Ministry; military aviation would be unified in a sub-secretariat subordinate to the army. President Getúlio Vargas did not give in to the army's intention, and the Air Force consolidated itself as a new branch. The Military Aviation School would become the current Air Force Academy, and the former army air units correspond to the FAB Air Bases/Wings.

Reactivation (1986)

After airplanes, another great technological innovation emerged in the Korean War and especially in the Vietnam War, in the 1960s: the military helicopter. Capable of crossing any terrain, it proved to be versatile in the transport and close air support of ground forces and it was used on a large scale by the U.S. Armed Forces, where the concept of "air cavalry" emerged. The U.S. Army and Air Force disputed what would be the hierarchical relationship between ground forces and helicopters and reached the Johnson-McConnell Agreement of 1966: rotary-wing aircraft would remain with the army, and fixed-wing aircraft with the air force. In Brazil, the army enjoyed the support of Bell UH-1 Iroquois helicopters from the FAB in the fight against the Araguaia Guerrilla. The Army High Command was not unaware of the aviation of the other South American armies, and some Brazilian officers witnessed helicopter maneuvers by the American and French armies.

Brazilian cavalry officers, inspired by the American example, already imagined the helicopter as a future evolution after armored vehicles in 1965. This ambition was never realized, as Brazilian helicopters would not appear in the cavalry. The 1970 Army Reorganization Master Plan provided for the recreation of army aviation. Officials did not want to depend on the FAB for logistics, troop transport and airmobile operations. The aviation envisaged in this plan would have a mix of helicopters and planes and decentralized distribution, unlike the aviation implemented in 1986. Many reforms were implemented in the 1970s, but not aviation. In 1977, the Army General Staff (EME) began studies on organic aviation.

It was the experience of the Falklands War in 1982 that definitively pushed the military authorities to decide on helicopters. The Argentine Armed Forces, the most advanced on the continent at the time, had been defeated, and one of the many aspects was the smaller number of helicopters. The Brazilian gap in the operational, technological and human areas became clear and worrying. The army planned Ground Force 90 (FT-90), deployed from 1986 to 1990, as the first part of a modernization program. The necessary investments were heavy and the country was going through the lost decade, but president José Sarney, needing political support from Army Minister Leônidas Pires Gonçalves, provided the necessary resources. 500 million extrabudgetary dollars were allocated to the army in 1986–1987. Much of this effort did not bear fruit, but in the technological area Army Aviation and electronic warfare were successfully introduced.

Among the broken paradigms was the traditional aircraft monopoly held by the FAB. The navy and air force had already fought a long battle over embarked aviation on the aircraft carrier Minas Gerais. The "Castelo Branco corollary", of 1965, allowed the navy to operate helicopters, but kept the planes with the FAB. A new dispute arose when the army unsuccessfully attempted to purchase Bell H-1H helicopters in 1969. But Army Aviation, also made up of helicopters, was created without fanfare or contrary campaign. Air Force officials already recognized the tactical need for helicopters in the army and navy. Army Aviation was formally recreated on 3 September 1986.

Implantation

Aviation was the "most hyped part of modernization" and the "flagship of the FT-90", but its introduction was difficult. It required a heavy financial and logistical burden and highly specialized human resources. Even with a sufficient budget, the project would take at least a decade. General Leônidas remarked the incredulity of a government interlocutor: "an army that does not even have combat boots wants to have a helicopter!" Aircraft were purchased and the initial personnel trained in the navy and air force. To preserve the army's organizational culture, those sent were former captains and sergeants. The most time-consuming part would be the employment doctrine, as it could not be copied from another country. As aircraft arrived before doctrine, aviation underwent five major restructurings from its formal creation in 1986 until 1994; the important thing for the Army Minister was to take advantage of the favorable situation.

In the Ajuricaba Mission, in October 1990, the helicopters were presented to garrisons in Minas Gerais, Brasília, the Center-West and the North, covering nine thousand kilometers from Taubaté. Difficulties in long-distance travel and operation in hot and humid regions, with restricted landing areas, were assessed. In 1991, the training of human resources within the army began with the creation of the Army Aviation Instruction Center. Budget cuts hit the Armed Forces hard in the early 1990s. AvEx was one of the few areas spared the effect of cuts by the Army High Command. It became part of the army's "core of modernity", as did the 12th Light Infantry Brigade (Airmobile). This brigade, converted in 1995, emerged parallel to aviation as a unit capable of operating in its helicopters. The "Delta Doctrine", adopted by the army in 2000, by valuing flank and rear operations, attributed great importance to airmobile operations. AvEx became one of the army's Strategic Deployment Forces, with immediate mobilization capabilities.

Activities