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Ukraine at 30 13

On 1 September 2021, Ukraine celebrated 30 years as an independent state again, after dissolution of the Soviet Union. On 24 August, various festivities were organised. One of those was a huge military parade in Kyiv.roundel UKR

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We have visited NAS Fallon a couple of times. Every aviation enthusiast that ever has, knows that it is the location to get up close to the adversary aircraft that train the US Navy pilots to their high standards. Like this desert camouflaged F-16C '52 red'.

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Japan 2019 12

Japan's Self Defence Force has the Herculean task of protecting the vast area of the Motherland and its many islands. They achieve this with a compact, dedicated and modern armed forces. Well-liked by aviation enthusiasts because of the variety of aircraft, the photographic opportunities and the friendly local approach to aviation photography. Stunning aircraft can be encountered like this YS-11EB electronic warfare aircraft operated by the Denshi Sakusengun (Electronic Warfare Operations Group) out of Iruma.

PRT 2019 16Aviagraphers visited Montijo air base, home of the transport, patrol and Search and Rescue assets of the Portuguese air force and navy.PRT 2019 01

POL Independence 2018 01One centenary of Polish independence was celebrated in style on 15 August 2018, with the Wielka Defilada Niepodległosci – the Great Independence Parade, over Warsaw. POL Independence 2018 15

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FRA Bastille18 15Yearly on the Fête nationale (national celebration), the storming of the Bastille prison on 14 July 1789 is commemorated. Marking a turning point in the revolution that led to the French republic, the French Armed Forces of course gave acte de présence with a military parade on the Champs-Élysées which is overflown by arguably the best orchestrated aerial parade in the world.

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AZE parade 51On 26 June 2018 the Azerbaijan armed forces celebrated their 100th anniversary with a huge militray parade, Azərbaycan hərbi parad. AZE parade 50Aviagraphers were in situ to provide a review on its ever evolving military prowess.

VEN 01On 27 November 1992 a failed Coup d'Etat led in many changes in Venezuela. The year after, the president was charged with corrpution and in 1998 Chavez was elected as the 64th president. Spinning Bolivarian revolutionary talk and with leanings towards Russia and China. Twenty years after the start of these changes, we visited around 27 November, still seen as significant a date by supporters of the current government, to see what had become of this socialist ideal.

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Venezuela has some oil riches, depending on the crude oil price, boycots and government's prudency, this means sometimes oil dollars are in abundance and the next year it is all gone. One of the more remarkable contracts in Latin America was for 24 Su-30MK2V fighter aircraft.

MKD 19The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia operates a small aerial component. Let us look into what they had on strength back in 2007.

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The Su-25 was kept operational in the early years of this century, and later they were held in reserve for some time. Here Su-25UBK 120 is being aired.

Армійська авіація (AA)

UkrAA 18We visited one of the Ukraine Army Avaition bases a couple of years ago, amidst the turmoil that was going on in the Eastern part of the country.

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ISR70 042018 sees the 70th birthday of the State of Israel. Over the years, both allies and enemies would agree, they built up a very potent air force (Heyl Ha'Avir). Four F-16C aircraft of 117 squadron, the "First Jet" squadron, took off from Ramat David to on a training mission.The anniversary prompted us to give a short overview of some of the festivities and highlight the latest and primary assets.

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ARG EAM 01Córdoba houses the Escuela de Aviación Militar of the Fuerza Aerea de Argentina. They are in the process of rejuvenating their fleet. Latest acquisition is the T-6C+ Texan II.Seen here is E-300 retracting its gear shortly after take off.

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CYP 14The Cyprus National Guard, Εθνική Φρουρά (Ethniki Froura), has a small air wing. All aircraft are based at Pahos Intl. Aviagraphers attended the yearly open day in November to sample their goods.

roundel bolA large parade was held at El Trompillo in 2013, to celebrate the Fuerza Aerea Boliviana (Bolivian Air Force) anniversary. The parade proved to be the perfect opportunity to witness various kinds of aircraft in colourful fashion for one of our editors.

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How low can you go? One of many types operated by the FAB is the British Aerospace Jetstream, which took off in style to please the photographer.

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Sri Lanka 01Sri Lanka Air Force

Small but potent and combat-tested, the Sri Lanka Air Force operates a variety of interesting aircraft. We provide a base-by-base overview of the situation back in 2011.

FAU parade 01March 17th is Air Force day in Uruguay. The Fuerza Aérea Uruguaya (FAU) holds a large air parade annually to celebrate the day in style. Aircraft and helicopters gather at military airfields around the capital Montevideo for the venue and fly over the cradle of the FAU, Base Aérea Boiso Lanza, the current FAU headquarters. The 2014 edition was visited by one of our editors, who visited Base Aérea Carrasco near Montevideo, where most aircraft gathered for the parade.

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Uruguay was one of the latest customers of the original PC-7, which are used for advanced training and counter insurgency operations. The aircraft are dubbed AT-92 locally, after the year of procurement.

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Ejército de Chile

The Chilean Brigada de Aviación del Ejército plays a vital role in supporting the troops and for disaster relief duties throughout the country. We take a look at their assets.

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Irish Air Corpsroundel iac

Humble but determined, the Irish Air Corps faces the arduous task of safeguarding a huge coastline. Aviagraphers joined the Gilze-Rijen Aviation Society for a visit to its home base Baldonnel-Casement aerodrome.

Tentara Nasional Indonesia - Angkatan Udara yearly anniversary

If budget permits, and the commander-in-chief of the Air Force feels like it, the Indonesian Air Force yearly showcases its assets over Jakarta. In a spur of the moment decision, one of our Aviagraphers took a last minute flight to witness the proceedings.

Aviación Naval Uruguaya

Compared to its heyday in the fifties of the 20th century, the aviation branch of the Uruguay Navy is small in size. Yet, it fulfills an important role in safe-guarding the Rio de la Plata, search and rescue and last but not least, supporting Uruguayan naval operations in Antarctica. One Aviagrapher made a memorable visit.

Aviação do Exército

Founded just 30 years ago, in 1986, the Army Aviation Command operates helicopters in support of Brazil’s army. The city of Taubate, roughly half way between Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, was chosen as the cradle of army aviation, and to this day, it remains the main base. One of the Aviagraphers was invited to take a closer look at the base and its helicopter operations.

 

Albacete - Base Aérea de Los Llanos

Most people may know the area Los Llanos because of the infamous character Don Quichote fighting windmills. In the aviation community, Albacete's base aerea de Los Llanos is better known for the regular Tactical Leadership Programme and of course as home base for No.14 Wing of the Ejercito del Aire, and as one of the members of the Tiger Meet association.

SGP roundelSingapore's Helicopter Assets

With Singapore recently announcing their plans for replacement of the current helicopter fleet, we look at the force’s helicopter assets through the years, culminating in the sizeable fleet that currently forms the back bone of the Participation Command. We had the unique opportunity to check the current inventory at Sembawang air base a couple of years ago.

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Qatar Emiri Air Force

Fuelled by natural gas, tiny Qatar has developed into a middle power in the Middle East. National ambitions are high and the country continues to develop its economy and armed forces. What better day to witness national progress than December 18th, which is Qatar’s national day? Celebrating the rise to power of the emirate’s Al-Thani royal family, many events are organized around this date.

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Ukraine Naval aviation

The Ukraine naval aviation used to be based at the Crimea but had to vacate their facilities there. Nowadays, they are back at Kulbakino sharing this huge air base with the air force.

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USA roundel gyZulus and Yankees at the Camp

One of the main reasons we visited the USA this March was to witness first-hand the new mounts of the Marines, the UH-1 ‘Yankee’ (or Venom) and AH-1 ‘Zulu’ (or Viper). In this article we will describe Camp Pendleton and its heritage, the UH-1Y/AH-1Z procurement program and the insights on operating these new ‘snakes’ shared by our hosts at HMLA-369.