List of active Chile military aircraft

List of active Chile military aircraft is a list of military aircraft currently in service with the Chilean Armed Forces.

Chilean Air Force

Main articles: Chilean Air Force and List of current equipment of the Chilean Air Force

F-16C Block 50

KC-135E Stratotanker

C-130H Hercules

Cessna CitationJet CJ1

Sikorsky S-70i Black Hawk

Bell 412

T-35 Pillán

Aircraft	Origin	Role	Variant	In service	Notes
Combat aircraft
Northrop F-5	United States	Light fighter	F-5E F-5F	8[1] 3[1]	Originally, 18 F-5E/F Tiger IIs were acquired in 1975. In the 1990s, they were upgraded to the F-5 Tiger III variant.[2] F-5F used as trainers.[3]
F-16 Fighting Falcon	United States	Multirole	F-16C/D F-16A/B MLU	10[1] 36[3][4]	10 F-16C/D Block 50 received from the US in 2006 and 36 F-16 AM/BM MLU Block 15/20 from the RNLAF between 2006 and 2011.[4] 11 F-16B/D used as trainers.[3]
AEW&C
E-3 Sentry	United States	AEW&C	E-3D MK1	2[3]	3 units received from the RAF in 2022, one for spare parts.[5]
Reconnaissance
Cessna L-19	United States	Liaison / SAR	L-19A	3[1]	Originally, 6 units were acquired in 1955.[6]
Cessna O-2 Skymaster	United States	Liaison / SAR	O-2A	2[1]
Tanker
KC-135 Stratotanker	United States	Aerial refueling / transport	KC-135E	3[7]	3 units received from the USAF between 2010 and 2012.[8]
KC-130 Hercules	United States	Transport / aerial refueling	KC-130R	3[3]	Originally, 4 units of this transport variant were received from the USN between 2015 and 2016. They have the capability to refuel the F-5E/F Tiger III in flight.[9]
Transport / Utility
DHC-6 Twin Otter	Canada	Utility / transport	DHC-6-100 DHC-6-300	13[7]	Originally, 20 units were acquired; 8 of the 100 series in 1966, 6 of the 300 series to LAM in 1974 and 6 more of the 300 series in 1978.[10]
C-130 Hercules	United States	Transport	C-130H	4[7]	2 units of this transport variant were received from Lockheed Martin between 1972 and 1973. In 2021, 2 more units were received from the USAF, with a third unit being contemplated.[9]
C-212 Aviocar	Spain	Transport	C-212-200 C-212-300	2[7][11] 1[7][11]	Originally 4 units received since March 1995; 2 C-212-200 and 2 C-212-300.[11]
Boeing 737	United States	Transport	330QC 58N	1[7] 1[7]
Cessna CitationJet	United States	VIP transport / trainer	CJ1	4[7]	4 units received in 2001.[12]
Gulfstream G-IV	United States	VIP transport / utility		4[7]	4 aircraft in total; the first acquired in 2005, the second in 2015, the third in 2020 and the fourth in 2021.[13][14][15]
Boeing 767	United States	Transport	300ER	1[7]	1 unit incorporated in 2008.[16]
Helicopter
UH-1 Iroquois	United States	Utility	UH-1H	13[1]	Its replacement is contemplated by 14 units of a helicopter to choose from during the second half of 2023.[17]
Bell 206	United States	Utility	206B Jet Ranger III	5[1]
UH-60 Black Hawk	United States	Transport / utility	S-70A-39 (UH-60L) S-70i (MH-60M)	1[1] 6[1]	1 unit acquired in 1998.[18] 6 units of PZL Mielec in 2018.[18]
Bell 412	United States	Utility	412SP 412EP	16[1][19]
Trainer aircraft
T-35 Pillán	Chile	Trainer	T-35A T-35B T-35BE	30[1]	Various units received from ENAER starting in 1986.[20] They will be replaced from the 2027-2028 period by 33 T-35 Pillán II aircraft.[21]
A-29 Super Tucano	Brazil	Advanced trainer / attack	A-29B	22[1]	22 units in total acquired from Embraer; 12 received since 2009, 6 in 2018 and 4 in 2020.[22][23][24]
Cirrus SR22	United States	Trainer	SR-22T	8[1]	8 units in total; 2 received in 2013, 2 in 2015, 2 in 2016 and 2 in 2017.[25]
Aerobatic competition aircraft
GB1 GameBird	United Kingdom	Aerobatics		6[26]	Originally 7 units received from Game Composites in 2019.[26]
UAV
Hermes 900	Israel	Surveillance		3[27]	3 units purchased from Elbit Systems in 2011.[28]
Mantis	Spain	Surveillance		2[1]	UAVs acquired around 2014.[29]

Chilean Army Aviation Brigade

Main articles: Chilean Army and Chilean Army Aviation Brigade

C-212 Aviocar

AS532 Cougar

Aircraft	Origin	Role	Variant	In service	Notes
Transport / Utility
CN-235	Spain	Transport	CN-235-100	3[30]	3 units of this variant acquired at the end of the 80s. 1 unit lost in 1992 and replaced by another CN-235 of the same variant.[30]
Cessna 208 Caravan	United States	Transport / utility	208B Grand Caravan	3[7]
C-212 Aviocar	Spain	Transport	C-212-300	2[7]	Originally 3 units of this variant received in 1998.[11]
Cessna Citation C-680 Sovereign	United States	Transport / utility		1[31]
Helicopter
SA330 Puma	France	Transport / utility	SA330L	2[32]
MD 500 Defender	United States	Recce / attack	MD 530F	8[3]	Originally 20 units were acquired; a first batch in 1989 and then two more batches in 1993 and 1994.[33]
AS350/H125 Écureuil	France	Utility	AS350B2 AS350B3	2[32] 2[32]
AS355 Écureuil 2	France	Utility	AS355N	1[32]
AS532/H215M Cougar	France	Transport / utility	AS532AL AS532Ale	8[32] 2[32]	8 units of this variant received between 2008 and 2016.[32] 2 units of this variant received in 2013 and 2014.[32]
Trainer aircraft
Cessna 172	United States	Trainer	172S	2[7]	2 aircraft that were incorporated in 2015.[34]

Chilean Naval Aviation

Main articles: Chilean Navy and Chilean Naval Aviation

P-3ACH Orion

AS332 Super Puma

AS365 Dauphin

Aircraft	Origin	Role	Variant	In service	Notes
Maritime patrol
EMB 110 Bandeirante	Brazil	MPA	EMB 111AN (P-111)	4[3]	Originally, 6 aircraft of this variant were acquired in 1976; receiving 3 in 1978 and 3 in 1979.[35]
P-3 Orion	United States	MPA / ASW	P-3ACH Orion	2[36]	Originally, 6 second-hand aircraft were received from the US as of 1993; 2 from the P-3A anti-submarine version and 6 from the UP-3A transport version. Half of the aircraft was put into service and the rest for technical training. The 2 current units were delivered modernized in 2019 and 2021 by IMP Aerospace.[36][37]
C-295 Persuader	Spain	MPA MPA / ASW	C-295 MPA C-295 MPA/ASW	1[38] 2[38]	3 aircraft purchased from EADS CASA in 2007 and received between 2010 and 2011.[38]
Partenavia P.68	Italy	Recce / utility	P68 Observer 2	7[3]	7 units purchased from Vulcanair Aircraft in 2015.[39]
Transport
EMB 110 Bandeirante	Brazil	Transport	EMB 110C (C-111)	1[7]	Originally 3 aircraft of this variant acquired in 1975.[40]
Helicopter
Bo 105 Bölkow (UH-05)	Germany	Utility	Bo 105CBS	4[3]	Originally, 7 units were incorporated in the early 1990s.[41]
AS332 Super Puma	France	ASuW / ASW / utility	AS332F1 (SH-32) AS332L (HH-32)	5[39] 2[39]
AS365 Dauphin (HH-65)	France	Utility		9[39]	9 second-hand units in total; 4 received between 2005 and 2006, 4 more acquired in 2008 and the ninth unit received in 2021.[42]
AS350/H125 (HH-50) Écureuil	France	Utility		5[43]	5 units acquired in 2019; 1 received in 2020, 2 in 2021, 1 in 2022 and the last one in 2023.[43]
Trainer aircraft
Pilatus PC-7 Turbo Trainer	Switzerland	Trainer / attack		7[3]	Originally there were 10 aircraft; 8 received in 1980 and 2 in 1981.[44]

See also

• List of current equipment of the Chilean Army
• List of active ships of the Chilean Navy
• List of current equipment of the Chilean Marine Corps

References

1. "Estructura y equipamiento de la Fuerza Aérea de Chile" (in Spanish). Defensa. 6 April 2022. Retrieved 10 January 2023.
2. García, Nicolás (24 March 2022). "Plan Bicentenario, rumbo a la Fuerza Aérea de Chile del siglo XXI" (in Spanish). Infodefensa. Retrieved 10 January 2023.
3. Embraer, In association with. "2023 World Air Forces directory". Flight Global. p. 15. Retrieved 10 January 2023.
4. Eberlein, Alfredo (23 March 2022). "Cazas F-16, los puños de la Fuerza Aérea de Chile" (in Spanish). Infodefensa. Retrieved 10 January 2023.
5. Dubois, Gastón (19 August 2022). "Chile recibe oficialmente los dos E-3 Sentry cedidos por el Reino Unido" (in Spanish). Aviacionline. Retrieved 10 January 2023.
6. E. Aránguiz, Óscar (28 January 2021). "Un Sikorsky MH-60M de la FACh traslada un Cessna L-19A accidentado" (in Spanish). Infodefensa. Retrieved 10 January 2023.
7. Marambio, Cristián (31 March 2022). "Aviones Militares de Transporte en las Fuerzas Armadas de Chile" (in Spanish). Defensa. Retrieved 10 January 2023.
8. "La Fuerza Aérea de Chile recibe tercer avión tanquero Boeing KC-135E" (in Spanish). Infodefensa. 19 March 2012. Retrieved 10 January 2023.
9. Eberlein, Alfredo (17 August 2022). "Con 50 años de servicio, la Fuerza Aérea de Chile aumentará su flota de Hercules" (in Spanish). Infodefensa. Retrieved 10 January 2023.
10. "55 años del primer vuelo del venerable Twin Otter" (in Spanish). TallyHo. 21 May 2020. Retrieved 10 January 2023.
11. "El Ejército de Chile cierra una larga etapa con la baja de los últimos C-212-100 Aviocar" (in Spanish). Defensa. 11 October 2013. Retrieved 11 January 2023.
12. García, Nicolás (8 October 2017). "Aviasur realiza una inspección no destructiva a dos aviones Cessna 525 CitationJet de la FACh" (in Spanish). Infodefensa. Retrieved 10 January 2023.
13. Aránguiz, Óscar E. (14 October 2020). "La FACh incorporará el Gulfstream IV para misiones de aerofotogrametría" (in Spanish). Infodefensa. Retrieved 12 January 2023.
14. Blaise, Simon (15 October 2020). "Incorporación de Gulfstream IV para el Servicio Aerofotogramétrico marcan sus 57 años" (in Spanish). Aero-Naves. Retrieved 12 January 2023.
15. "Chilean Air Force gets fourth Gulfstream". Scramble. 4 February 2021. Retrieved 12 January 2023.
16. Aránguiz, Óscar E. (4 May 2020). "El Boeing 767 de la FACh y su misión de 76 horas a China" (in Spanish). Infodefensa. Retrieved 10 January 2023.
17. García, Nicolás (7 April 2023). "La FACh estudia la compra de 14 helicópteros que reemplazarán a los Bell UH-1H" (in Spanish). Infodefensa. Retrieved 27 April 2023.
18. Aránguiz, Óscar E. (13 October 2018). "La Fuerza Aérea de Chile completa su nueva flota de 'Black Hawk'" (in Spanish). Infodefensa. Retrieved 10 January 2023.
19. García, Nicolás (1 August 2023). "El accidente de un helicóptero Bell 412 de la FACh deja cinco muertos" (in Spanish). Infodefensa. Retrieved 22 August 2023.
20. "Fuerza Aérea de Chile: Hitos del Siglo 1913 – 2013" (PDF). Revista Fuerza Aérea (in Spanish). 72 (259) (1 ed.). Chile: 39. 2013.
21. Eberlein, Alfredo (27 October 2022). "Chile invertirá 142 millones de dólares para la fabricación de 33 aviones Pillan II" (in Spanish). Infodefensa. Retrieved 22 February 2023.
22. Aránguiz, Óscar E. (24 December 2018). "Embraer entrega cuatro A-29B Super Tucano a la Fuerza Aérea de Chile" (in Spanish). Infodefensa. Retrieved 10 January 2023.
23. Aránguiz, Óscar E. (18 September 2020). "Dos nuevos Embraer A-29B Super Tucano arriban a Chile" (in Spanish). Infodefensa. Retrieved 10 January 2023.
24. Aránguiz, Óscar E. (16 November 2020). "La FACh incorpora dos nuevos Embraer A-29B Super Tucano" (in Spanish). Infodefensa. Retrieved 10 January 2023.
25. García, Nicolás (2 December 2017). "La FACh asigna dos aviones de entrenamiento Cirrus SR-22T al Grupo de Aviación N°8" (in Spanish). Infodefensa. Retrieved 10 January 2023.
26. Aránguiz, Óscar E. (9 September 2019). "Un avión de acrobacia de la FACh cae en una zona residencial" (in Spanish). Infodefensa. Retrieved 10 January 2023.
27. "Chilean Air Force Hermes 900 in service". Key Publishing. 21 February 2019. Retrieved 10 January 2023.
28. Aránguiz, Óscar E. (22 November 2019). "Hermes Q900 de la Fuerza Aérea de Chile, vigilando de día y de noche" (in Spanish). Infodefensa. Retrieved 10 January 2023.
29. "Aeronaves no tripuladas parte II: mercado y proyectos" (in Spanish). Infodefensa. 12 May 2014. Retrieved 22 February 2023.
30. García, Nicolás (17 July 2020). "El Ejército de Chile envía en un Airbus CN 235 elementos sanitarios a la IV y V División" (in Spanish). Infodefensa. Retrieved 12 January 2023.
31. García, Nicolás (19 May 2022). "El Ejército de Chile realiza el ejercicio de entrenamiento táctico aeromédico Chusca 2022" (in Spanish). Infodefensa. Retrieved 12 January 2023.
32. "El mercado futuro de helicópteros militares en América Latina" (in Spanish). Defensa. 2 June 2021. Retrieved 14 January 2023.
33. "Accidente de un helicóptero MD 530FF del Ejército de Chile" (in Spanish). Defensa. 10 August 2022. Retrieved 14 January 2023.
34. "Nuevos entrenadores para la Escuela de Aviación del Ejército de Chile" (in Spanish). Defensa. 22 April 2015. Retrieved 14 January 2023.
35. García, Nicolás (22 November 2022). "Enaer fabricará e instalará un buje alar para un avión Embraer P-111 de la Armada de Chile" (in Spanish). Infodefensa. Retrieved 14 January 2023.
36. García, Nicolás (7 May 2021). "La Armada de Chile reincorpora el segundo P-3ACH Orion modernizado por IMP Aerospace" (in Spanish). Infodefensa. Retrieved 14 January 2023.
37. García, Nicolás (2 December 2019). "La Armada de Chile reincorpora el primer Orion modernizado por IMP Aerospace" (in Spanish). Infodefensa. Retrieved 14 January 2023.
38. García, Nicolás (1 October 2021). "C295 Persuader, el avión de exploración y lucha antisubmarina de la Armada de Chile" (in Spanish). Infodefensa. Retrieved 14 January 2023.
39. García, Nicolás (28 March 2022). "Aviación Naval de la Armada de Chile, fuerza dinámica y en constante modernización" (in Spanish). Infodefensa. Retrieved 14 January 2023.
40. García, Nicolás (18 March 2019). "La Aviación Naval de Chile, 96 años a la vanguardia tecnológica" (in Spanish). Infodefensa. Retrieved 15 January 2023.
41. García, Nicolás (5 August 2021). "La Armada de Chile restaurará las palas principales de los helicópteros Airbus BO 105 Bolkow" (in Spanish). Infodefensa. Retrieved 14 January 2023.
42. García, Nicolás (11 February 2022). "La Armada de Chile incorpora su noveno helicóptero Airbus AS365 Dauphin" (in Spanish). Infodefensa. Retrieved 15 January 2023.
43. García, Nicolás (21 August 2023). "La Armada de Chile incorpora el quinto y último helicóptero Airbus H125" (in Spanish). Infodefensa. Retrieved 22 August 2023.
44. García, Nicolás (18 August 2022). "Avionics Services entrega a la Armada de Chile un entrenador de vuelo de avión Pilatus PC-7 Turbo Trainer" (in Spanish). Infodefensa. Retrieved 14 January 2023.