Gabonese Air Force

Aerial warfare branch of the Gabonese Armed Forces

Gabonese Air Force

Armée de l'air Gabonaise

Gabonese Air Force roundel

Active| January 25, 1972 - Present
Country|  Gabon
Type| Air Force
Role| Aerial warfare
Size| 1,500
Part of| Armed Forces of Gabon
Headquarters| Libreville
Anniversaries| January 25
Commanders
Commander in Chief| President Ali Bongo Ondimba
Commander of the Air Force| General Jean Martin
Insignia
Fin flash|
Aircraft flown
Fighter| Dassault Mirage F1
Helicopter| Alouette III, AS332, SA342, SA330, EC135, EC120,
Transport| ATR 42, C-130, CN-235

Military unit

The Gabonese Air Force (French: Armée de l'air Gabonaise) is the official aerial warfare branch of the Armed Forces of Gabon.

## History

[edit]

In the early 1960s, following the country's independence from the French Republic, aerial detachments were inside the country, with the first official aerial installation being the Mouila Training Center which was established in 1966 in the south-west of the country. On January 25, 1972, by presidential decree signed by President Omar Bongo, the Gabonese Air Force became an official branch of the armed forces, separate from the army. In January 1980, at the initiative of President Bongo, the Air Force developed and adopted a combat structure, acquiring a fleet of fighters, and creating the Mvengue Air Base in the capital.[1][2]

## Order of battle

[edit]

* Fighter Squadron 1-02 Leyou at BA02 Franceville with:
* Mirage F-1AZ
* MB-326M Impala I
* Heavy Transport Squadron at BA01 Libreville with:
* C-130 Hercules
* CN-235
* Ministerial Air Liaison Group (Groupe de Liaison Aérien Ministériel or GLAM) at BA01 Libreville with:
* 1 Falcon-900EX
* 1 Gulfstream III

### Current inventory

[edit]

A Gabonese ATR-42 on approach Aircraft  | Origin  | Type  | Variant  | In service  | Notes

|
|
|
|
|

Combat Aircraft
Mirage F1 | France | fighter  |  | 6[3] |
Transport
ATR 42 | France | VIP transport |  | 1[4] |
CASA CN-235 | Spain / Indonesia | transport  |  | 1[3] |
EADS CASA C-295 |  | transport  | W | 1[5] |
C-130 Hercules | United States  | transport  | C-130H | 1[3] |
Helicopters
Alouette III | France  | light utility  |  | 2[3] |
SA342 Gazelle | France | scout / attack  |  | 3[3] |
Eurocopter AS332 | France  | transport  |  | 1[3] |
Aérospatiale SA 330 | France  | transport / utility  |  | 5[3] |
Eurocopter EC135 | France  | utility  |  | 2[3] |
Eurocopter EC120 | France  | light utility  |  | 2[3] |

### Retired aircraft

[edit]

Previous aircraft operated by the Air Force consisted of the  CM.170 Magister, C-130H Hercules,  Embraer EMB 110,  Fokker F28, Aérospatiale N 262, Reims C.337, and the Alouette II helicopter.[6][7] The first fighters flown by the air force were Dassault Mirage 5Gs.[8]

## References

[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Gabonese Air Force.

1. ^ "LE DETACHEMENT DE L 'ARMEE DE L' AIR AU GABON". Centerblog. 17 March 2013. Retrieved 5 January 2019.
2. ^ "Gabon Air Force / L'Armee de l'air". Globalsecurity.org. Retrieved 5 January 2019.
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i "World Air Forces 2023". Flightglobal Insight. 2023. Retrieved 7 December 2022.
4. ^ "ATR42 Gabon TR-KJD". airport-data.com flightglobal.com. Retrieved 1 June 2015.
5. ^ "Gabonese C295 arrives home". defenseWeb. 2023-09-06. Retrieved 2023-09-11.
6. ^ "World Air Forces 1987 pg. 56". flightglobal.com. Retrieved 1 June 2015.
7. ^ "World Military Helicopter Markey 1971 pg. 577". flightglobal.com. Retrieved 1 June 2015.
8. ^ Ristor, p. 7

## Bibliography

[edit]

* Ristor, Luc (January 1990). "Gabon: l'Armée de l'Air" [The Gabonese Air Force]. Le Fana de l'Aviation (in French) (242): 6–16. ISSN 0757-4169.

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