The date has been celebrated on June 24 for 76 years
Air Force Agency, by Lieutenant Gabrielle Varela
Reconnaissance activities emerged in the midst of the Napoleonic, Franco-Prussian, and Paraguayan Wars, when missions were carried out by balloons and eyes were the only sensors. With the development of military hardware and new technologies came fighter and bomber aircraft adapted and equipped for aerial reconnaissance. Since then, reconnaissance aircraft have played a crucial role in countless military operations around the world, providing valuable intelligence on terrain, enemy positions and weather conditions.
In the Brazilian Air Force (FAB), reconnaissance missions were born on June 24, 1947, when the first mission took place with the activation of the First Squadron of the Tenth Aviation Group (1/10th GAv – Poker Squadron), and the defense machine guns of the A-20 attack aircraft were replaced by cameras.
The current commander of the 1st/10th GAV, Lieutenant Colonel Aviator Marcio Rassy Teixeira, stated that the Poker Squadron, a highly trained and specialized unit, accomplished in the last year an extremely challenging mission for the team. “In November 2022, we had an operation with the objective of recognizing 64 targets and places of interest, which represented a significant milestone in the history of the Air Unit, since it was accomplished with a total of 6h25 of uninterrupted flight, becoming the fifth longest flight in the history of the AMX A-1M aircraft in FAB,” said the military man.
In a scenario of operational evolution in FAB, in 2017, the IVR concept emerged, an integrated application of Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance, both in peacetime and in conflict situations. The E-99 aircraft are employed in Control and Alarm missions in flight; the R-99 and RA-1, as well as the RQ-450, RQ-900 and RQ-1150 Remotely Piloted Aircraft (ARP), perform various Air Reconnaissance missions and also excel in surveillance activities, especially in Joint Operations.
The Commander of the Twelfth Aviation Group’s First Squadron (1/12th GAv – Hornus Squadron), Lieutenant Colonel Ricardo Starling Cardoso, highlighted that “the biggest challenge of this type of system is air traffic management and the implementation of advanced collision detection and avoidance technologies to allow a safe and efficient coexistence, in the same airspace, between Remotely Piloted Aircraft and Manned Aircraft”.
Finally, the Second Squadron of the Sixth Aviation Group (2º/6º GAv – Guardian Squadron) works with the Amazon Surveillance System (SIVAM) and is responsible for watching and protecting the Legal Amazon, as well as planning and executing Flight Control and Alarm actions, and Aerial Reconnaissance. In this context, the R-99 has taken part in several FAB missions, such as Joint Exercise Tápio and Operations Formosa, Samaúna, Brazil and Agata.
Photos: Petty Officer Johnson Barros and Sergeant Rezende / FAB