On the 23rd of October, the Brazilian Air Force Day, as well as the aviator's day. On that date, in 1906, the first successful flight of the inventor took place. saintsDumont, on board your 14-bis, in Paris. Dumont managed to fly 70 meters high, proving the maneuverability of an airplane. Added to the feat of Santos Dumont, the creation of FAB (Brazilian Air Force), in the context of SecondWarWorld, also endorses the celebration of the 23rd.
The FAB was created on January 20, 1941, together with the Ministry of Aeronautics, at the time of the then “Estado Novo”, commanded by Getúlio Vargas. The objective of the Vargas government was to unify the existing military and naval aviation and make them more sophisticated and organized. Joaquim Pedro Salgado Filho he was the first man to head this Ministry. With the creation of the Ministry of Aeronautics and the FAB, Brazil invested heavily in the creation of infrastructure, such as air bases.
The use of the first FAB aircraft had the character of patrolling the coastlines. In 1941, Brazil was still neutral in relation to the war, but even so the newly created air bases were used by the Americans. In 1942, Nazi submarines torpedoed Brazilian merchant ships, which forced Brazil to enter the war alongside the Americans and other allies. The first FAB planes began their first combats against German submarines. Afterwards, entire squadrons were sent to war in Europe.
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Before being sent into combat, Brazilian air force officers received training from the Americans at the base in Água Dolce, Panama. About 350 men participated in the training. In September 1944, the I Hunting Group, which became part of the Mediterranean Air Force, who fought in southern Europe.
It is interesting to note that the symbol of the Brazilian Air Force, at the time of World War II, was the design of an ostrich holding a revolver and a kind of shield with the south cross stamped on it. Below the drawing, there is the expression: "Sit downThebitch!”, which refers to the image of a stinger, a sharp spur. This symbol was designed by the air captain Fortunato Câmara de Oliveira, who was also a cartoonist, and was stamped on FAB aircraft.
By Me. Cláudio Fernandes
Would you like to reference this text in a school or academic work? Look:
FERNANDES, Claudio. "October 23 – Brazilian Air Force Day"; Brazil School. Available in: https://brasilescola.uol.com.br/datas-comemorativas/dia-da-forca-aerea-brasileira.htm. Accessed on July 27, 2021.
