Air Carriers of South American Navies
Lieutenant Commander
Peruvian Navy
John Rodríguez Asti
Extracted from the Revista Arnada
Currently, on the South American continent, after the Argentine Navy retired the veteran aircraft carrier 25 de Mayo from service, the Brazilian Navy is the only one that has an aircraft carrier. However, two other countries, Chile and Peru, have at some point been interested in owning ships of this type in their respective fleets.
INTRODUCTION
The aircraft carrier, a type of ship born at the beginning of the last century, undoubtedly became a capital ship during the Second World War for the navies that owned them, deservedly gaining the place occupied by battleships until then. The countries that contributed the most to the development of on-board aviation until then were Great Britain, the United States, and Japan. During the post-war period, the possession of this class of ships was practically monopolized by Great Britain, the United States and many of the Western bloc allies who benefited from the British and North American remnants. In this way, apart from Great Britain and the United States, in the early 1950s, countries such as Canada, Australia, Holland and France had aircraft carriers in their respective fleets, and of those mentioned, France would be the only one to build its own towards end of that decade. Later, the Spanish Navy would also have one from the inventories of the United States Navy.The novelty in terms of possession of aircraft carriers after the Second World War has come from some third world countries, such as India, Argentina and Brazil, and recently, Thailand. However, within the South American continent, not only have the navies of Brazil and Argentina been the only ones to be interested in this type of vessel, since Chile and Peru also at some point planned and took steps to obtain one.
The purpose of this article will be to review the presence of these ships in South American navies, specifically in Brazil and Argentina, as well as the efforts made by Chile and Peru to acquire a ship of this type.
AIR CARRIERS IN THE ARGENTINE NAVY
For much of the past decade, Argentine naval aviation stood out as the most advanced and experienced in combat on the entire continent. Established in 1920, it made significant progress in its first ten years of existence. By 1931, it achieved a milestone by deploying its first embarked aircraft, two Vought Corsair O2U seaplanes initially stationed on the catapults of the newly constructed Italian cruisers, the 25 de Mayo and Almirante Brown.Notably, the Argentine Navy had been considering the inclusion of an aircraft carrier in its plans since the 1920s. The "Naval Material Renewal Law" of 1926 had authorized the acquisition of an aircraft carrier of that kind along with three submarines for the fleet. However, this plan didn't materialize, and instead, seven destroyers and later a cruiser were purchased. In 1939, the cruiser La Argentina was added to the fleet, equipped with a Supermarine Walrus seaplane. By 1940, naval aviation had developed into a significant force with 44 aircraft and 100 pilots, while, for comparison, the Army Aviation Corps had 200 aircraft and 325 pilots.
In 1942, the Argentine Navy maintained its desire for aircraft carriers, and in 1943, through Decree No. 9006 on September 16, the authorization for their purchase was obtained. However, due to the international situation resulting from World War II and the challenges of acquiring such ships abroad, Argentine aspirations were postponed for many more years.
After the war, circumstances changed, and the Argentine Navy aimed to match the fleet expansion of its neighbor, Brazil, which had bolstered its navy through its participation in the global conflict. In June 1956, Rear Admiral Teodoro Hartung, the Argentine Minister of the Navy, revealed the "Naval Plan of the Argentine Republic," which included a goal to acquire an aircraft carrier to replace the aging battleships Moreno and Rivadavia.
By 1953, the Navy had initiated a study to obtain an aircraft carrier for its Sea Fleet. One project involved converting a North American C3-S-A-1 cargo ship, the Artillero, back into an aircraft carrier, as it had been transformed into an escort aircraft carrier during World War II and served under the British flag as the HMS Smiter. However, financial constraints led to the rejection of this project, as well as an idea to convert one of the Almirante Brown class cruisers.
In early 1957, the United Kingdom offered to sell Argentina an aircraft carrier from the Illustrious class, the Indefatigable, or a light aircraft carrier from the Majestic class, the Magnificent. Both ships had not been modernized and lacked the improvements introduced to this type of vessel in the 1950s. They were not as appealing as the HMS Venerable, which Brazil had acquired in 1956 and was modernizing in the Netherlands.
The desired opportunity arose in the following year when the British Royal Navy, as part of its force reduction policy mandated by the Ministry of Defense, placed the aircraft carrier Warrior in reserve status and listed it for sale. Argentina became the first country to which the ship was offered and officially acquired it on July 4 of that year, making Argentina the second South American nation, after Brazil, to possess a ship of this kind.
The first Argentine air carrier: ARA Independencia
The Independencia, originally named Warrior by the British Royal Navy, had begun construction at the Harland & Wolff shipyard in Belfast in December 1942 and was completed in March 1946. It was immediately handed over to the Royal Canadian Navy for use as a on temporary "loan" until at the beginning of 1948, with the entry into service of the Magnificent under the Canadian flag, it returned to Great Britain. Later, it was designated to be used as a platform to carry out experiments with a flexible coating on its flight deck, installed at the Portsmouth Naval Base between March and September 1948. The tests were carried out from November concluding with the removal of the material in June of the following year, then moving to the reserve situation.
In July 1950, due to the Korean War, she returned to service, being used as a troop and aircraft transport ship to the Far East and Cyprus. Between April 1952 and October 1953 it underwent a partial modernization, which included the replacement of the tripod ratchet with a lattice one, the installation of a type 293Q short-range air surveillance radar, a second type 277 radar and a type 277 radar. 281BQ with an IFF system. Additionally, all the obsolete "pom-pom" type guns were removed, receiving four new double Bofors 40mm mounts and increasing the battery of single mounts of the same caliber to 20.
In February 1954, she relieved the Australian aircraft carrier Sydney in the United Nations multinational peacekeeping force tasked with monitoring the ceasefire in Korea, additionally assisting in the evacuation of refugees from northern Vietnam. Upon her return to British waters in December, she entered Devonport Naval Base to undergo further tour and modernization. The work consisted of expanding and equipping it with a flight deck with an angle of 5½°, replacing its hydraulic catapult with one of greater power capable of launching 20,000 lb aircraft, installing the new landing control system with mirrors, and a radar. air control for low visibility conditions. Additionally, she received a North American-made SPS-6C air search radar.
With new equipment, she returned to service in August 1956, being the only British aircraft carrier of her class to have incorporated the latest improvements for aircraft operation.
In February 1957, she was assigned to serve as the flagship of the British squadron in charge of the first tests with the Hydrogen bomb in the Pacific, returning from this mission to the Portsmouth Naval Base in February 1958. Upon arrival, The Warrior went into reserve status and after the respective negotiations, it was purchased by Argentina on the following July 4.
Renamed ARA Independencia (V-1), she was transferred on November 4, 1958 to the Argentine Navy, then beginning sea trials, setting sail on December 10 towards the Puerto Belgrano Naval Base. During the first five months of 1959, various internal structural modifications were carried out, until on June 3 she put to sea, beginning her first operations with aircraft on the 8th of the same month. On this aircraft carrier, initially the aircraft available to the Argentine Navy operated, such as the North American AT-6, but later F4U Corsair attack and exploration aircraft and Tracker S-2F anti-submarine aircraft, as well as exploration helicopters, were acquired. Years later, the Corsairs would be replaced by Panther and Cougar jets.
Between 1959 and 1968, the Independencia participated intensely in various exercises, either with ships of the Argentine Sea Fleet or with foreign ships, including four Unitas operations, or in combined exercises with French and British units. It is worth mentioning that in 1962 she had traveled to the United States to embark at the Norfolk Naval Base, a new complement of recently acquired S-2F Tracker aircraft, two Cougar training version aircraft and two S-55 anti-submarine aircraft. The last aircraft to join the aircraft carrier were the T-28 Fennec aircraft, which operated on board since May 1968.
By the end of the 1960s, Argentine plans for its sea fleet considered the need to equip its aircraft carrier with an attack squadron. The main limitation of the Independencia was its inability to operate larger jet aircraft, since to do so it was necessary to reinforce its deck and prepare it to receive such aircraft, which added to the wear and age of its equipment and propulsion plant, did not make it its modernization profitable.
In mid-1968, there was news that the Royal Dutch Navy would withdraw its aircraft carrier, the Karel Doorman, from service, so the Argentine naval authorities, after learning of its situation and carrying out the corresponding studies, commissioned its Naval Commission in Europe to negotiate and obtain your purchase. Although it is true that it was not a new ship, it had the advantage compared to the Independencia of having better electronic equipment and, most importantly, that it had a steam catapult and a reinforced flight deck capable of operating jet planes and Greater weight.
After the purchase of the Karel Doorman, renamed 25 de Mayo, the Independencia went into reserve status, and part of its crew moved to Holland to crew the new aircraft carrier. Being completely inactive, it remained moored at the Puerto Belgrano Naval Base, and meanwhile, the navy carried out various studies to give the ship a final destination, not ruling out the idea of converting it into a logistical support ship or amphibious assault ship or helicopter carrier. Once these ideas were discarded, it is known that it was also offered for sale to Peru, as we will see later. Having remained totally inactive and in disarmament during 1971, she was finally, after being decommissioned and scrapped for the benefit of her sister ship, she was sold on 17 March 1971 for demolition.
The 25th May (ex Karel Doorman), was originally named HMS Venerable, and was built for the British Royal Navy at the Cammell Laird shipyard in Birkenhead between December 1942 and January 1945. Immediately after being commissioned, she was commissioned She transferred to the Pacific Fleet as part of Carrier Squadron 11. With brief service under the British flag, she was placed in reserve on 30 March 1947 and sold to the Royal Dutch Navy on 1 April 1948, being commissioned on May 28 of that year with the name of Hr.Ms. Karel Doorman.
Between 1955 and 1958, it was subjected to a radical modernization process that included an extension of the flight deck with an angle to port, a new steam catapult, new equipment for aircraft operations, as well as the installation of modern sensors, to which made it necessary to replace the original tripod mast with a larger lattice mast and also another "mack" type chimney (similar to that of the cruiser De Zeven Provincien, later Peruvian B.A.P. Aguirre), on which a search radar was installed. combined LW-02 long range. After this transformation, it initially operated as an attack aircraft carrier, with its air group consisting of six Grumman Avenger anti-submarine aircraft, six Hawker FGA-50 Sea Hawk fighter-bombers as well as four Sikorsky HSS-1N (SH-34) anti-submarine helicopters and two Sikorsky SH-51 utility helicopters. Then, in the mid-1960s, its mission was reoriented to anti-submarine warfare, and it was equipped with eight Grumman S2F-1 Tracker aircraft and two more anti-submarine helicopters to replace the old Avenger and Sea Hawk helicopters.
Around 1968, the Royal Dutch Navy determined that among its future requirements it would not be necessary to have an aircraft carrier, so it was planned to withdraw from service before 1970. However, on April 26, 1968, being in what would be its Last tour, a fire broke out in the engine room, so it was decided not to repair it and consequently remove it from service earlier than planned.After the purchase of the Karel Doorman, renamed 25 de Mayo, the Independencia went into reserve status, and part of its crew moved to Holland to crew the new aircraft carrier. Being completely inactive, it remained moored at the Puerto Belgrano Naval Base, and meanwhile, the navy carried out various studies to give the ship a final destination, not ruling out the idea of converting it into a logistical support ship or amphibious assault ship or helicopter carrier. Once these ideas were discarded, it is known that it was also offered for sale to Peru, as we will see later. Having remained totally inactive and in disarmament during 1971, she was finally, after being decommissioned and scrapped for the benefit of her sister ship, she was sold on 17 March 1971 for demolition.
The 25th May (ex Karel Doorman), was originally named HMS Venerable, and was built for the British Royal Navy at the Cammell Laird shipyard in Birkenhead between December 1942 and January 1945. Immediately after being commissioned, she was commissioned She transferred to the Pacific Fleet as part of Carrier Squadron 11. With brief service under the British flag, she was placed in reserve on 30 March 1947 and sold to the Royal Dutch Navy on 1 April 1948, being commissioned on May 28 of that year with the name of Hr.Ms. Karel Doorman.
Between 1955 and 1958, it was subjected to a radical modernization process that included an extension of the flight deck with an angle to port, a new steam catapult, new equipment for aircraft operations, as well as the installation of modern sensors, to which made it necessary to replace the original tripod mast with a larger lattice mast and also another "mack" type chimney (similar to that of the cruiser De Zeven Provincien, later Peruvian B.A.P. Aguirre), on which a search radar was installed. combined LW-02 long range. After this transformation, it initially operated as an attack aircraft carrier, with its air group consisting of six Grumman Avenger anti-submarine aircraft, six Hawker FGA-50 Sea Hawk fighter-bombers as well as four Sikorsky HSS-1N (SH-34) anti-submarine helicopters and two Sikorsky SH-51 utility helicopters. Then, in the mid-1960s, its mission was reoriented to anti-submarine warfare, and it was equipped with eight Grumman S2F-1 Tracker aircraft and two more anti-submarine helicopters to replace the old Avenger and Sea Hawk helicopters.
After the purchase was made on October 15, 1968 by the Argentine Navy, she underwent repairs at the Wilton Fijenoord shipyard and during these repairs she replaced her turbines and boilers with those from her unfinished twin, the HMS Leviathan that was kept in reservation by the British. On August 8, 1969, she was incorporated into the Argentine Navy with the name 25 de Mayo, but she was not ready until the 22nd of the same month, setting sail for Argentina on September 3.
At the beginning of that month, training with aircraft began and her air group was initially made up of S2-E Tracker anti-submarine aircraft and S-61 Sea King helicopters. As an interesting fact, during the trip to Argentina, the British firm Hawker Siddeley carried out demonstrations on its deck with a V/STOL Harrier GR-Mk-1 aircraft with success. Subsequently, the Navy acquired A-4B Skyhawk fighter-bombers, which were received in January 1972 by the aircraft carrier itself in the port of May Port, Florida, which soon began operating from its flight deck. These aircraft, plus those for anti-submarine exploration, in the 1970s, provided the Argentine Navy with great air-naval potential within the continent's navies.
On the other hand, already in Argentine waters, on May 25 it received the British CAAIS command and control system that also incorporated a data link system, which made it possible to operate in coordination with the ADAWS-4 systems that led to on board the Type 42 destroyers Hercules and Santísima Trinidad commissioned between 1976 and 1979.
The Veinticinco de Mayo led the task force that invaded the Malvinas Islands on April 1, 1982, and after the landings it carried out several patrols on the Argentine coast, but always away from the British Task Force. After the cruiser General Belgrano was sunk on May 4, 1982, the Argentine sea fleet was withdrawn to its ports, and the 25 de Mayo aircraft continued to operate from land.
Once the conflict was over, on May 25 modifications to operate the Super Etendard continued, which included an increase in the flight deck to accommodate two more aircraft and a general tour of the steam catapult. In April 1983 it was only able to carry out the first operations with its new aircraft and in that same year, its CAAIS command and control system was replaced by the more modern SEWACO of Dutch manufacture, very similar to that of the Almirante Brown class destroyers ( Meko 360) that were under construction in Germany.
Its last operational navigation was carried out between February and March 1988, carrying out training at sea with the Naval Aero Group on board, and since the middle of that year, on May 25, it became inoperative due to propulsion limitations.
Subsequently, in June 1990, a contract was signed with the Italian firm Fincantieri, which would be responsible for providing technical assistance to the Argentine AFNE shipyard in Río Santiago to carry out the repowering of the ship. The project consisted of replacing the steam turbines with Fiat Aviazione LM 2500 gas turbines, diesel engines, and shafts with variable pitch propellers. With her turbines removed from board, the project was canceled due to severe budget restrictions and the aircraft carrier continued inoperable at its Puerto Belgrano berth, until on February 1, 1997, she was definitively withdrawn from service. Then, after being sold at public auction, in January 1999 she was towed for scrapping to Alang, India.
With the loss of May 25, the Argentine Navy, although it still has the Super Etendard, has been deprived of a deterrent element that gave its Fleet a great capacity to project its naval power at great distances. Due to the current conditions of the Argentine economy, we believe that it will be many years before that South American nation will have an aircraft carrier again.
AIR CARRIERS OF THE MARINHA DO BRASIL
Brazil was the first South American nation to establish its naval aviation in August 1916, made up of a naval aviation school equipped with North American Curtiss model F seaplanes. From then on, it had an important development, and in 1922, it was thought to equip to the aircraft carrier fleet, studying the idea of converting two old merchant ships of German origin Aracaju and Sahara, but this idea ultimately did not prosper.By the end of the 1930s, the navy had about 100 airplanes and seaplanes of various types. The following year, as a result of a campaign to establish an air ministry that would control military and civil aviation in Brazil, the naval and army aviation corps were grouped to form the Brazilian Air Force, under the control of the new Ministry of Aeronautics.
Deprived of its air weapon, the Brazilian navy needed to have naval aviation again, even more so if at the beginning of the 1950s, the Brazilian Navy, within its modernization plans, contemplated acquiring an aircraft carrier in the shortest possible time. To this end, in 1955 he created the General Directorate of Aeronautics of the Ministry of the Navy, with the clear purpose of reconstituting its naval aviation. In 1958 it acquired two Bell 47-G helicopters, which operated aboard the hydrographic vessels Sirius and Canopus. Another measure derived from the new naval policy was the creation of an air-naval training center near Rio de Janeiro, as well as an air-naval transport service.
The Minas Gerais
Coinciding with Brazil's interest in acquiring an aircraft carrier, at that time, the policy of progressive reduction of naval forces carried out by Great Britain made possible the upcoming availability of ships of various types, including some Colossus class aircraft carriers. One of them, the Veangance, had been in reserve since August 1955 and was offered for sale to Brazil, finalizing its purchase on December 14, 1956. Under the name Minas Gerais, it would not be put into service until December 6. December 1960, after undergoing a complete modernization.Built by Swan Hunter between November 1942 and January 1945 for the British Royal Navy, Veangance had a brief participation in the war, remaining in the Mediterranean for six months, being transferred to the Pacific Fleet based in Hong Kong in July. 1945. In August 1946 he returned to Great Britain. Between May and September 1948 she was fitted out to sail in the Arctic to test and measure her ability to operate in extreme cold conditions, as part of exercises during "Operation Rusty". In 1950 she was designated flagship of the Third Carrier Squadron of the Home Fleet, and in 1952, during the Korean War, she was employed as a troop transport. At the end of that year he began a period of tour that concluded in November 1953. From that moment until August 1955 when he was retired, he served in the Royal Australian Navy, while the aircraft carrier Melbourne (former HMS Majestic) was being completed. Purchased in December 1956 by Brazil, it was taken to the Verolme shipyard in Rotterdam, where in mid-1957 a total reconstruction and modernization process began until December 1960. The works included the reinforcement and expansion of the flight deck with a angle of 8 ½°, increase in the lifting capacity of the elevators, an improvement in its capacity to operate aircraft by providing it with a new steam catapult for launching and new braking cables that could receive aircraft of up to 30,000 lbs, as well as the installation of a new stacking control system with mirrors. In the propulsion plant, its boilers were retubed and its turbines routed. The new sensors for surveillance were of North American origin, receiving an SPS-12 air search radar, an SPS-8B for air control, and an SPS-4 for surface search. As far as her armament is concerned, two quadruple 40mm mounts were installed at the bow and stern of the new island, and another double of the same caliber on the port side towards the stern. The island was the part in which the changes made were most reflected. She was completely rebuilt with a new design, a larger lattice mast and a smaller funnel.
With her new equipment, modified flight deck and new island, upon completing her modernization, the Minas Gerais was an almost new aircraft carrier.
Despite having achieved the objective of obtaining an aircraft carrier, the Brazilian navy had to face an unexpected problem, arising from an absurd dispute with the air force about who would be in charge of the planes that would operate from its deck. As a result, from the end of its modernization until 1963, the ship was without aircraft. This problem originated in 1959, when the government decided that all aircraft operating from the aircraft carrier would belong to the air force, but nevertheless, the navy decided to fly from the ship and naval personnel were trained with the US Navy. waiting to take possession of the SH-34J Seabat helicopters and S-2A Tracker aircraft destined for the aircraft carrier. Then, in 1963 the navy created the naval aviation force, with an embarked air-naval group, and in addition 6 T-28 training aircraft and 4 more helicopters were purchased. The newly acquired aircraft began to operate from Minas Gerais, generating opposition from the Air Force, and motivating the intervention of President Castello Branco, who prohibited the T-28 from being used from the aircraft carrier for a time.
In 1976, the Minas Gerais underwent a new modernization and general tour, which consisted of providing it with a tactical data link system to operate with the Niteroi class frigates, the replacement of the SPS air search radar -12 by the most modern SPS-40B, and the complete tour of the propulsion plant.
In 1984, the Brazilian government announced its plans to acquire 12 A-4 Skyhawk fighter-bombers for Minas Gerais, but this was rejected the following year due to finding the resources to purchase aircraft destined for the development of the Italian-Brazilian fighter project. AMX.
After many years of struggle, the good news for Brazilian naval aviation came in 1997, after authorization was obtained from the Government to acquire from Kuwait a squadron of second-hand A-4 Skyhawk aircraft. The aircraft purchased in excellent maintenance conditions at a price of 70 million dollars were 20 A-4KU (designated AF-1 by the Navy) and 3 TA-4KU training aircraft (designated AF-1A). Once they arrived in Brazil, they underwent reconditioning, and in September 2000, they began the first approach, landing and immediate takeoff exercises on the deck of the aircraft carrier, with 5 of the Skyhawks, piloted by a North American naval pilot, one from Argentina. and three Brazilians. In January of the following year, the Skyhawks, grouped in the Interception and Attack Aircraft Squadron (Esqd VF-1), finally began to operate aboard the Minas Gerais, during the CATRAPO/HELITRAPO exercise.
With the arrival of the newly acquired aircraft carrier Sao Paulo (former Foch of the French National Navy) in February 2001, the Brazilian navy determined the prompt withdrawal of the Minas Gerais from service. This occurred on Tuesday, October 16, when the World War II veteran aircraft carrier was finally retired from service at the Rio de Janeiro Naval Arsenal. However, its final destination is not yet written, since from Great Britain, the 'Battle of the Atlantic Memorial Ships' (BAMS) association based at the Aeronautical Heritage Center in Southampton, has expressed its interest in acquiring it and then towing it. towards that British port, turning it into a floating museum. It is also known that the Mayor of Rio de Janeiro has the same idea of preserving the ship for the City.
The projects for the construction of a new aircraft carrier and the purchase of the French Foch, renamed Sao Paulo
However, the evident age of the Minas Gerais made it essential to find a replacement in the medium term, and a solution to this problem was achieved with the possibility of purchasing the French aircraft carrier Foch, whose retirement from service was scheduled for the beginning of 2000.
After talks began for its acquisition in mid-1999, in August of the following year, the French Ministry of Defense officially announced the sale of the Foch to Brazil, for a price of $42 million, including the cost of the general reconditioning works, which were carried out at the Toulon Naval Arsenal.
The Foch, renamed Sao Paulo, was officially incorporated on November 15, 2000, and after completing its enlistment and respective tests, it set sail from Brest on February 6, 2001, with a reduced complement of 600 men bound for Rio de Janeiro , where he arrived on the 17th of the same month. After her arrival and once her new crew was completed and prepared, she began training with her air group, which is made up of 15 AF-1 Skyhawk fighter-bombers, 6 SH-3D Sea King helicopters, 3 Aerospatiale UH-12 Aeschylo and 2 UH-14 Cougar.
The most important thing about the Sao Paulo is that it has no limitations to embark any type of naval combat aircraft existing on the market with the ability to be catapulted and land on an aircraft carrier. In comparison to small aircraft carriers such as the Spanish Príncipe de Asturias, the Italian Garibaldi, or the British Invincible class, whose decks have the Sky Jump at the bow, which limits them to operating only with Harrier aircraft and helicopters, the Sao Paulo, Even though it is almost 40 years old, it continues to be a superior ship due to its capabilities. She can permanently maintain a combat air patrol in the air for self-defense and the rest of the aircraft on attack missions beyond the range of her task group's weapons, achieving long-range naval power projection.
The presence of this aircraft carrier in the Brazilian navy, added to the varied and numerous composition of its fleet, gives Brazil a great deterrence capacity and undoubtedly gives it supremacy among the continent's navies.
EFFORTS TO ACQUIRE AN AIR CARRIER IN THE CHILEAN NAVY
The Chilean Navy, like most other navies on the continent, saw the beginnings of its naval aviation during the 1920s. Among the small number of aircraft acquired by the navy were six Short 184 seaplanes and two Sopwith Baby floatplanes. It was with one of the latter that the first aeronaval operations were carried out experimentally aboard the cruiser O'Higgins, and in the course of 1920, the battleship Almirante Latorre embarked one of them on several occasions to carry out aerial scouting in shooting exercises. Later, in the modernization carried out on the Latorre in Great Britain between 1929 and 1931, a catapult was installed on the poop deck, using a Fairey IIIF seaplane. The Latorre kept its catapult until shortly after World War II. Another of the Chilean ships to use seaplanes was the submarine mother ship Araucano built in Great Britain in 1929, which also carried a Fairey IIIF.Meanwhile, the Chilean naval aviation had been installed in 1921 in the Las Torpederas cove near Valparaíso, in a first improvised base, and in March 1923 its existence as an integral part of the navy was made official. In 1925, the naval air base was relocated to Quintero, from where it continued its operations.
It is worth mentioning that since March 1930, naval aviation merged with army aviation, giving rise to the formation of the Chilean Air Force, with which all aircraft were in charge of that new weapon.
Despite no longer having naval aviation, years later some efforts arose to train naval officers to pilot aircraft. For example, in 1945 the Chilean navy sent 10 officers to the US to qualify as naval aviators, and these naval pilots became qualified, operating fighters and torpedo boats aboard the aircraft carrier USS Wright, with a view to a future renaissance of naval aviation. Due to the efforts of the navy itself, this would occur in 1953, when the Chilean government authorized its reestablishment, beginning its activities from the El Belloto airfield, in the commune of Quilpué, 20 kilometers from Valparaíso, its first aircraft being two Bell helicopters.
With its naval aviation back in existence, plans apparently soon emerged to equip the Chilean Squadron with an aircraft carrier. In fact, in October 1956, the newspapers La Estrella and El Mercurio of Valparaíso published news about the Chilean Navy's intentions to acquire an aircraft carrier from the United States, indicating that a commission chaired by Admiral Alfredo Natho was He was in Washington making arrangements to obtain the sale of a ship of that type. Apparently these efforts were unsuccessful as they did not obtain an affirmative response from the US government in this regard.
The next known effort by the Chilean navy to obtain an aircraft carrier occurred in 1966, when the need to acquire an aircraft carrier was presented to the Government. Apparently, the intention was to purchase HMS Centaur from Great Britain, which was in reserve as a result of the new government policy aimed at withdrawing aircraft carriers from service in the fleet.
However, the purchase of the aircraft carrier remained a mere purpose, because it did not have government approval. This decision caused the disagreement of some Chilean naval chiefs who pressed for the purchase to proceed, which in turn provoked, in response from the government, the retirement of Vice Admirals Newmann and Searle.
The last known attempt by the Chilean Navy to acquire an aircraft carrier occurred in the early 1980s, specifically during 1981, when the British Royal Navy offered for sale the aircraft carrier HMS Hermes with its complement of aircraft. V/STOL Harrier, which at that time was scheduled to be retired from service in 1983. However, this offer would be cut short by the Malvinas Conflict.
After the conflict, the Chilean Navy continued its interest in the Hermes, and this was evident when in an interview, Vice Admiral Mauricio Poisson, Chief of Staff of the Navy, declared: "I think that every sailor has in mind the idea of having a carrier-based task force. This statement was not a simple idea, since in August 1983, a Chilean delegation visited the ship, which made clear the interest in said ship. However, there was a big obstacle to achieving the objective, and it was monetary. Despite having a buoyant and growing economy, the acquisition of the aircraft carrier was expensive, not so much because of the ship itself, but because of the air group with which it had to be equipped. At that time, for the Chilean navy it was a higher priority to "renew" the units of its aging squadron than to provide it with an aircraft carrier.
Given the impossibility of acquiring the Hermes, the Chilean Navy definitively lost the opportunity when India purchased this aircraft carrier in April 1986 at a cost of 25 million dollars, plus its Sea Harriers air group for 60 million more.
In recent years, some Chilean analysts have once again raised the need for the Chilean navy to have an aircraft carrier-type ship. We believe that this is still a remote possibility, since ruling out the construction of a new unit due to the high costs involved, within the next ten years, none of the navies that currently have aircraft carriers will retire them from service; However, we should not rule out other possibilities such as the conversion of a merchant or auxiliary ship for the operation of aircraft.
EFFORTS TO ACQUIRE AN AIR CARRIER IN THE PERUVIAN NAVY
Despite having been one of the pioneers in South America, the Peruvian Naval Aviation, originally created in 1919, in its first period, had a short but fruitful period of life before merging with the army aviation to form the Peruvian Air Corps. and then what is the current Air Force. Until its new formation as a component of the naval forces in 1963, the only occasion in which naval aircraft were used on board a combat unit was during the Conflict with Colombia. This occurred in April 1933, when a Vought UO-5 seaplane piloted by First Lieutenant José San Martín was embarked aboard the cruiser Almirante Grau, to be used as an exploration aircraft.After 1963, the Naval Aviation Service had a modest initial development, until its true takeoff began in the mid-1970s. During this time, the first known occasion of the possibility of acquiring aircraft carriers dates back to 1968, at a time when the Argentine Navy - which owned the aircraft carrier Independencia (formerly HMS Warrior) - acquired a second ship of the same type, the Dutch Karel Doorman, later renamed 25 de Mayo. The offer of Independence to Peru was made in September 1968 by the then Chief of the General Staff of the Argentine Navy, Vice Admiral Pedro Gnavi to Rear Admiral Manuel Fernadez Castro of the Peruvian Navy. In subsequent conversations led by Peru's Naval Attaché in Argentina, Captain Melitón Carvajal, the interest in offering it to Peru exclusively was learned.
This interesting offer was discussed in the Superior Navy Council in the session corresponding to the month of September of that year, and was rejected mainly because at that time, the strategic conception of the formation of the Peruvian naval forces did not consider a ship of that type. type, as well as the limitations it had to operate with modern aircraft, and the age of its equipment, whose change and modernization would require a high investment for which the navy was not prepared.
The efforts to acquire the British aircraft carrier Bulwark
In 1976, Navy International magazine, in its July edition, presented an extensive report about the South American navies. The interesting thing about that article turned out to be the news that Peru was holding talks with the British Ministry of Defense to purchase the aircraft carrier HMS Bulwark as a platform to operate Harrier vertical takeoff aircraft.
Meanwhile, the British Navy had arranged for the Bulwark to be placed in reserve at the Portsmouth Naval Base, in charge of a crew in charge of its preservation and maintenance.
This was also known to Admiral Masías, who had continued conversations with the British naval authorities and the Ministry of Defense, meeting on January 13, 1976 with Admiral Sir Edward Ashmore, First Sea Lord, who told him that The Bulwark would be kept in reserve until the entry into service of the new aircraft carrier HMS Invincible, and that on the part of the British Government there was no impediment for the ship to later be sold to Peru. At this meeting, it was authorized for a delegation of Peruvian officers chaired by Admiral Masías to carry out an inspection visit to the ship.
The aforementioned visit took place on April 6, four days before the ship moved to its new location, with the delegation made up of Admiral Masías, ship captain Raúl Vargas Fuller and frigate captain Luis Giampietri Rojas. After having inspected the Bulwark, the aforementioned chief would present his report to the Chief of the General Staff of the Navy, in which after thoroughly detailing the condition of the ship, he concluded that "due to the magnificent operational and conservation state of said ship, No investment would be necessary for its use and employment by the Peruvian Navy, except in case superiority deems it appropriate, the change of the air center and early warning radars and electronic countermeasures because they are of a certain age and there are problems in obtaining spare parts."
On February 21, 1977, the British Embassy informed the staff that the Director of Sales of the British Ministry of Defense R. J. Harding, accompanied by Brigadier General P. Heindenstam, would visit Peru from March 2 to 7, wishing to visit the Chief of the General Staff General of the Navy and the Director General of Logistics to discuss, among other things, HMS Bulwark.
In January 1978, the navy received a visit from two other representatives of the British Ministry of Defense where interest in HMS Bulwark was again evident. However, it was known that British officials continued traveling to visit other South American countries, and it is estimated that on such occasions they offered the aforementioned unit for sale.
Within the naval acquisition plans of the time, the purchase of the Bulwark was considered necessary, first of all with the aim of enhancing the capacity to carry out amphibious operations, since the ship could transport 24 Sea King type helicopters, 1,200 Marines and all the necessary material to maintain them in beach combat, for 24 hours for a period of 10 days, and had a maximum speed of 28 knots.
Bulwark's offer was attractive for several reasons. Knowing what the operational status of it was according to what was reported by the naval attaché in Great Britain, it was known that its commissioning would not require greater investment; On the other hand, the price, estimated at four million dollars, would allow us to obtain an aircraft carrier almost immediately, while if it were decided to build a new one - like the 18,000-ton aircraft carrier offered by the Yarrow shipyard - its cost would be much higher (about 42 million dollars) and it could only be available between 6 to 8 years after its construction began.
Despite the serious intentions of the Peruvian navy to purchase the Bulwark, which left everything progressed on a "zero page", it was the decision of the British authorities themselves. Indeed, in 1978, its largest aircraft carrier, the Ark Royal, would be definitively withdrawn from service, leaving the Hermes as the only aircraft carrier available. This, plus the delay in the completion of the construction of the VSTOL Invincible aircraft carrier, led to a reassessment of the situation of the Bulwark, whose reactivation and reincorporation as an anti-submarine helicopter carrier was soon decided.
This decision was announced by the British Secretary of Defense on January 25, 1978, and a week later, the British Defense Attaché in Peru communicated this news to the Peruvian naval authorities, indicating that the return of the Bulwark to service excluded the possibility of its sale to Peru for a long time.
Regarding the ship in March 1978, it began its reconditioning, entering service again in February 1979, operating as an anti-submarine aircraft carrier until it was definitively withdrawn from service at the beginning of 1981. Thus concluded the closest opportunity that our navy had to acquire a aircraft carrier.
After this frustrated episode, some studies on aircraft carriers would continue, but given the possibilities of obtaining a second-hand ship so scarce and those of building a new one so remote due to the high cost that it would require, the topic was definitively forgotten.
CONCLUSIONS
The international situation that led Great Britain to withdraw its aircraft carriers from service since the end of World War II and the 1980s was what allowed some European, Asian and South American nations to obtain aircraft carriers.However, in current times it is practically impossible to acquire a second-hand ship of this class, the reason being that the few countries that own them simply have no plans to withdraw them from service. We must also consider that the cost to build an aircraft carrier and equip it with an air group is beyond any budget of the region's navies, so it is unlikely or perhaps impossible that any other South American navy could incorporate this type of ship into its fleet. its fleet in the medium term.
In the case of the Argentine Navy, although some publications have recently indicated a renewed interest in acquiring an aircraft carrier, there is no doubt that the drastic reductions in the defense budget that affect it will prevent for a long time the possibility of its sea fleet have a ship of this type again.
On the other hand, the withdrawal of May 25 has meant a notable decrease in the operational capacity of Argentine naval aviation and the projection of the naval power of its fleet. The Super Etendard and the S-2T Turbo Tracker have been deprived of a valuable platform that allowed them to increase their autonomy, currently having to operate from bases located on land.
Brazil, which during the last 20 years tried unsuccessfully to replace the Minas Gerais with a new aircraft carrier, with the purchase of the French Foch found a temporary solution that will allow it to continue using this type of ship for at least 10 more years before thinking about its replacement. .
As far as Chile is concerned, its aspirations to incorporate an aircraft carrier into its Squadron were limited in the past by economic factors (as in the case of the Hermes) and for the future, it must first achieve its ongoing projects for the replacement. of its ancient surface units before thinking about acquiring an aircraft carrier type ship.
In the case of Peru, after the unrealized projects to have an aircraft carrier in the 1970s, the strategic conception no longer considers this type of units, but does consider the use of rotary-wing aeronautical elements embarked on board frigates, with anti-surface and anti-submarine capabilities, as well as the use of land-based exploration and anti-submarine aircraft.
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