Unit name	Romanian Air Force''Forţele Aeriene Române''
Start date	1st of April 1913 (official date)
Country	Romania
Size	9,700 personnel
Command structure	Romanian Armed Forces
Garrison	''Statul Major al Forţelor Aeriene'' - Bucharest
Garrison label	Command HQ
Battle honours
Commander1	Major General Fănică Cârnu
Commander1 label	Chief of the General Air Staff
Notable commanders
Identification symbol
Identification symbol label	Roundel
Identification symbol 2
Identification symbol 2 label	Military colors
Aircraft attack	MiG-21 LanceR 'B', IAR-330 SOCAT
Aircraft fighter	MiG-21 LanceR 'A'/'C'
Aircraft recon	Antonov An-30, RQ-7 Shadow
Aircraft trainer	IAR-99, IAR 316, Yak-52
Aircraft transport	C-130 Hercules, C-27J Spartan, Antonov An-26, IAR-330L Puma}}

The Romanian Air Force () is the air force branch of the Romanian Armed Forces. It has an air force headquarters, an operational command, four air bases and an air defense brigade. Reserve forces include two air bases and three airfields.

In 2010, the Romanian Air Force employed 9,700 personnel.

Current state

The Romanian Air Force modernized 110 MiG 21 LanceRs, in cooperation with Israel between 1993 and 2002. Today, 48 of these MiG 21 LanceRs are operational . The Romanian Air Force also operates C-130 Hercules, C-27J Spartan, An-26s transport planes and IAR-330 Puma helicopters. IAR-330 PUMA SOCAT helicopters have been modernized by the Romanian Aviation Industry in cooperation with Elbit Systems (Israel) for attack missions. The Romanian Air Force also includes native-made IAR-99 Şoim jet planes, in general only used for training of the young pilots. The remaining MiG-29s have been removed from service in 2003.

Due to the old age of the MIGs, the Romanian Air Force is considering procurement of new fighters, or possibly used fighters as an interim solution. They will probably be replaced in 2012 when new fighter jets will arrive, such as the F-16, F/A-18, Eurofighter Typhoon or Gripen. However, due to budgetary reasons, Romania's MiG-21s may still be in service for years longer.

In the spring of 2009, the Romanian government decided to purchase VSHORAD/SHORAD systems from France. The deal included Mistral MANPADS and MICA VL surface-to-air missiles. However, after preliminary talks with MBDA in August, the deal was put on hold and canceled afterwards because of the defense cuts.

In February 2010, the Supreme Council of National Defense signed an agreement with the United States for missile defense under whose terms land-based SM-3 systems would be installed in Romania. On the 3rd of May 2011, the president of Romania Traian Băsescu announced the location for the SM-3 systems. They will be installed at the former Air Force base Deveselu in Olt County. The system includes 3 batteries with 24 SM-3 Block I rockets, manned by approximately 200 US soldiers (with a maximum of 500) under Romanian Air Force overall command.

The current chief of the Romanian Air Force Staff , succeeding General Ion-Aurel Stanciu on 7 January 2011, is Major General Fănică Cârnu.

History

Beginnings

Romania was one of the first countries in the world to have an air force, starting with 1913. In 1912, the Romanian Air Force commissioned 10 Vlaicu I aircraft, built by Aurel Vlaicu in Bucharest.

World War I

During World War I, Romania acquired 322 aircraft from France and Great Britain including: Nieuport fighters (types 11, 12, 19, 21, 23, and 28), Farman reconnaissance and light bombing aircraft (types 40 and 46), and Breguet-Michelin heavy bombers. On September 16, 1916, a Romanian Farman F.40 shot down an Imperial German Air Force aircraft near Slobozia; this was the first victory in the history of the Romanian Air Force. By the end of World War I, Romanian pilots had achieved about 11,000 hours of flight and fought 750 air battles.

Golden Age

During the interwar period, the RoAF, second only to Poland among the future Warsaw Pact countries, had a powerful national aircraft industry which designed and produced all types of military and most civil aircraft. In particular the IAR 80 series were stressed-skin fighters, worthy to rank with the other single-seat fighters of WWII, and used in significant numbers on the Eastern Front.

The RoAF was reorganized during an 18-year period. Over 2,000 military and civil aircraft were built in Romania, based on native or licensed designs. The military aviation used IAR 80 fighters, which became famous on the Eastern Front, and bombers manufactured by IAR Braşov. Messerschmitt Bf 109 and Heinkel He 112 fighters, Heinkel He 111 and Junkers Ju 88 bombers, Junkers Ju 87 dive bomber, Junkers Ju 52 transport and Heinkel He 114 seaplanes were purchased from Germany in the interwar period.

World War II

When Romania, allied with Nazi Germany, went to war against the USSR, on June 22, 1941, the Romanian Air Force had 621 airplanes, including its native made fighter IAR 80/81. The air force accomplished hundreds of missions, contributing to Romania's recapture of Northern Bukovina and Bessarabia, which had been occupied by the Soviet Union a year earlier. Until the Odessa episode, the Romanian military fighters gained 661 air victories. Romanian Military Aviation fought on the Eastern front until August 22, 1944, bringing an important contribution to the great battles in Stalingrad, Crimea, and the Ukrainian fronts. Between 1941-1944 Romanian aircraft won 2,000 air victories. The most famous flying aces were Captain Prince Constantin Cantacuzino, who gained 68 certified victories, Captain Horia Agarici and Captain Alexandru Şerbănescu, who shot down 60 enemy airplanes.

Cold War

Starting with 1948, Romania tailored its military to Soviet concepts and doctrine. On February 15, 1949, the Aviation Command was established based on the Soviet model (regiments instead of flotillas). New Soviet aircraft, such as Yakovlev Yak-18, Polikarpov Po-2, Lavochkin La-9, Tupolev Tu-2, and Ilyushin Il-10 entered service. A year later, 77 Yakovlev Yak-17s and Yakovlev Yak-23s entered the air force, and in 1952, other 88 aircraft: MiG-15 and MiG-17. In 1958, the first supersonic fighter MiG-19 entered the inventory. Three years later, in February 1962, a new fighter was added to the inventory, MiG-21, which represented one of the most effective fighters of that time.

Starting with 1974, Romanian-made aircraft supplemented the already existing jets. The Romanian IAR-93 subsonic aircraft flew its first flight on 31 October 1974. It represented a great step forward taking into account that it was the only jet fighter not made by the Soviets, the only one ever manufactured and operated by a Warsaw Pact country.

In 1962, the first helicopter subunits were established and followed later on, in 1965, by the first Soviet Mi-2 and Mi-4 helicopters. Renewing the aircraft fleet process went on, the first 12 MiG-23s entering the service between July-September 1979.

On 14 May 1981, at 20:16, Soviet spaceship Soyuz-40 was launched from Baikonur to perform a common Romanian-Soviet flight, with Lieutenant Dumitru Prunariu and Colonel Leonid Popov as commander on board. During the early 80's 67th Fighter-Bomber Regiment and 49th Fighter-Bomber Regiment from Craiova and Ianca were equipped with new IAR-93 attack aircraft which have replaced old MiG-15s and MiG-17s. In December 1989, just a few days before the Romanian revolution against communism began, MiG-29 aircraft had entered the Air Force inventory.

2007 Baltic Air Policing

Four MiG-21 LanceR Cs were deployed from August 2007 to November 2007 at Šiauliai, in Lithuania for Baltic Air Policing. The Romanian detachment succeeded the French Air Force Mirage 2000Cs of ''Escadron de Chasse 01.012'' from Cambrai, which fulfilled the Baltic Air Policing since May 2007. Once the RoAF finished its three-month stint, a Portuguese Air Force detachment took over the mission.

The four aircraft and most of the staff came from the 71st Air Base. A total of 67 personnel, among them nine pilots, were part of the detachment: 63 served at Šiauliai, while other four served at the air traffic control centre in Kaunas, to ensure smooth cooperation with local authorities. The Romanian detachment attracted attention from the local media, not least from the fact that it was only the second time a fighter from the Soviet era deployed to Šiauliai - Polish Air Force MiG-29s have also been deployed there in 2006.

2007 Romanian Air Force IAR-330 SOCAT crash

Three people were killed on November 7, 2007, when an IAR-330 Puma SOCAT attack helicopter belonging to the 90th Airlift Base crashed in Ungheni, near Piteşti, Argeş County. The aircraft was doing a night training mission at the moment of the crash.

Structure

Air Force Staff

The Romanian Air Force Staff represents the military concept-developing, command and executive structure providing Air Forces peacetime, crisis and wartime leadership in order to reach, maintain and increase, as required, the operational level of the military subordinated structures so that to be able to operate under authorized commands responsible for military operations planning and conduct.

Generate, mobilize, structure, equip, operationalize and regenerate the required forces, provide the logistic support necessary to conduct military operations and based on higher orders, take over both the Joint Operation Air Component and independent air operations command and control, through the Main Air Operational Center. Starting with July 1st 2010, the Romanian Air Force bases were renamed to Air Flotillas.

Air bases

The Romanian Air Force has 5 active air bases:

40px 71st Air Flotilla - Câmpia Turzii

711th Fighter Squadron - operating MiG-21 LanceR A, B;

712th Fighter Squadron - operating MiG-21 LanceR B, C;

713th Helicopter Squadron - operating IAR-330L;

714th Helicopter Squadron - operating IAR-330L (located at Timisoara Airport - former 93rd Air base);

40px 86th Air Flotilla - Feteşti

861st Fighter Squadron - operating MiG-21 LanceR B, C;

862nd Fighter Squadron - operating MiG-21 LanceR A, B;

863rd Helicopter Squadron - operating IAR-330L (located at Mihail Kogălniceanu Airport - former 57th Air Base);

40px 95th Air Flotilla - Bacău

951st Fighter Squadron - operating MiG-21 LanceR A, B;

205th School Fighter Squadron - operating MiG-21 LanceR A, B;

952nd Helicopter Squadron - operating IAR-330L;

904th Attack Helicopter Squadron - operating IAR-330 SOCAT;

905th Attack Helicopter Squadron - operating IAR-330 SOCAT;

40px 90th Airlift Flotilla - Bucureşti - Otopeni

901st Strategic Transport Squadron - operating C-130 Hercules B,H;

902nd Transport and Reconnaissance Squadron - operating An-26, An-30 and C-27J Spartan;

903rd Transport Helicopter Squadron - operating IAR-330L;

'''"Aurel Vlaicu" Flight School - Boboc (Buzau)

201st School Squadron - operating Yakovlev Yak-52;

202nd School Squadron - operated Antonov An-2 until July 2010;

203rd School Squadron - operating IAR-99 Standard;

204th School Squadron - operating IAR-99 Soim;

206th School Squadron - operating IAR-316B Alouette III;

Reserve air bases

Constanţa - Mihail Kogălniceanu Airport - 57th Air Base

Timişoara - Giarmata Airport - 93rd Air Base

There are also 3 airfields included in the reserve forces.

Units

40px'''[[1st Surface to Air Missiles Brigade (Romania)|

1st SAM Brigade "General Nicolae Dăscălescu"]] - located near Bucharest;'''

40px11th SAM Regiment "Horea" - located near Braşov

70th Aviation Engineer Regiment - Bucharest

85th Signal Battalion - Curtea de Argeş

Capu Midia range

The Capu Midia training camp and surface to air firing range represents the Romanian Air Force structure specialized in providing the necessary facilities for firing training, execution and evaluation. It is located in Constanţa County, 20 km north from the county capital, Constanţa.

Current inventory

{|border=0 cellpadding=1 cellspacing=1 |- bgcolor=#aabccc ! Aircraft ! Photo ! Origin ! Type ! Versions ! In service ! Notes |----- ! style="background: lavender;" colspan="7" | Fixed-wing Aircraft |- |----- |- style="background:#efefef;" | rowspan="3" | MiG-21 LanceR | rowspan="3" | | rowspan="3" | | Fighter Aircraft | MiG-21 LanceR A | rowspan="3" | 49 | ground attack |- style="background:#efefef;" | Trainer Aircraft | MiG-21 LanceR B | |- style="background:#efefef;" | Fighter Aircraft | MiG-21 LanceR C | 20; air superiority | |----- | An-26 Curl | | | Cargo/Transport Aircraft | An-26 | 4 | will be maintained in service until 2012 or more |- style="background:#efefef;" | An-30 Clank | | | Reconnaissance Aircraft | An-30 | 1 | aerial cartography for Treaty on Open Skies. |----- | C-27J Spartan | | | Cargo/Transport Aircraft | C-27J | 3 | another 4 are scheduled to be delivered until 2012. |- style="background:#efefef;" | C-130 Hercules | | | Cargo/Transport Aircraft | C-130B ----C-130H | 4 ----1 | |----- | IAR 99 Șoim | | | Trainer Aircraft | IAR-99 ----IAR-99C | 10 ----11 | |- style="background:#efefef;" | Yak-52 | | | Trainer Aircraft | Iak-52 | 12 | licensed built Yak-52 by Aerostar |----- ! style="background: lavender;" colspan="7" | Helicopters |- |----- | IAR 316 Alouette III | | | Training Helicopter | IAR-316 | 6 | a squadron remains operational with the training unit at Boboc |- style="background:#efefef;" | rowspan="2" | IAR 330 Puma | rowspan="2" | | rowspan="2" | | Utility Helicopter | IAR-330 | 35 | |- style="background:#efefef;" | Attack Helicopter | IAR-330 SOCAT | 23 | 25 initially, 2 crashed |----- ! style="background: lavender;" colspan="7" | Other |- |----- | RQ-7 Shadow | | | UAV | Shadow-600 | 7 | 11 initially, 4 crashed (1 in country, 3 in Iraq) |- style="background:#efefef;" | S-60 | | | anti-aircraft gun | CRT 1RL-35M1 | 250 | Will be replaced with SHORAD systems. Still used for training as of 2010. |----- | MIM-23 Hawk | | | surface to air missile | Hawk XXI | 224 | 8 batteries |- style="background:#efefef;" | S-75 Dvina | | | surface to air missile | S-75 M3 "Volhov" | | 6 batteries; 18 or 20 initially delivered by USSR between 1963-1967, modernized three times since then. |----- | AN/FPS-117 | | | radar | AN/FPS-117E (T) | 5 | 3-dimensional air search radar; in service since 1998 |- style="background:#efefef;" | P-18 radar | | | radar | P-18 | | 2-dimensional air search radar; in service since 1977 |----- | P-37 Bar Lock | | | | radar | P-37 Bar Lock | | 2D E band/F band radar; in service since 1975 |- style="background:#efefef;" | TPS-79 | | | radar | TPS-79(R) | 19 | 3-dimensional air search radar. in service since late 2004. |----- | PRV-13 | | | | Radar altimeter | PRV-13 | | In service since 1978 |- style="background:#efefef;" | RIM-161 Standard Missile 3 | | | Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense System | SM-3 (Block IB) | 24 | 3 batteries will be installed by 2015. |}

Aircraft markings

The Romanian roundel has the same colours like the Romanian flag. The innermost circle is blue, followed by yellow, and then red. It is placed on Romanian Armed Forces vehicles and Romanian Air Force aircraft.

Ranks and insignia

See also

Romanian Armed Forces

Romanian Land Forces

Romanian Naval Forces

References

Notes

Bibliography

Bernád, Dénes. ''Romanian Aces of World War 2 (Aircraft of the Aces 54)''. Botley, Oxford, UK: Osprey Publishing, 2003. ISBN 1-84176-535-X.

Bernád, Dénes. ''Romanian Air Force: The Prime Decade, 1938-1947''. Carrollton, TX: Squadron/Signal Publications Inc, 1999. ISBN 0-89747-402-3.

Crăciunoiu, Cristian and Roba, Jean-Louis. ''Romanian Aeronautics in the Second World War, 1941-1945'' (bilingual Romanian/English). Bucureşti, Romania: Editura Modelism International Ltd, 2003. ISBN 97-3810-118-2.

External links

Official site of the Romanian Air Force

Official site of the Romanian Ministry of National Defense (MoND)

Order of Battle of the RoAF

Romanian Air Force

es:Fuerza Aérea Rumana it:Forţele Aeriene Române hu:Román Légierő ms:Tentera Udara Romania ja:ルーマニア空軍 ro:Forțele Aeriene Române ru:Военно-воздушные силы Румынии

:''For military aviation conducted by armies and navies, see army aviation and naval aviation.'' An air force, also known in some countries as an air army, is in the broadest sense, the national military organization that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an army, navy or other branch. Typically, air forces are responsible for gaining control of the air, carrying out strategic and tactical bombing missions and providing support to surface forces.

The term "air force" may also refer to a tactical air force or numbered air force, which is an operational formation within a national air force. Air forces typically consist of a combination of fighters, bombers, helicopters, transport planes and other aircraft.

Many air forces are also responsible for operations of military space, intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBM), and communications equipment. Some air forces may command and control other air-defence assets such as antiaircraft artillery, surface-to-air missiles, or anti-ballistic missile warning networks and defensive systems. Some nations, principally Russia, the former Soviet Union and countries who modelled their militaries along Soviet lines, have an Air Defence Force which is organizationally separate from their air force.

In addition to pilots, air forces have ground support staff who support the aircrew. In a similar manner to civilian airlines, there are supporting ground crew as pilots cannot fly without the assistance of other personnel such as engineers, loadmasters, fuel technicians and mechanics. However, some supporting personnel such as airfield defence troops, weapons engineers and air intelligence staff do not have equivalent roles in civilian organizations.

History

Heavier-than-air military aircraft

Balloon or flying corps are not generally regarded as examples of an air force. However, with the invention of heavier-than-air craft in the early 20th century, armies and navies began to take interest in this new form of aviation as a means to wage war.

The first aviation force in the world was the Aviation Militaire of the French Army formed in 1910, which eventually became L'Armée de l'Air. In 1911, during the Italo-Turkish War, Italy employed aircraft for the first time ever in the world for reconnaissance and bombing missions against Turkish positions on Libyan Territory. The Italian–Turkish war of 1911–1912 was the first in history that featured air attacks by airplanes and dirigible airships. During World War I France, Germany, Italy, British Empire and the Ottoman Empire all possessed significant forces of bombers and fighters. World War I also saw the appearance of senior commanders who directed aerial warfare and numerous flying aces.

Independent air forces

An independent air force is one which is a separate branch of a nation's armed forces and is, at least nominally, treated as a military service on par with that of older services like navies or armies.

The British Royal Air Force was the first independent air force in the world. The RAF was founded on 1 April 1918 by merging the British Army's Royal Flying Corps and the Royal Navy's Air Service. On establishment the RAF comprised over 20,000 aircraft, was commanded by a Chief of the Air Staff who held the rank of Major General and was governed by its own government ministry (the Air Ministry).

Over the following decades most countries adopted the same model. The South African Air Force was formed on 1 February 1920 and the Australian Air Force was formed shortly afterwards on 31 March 1921, although it was not until 1922 that the head of the Service was titled as Chief of the Air Staff, placing him on a par with his Australian Army and Navy counterparts. The Canadian Air Force was formed at the end of World War I, and was abolished and reorganized several times between 1918 and 1924. It became the permanent Royal Canadian Air Force when it received the "Royal" title by royal proclamation on 1 April 1924. It did not however become independent of the Canadian Army until 1938 when its head was also designated as Chief of the Air Staff. The Finnish Air Force was established as a separate service on 4 May 1928 and the United States Air Force was formed as a separate branch of the American military on 18 September 1947. The Israeli Air Force came into being the with the State of Israel on 18 May 1948, but evolved from the pre-existing Sherut Avir (Air Service) of the Haganah paramilitary. The Japan Air Self-Defense Force was not established until 1954; in World War II Japanese military aviation had been carried out by the Army and Navy.

The world wars

Germany was the first country to organize regular air attacks on enemy infrastructure. In World War I it used its zeppelins (airships) to drop bombs on British cities. At that time, Britain did have aircraft, though her airships were less advanced than the zeppelins and were very rarely used for attacking; instead they were usually used to spy on German U-boats (submarines).

Fixed-wing aircraft at the time were quite primitive, being able to achieve velocities comparable to that of modern automobiles and mounting minimal weaponry and equipment. Aerial services were still largely a new venture, and relatively unreliable machines and limited training resulted in stupendously low life expectancies for early military aviators.

By the time World War II began, planes had become much safer, faster and more reliable. They were adopted as standard for bombing raids and taking out other aircraft because they were much faster than airships. The world's largest military Air Force by the start of the Second World War in 1939 was the Red Air Force, and although much depleted, it would stage the largest air operations of WWII over the four years of combat with the German Luftwaffe.

The war's most important air operation, known as the Battle of Britain, took place during 1940 over Britain and the English Channel between Britain's Royal Air Force and Germany's Luftwaffe over a period of several months. In the end Britain emerged victorious, and this caused Adolf Hitler to give up his plan to invade Britain. Other prominent operations during the Second World War include the bombing of Pearl Harbor by the Japanese in 1941, the Allied bombing of Germany during 1942–1944, and the Red Air Force operations in support of strategic ground offensives on the Eastern Front.

Strategic bombing

The air force's role of strategic bombing against enemy infrastructures was developed during the 1930s by the Japanese in China and by the Germans during the Spanish Civil War. This role for the bomber was perfected during World War II, during Allied "Thousand Bomber Raid" operations. The need to intercept these bombers, both during the day and at night, accelerated fighter aircraft developments. The war ended when United States Army Air Force Boeing B-29 Superfortress bombers dropped two atomic bombs at Hiroshima and Nagasaki in Japan in August 1945.

Post World War II

The United States Air Force finally became an independent service in 1947. As the Cold War began, both the USAF and the Soviet Air Force built up their nuclear-capable strategic bomber forces. Several technological advances were widely introduced during this time: the jet engine; the missile; the helicopter; and inflight refueling.

During the 1960s, Canada took the unusual step of merging the Royal Canadian Air Force with the army and the navy to form the unified Canadian Forces, with a green uniform for everyone. This proved very unpopular, and recently the air force (and the navy) have re-adopted their distinct identities (although structurally they remained a unified force). Perhaps the latest air force to become "independent" is the Irish Air Corps, which changed its uniform from army green to blue in the 1990s.

Air armies

Several countries title their military aviation Air Army, notably France and Spain. In such countries the army is officially called the Land Army, although in common usage "army" retains its meaning of a land force.

However, in the Soviet Union and the Russian Federation the Air Army also refers to a military formation, and during WWII eighteen Air Armies operated as part of the Red Army Order of Battle as the Soviet Air Forces in World War II. The Air Armies were divided into the air forces of the military district PVO, the Frontal Aviation Air Armies assigned one to each Front, and the Anti-Air Defence Armies that included anti-aircraft guns and interceptors.

See also

List of air forces

Aerial warfare

History of military aviation

Military aircraft

Notes

References

"AFPC – Air Force Personnel Center", Air Force Personnel Center, Randolph AFB, Texas, 2009-01-12, webpage: randolph.af.mil-Ask.

"United States Air Force", U.S. Air Force, 2009, webpage (large): Airforce.com (has subpages about the Air Force).

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