Paraguayan Air Force
The Paraguayan Air Force (Fuerza Aérea Paraguaya) grew out of the army aviation that flew through the whole of the 1932–1935 Chaco War, gave Paraguay its first jets only in 1979, helped topple Alfredo Stroessner with low passes by two Xavantes in 1989 — and, after two decades with no jet or new combat aircraft at all, received six Embraer A-29 Super Tucanos in 2025–2026 to police a sky crossed by smuggling flights.
The Paraguayan Air Force story: the Chaco War, Xavantes against a dictator and Super Tucanos for a sky crossed by smuggling flights
1922–1935: from hired pilots to the Chaco War
Paraguayan military flying began in a civil war. In the uprising of 1922 a handful of aircraft were used, flown mostly by foreign pilots, according to English Wikipedia. By the end of the 1920s the army had a First Fighter Squadron with Wibault 7 C.1s and a reconnaissance and bombing squadron with Potez 25 A.2s, both bought from France. When the Chaco War with Bolivia began in September 1932, Paraguay’s aviation was much smaller than Bolivia’s: Wikipedia counts 14 Potez 25s against at least 20 Bolivian Curtiss-Wright Ospreys, plus Bolivian Junkers transports. A second Potez squadron formed late in 1932, and in April 1933 the 11th Fighter Squadron, Los Indios, took delivery of Fiat CR.20bis fighters. Spanish Wikipedia says the air arm flew from the first day of the war to the last, 12 June 1935; the service still marks its day on the anniversary of the air battle of Ballivián.
1935–1954: civil war and a long lean period
The war ended in Paraguay’s favour — the 1938 treaty gave it about three-quarters of the disputed Chaco — and the late 1930s brought five Fiat CR.32 fighters and seven Caproni AP.1 attack aircraft from Italy. The United States donated more aircraft as the Second World War ended, and English Wikipedia dates the Paraguayan Air Force itself to 1946. A year later it was at war with itself. In the civil war of March to August 1947 part of the air arm sided with the rebels in Concepción, which government aircraft then bombed; Spanish Wikipedia says the rebels’ small air force had been all but wiped out by the time their columns reached Villeta. For long periods afterwards, Spanish Wikipedia notes, Paraguay’s military aviation had practically no combat aircraft at all, and its fighter pilots trained abroad.
1954–1989: the Stroessner years and the first jets
General Alfredo Stroessner took power in a coup on 4 May 1954 and ruled until February 1989. His government is the subject of serious findings: the estimates cited in English Wikipedia put those murdered at 3,000–4,000, the disappeared at 400–500 and the tortured at 18,000–20,000, and Paraguay was a leading participant in Operation Condor. The air force of those years was small. In the 1970s it received about a dozen armed T-6 Texans as a gift, which let it train combat pilots at home again, and in December 1979 the first three of ten Embraer AT-26 Xavantes, Brazilian-built MB-326s, landed at Asunción — Paraguay’s first jet combat aircraft. Six EMB-312 Tucanos followed in 1987. The new international airport, opened on 20 March 1980, carried the dictator’s name.
1989–2010s: making do after the dictatorship
The Xavantes had their most famous hour on 2–3 February 1989, when General Andrés Rodríguez overthrew Stroessner. Spanish Wikipedia names two first lieutenants, Juan Antonio Rojas Duré and Gerardo Miguel Ángel Maldonado Gómez, who flew low intimidating passes in support of Rodríguez’s forces, and credits them with breaking the defenders’ morale; the official death toll of the coup was 31, other estimates run to 150–250. Democracy did not bring money. Taiwan donated six T-33s, the first arriving in 1991, and announced twelve F-5E/Fs that were never delivered. The Xavantes were retired in 2004 after 25 years and 32,641 flying hours, leaving the Tucano as the only armed aircraft; three were lost in accidents, and Brazil supplied three more in November 2010.
2022–2026: Super Tucanos, Taiwanese Hueys and a new transport
The decade since has been about catching up. Six T-35 Pillán trainers were rebuilt in Chile under a USD 6.8 million contract of August 2022, Taiwan gave four more UH-1H helicopters in August 2025, and five Cessna Grand Caravan EX joined the transport group in 2021. The big step was the order for six Embraer A-29 Super Tucanos: four arrived on 30 June 2025, the fifth on 21 August 2026 and the sixth was expected at the end of September 2026. Zona Militar puts the cost at USD 105 million in one report and at over USD 96 million in another. In November 2025 they flew their first real interception, against an irregular flight near the Brazilian border. The remaining weak spots are plain: only two of five C-212 transports were flying in September 2026, and the first Cessna 408 SkyCourier is only now arriving to replace them.
The Paraguayan Air Force in numbers
Service
- Native name
- Fuerza Aérea ParaguayaSpanish; abbreviated FAP. A Guaraní official name was not found in the sources checked
- Founded
- 1946English Wikipedia’s date for the air force as a service; military aircraft were used from 1922 and the army had fighter and bomber squadrons by the late 1920s
- Part of
- Armed Forces of the Nation (Fuerzas Armadas de la Nación)The President of the Republic, Santiago Peña, is commander-in-chief
- Headquarters
- Ñu Guasu, LuqueAir base sharing the runway of Silvio Pettirossi International Airport, Greater Asunción; 1st Air Brigade
- Commander
- Gen. del Aire Julio Rubén Fullaondo CéspedesNamed as commander in August 2025 and August 2026 reports; the date he took over was not confirmed. His predecessor, Gen. Arturo Javier González Ocampo, was in post in April 2023
- Minister of Defence
- Gen. Óscar GonzálezAs named in August 2025
Strength
- Combat aircraft
-
- Embraer A-29 Super Tucano — 5 delivered by 21 August 2026, 6 ordered
- Embraer EMB-312 (AT-27) Tucano — 6
Light attack and interception of irregular flights; no jet combat aircraft since 2004
- Transport
-
- CASA C-212 — 5 (2 operational)
- Cessna 208B Grand Caravan EX — 5
- Cessna 408 SkyCourier — 1 due October 2026
- King Air, Twin Otter, Citation and others — see fleet
Military Air Transport Service (SETAM) flies low-cost services to remote areas
- Helicopters
-
- Bell UH-1H — 8
- AS350/H125 Esquilo — 4 (Wikipedia)
- Bell 407 and Bell 427 — 1 each (Wikipedia)
Wikipedia lists 12 UH-1H; Zona Militar gives 8 after the 2025 donation
- Trainers
-
- ENAER T-35 Pillán — at least 6 modernised
- Neiva T-25 Universal
Wikipedia lists 12 T-35; six were upgraded in Chile in 2023–2025
Infrastructure
- Main base
- Ñu Guasu (Luque)Shares the runway of Asunción’s international airport; houses the Grupo Aerotáctico, training group and the air force museum
- Chaco base
- Mariscal Estigarribia3,500 m runway, the longest in Paraguay; the fifth A-29 was received there in August 2026
- Other air bases
- About a dozenWikipedia lists 15 air bases and military airfields, most of them civil aerodromes with an air force detachment
- Radar
- New radar due in early 2027To complement the A-29 for airspace control; an ELTA EL/M-2106 NG was presented earlier
How the Paraguayan Air Force is organised
A small service of the Armed Forces of the Nation, with its headquarters and the 1st Air Brigade at Ñu Guasu, on the far side of the runway from Asunción’s airliners. Its only combat aircraft are turboprops: five A-29 Super Tucanos of the 2nd Fighter Squadron, Indios, delivered by 21 August 2026 out of six ordered, and six EMB-312 Tucanos of the 3rd Fighter Squadron, Moros. Paraguay has had no jet combat aircraft since the AT-26 Xavante was retired in 2004.
Paraguayan Air Force
One of the services of the Armed Forces of the Nation, under President Santiago Peña as commander-in-chief, with its headquarters and the 1st Air Brigade at Ñu Guasu, beside Silvio Pettirossi International Airport. Gen. del Aire Julio Rubén Fullaondo Céspedes was named as commander in August 2025 and August 2026, and English Wikipedia calls him interim; the date he took command was not confirmed.
2nd Fighter Squadron, Indios
Flies the Embraer A-29 Super Tucano: four arrived on 30 June 2025 and the fifth was received at Mariscal Estigarribia on 21 August 2026, of six ordered. They flew their first real interception in Operation Escudo Guaraní in November 2025, against an irregular flight near the Brazilian border. A permanent home base has not been published.
3rd Fighter Squadron, Moros
Six EMB-312 (AT-27) Tucanos, bought in 1987 and made up to six again by three from Brazil in November 2010, upgraded with Garmin avionics, FLIR cameras and .50-calibre gun pods from the retired Xavantes. Pucará Defensa placed the squadron at Luque/Ñu Guasu in January 2025. Wikipedia lists the Grupo Aerotáctico there with A-29s and Tucanos; its 1st Fighter Squadron, Guaraní, is deactivated.
Grupo Aéreo de Instrucción
The training group of the 1st Air Brigade, flying six T-35 Pillán trainers rebuilt by ENAER in Chile for USD 6.8 million, the last handed over on 25 June 2025. Wikipedia names its Fénix squadron, with the T-25 Universal, and the Antares, Pantera and Halcón squadrons with the T-35.
Grupo Aéreo de Helicópteros
Eight UH-1H Hueys after four donated by Taiwan were commissioned at Ñu Guasu on 22 August 2025 (Wikipedia lists 12), with HB350/H125 Esquilos, for medical evacuation, fire-fighting, counter-narcotics and search and rescue. That the group is permanently based at Ñu Guasu is inferred from the ceremony, not stated outright.
Grupo de Transporte Aéreo and SETAM
Five CASA C-212s, only two of them operational in September 2026, and five Cessna Grand Caravan EX of 2021; the Military Air Transport Service flies low-cost services to remote areas. A first Cessna 408 SkyCourier, bought for about USD 10 million to begin replacing the C-212s, was due in the first week of October 2026.
What the Paraguayan Air Force flies today
Every type on charge, linked to its Book of Beasts page where one exists. Counts are aircraft on the books, not aircraft available on a given day.
| Type | Role | In service | Since | Units | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Embraer A-29 Super TucanoIn service | Light attack and interception | 5 | 2025 | Five delivered by 21 August 2026 (four on 30 June 2025, one on 21 August 2026); six ordered, the sixth expected at the end of September 2026 but not confirmed delivered at the time of writing. | ||
| Embraer EMB-312 Tucano (AT-27)In service | Light attack and advanced training | 6 | 1987 | Six bought in 1987; three lost in accidents; three more supplied by Brazil in November 2010. | ||
| ENAER T-35 PillánIn service | Basic trainer | 6 | Six upgraded to T-35B(E) standard by ENAER, delivered August 2023 to 25 June 2025; Wikipedia lists 12 in service. | |||
| Neiva T-25 UniversalIn service | Primary trainer | |||||
| CASA C-212 AviocarIn service | Tactical transport and paratroop | 5 | Five on strength, two operational in September 2026; Wikipedia lists three of the -200 and -400 versions. | |||
| Cessna 208B Grand Caravan EXIn service | Utility transport and medevac | 5 | 2021 | Five. | ||
| Beechcraft King Air (350 and C90)In service | VIP transport and surveillance | 2 | Two, per Wikipedia. | |||
| Cessna 680 Citation SovereignIn service | Presidential and VIP transport | 1 | 2019 | One. | ||
| de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin OtterIn service | STOL utility | 1 | One, per Wikipedia. | |||
| Diamond DA62 MPPIn service | Surveillance and search | 1 | One, per Wikipedia. | |||
| Beechcraft Baron 58In service | Multi-engine training and utility | 2 | Two, per Wikipedia. | |||
| Bell UH-1H IroquoisIn service | Utility helicopter | 8 | Eight after four were donated by Taiwan in August 2025 (Zona Militar); Wikipedia lists 12. | |||
| Helibras HB350 / Airbus H125 EsquiloIn service | Light helicopter | 4 | Four, per Wikipedia. | |||
| Bell 407In service | VIP and medevac helicopter | 1 | One, per Wikipedia. | |||
| Bell 427In service | VIP and medevac helicopter | 1 | One, per Wikipedia. |
On order
| Type | Ordered | First delivery | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Embraer A-29 Super TucanoOn order | 1 | 2025 | The sixth and last aircraft of the order was expected at the end of September 2026; its arrival was not confirmed at the time of writing. | |
| Cessna 408 SkyCourierOn order | 1 | 2026 | About USD 10 million; already painted and due in the first week of October 2026. The first replacement for the C-212; 22 passengers or six stretchers.
MoreZona Militar’s July 2026 report already described the type as in service. |
|
| Trainers and helicopters from Taiwan (types not disclosed)On order | Announced by President Peña on 10 July 2026; the air force did not name the types. |
Every type the Paraguayan Air Force has retired
13 types, from the Fiat CR.20bis to the Embraer EMB-326GB Xavante (AT-26). Peak figures are airframes taken on charge over the whole service life, not fleet strength on any one date.
| Type | Role | Peak | Served | Replaced by | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Embraer EMB-326GB Xavante (AT-26) | Light attack jet | 10 | 1979–2004 | EMB-312 Tucano | Ten; the first three arrived in December 1979. | |
| Lockheed T-33A Shooting Star | Jet trainer | 6 | 1991– | Six, donated by Taiwan. | ||
| North American T-6 Texan | Armed trainer | 12 | About a dozen, donated. | |||
| Potez 25 A.2 and TOE | Reconnaissance and bomber | 14 | 14 at the start of the Chaco War, according to English Wikipedia. | |||
| Wibault 7 C.1 | Fighter | |||||
| Fiat CR.20bis | Fighter | 1933– | ||||
| Fiat CR.32 | Fighter | 5 | Five. | |||
| Caproni AP.1 | Attack | 7 | Seven. | |||
| Consolidated PBY Catalina | Amphibian transport | |||||
| Douglas C-47 | Transport | |||||
| Boeing 707 | Transport | |||||
| Bell H-13 Sioux | Light helicopter | |||||
| Fokker S.11 | Trainer |
Where the Paraguayan Air Force flies from
Black pins are active bases; neither of the two airfields listed has closed. Ñu Guasu, the headquarters and main base, shares its 3,353 m runway with Silvio Pettirossi International Airport, which opened in 1980 under Stroessner’s name; in the Chaco, Mariscal Estigarribia has the longest runway in Paraguay, 3,500 m. Wikipedia lists 15 air bases and military airfields, most of them civil aerodromes with an air force detachment, which are not mapped here. Coordinates and runways are from English Wikipedia, as the DINAC AIP could not be read.
| Base | ICAO | Status | Runway | Units and aircraft |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ñu GuasuCentral Department (Departamento Central) | SGAS | Active | 02/203,353 m |
|
| Mariscal EstigarribiaBoquerón Department | SGME | Active | 01/193,500 mconcrete |
|
No air base matches that search.
Who is stationed where in the Paraguayan Air Force
Flying units by base, current units first. Paraguayan squadrons carry names as well as numbers: the 1st Fighter Squadron, Guaraní, is deactivated, the 2nd, Indios, flies the A-29 and the 3rd, Moros, the Tucano. The AT-26 Xavante unit of 1979–2004 is listed as a former unit, its name not confirmed. Where a unit’s base is not stated in the sources, the entry says so.
- Grupo Aerotáctico (GAT)Combat group · active
- A-29 Super Tucano, EMB-312 (AT-27) Tucano
- 3rd Fighter Squadron (3° Escuadrón de Caza)Moros · Light attack squadron · active
- EMB-312 (AT-27) Tucano (6)
- 2nd Fighter Squadron (2° Escuadrón de Caza)Indios · Light attack and interception squadron · active
- A-29 Super Tucano
- Grupo Aéreo de Instrucción (GAI)Flying training group · active
- ENAER T-35 Pillán, Neiva T-25 Universal
- Grupo Aéreo de Helicópteros (GAH)Helicopter group · active
- Bell UH-1H (8), HB350/H125 Esquilo
- Grupo de Transporte Aéreo (GTA) and SETAMTransport group · active
- CASA C-212, Cessna 208B Grand Caravan EX
- AT-26 Xavante fighter unit1979–2004
- EMB-326GB (AT-26) Xavante
- Air force detachment (A-29 operations)Forward operating base · active
- A-29 Super Tucano
No unit matches that search.
Paraguayan Air Force milestones, 1914 to today
Aircraft are used in a civil war, flown mostly by foreign pilots.
By the late 1920s the army has a 1st Fighter Squadron (Wibault 7) and a 1st Reconnaissance and Bombing Squadron (Potez 25), both French-built; exact year not confirmed.
9 September: the Chaco War with Bolivia begins. 22 December: three Bolivian Vickers Vespas raid Bahía Negra; one is shot down by the gunboat Tacuary.
April: the 11th Fighter Squadron, Los Indios, forms with Fiat CR.20bis fighters.
22 December: navy seaplanes raid Vitriones and San Juan, called the first night air attack in South America.
12 June: Chaco War ceasefire. The 1938 treaty gives Paraguay about three-quarters of the Chaco.
11 June: Asunción’s airfield is inaugurated, on the site the Grupo Aerotáctico occupies today.
The Paraguayan Air Force is formed as a service, the date English Wikipedia gives.
March–August civil war: government aircraft bomb rebel-held Concepción; the rebels’ small air arm is destroyed.
4 May: General Alfredo Stroessner seizes power; he rules until 1989.
December: the first three of ten AT-26 Xavantes, Paraguay’s first jet combat aircraft, land at Asunción.
Six EMB-312 Tucanos are bought.
2–3 February: Xavantes fly intimidating passes in support of General Andrés Rodríguez’s coup against Stroessner.
The first of six T-33s donated by Taiwan arrives.
The Xavante is retired after 25 years and 32,641 hours.
November: Brazil supplies three EMB-312 Tucanos to replace three lost in accidents.
30 June: the first four A-29 Super Tucanos arrive. 22 August: four UH-1Hs donated by Taiwan enter service. November: first real interception by the A-29.
June–July: A-29s make their international debut at Salitre in Chile. 21 August: fifth A-29 delivered. September: first Cessna 408 SkyCourier bought.
Every war the Paraguayan Air Force has fought
Sorties and losses where the record gives them, and an honest blank where it does not.
- The 1922–1923 civil war 1922–1923 Aircraft were used in small numbers, flown mostly by foreign pilots
- The Chaco War 1932–1935 Reconnaissance, bombing, fighter escort, liaison and casualty evacuation from the first day of the war to the last
- The 1947 civil war 1947 Government aircraft bombed the rebel stronghold of Concepción; a rebel air element operated from there
- The coup against Stroessner 1989 Two AT-26 Xavantes flew low intimidating passes in support of the forces of General Andrés Rodríguez
- Airspace control and interception of irregular flights 2025– Detection and interception of irregular light aircraft, many linked to drug trafficking
Who built the Paraguayan Air Force fleet
Every company behind the aircraft on this page has its own page: the story, every type it built, the numbers and the other air forces that fly them.
Current fleet and orders
Bell, Cessna, Embraer, Beechcraft, Airbus Helicopters, CASA, Diamond Aircraft, ENAER, Helibras, Neiva, de Havilland Canada
Former fleet
Fiat Aviazione, Boeing, Caproni, Consolidated Aircraft, Douglas, Fokker, Lockheed, North American Aviation, Potez, Wibault
Paraguayan Air Force news from Afterburner
Everything MiGFlug’s magazine has published on the Paraguayan Air Force and the aircraft it flies. This list refreshes itself — new Afterburner stories appear here automatically.
Everything people ask about the Paraguayan Air Force
What is the Paraguayan Air Force called in Spanish?
What aircraft does the Paraguayan Air Force fly in 2026?
Does Paraguay have fighter jets?
When did the Super Tucanos arrive in Paraguay?
What did the air force do in the Chaco War?
What role did the air force play in the fall of Stroessner?
Where is the Paraguayan Air Force based?
Is there a US military base at Mariscal Estigarribia?
Why does Taiwan give aircraft to the Paraguayan Air Force?
Read the aircraft the Paraguayan Air Force flew
Every type with a page in the Book of Beasts, in service first, then by the year it left the fleet.
Every fact, checked
- Pucará Defensa: Nuevas armas y capacidades para los Tucano del Paraguay (23 January 2025)Six EMB-312 bought in 1987, three lost in accidents, three more from Brazil in November 2010; 3rd Fighter Squadron Moros at Luque/Ñu Guasu; upgrades.
- Zona Militar: La Fuerza Aérea Paraguaya sumó su quinto A-29 Super Tucano (21 August 2026)Six A-29 for USD 105 million; first four arrived 30 June 2025, fifth on 21 August 2026, sixth expected late September 2026; 2nd Fighter Squadron Indios; new radar due in the first quarter of 2027.
- Zona Militar: Ejercicio Salitre: la Fuerza Aérea Paraguaya dirá presente en Chile (21 June 2026)Four A-29 and one C-212 to Salitre 2026, about 40 personnel; cost given as over USD 96 million; first real interception in Operation Escudo Guaraní in November 2025.
- Zona Militar: El Presidente Peña anunció aeronaves de entrenamiento y nuevos helicópteros (10 July 2026)92nd commemoration of the air battle of Ballivián; trainers and helicopters from Taiwan announced, types not disclosed.
- Zona Militar: La Fuerza Aérea Paraguaya celebró la incorporación de cuatro helicópteros Bell UH-1H donados por Taiwán (22 August 2025)Four UH-1H, fleet of eight; ceremony at Ñu Guasu with President Peña, Defence Minister Gen. Óscar González and FAP commander Gen. Julio Fullaondo; UH-1H since the 1990s, over 20,000 hours.
- Zona Militar: La Fuerza Aérea Paraguaya avanza en el reemplazo de sus CASA C-212 con la compra de su primer Cessna 408 SkyCourier (24 September 2026)One SkyCourier for about USD 10 million, due first week of October 2026; five C-212 of which two operational; five Grand Caravan EX bought in 2021.
- Infodefensa: Enaer entrega a la Fuerza Aérea Paraguaya el último avión Pillán modernizado (26 June 2025)Six T-35 upgraded to T-35B(E) for USD 6.8 million under a contract of 17 August 2022; deliveries August 2023 to 25 June 2025; Grupo Aéreo de Instrucción, 1st Air Brigade, Ñu Guasu.
- Argentina.gob.ar: La Fuerza Aérea Paraguaya formalizó una declaración para adquirir el avión IA100 (24 April 2023)Declaration of interest signed by the FAP commander, Gen. Arturo Javier González Ocampo, and FAdeA; no quantity.
- GlobalSecurity.org: Mariscal EstigarribiaBuilt 1977–1986 by Paraguayan military engineers; 2005 US exercise agreement and both governments’ denials of a US base.
- DINAC: AIP Paraguay (AMDT AIRAC 01/2026)The national AIP is published only as a RAR archive, which could not be read for this dataset; aerodrome data here are therefore not from the AIP.
Figures verified 2026-10-01. Order of Battle pages are regenerated from a single dataset; if a number here disagrees with a Book of Beasts page, this page is the more recent of the two.
Photographs: Photo: Senior Airman Julia Ahaesy / Wikimedia Commons (Public domain) · Photo: Gordon Leggett / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Photo: Ad Meskens You are free to use this picture for any purpose as long as you credit its auth / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Photo: Daniel Case / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0) · Photo: Matti Blume / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Photo: Don Ramey Logan / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Photo: Guilherme Borges dos Santos / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Photo: Chme82 / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Photo: Greg Goebel / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0) · Photo: Tony Hisgett / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0) · Photo: Civil Aviation Historical Society, Melbourne, Australia, Original Photographer Unknown / Wikimedia Commons (Public domain) · Photo: Alan Wilson from Peterborough, Cambs, UK / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0) · Photo: The National Guard / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 4.0)