The 1st Air Defense Group (1st GDA), the Jaguar Squadron, of the Brazilian Air Force turns 11 today (43). The unit will be the first FAB unit to operate the new Saab F-39E/F Gripen fighters, and should receive the first aircraft in 2022.
The 1st GDA is headquartered at Anápolis Air Force Base (BAAN) and today fulfills its mission with the veterans, but updated, Northrop F-5EM/FM Tiger II. In the past the squadron operated the legendary Dassault Mirage F-103 (Mirage IIIDBR and EBR) and Mirage F-2000 (Mirage 2000B/C).
The unit has its origins in the 1st Air Defense Wing (1st ALADA), whose nucleus (NuALADA) was activated on February 09, 1970 with the beginning of the works of what is now BAAN.
The foundation of ALADA came from FAB studies in the 1960s, when the need for a unit dedicated to the defense of Brazilian airspace, especially in the Federal District, was seen.
In May 1970, the Air Force Command selected the French fighter Mirage III as ALADA's dedicated interceptor aircraft, initially acquiring 16 aircraft: 13 one-seat Mirage IIIEBR, designated F-103E, and three two-seat Mirage IIIDBR, designated F -103D.
In 1973 the first Mirage IIIs began service with the 1st ALADA. The Wing was deactivated six years later and in its place the 1st GDA and Anápolis Air Base were founded.
On April 09, 1982, in the midst of the Falklands/Malvinas War, the Jaguar carried out its first real mission, intercepting an Ilyushin Il-62M jet from the Cuban airline, which entered Brazilian airspace without permission. Two Mirage IIIs, piloted by Major-Aviator Paulo César Pereira and 1st Lieutenant-Aviator Eduardo José Pastorelo de Miranda, performed the first real intercept of the 1st GDA.
In the 1990s, the Mirage, which already showed the signs of age, underwent a modernization that brought the installation of fixed canards, improving the fighter's maneuverability at low speeds.
The FAB also tested the installation of an in-flight refueling probe on one of the fighters, but the modification was not included in the complete fleet.
In 1997 the F-103 received the Rafael Python III short-range missiles, which replaced the already obsolete Matra R530. Seven years later, on December 31, 2005, the Mirage III was officially retired.
In the same year, the Government purchased 12 Mirage 2000B/C fighters from the French Air Force's stockpiles. Designated F-2000B/C, the deltas were equipped with short-range Magic II and medium-range Super 530D missiles guided by semi-active radar. The first aircraft arrived in 2006 and continued operating until 2013, one year more than their initially planned retirement.
The last flight of the Mirage 2000 registration number 4948 ended the era of the French deltas in the 1st GDA. The Mirages left and the Tigers entered, which despite being older could still use more advanced weapons, in the form of short-range Python IV missiles and the Derby, guided by active radar.
The Tigers continue to operate with the Jaguars, but will soon give way to the new Saab Gripen E/F, whose first operational units already in Brazil since the beginning of this month.
The FAB plans to end 2022 with at least four F-39Es in service with the Jaguar Squadron, which will once again have in its hands the most powerful fighter aircraft in the Brazilian Air Force fleet.
If the defense of the Homeland is a goal
Can the swift arrow hiss
And from the shelter it takes off alert
To combat the mighty Jaguar!
Excerpt from the song Asas e Garras from the 1st GDA.
