Punta Indio Naval Air Base (Spanish: Base Aeronaval Punta Indio, ICAO: SAAI) is a military airport operated by the Argentine Naval Aviation, located in the countryside 5 kilometres (3 mi) northeast of Verónica, a town in the Buenos Aires Province of Argentina.
The Punta Indio VOR-DME (Ident: PDI) and non-directional beacon (Ident: PDI) are located on the field.
History
Punta Indio Naval Air Base (Argentine Navy identifier: BAPI), the cradle of Argentine Naval Aviation, was established in 1928 on land that was donated by Martín Tornquist, who founded the nearby city of Verónica. The base was strategically located to control access by ship to the Río de la Plata, initially via manned balloons.
On 16 June 1955, Punta Indio was the departure base of the naval aircraft that bombarded the Casa Rosada attempting to kill president Juan Domingo Perón This action was the preface to the September uprising known as "Revolución Libertadora".
In April 1963, during the Navy uprising (part of the Azules y Colorados confrontation), rebel naval aircraft from Punta Indio attacked the loyalist 8th Tank Regiment; afterwards the air base was attacked by the loyalist Air Force and occupied by the Army.
During the National Reorganization Process, a Clandestine Detention Centre was active at Punta Indio.
In 2008 the First Naval Air Squadron was deactivated due to lack of budget.
In 2011, the 90th anniversary of the foundating of the Naval Aviation School was celebrated.
Units
Punta Indio Naval Air Base is the location of the First Naval Air Force (Spanish: Fuerza Aeronaval N° 1), comprising the following units:
- Punta Indio Naval Air Base group
- Punta Indio Naval Air Workshop (Spanish: Taller Aeronaval Punta Indio)
- First Naval Air Wing (Spanish: Escuadra Aeronaval N° 1), composed of:
- Argentine Naval Aviation School (Spanish: Escuela de Aviación Naval)
- First Naval Air Attack Squadron (Spanish: Primera Escuadrilla Aeronaval de Ataque), currently on reserve
- Naval Air Maritime Patrol Squadron (Spanish: Escuadrilla Aeronaval de Vigilancia Marítima.
See also
- Argentina portal
- Aviation portal
- Transport in Argentina
- List of airports in Argentina
References
Further reading
- BASES AERONAVALES DE LA ARMADA ARGENTINA – BASE AERONAVAL DE PUNTA INDIO (BAPI o PINDIO) 1- 1923 – 1935 (HistArMar website) (in Spanish) Accessed 9 August 2015
- BASES AERONAVALES DE LA ARMADA ARGENTINA – BASE AERONAVAL DE PUNTA INDIO (BAPI o PINDIO) 2- 1935 – 1961 (HistArMar website) (in Spanish) Accessed 9 August 2015
- BASES AERONAVALES DE LA ARMADA ARGENTINA – BASE AERONAVAL DE PUNTA INDIO (BAPI o PINDIO) 3- 1962 – 2009 (HistArMar website) (in Spanish) Accessed 9 August 2015
- Marcelo Mustone (13 July 2015). "Indios jubilados" [Retired indians] (in Spanish). Gaceta Aeronautica. Retrieved 29 August 2015.
External links
- OpenStreetMap - Punta Indio Naval Air Base
- OurAirports - Punta Indio Naval Air Base
- Accident history for SAAI at Aviation Safety Network
