Romanian F-16 at the 86th Fetești Air Force Base
The Romanian Air Force (RoAF) is the air force branch of the Romanian Armed Forces. It has an air force headquarters, an operational command, five airbases and an air defense brigade. Reserve forces include one air base and three airfields.
In 2019, the Romanian Air Force employed 15,000 personnel.
Current state
The Romanian Air Force modernized 110 MiG-21 LanceRs, in cooperation with Israel between 1993 and 2002. Today, 23-28 of these MiG 21 LanceRs are operational. The Romanian Air Force also operates C-130 Hercules, C-27J Spartan and An-26 transport airplanes 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 locally built IAR-99 Șoim jet planes, in general only used for training of the young pilots. The remaining MiG-29s have been withdrawn since 2003.
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 defence cuts.
In February 2010, the Supreme Council of National Defense signed an agreement with the United States for missile defence under whose terms land-based SM-3 systems would be installed in Romania. On 3rd May 2011, the president of Romania Traian Băsescu announced the location for the SM-3 systems: 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 Deveselu Aegis Ashore site has been declared operational on 13th May 2016.
Due to the old age of the MiGs, the Romanian Air Force is in the process of procurement of new fighters or possibly used fighters from partner states. Romania has signed a contract in 2013 with Portugal for 12 F-16 A/B Block 15 MLU fighters. The first six fighters have entered service with the Romanian Air Force in October 2016, another three have been delivered in December and the last three have entered service in 2017.
Romania signed a contract in 2019 with Portugal for another 5 F-16 A/B Block 15 MLU fighters, which were delivered until March 2021.
It was announced in December 2021 that a deal for 32 F-16 A/B Block 20 fighters from Norway is being finalized, in a deal estimated to cost €454 million. If completed, the Norwegian deal will allow the Romanian Air Force to retire the last of its outdated Soviet-designed Mikoyan MiG-21 aircraft. The contract is to be signed in the spring of 2022 with the first three aircraft to arrive at the end of the year, according to the Air Force chief of Staff.
On 2nd February 2022, the President of Romania stated intent to purchase the fifth-generation F-35 joint strike fighter as part of its Air Force modernization, which plans to spend a total of 9.8 billion euro until 2026 to boost its defence capabilities. According to the Minister of Defence, Romania plans to start the F-35 acquisition procedure in 2032.
On 23rd May, the MiG-21 LanceRs resumed flights after being suspended on 15th April 2022. The LanceR will continue to fly for a period of one year, until 13th May 2023 after which they will be replaced by the F-16s purchased from Norway.
The current chief of the Romanian Air Force Staff, succeeding Major General Laurian Anastasof on 11th October 2017, is Lieutenant General Viorel Pană.
Alenia C-27J Spartan RoAF 90th Airlift Base
History
Beginnings
In 1818, during the reign of John Caradja, the prince of Wallachia, an unmanned hot air balloon was flown off Dealul Spirii in Bucharest. On 2nd July [O.S. 20th June] 1874, Marius Willemot, the owner of the hydrogen balloon named “Mihai Bravul” flew together with Majors Iacob Lahovary, Constantin Poenaru and Dumitrescu over Bucharest. The last flight took place on 19th [O.S. 7th July] 1874, Willemot flying together with Colonel Nicolae Haralambie, Ion Ghica and a third person. The balloon had made its first flight at Paris on 27th March of the same year.
On 20th November 1909 the Chitila Piloting School was formed as a joint venture by Mihail Cerchez. The school, conducted by French flight instructors, had five hangars, bleachers for spectators and workshops where the Farman airplanes were built under license. The school opened on 9th July 1910, when the chief flight instructor and director of the school René Guillemin crashed a Farman III biplane from a height of 40 metres (130 ft) during a demonstration flight and broke his leg.
Guillemin was succeeded by Michel-Paul Molla who made the first flight across Bucharest on 7th September 1910. Molla was succeeded by two others before the school closed in late 1912 due to financial difficulties, having trained six officers, but only licensed two.
A. Vlaicu Nr. I at military exercises 27th Sept. 1910
In November 1909, the Romanian Minister of War commissioned Aurel Vlaicu to build the A. Vlaicu I airplane at the Bucharest Army Arsenal which first flew on 17th June 1910. On 28th September during the Fall military exercise, Vlaicu flew his airplane from Slatina to Piatra Olt carrying a message, Romania thus becoming one of the first countries to use airplanes for military purposes. Along with other Romanian pilots, Vlaicu flew reconnaissance missions during the Second Balkan War. Vlaicu III, the first metal aircraft in the world, was completed after his death, in May 1914.
World War I
On the eve of Romania’s entrance in the war in August 1916, only 24 out of the 44 aircraft that had been imported and assembled at RGA were available. Another 20 aircraft were provided by the flight schools. The total of 44 aircraft included: 10 Bristol T.B.8, 7 Bristol Coanda Monoplanes, 5 Blériot XI, 4 Farman HF.20, 8 Farman MF.7 and MF.11, 4 Voisin III, 4 Morane-Saulnier monoplanes, 1 Caudron G.3 and 1 Aviatik C.I. Added to these were two native-made monoplanes designed by Aurel Vlaicu. One of the Vlaicu monoplanes, A Vlaicu II, crashed in 1913, while the A Vlaicu I was retired in 1914, leaving A Vlaicu III as the sole Romanian-made aircraft in the Romanian Air Corps.
During World War I, Romania acquired 322 aircraft from France and ex-RNAS aircraft from Great Britain including Nieuport 11 and 17 single seat fighters and Morane-Saulnier LA and Nieuport 12 two seat fighters, Caudron G.3, Henry Farman HF.20, Farman MF.11, and Farman F.40 & 46 artillery observation and reconnaissance aircraft, Caudron G.4, Breguet-Michelin BLM and Voisin LA bombers. On 16th September 1916, a Romanian Farman F.40 downed an Imperial German Air Service aircraft near Slobozia; this was the first Romanian aerial victory. By the end of World War I, Romanian pilots had flown about 11,000 hours and 750 missions; however, it was unable to prevent the December 1916 Romanian offensive at the Battle of the Argeș from being defeated, which resulted in the occupation of southern Romania, and the armistice on 6th December 1917 following the Russian revolution.
A Romanian Nieuport 11. The blue colour on the tail appears nearly white in the black and white photograph.
World War II
When Romania, allied with Nazi Germany, went to war against the Soviet Union on 22nd June 1941, the Romanian Air Force had 621 airplanes, including its locally made fighter IAR 80/81. The air force accomplished hundreds of missions, contributing to Romania’s recapture of Northern Bucovina 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 22nd August 1944, bringing an important contribution to the great battles at Stalingrad, in Crimea, and the Ukrainian fronts. Between 1941 and 1944, Romanian aircraft won 2,000 air victories. The most famous flying aces were Captain Prince Constantin Cantacuzino, who gained 69 certified victories, Captain Horia Agarici, and Captain Alexandru Șerbănescu, who shot down 60 enemy airplanes.
Messerschmitt Bf 109E-3 7th Grupul Vanatoare
In the aftermath of King Michael’s Coup of 23rd August 1944, Romania turned against Germany and joined the Allies.
Cold War
Starting with 1948, Romania tailored its military to Soviet concepts and doctrine. On 15th February 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, 9 Yakovlev Yak-17s and 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 attack aircraft flew its first flight on 31st 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. From 1968, Mi-8 helicopters will also enter service. Renewing the aircraft fleet process went on, the first 2 MiG-23s arriving on 23rd January 1979.
A pair of Romanian MiG-21 fighters, late 1970s
On 14th 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 1980s, 67th Fighter-Bomber Regiment and 49th Fighter-Bomber Regiment from Craiova and Ianca were equipped with new IAR-93s, which replaced old MiG-15s and MiG-17s. In December 1989, just a few days before the Romanian revolution against communism began, MiG-29 aircraft entered the Air Force inventory. Initially 45 MiG-29s were ordered but only 21 were delivered, with the rest of the order being cancelled. The MiG-29s were assigned to the 2nd and 3rd Squadrons of the 57th Fighter Regiment located at the Mihail Kogălniceanu Airport.
Post-1990
The Romanian MiG-29 fleet was intended to undergo modernization under a project named “Sniper” done by DASA, Aerostar and Elbit. The first flight took place on 5th May 2000 and the prototype was presented at ILA 2000. However, the modernization project was canceled due to various reasons and the MiG-29s were retired.
The MiG-29 was withdrawn in 2003
2007 Baltic Air Policing
Four MiG-21 LanceR Cs were deployed from August–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 had also been deployed there in 2006.
Active Aircraft
- Alenia C-27J Italian 7 Medium tactical military transport aircraft
- Antonov An-30 USSR 2 Heavy military transport equipped for reconnaissance and mapping
- Antonov An-26 USSR 1 Transport aircraft
- IAR 99 Standard/Șoim Romanian 19 Jet trainer/light attack
- IAR 316B Romanian 7 Training helicopter
- IAR 330L/M Romanian 36 Medium twin-engined transport/utility helicopter
- IAR 330 SOCAT Romanian 22 Helicopter gunship
- Iak-52 W/TW Romanian 14 Training role.
- Lockheed C-130B/H US 6 Four-engine heavy military transport
- Lockheed Martin F-16 AM/BM MLU US 17 Ex-Portuguese fighters
- Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21 LanceR B/C USSR 23 Upgraded by Elbit and Aerostar.( LanceR B is a trainer, and C is a fighter.)
- Shadow 600 US 6 Unmanned aerial vehicle
A IAR-99 Şoim in 100th anniversary of aviation colours
2022 Russian Invasion of Ukraine
On the starting day of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, two F-16s from the 53rd Fighter Squadron were sent to intercept a Sukhoi Su-27 of the Ukrainian Air Force that was approaching Romanian airspace. The Su-27 was escorted to the 95th Air Base where the pilot was taken by Romanian authorities. The Ukrainian Minister of Defence quickly apologized for this event and requested the return of the airplane and its pilot. After a maintenance team from Ukraine fixed the technical issues of the fighter, the aircraft was returned without its weapons on 1st March, being escorted by two MiG-21 LanceRs to the border where other Ukrainian airplanes took over.
On 2nd March 2022, a MiG-21 LanceR was lost while on an air patrol inside Romanian airspace near Cogealac, 60 miles from the Ukrainian border. This “occurred amid increased air police missions in Romania after the Russian invasion of Ukraine.” An IAR 330 on a search and rescue mission for the missing MiG-21 crashed with seven fatalities. The eight servicemen who died in the two accidents were posthumously promoted and decorated by the president of Romania. Shortly after, fake news claiming that the Romanian MiG was shot down by Ukrainian S-300 missile systems appeared. These claims were officially refuted. The preliminary analysis published on 23rd March showed that the crashes occurred due to human and environmental factors.
A MiG-21 LanceR ‘C’, in flight
Hobbymaster 1/48th scale BF 109E-3 “Hai Fetito” No.9, Lt. Loan Di Cesare, Grupul 7, Romanian Air Force, Karpovka-Stalingrad, November 1941
Check out the latest Romanian Air Force model available from Flying Tigers. Please click on the link / image below to go straight to the model page to order yours now.
In December 1939 Romania ordered 50 Bf-109Es, 11 delivered in 1940 and the remaining 39 arriving one year later. These aircraft equipped the new Grupul 7 Vanatoare in time for them to take part in operation Barbarossa. But by mid 1941 the group had lost aircraft and was withdrawn to be replenished with 15 used German Bf-109E-7s. The unit returned to the front in time for the Battle of Stalingrad. Grupul 7 had 8 aircraft captured by the Soviets including Bf-109E3 No. 9 “Hai Fetito” flown by Lt. loan Di Cesare who is credited with 16 victories.
Hobbymaster and other Military Brands Rare and “One only” available models! More models added!
I have added a large number of Hobbymaster and other Military branded models to the website. These are either rare and hard to find models or where there is only one (maybe two) available. Once they have gone they are gone!
All models are Brand New and Mint in Box and direct from the manufacturer / distributor.
If you have gaps in your collection and missed out the first time check these out.
Please click on the panels below to go to the model of your choice, or CLICK HERE to see them all .
Next Hobbymaster model delivery due mid August at Flying Tigers.
Check out the next delivery of Hobbymaster models which will be available approx. mid-August and are available to pre-order at Flying Tigers today.
Don’t forget NO DEPOSIT necessary with Flying Tigers and if you order with your debit or credit card your payment is not taken until your model is available to dispatch.
Flying Tigers will also consolidate your orders to save on postage costs across all brands !
Please click on the images / links below to go to the model of your choice, or CLICK HERE to see them all.
Hobbymaster model delivery delayed from end of July to end of August at Flying Tigers.
This Hobbymaster model delivery will be available approx. at the end of August and are available to pre-order at Flying Tigers today.
Don’t forget NO DEPOSIT necessary with Flying Tigers and if you order with your debit or credit card your payment is not taken until your model is available to dispatch.
Flying Tigers will also consolidate your orders to save on postage costs across all brands !
Please click on the images / links below to go to the model of your choice, or CLICK HERE to see them all.
HA5312 Hobbymaster 1/72nd scale MiG-23MLD Blue 03, Soviet Air Force, Bagram, Afghanistan, July 1987 Sorry Sold out at pre-order stage.
HA9503 Hobbymaster 1/72nd scale Su-30SM Flanker Russian Knights Blue 34, RF-81705, Russian Air Force, 2019 Sorry sold out at pre-order stage.
That is all for this week.
Thank you for reading this week’s Newletter.
Richard
Flying Tigers.
