Latin America @ War №5 - The Chaco Air War 1932-35. The First Modern Air War in Latin America (2018) COMP.pdf

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Published by Helion & Company 2018
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Cover designed by Paul Hewitt, Battle eld
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Printed by Henry Ling Limited, Dorchester,
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Text © Antonio Luis Sapienza Fracchia 2018
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Color pro les drawn by Tom Cooper ©
Helion & Company Limited 2018
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& Company Limited 2018
ISBN 978-1-911512-96-7
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CONTENTS
Foreword
Introduction
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
The theatre of war
The con ict background
Paraguayan Military Aviation
Paraguayan Navy and Naval Aviation
Bolivian Military Aviation
Chaco air war chronology
Conclusion
2
3
3
5
6
13
16
22
54
Appendices
I
Recce ights carried out by the Paraguayan Air Arm
during the Chaco War
Chaco War Aircraft Fleets
57
58
62
64
64
II
Sources
Acknowledgments
About the author
LATIN AMERICA WAR VOLUME 5
FOREWORD
A
s the author of one of the very few English language histories
of the Chaco War, I am extremely attered by being asked
to write a prologue to what must be the de nitive history of the
aerial aspects of that con ict, not only in English but also in any
language.
Its author, Antonio Luis Sapienza Fracchia, who has already
published a detailed account of the aircra involved in that con ict,
is also the o cial historian of the Paraguayan Air Force and enjoys
an international reputation as an authority on Paraguayan and
Latin American aviation in general.
Paraguay, probably the least known country in the Western
Hemisphere, occupies a disproportionate position in its military
history, having taken part in two of the only three major con icts
between Latin American nations during their two centuries of
independence.
e rst of these, the brutal war of the Triple Alliance (1864–70),
when it took on an unbeatable combination of South America’s
two most powerful nations, Argentina and Brazil, plus Uruguay,
must rate as one of the bloodiest in world history, almost resulting
in the disappearance of Paraguay as an independent entity. It had
scarcely emerged from its results when it found itself pitted against
Bolivia, a country of three times its human and many times its
material resources, in the Chaco War. Almost incredibly, despite a
few minor reverses, it emerged victorious.
Both con icts had an aerial dimension, even if in the Triple
Alliance War it only consisted of the use of revolutionary
observation balloons by its most powerful enemy, Brazil. In the
Chaco War, although against less obscenely overwhelming odds
than which it had faced only 60 years earlier in the Triple Alliance
War, Paraguay met an adversary that was in all respects better
equipped, especially its formidable air force. Yet from the outset it
assumed and for the most part retained the initiative, its relatively
tiny military and naval Air Arms both punching way above their
weights and the latter making history with the rst nocturnal
bombing mission in the Western Hemisphere. In this respect,
however, it was merely following in a tradition when an aircra
of the government faction, own by an Irish mercenary, won the
rst aerial dog ght in the Americas when it vanquished a rebel
aircra – also own by a mercenary, but in this case Italian – ying
on behalf of the rebels in the Civil War of 1922–23.
Although already familiar with the Chaco War, in which I have
had an almost obsessive interest for more than 50 years, I learned
much from this book, which I devoured in a single reading. I
unhesitatingly recommend it, not only to those interested in this
relatively obscure con ict or in Latin American military history in
general but also to anyone with an interest in aerial warfare during
its formative phase: the rst three decades of the 20th century.
Adrian J. English
2
THE CHACO AIR WAR 1932 35. THE FIRST MODERN AIR WAR IN LATIN AMERICA
INTRODUCTION
S
ince the end of the Chaco War, more than 80 years ago, only
a few books have covered the con ict’s air operations.
e
rst books on the subject were written by veteran pilots: Major
(Ret.) Leandro Aponte and Captain (Ret.) Abdón Alvarez Albert
in Paraguay, and Colonel Amalia Villa de la Tapia and General
Alberto Paz Soldán in Bolivia. In the early 1990s, since some of
the Chaco War pilots and mechanics were still alive and willing
to share their stories, I interviewed them extensively and also
reproduced hundreds of never-before-published pictures.
e
result was a volume co-written with Daniel P. Hagedorn and
published by Schi er Publishing Company in 1996 called
Aircra
of the Chaco War, 1928-1935.
By the 2010s, all the aviation veterans from that time had already
gone, both in Bolivia and Paraguay, but in the last 20 years, new
pieces of information and many more pictures were discovered in
personal les and also in the Paraguayan Ministry of Defense. e
original idea was to publish a completely new book in my own
country, in Spanish, but unfortunately it was not possible, so once
again I turned to the international market.
First, the reader will nd a brief description of the war setting,
the Chaco, followed by information on the aerial explorations
performed by the Bolivian Military Aviation before the war. e
following chapter is devoted to the organisation of the Bolivian
and Paraguayan Military Aviation before and during the con ict,
including aircra acquisition, pilot and mechanic training, air
bases and so on.
en there is a complete chronology of the
pre-war period (1923–32), the war itself (1932–35) and the
immediate post-war period (1935–39). For the rst time, all the air
combats, no more than 20, are described exhaustively, including
detailed information on the participants, aircra involved, pilots,
location and the nal outcome. e book also covers bombing,
reconnaissance, medevac, liaison and transport missions during
the war. In the post-war period, all aircra purchased by both
countries are detailed, and as a conclusion, a nal balance of the air
war is presented. e initials PAM (piloto
aviador militar,
military
From left to right: First Lieutenant PAM Walter Gwynn, Captain
PAM Leandro Aponte and Second Lieutenant PAM Gregorio
Morínigo with some Wibault 73 C.1 ghters at Isla Poi AFB in
September 1932. (Instituto
de Historia y Museo Militar del MDN)
aviator pilot), PAN (piloto
aviador naval,
naval aviator pilot),
MAM (mecánico
de aviación militar,
military aviation mechanic),
Obs. Aer. (air observer-gunner) and HC (honoris
causa)
are used
together with the military rank to identify the role in each mission.
e Chaco War was probably the rst ‘modern’ con ict in Latin
America where military aviation was widely used in all roles.
Bolivia, as the reader will nd out, had a very powerful military
aviation, but unfortunately for them and luckily for Paraguay, its
high army command did not take advantage.
e Paraguayan
commander-in-chief, General José Félix Estigarribia, used
military aviation to help him defeat the enemy on the ground, and
the result was clear: the Bolivians were expelled from the Chaco
a er three years of war.
Antonio Luis Sapienza Fracchia
Asunción, August 2016
CHAPTER 1
THE THEATRE OF WAR
he Chaco has a length of approximately 1,500 kilometres from
north to south and a width of 700 kilometres, making a total
area of 1,000,000 square kilometres. is region is divided into
three sub-regions: the South Chaco, between the Salado and the
Bermejo rivers; the Central Chaco, between the Bermejo and the
Pilcomayo rivers, both regions in Argentina; and the North Chaco,
between the Pilcomayo, the Otuquis, the Parapití and the Paraguay
rivers, the Aguaragué mountain range and the Izozog wetlands,
90 percent in Paraguay and the rest in Bolivia. It was in the North
Chaco that the war took place between 1932 and 1935.
e North Chaco is a vast plain without navigable rivers of
about 260,000 square kilometres and it is divided into two di erent
T
regions: the High Chaco, with thick forests and low rainfall, and the
Low Chaco, an immense arid prairie with palm trees, grasslands
and some estuaries, also with low rainfall. Temperatures in summer
normally reach 40–45°C in the shade, and more than 50° in the
sun, with hot north winds. In winter, the temperature can easily
drop to -3°C at night, with strong south winds. e vegetation is
typical of arid zones, with a lot of cacti, which saved many lives
during the war because soldiers drank its sap when they did not
have access to fresh water.
e diverse wildlife in the zone includes the jaguar, puma, wild
boar, crocodile (in the estuaries), many species of snakes, some of
them extremely poisonous, and an ample variety of insects and
3
LATIN AMERICA WAR VOLUME 5
Life at Isla Poí AFB.
Clockwise: Captain
PAM Carmelo Peralta
and Second Lieutenant
Obs. Aer. Gonzalo Palau
having lunch. A platoon
honouring the ag in
front of the commander’s
o ce and other buildings.
Lieutenant PAM Ru nelli
and Urbieta Rojas (centre)
studying a map for the
next sortie, with three
soldiers and Captain Obs.
Aer. Job Von Zastrow on
the right. A tent used
as a pilots’ dormitory.
(Instituto
de Historia y
Museo Militar del MDN)
Three
Potez 25A.2
bombers at Isla Poí air
strip with the personnel
assigned to that AFB.
(Instituto
de Historia y
Museo Militar del MDN)
birds. In the deep Chaco, the only inhabitants were the aborigines
of di erent ethnicities, military personnel, and Mennonite
settlers, who colonised the central region in the mid-1920s. On
the west bank of the Paraguay River, there were many ports where
international companies, mainly Argentinean and American, built
factories a er purchasing millions of hectares of virgin forest to
extract the tannin; one of them even built a 145 km railroad that
became invaluable for the Paraguayan Army and aviation later.
Many have identi ed the Chaco as the ‘Green Hell’ and almost all
agreed that thirst, lack of food and several diseases killed more
soldiers than the bullets.
Air navigation in the Chaco was also di cult. From the air,
it was like ying over an immense green ocean, with few points
of reference. Both military Air Arms had to elaborate maps
and pilots had to rely on their instruments because of the lack
of radiotelephony equipment on their aircra . In the case of
Paraguay, such equipment was acquired to be used in the
Potez
bombers, but they were never installed and were used instead as
army land equipment. At the beginning of the con ict, logistics
was more di cult for Bolivia since its aircra had to travel at
least 1,200 kilometres and cross the Andes to reach its main bases
in the Chaco. e Paraguayan Air Arm needed to cover only
approximately 300–400 km from Asunción or Concepcion AFB.
Aircra maintenance was a nightmare for both countries. e
dusty environment caused a lot of engine problems, which had
to be overhauled more frequently. Most Bolivian planes had air-
cooled radial engines, which was an advantage in the Chaco, but
the main Paraguayan types had water-cooled ones. During the
very low temperatures in winter, water had to be removed from
the radiators at night, otherwise it froze. Early in the morning,
the radiator water had to be warmed. Minor repairs were carried
out in the main air bases in the Chaco, but when major repairs
or overhauls were needed, the Paraguayan aircra were sent to
Asunción, and the Bolivian aircra were sent to Villamontes or
Santa Cruz de la Sierra. e rough conditions of the air strips
caused many accidents, together with the marginal weather
conditions. More airplanes were lost because of those reasons than
in air combat or anti-aircra re.
Air strips were normally prepared by removing trunks, stones
and low vegetation on a at piece of land and were around 1,200
4

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