The present Spanish Air Force (Ejército del Aire, or EdA) was officially established on 7 October 1939, after the end of the Spanish Civil War. The EdA was a successor to the Nationalist and Republican Air Forces. Spanish Republican colors disappeared and the black roundel of the planes was replaced by a yellow and red roundel. However, the black and white Saint Andrew’s Cross (Spanish: Aspa de San Andrés) fin flash, the tail insignia of Franco’s air force, as well as of the Aviazione Legionaria of Fascist Italy and the Condor Legion of Nazi Germany, is still in use in the present-day Spanish Air Force.
Under the post-Civil War regional military regional structuring, all relevant air bases would be withdrawn from Catalonia. Even though formerly important air bases had been established in or around Barcelona, like the Aviación Naval, the whole northeastern area of Spain would be left with mere token presence of the Spanish Air Force, a situation that persists to this day. The Air Regions and their Command centres after the changes introduced at the beginning of the dictatorship became the following:
1st Air Region. Central.
2nd Air Region. Straits.
3rd Air Region. East.
4th Air Region. Pyrenees.
5th Air Region. Atlantic.
Balearic Islands Air Zone
Morocco Air Zone
Canary Islands and East Africa Air Zone
The Blue Squadron (Escuadrillas Azules) was an air unit that fought alongside the Axis Powers at the time of the Blue Division, Division Azul Spanish volunteer formation in World War II. The Escuadrilla azul operated with the Luftwaffe on the Eastern Front and took part in the battle of Kursk. This squadron was the “15 Spanische Staffel”/JG 27 Afrika of the VIII Fliegerkorps, Luftflotte 2.
During the first years after World War II the Spanish Air Force consisted largely of German and Italian planes and copies of them. An interesting example was the HA-1112-M1L Buchón (Pouter), this was essentially a licensed production of the Messerschmitt Bf 109 re-engined with a Rolls-Royce Merlin 500-45 for use in Spain.
In March 1946 the first Spanish military paratroop unit, the Primera Bandera de la Primera Legión de Tropas de Aviación, was established in Alcalá de Henares. It first saw action in the Ifni War during 1957 and 1958. Because of US Government objection to use airplanes manufactured in the USA in her colonial struggles after World War II, Spain used at first old German aircraft, such as the T-2 (Junkers 52, nicknamed “Pava”), the B-2I (Heinkel 111, nicknamed “Pedro”), the C-4K (Spanish version of the Bf 109, nicknamed “Buchón”), and some others. Still, Grumman Albatross seaplanes and Sikorsky H-19B helicopters were used in rescue operations. This is why still now in present times, EdA maintains a policy of having jet fighters from two different origins, one first line fighter of North American origin, and one from French-European origin( F-4C Phantom / Mirage F1, Mirage III; EF-18A / Eurofighter Typhoon).
Although in sheer numbers the EdA was impressive, at the end of World War II technically it had become more or less obsolete due to the progress in aviation technology during the war. For budget reasons Spain actually kept many of the old German aircraft operative well into the 1950s and 1960s. As an example the last Junkers Ju-52 used to operate in Escuadrón 721 training parachutists from Alcantarilla Air Base near Murcia, until well into the 1970s. The CASA 352 and the CASA 352L were developments built by CASA in the 1950s.
A
AERO A.100/A-101/AB-101
AIRSPEED AS.6 ENVOY / AS-8 VICEROY
ARADO AR-66
ARADO AR-68
ARADO AR-95
AVIA B.534
AVIA BH-33
AVIA-51
AVRO 504
AVRO 594 AVIAN
AVRO 643 CADET
AVRO TIPO 620 /CIERVA C.19
B
BEECH MODELO 17 STAGGERWING/UC-43
BELLANCA Mod.28-90
BLACKBURN L.1 BLUEBIRD
BLERIOT-SPAD S.510
BLERIOT-SPAD S-51
BLERIOT-SPAD S-91
BLOCH M.B.210
BLOCH M.B.200
BLOCH MB-300
BOEING MODELO 247
BOEING P-26A
BREDA BA-28
BREDA BA-65
BREESE DALLAS MOD-1 RACER
BREGUET 460/462 VULTUR
BREGUET 470 FULGUR
BREGUET BR.26T
BREGUET BRE.19
BRISTOL 105 BULLDOG
BRITISH AIRCRAFT B.A. EAGLE
BÜCKER BÜ -131 JUNGMAN
BÜCKER BÜ -133 Jungmeister
C
CANTZ Z-506 AIRONE
CANTZ Z-501
CAP GP.4
CAPRONI AP-1 APIO
CAPRONI CA-310
CAPRONI CA-100
CAUDRON C-270/C-272/C-276 LUCIOLE
CAUDRON C-59
CAUDRON C.600 AIGLON
CAUDRON SERIE C-440 GOELAND
CIERVA C.30A
CONSOLIDATED MOD.17/20 FLEETSTER
COUZINET 100/101
CURTISS T-32 /BT-32
D
DE HAVILLAND D.H.60 MOTH
DE HAVILLAND D.H.89 DRAGON RAPIDE
DE HAVILLAND D.H.80A PUSS MOTH
DE HAVILLAND D.H.87A HORNET MOTH
DE HAVILLAND D.H.83 FOX MOTH
DE HAVILLAND D.H.90 DRAGONFLY
DE HAVILLAND D.H.82A TIGER MOTH
DE HAVILLAND D.H.9
DE HAVILLAND D.H.84 DRAGON
DEWOITINE D.332 /D.333
DEWOITINE D.27/D.53
DEWOITINE D-37/D-371/D-372/D-373
DEWOITINE D.500 / D.510
DORNIER DO-17
DORNIER DO-J WALL
DOUGLAS DC-2
DOUGLAS DC-1
F
FAIRCHILD KR.22
FAIRCHILD 91 / A-942
FAIREY FEROCE /FANTOME
FARMAN F.230 /F.231 / F.354
FARMAN F.400
FARMAN F.430/431/432
FARMAN F.480 ALIZE
FARMAN SERIE 190
FIAT BR-20 CICOGNA
FIAT CR-20
FIAT CR-30
FIAT CR-32
FIAT G-50
FIAT-CMASA G.8
FIESELER FI-156 STORCH
FOCKE WULF FW-56 STOSSER
FOKKER C.X
FOKKER D.XXI
FOKKER F-VII
FOKKER F-XVIII
FOKKER F-XII
FOKKER F.XX
FOKKER G.1A
FORD TRI-MOTOR
FREULLER VALLS MA
G
GENERAL AIRCRAFT ST-25 UNIVERSAL
GENERAL AVIATION G.A.43 CLARK
GONZALEZ-PAZO GP.1
GONZALEZ-PAZO GP-2
GOTHA GO-145
GOURDOU LESEURRE LGL-32
GOURDOU LESEURRE GL-633
GOURDOU-LESEURRE GL-482
GRUMMAN FF-1 / G-23
H
HANRIOT SERIES H-170/H-180/H-190
HANRIOT SERIE H-43 (H-431 – H-439)
HAWKER FURY
HAWKER OSPREY
HEINKEL HE-45
HEINKEL HE-60
HEINKEL HE-46
HEINKEL HE-59
HEINKEL HE-70 BLITZ
HEINKEL HE-50 / HE-66
HEINKEL HE-111
HEINKEL HE-115
HEINKEL HE-112
HEINKEL HE-51
HENSCHEL HS 123
HENSCHEL HS-126
HISPANO E-30
HISPANO E-34
I
IMAM ROMEO RO.41
IMAM ROMEO RO-37
J
JUNKERS F-13
JUNKERS JU-52/3m
JUNKERS JU-87 STUKA
JUNKERS JU-86
JUNKERS K-30
JUNKERS W-33 / W-34
K
KLEM L-32
KLEMM L-25
KOOLHOVEN FK.51
KOOLHOVEN FK.52
KOOLHOVEN FK-40
L
LACAB GR-8
LATECOERE 28
LETOV S-231
LIORE-ET-OLIVIER LEO-213
LOCKHEED 8 SIRIUS
LOCKHEED 9 ORION
LOCKHEED L-10 ELECTRA
LOCKHEED VEGA
LOIRE 46
M
MACCHI M-41 BIS
MACCHI M.18
MARTINSYDE F-4 BUZZARD
MESSERSCHMITT BF-108 TAIFUN
MESSERSCHMITT BF-109 /V /BCD
MESSERSCHMITT M.35
MESSERSCHMITT BF-109E
MILES M-2
MILES M-3 FALCON
MONOCOUPE 90
MORANE SAULNIER MS-140
N
NIEUPORT DELAGE NI-D 52
NORTHROP DELTA
NORTHROP GAMMA
P
PERCIVAL SERIE GULL
POLIKARPOV RZ NATACHA
POLIKARPOV R-5
POLIKARPOV I-152 / I-15Bis
POLIKARPOV I-16
POLIKARPOV I-15
POTEZ 25
POTEZ 54
POTEZ 56
POTEZ 58
PWS 10
PWS 26
R
ROMANO R-90 / R-92
ROMANO R.82
RWD 13
RWD 8
RWD 9
S
SAB-SEMA 12
SAVOIA MARCHETTI SM81 PISPITRELLO
SAVOIA MARCHETTI SM79 SPARVIERO
SAVOIA-MARCHETTI S.62
SAVOIA-MARCHETTI S.55
SEVERSKY SEV-3 / SEV-2PA
SIKORSKY S-38
SPARTAN 7-W EXECUTIVE
SPARTAN CRUISER
STINSON RELIANT
T
TUPOLEV SB-2
V
VICKERS TIPO 132 VILDEBEEST
VULTEE V-1A
