_{INCLUDING THREE SPANISH-MADE CASA C-295 AIRCRAFT}

_{Fifteen Black Hawks have been purchased from the US industry. A Colombian BH is in Guaviare.}

Transport helicopters, precision weapons, and combat aircraft are part of the package.

The next six months will be crucial to strengthening the operational capacity of the Army, Navy, Air Force, and National Police. EL TIEMPO reported that the arrival of 25 helicopters, eight Supertucano aircraft (remaining from the initial fleet of 24), nearly 13,000 weapons, and 187 armored transport trucks has been confirmed.

These weapons, transportation, and logistics supports were announced in 2007 and are part of the acquisition package carried out with the wealth tax revenue, which already totals 8.2 trillion pesos. Another portion of this tax revenue will be allocated to logistics and maintenance of troops and aircraft.

In this regard, the deputy minister of the portfolio, Juan Carlos Pinzón, indicated that both the aircraft and other purchases will gradually arrive in the country between May and November. The only equipment that had been acquired in advance is the Supertucanos, of which the country already received 16 between 2006 and 2007.

^{_{All of this armament will be purchased with the special wealth tax decreed by President Uribe’s government. The July 20th tax was announced in Bogotá.}}

^{_{8 nuevos Supertucano Brasileños, y 13 caza-bombarderos K-Fir israelitas que ya estaban encargados, se incorporarán a la Fuerza Aérea Colombiana en los próximos meses. Desfile del 20 de Julio en Bogotá.}}

Specifically, for Vice Minister Pinzón, these aircraft will reinforce the work the Army has been doing in critical regions of the country. “The 16 aircraft the FAC already flies in the country are largely responsible for the success of the operations against ‘Negro Acacio,’ ‘Martín Caballero,’ and ‘Raúl Reyes,’ among others,” asserts one of the officers who has been in charge of the acquisitions.

Other purchases the Military Forces urgently needed were helicopters, which will allow for greater mobility in remote areas (especially the jungle), such as Guaviare, Guainía, and Vaupés, where supplying troops is difficult. “One of the most complicated tasks the Military Forces perform, and one that seems the simplest, is supplying the counter-guerrillas. Reaching these places with food on a daily basis is one of the most important missions for successful operations,” asserts Pinzón. For this reason, the Army Air Force will receive five Russian MI-17 helicopters, which, in addition to providing personnel mobility, can carry heavy artillery pieces, such as cannons and howitzers, to areas where even the aircraft cannot land.

^{_{A Russian-made MI-17 helicopter picks up troops at a base in San José del Guaviare.}}

^{_{8,000 Israeli Galil rifles, manufactured by the Colombian company Indumil, have been purchased for the battalions that will be activated this year. Soldier in the Chocó jungles.}}

They will also bring, on a long journey from the United States, eight Black Hawk helicopters, from a purchase of 15, for assault operations. The Air Force will receive 12 Rapaz gunships, essential for supporting special operations and defending towns and patrols attacked by the FARC.

Change in land mobility

This force will also have a Super King 350 aircraft and three Casa C-295 aircraft in its fleet for troop transport and logistical and medical support flights.

And considering that one of the areas to be strengthened is the ground mobility of troops, especially the Army, 187 trucks were purchased and are being fitted with special armor. These vehicles are intended to reach areas that are supposedly impassable by the military.

But it’s not just the Army that will be reinforced in this regard. The Navy received three patrol boats and two interceptor boats to counter drug trafficking, especially in the Pacific. Likewise, the Police will have 511 motorcycles to reinforce security on highways and in some cities.

^{_{The National Navy will receive two interceptor boats and three patrol boats. Navy vessel in Cartagena de Indias.}}

^{_{The Colombian police will receive 511 motorcycles. A motorcycle officer in Santa Fe de Ralito, Córdoba.}}

Regarding weapons, 8,000 Galil rifles will be received in the next six months for the battalions that will be activated this year, as well as grenade launchers, mortars, and special night vision equipment and assault weapons for elite units. As for communications equipment, an investment was made to modernize it.

In 2009 the K-Fir arrives

Regarding the aircraft that will be repaired, Vice Minister Pinzón noted that an important step will be the repowering of Colombia’s 11 K-Fir aircraft, which will be carried out in the country using national labor. “A commission of Israeli technicians is expected to arrive next year to guide the work, but it will be done with our technicians,” the official stated. Likewise, the 13 K-Fir aircraft purchased in Israel (for a total of $162 million, including the repowering of the other 11) will begin arriving in the second quarter of next year.

Grenade launchers, mortars, and special night vision equipment, as well as assault weapons for elite units, are also part of the order. Police in a coca field in Meta.