Santa Maria Air Force Base


Santa Maria Air Base – BASM is a base of the Brazilian Air Force, located in the city of Santa Maria, Brazil.
It shares some facilities with Santa Maria Airport.

History

In 1944 the then President of Brazil Getúlio Vargas allocated an area of 4 million square meters near Santa Maria with the purpose of building an aerodrome. The works were conducted on an urgent basis, with the collaboration of the United States Army and it was finally opened in April 1945.
Santa Maria Air Force Base was created on 18 December 1970 and inaugurated on 15 October 1971 and since then it has an active presence in the region.

Units

The following units are based at Santa Maria Air Force Base:
Subordinated to the command of the 2nd Air Force, which is dedicated to Search and Rescue, Rotorary Wings, and Maritime Patrol:
Subordinated to the command of the 3rd Air Force, which is dedicated to Reconnaissance, Attack, and Combat:
Subordinated to the command of the Department of Airspace Control, which is dedicated to the control of the Brazilian Airspace:
The base has one Cessna C-98 Grand Caravan G1000 for administrative functions.

Accidents and incidents

The base is located 11 km east of downtown Santa Maria.