The 1oGAVCA (1st Fighter Group/1? Grupo de Avia??o de Ca?a) was formed on December 18, 1943. Its commanding Officer was Ten.-Cel.-Av. (Aviation Lieutenant Colonel) Nero Moura. The group had 350 men, including 43 pilots. The group was divided into four flights: Red ("A"), Yellow ("B"), Blue ("C"), and Green ("D"). The CO of the group and some officers were not attached to any specific flight. Unlike the BEF's Army component, the 1oGAVCA had personnel who were experienced Brazilian Air Force (Portuguese: For?a A?rea Brasileira, or FAB) pilots. One of them was Alberto M. Torres, who had piloted a PBY-5A Catalina that had sunk U-199, which had been operating off the Brazilian coast.

Among the 48 pilots of the Brazilian Unit who carried out war missions, there was a total of 22 losses; five of the pilots were killed by anti-aircraft fire, eight had their planes shot down and bailed out over enemy territory, six had to give up flying operations on medical orders, after suffering nervous breakdowns, and three died in flying accidents.

The group trained for combat in Panama, where 2o Ten.-Av. (Aviation Second Lieutenant) Dante Isidoro Gastaldoni was killed in a training accident. On May 11, 1944, the group was declared operational and became active in the air defense of the Panama Canal Zone. On June 22, the 1oGAVCA traveled to the US to convert to the Republic P-47D Thunderbolt.

On September 19, 1944 the 1oGAVCA left for Italy, arriving at Livorno on October 6. It became part of the 350th Fighter Group of the USAAF, which in turn was part of the 62nd Fighter Wing, XXII Tactical Air Command, of the 12th Air Force.

The Brazilian pilots initially flew from 31 October 1944, as individual elements of flights attached to 350th FG squadrons, at first in affiliation flights and progressively taking part in more dangerous missions. Less than two weeks later, on November 11, the group started its own operations flying from its base at Tarquinia, using its tactical callsign Jambock. Brazilian Air Force stars replaced the white US star in the roundel on the FAB Thunderbolts. The 1oGAVCA started its fighting career as a fighter-bomber unit, its missions being armed reconnaissance and interdiction, in support of the US Fifth Army, to which the FEB was attached. On April 16, 1945, the US Fifth Army started its offensive along the Po Valley. By then, the strength of the Group had fallen to 25 pilots, some having been killed and others shot down and captured. Others had been relieved from operations on medical grounds due to combat fatigue. The Group disbanded Yellow flight and distributed the surviving pilots among the other flights. Each pilot flew on average two missions a day.

On 22 April 1945, the three remaining flights took off at 5-minute intervals, starting at 8:30 AM, to destroy bridges, barges, and motorized vehicles in the San Benedetto region. At 10:00 AM, a flight took off for an armed reconnaissance mission south of Mantua. They destroyed more than 80 tanks, trucks, and vehicles. By the end of the day, the group had flown 44 individual missions and destroyed hundreds of vehicles and barges. On this day the group flew the most sorties of the war; consequently, Brazil commemorates April 22 as 'Brazilian Fighter Arm' Day. The 1st Brazilian Fighter Group accomplished 445 missions, with a total of 2,546 flights and 5,465 hours of flight on active service. It destroyed 1,304 motor-vehicles, 13 railway waggons, 8 armoured cars, 25 railway and highway bridges and 31 fuel tanks and munition depots.

In all, the 1oGAVCA flew a total of 445 missions, 2,550 individual sorties, and 5,465 combat flight hours, from November 11, 1944 to May 6, 1945. The XXII Tactical Air Command acknowledged the efficiency of the Group by noting that although it flew only 5% of the total of missions carried out by all squadrons under its control, it accomplished a much higher percentage of the total destruction wrought.

In June 1945, after the end of hostilities in Europe, the 1st Brazilian Fighter Squadron returned home where, many of the men continued to serve their country in the air force.
Lt. Colonel Nero Moura C.O. Of The 1St Brazilian Fighter Squadron Briefs His Unit For Their Initial Mission. Colonel Moura Has 4000 Hours In The Air And Used To Be Personal Pilot To The President

Left Maj. Walter Maciey From Frackville Pa. An American Liaison Officer With The First Brazilian Fighter Squadron Discusses The Target For The Day With Capt. Francisco Dutra Sabroza

Left Capt. Lafayette Souza From Rio De Janeiro Flight Leader And Capt. Oswaldo Pamplona Pinto From Rio De Janeiro Operations Officer Of The First Brazilian Fighter Squadron.

Left Maj. Ovidio Beraldo From Sao Paulo Finance Officer Of The First Brazilian Fighter Squadron Pays Off Pvt. Augusto Villas-Boas An Orderly Room Clerk.

The Medical Personnel Attached To The First Brazilian Fighter Squadron In Italy. Man On The Right Is Luthero Vargas Son Of The President Of Brazil And In Charge Of The Medical Unit.

Pvt. Naby Moraes Salles From Bahia Operates The Switchboard At The First Brazilian Fighter Squadron Base. Like Almost All Of His Fellow Soldiers He Speaks English Fluently.

/Left To Right 2Nd Lt. Alberto M. Torres Rio De Janeiro 1St Lt. Theobaldo Kopp Parana And Lt. Helio Carlos Cox Rio De Janeiro Pilots With The First Brazilian Fighter Squadron In Italy.

When the pilots of the First Brazilian Fighter Squadron training back in the states they spent most of their free time at the Waldorf Astoria. So they named their billets and the same.

The Brazilian Cantina Or Px At The Base Of The First Brazilian Fighter Squadron In Italy

Brazilians who fly Republic P-47 Thunderbolts in the First Brazilian Fighter Squadron in Italy climb into a weapons carrier to ride down to the line

On the way to the line Brazilian pilots of the First Brazilian Fighter Squadron in Italy smoke chat and chin

1st Brasilian Fighter Squadron of 350th Fighter Group USAAF,on the flight line

An armament crew of the First Brazilian Fighter Squadron bombing up one of the Republic P-47s for a mission.

P-47 Thunderbolts Of The First Brazilian Fighter Squadron Receiving Their Fuel For The Next Mission.

2nd Lt. Marcos Coelho Magalhaes is 21 years old has been in the Brazilian Air Forces for four years and is now flying a Republic P-47 with the First Brazilian Fighter Squadron in Italy

/2nd Lt. Helio Carlos Cox Rio de Janeiro is serving as a pilot of a Republic P-47 with the First Brazilian Fighter Squadron in Italy. Lt. Cox got his Anglo-Saxon surname from his British Grandfather

2nd Lt. Helio Carlos Cox of Rio de Janeiro. He got his wings in the United States in July 1943 and then returned to Brazil to enter the Air Force

2nd Lt. Jorge E.P. Taborda from Rio de Janeiro a pilot with the First Brazilian Fighter Squadron serving in Italy.

Lt. Raymundo Da Costa Canario Of Rio De Janeiro Brazil A Pilot With The 1St Brazilian Fighter Squadron Warms Up His Republic P-47 Thunderbolt Before Taking Off

1st Brazilian Fighter Squadron/Republic P-47s are flown by Brazilian pilots in the First Brazilian Fighter Squardron serving in Italy with the Mediterranean Allied Air Forces-engine warm up

Brazilian Thunderbombers Republic P-47s of the First Brazilian Fighter Squadron take off on a mission to attack the Germans in Northern Italy.


The Brazilian flag is always a welcome sight to returning pilots of the First Brazilian Fighter Squadron

Two Brazilian plane mechanics servicing the Republic P-47s that the Brazilian pilots fly in the First Brazilian Fighter Squadron.

Cpl. Augusto Cesar de Aravjo from Bahia is an armament man with the First Brazilian Fighter Squadron in Italy. All officers and enlisted men are volunteers.

Sgt. Gean Bourdon from Rio de Janeiro Flight Chief with the First Brazilian Fighter Squadron

Plane mechanics of the First Brazilian Fighter Squadron in Italy servicing the Republic P-47s flown by its pilots

Pfc. Nilo Lopes Left From Rio Grande Do Sul And Pfc. Urbano Bento From Rio De Janeiro Ground Men With The 1St Brazilian Fighter Squadron Inspect A Flak Hole In The Tail Section Of A P-47

Ground crew of the 1st Brazil Fighter Squadron 350th Fighter Group 12th Air Force work on a P-47 Thunderbolt serial number 42-26756 in the Mediterranean Theatre of Operations

P-47s carried the "Senta a Pua" emblem as nose art along with the Brazilian Air Force stars.

Republic P-47 of the First Brazilian Fighter Squadron in Italy. Though the Squadron has been in action for a few brief months its record is impressive. Feb. 1945

A Member Of The First Brazilian Fighter Squadron Checks A Machine Gun At An Airfield Somewhere In Italy.

An Armament Crew Of Lst Brazilian Fighter Squadron Prepares One Of The Republic P-47S For A Mission.

A Member Of The First Brazilian Fighter Squadron Removes The Propeller Of A P-47 At An Airfield Somewhere In Italy

Lt. Rui Moreira Lima Of The Lst Brazilian Fighter Squadron In The Cockpit Of A P-47 At An Airfield Somewhere In Italy

1st Brazilian fighter pilot waves from his P-47 cockpit

Lt.Col. Nero Mours A First Brazilian Fighter Squadron Pilot Stands In Front Of A P-47 At An Airfield Somewhere In Italy

/P-47D-25-RE 42-26766 B4 1st Brazilian FG

1st Brazilian Fighter pilot on his aircraft's wing

M-Sgt. Robson Saldanha Poses Beside The Bird Insignia Of The First Brazilian Fighter Squadron Painted On A P-47 Thunderbolt

Pfc. Luiz Delmar F. Lima And Pfc. Aldris Agostini Do Costa Of The Lst Brazilian Fighter Squadron Clean Guns On A P-47 Thunderbolt. Italy.

Sgt. Manuel Goulart Ferreira. Rua Antonio De Padua 27 Rio De Janeiro Lst Brazilian Fighter Squadron Proudly Polishes The Insignia On A P-47 Thunderbolt. Italy.

P-47 Pilots Of The First Brazilian Fighter Squadron Discuss A Mission From Which They Have Just Returned. Somewhere In Italy

A Pilot Of The First Brazilian Fighter Squadron Pauses In Front Of The Leaning Tower Of Pisa While Sightseeing During His Stay In Italy.

/Pilots Of First Brazilian Fighter Squadron Pause In Front Of The Leaning Tower Of Pisa While Sightseeing During Their Stay In Italy.