Venezuela completes delivery of Mirage aircraft to Ecuador

Translated by Brian Schwarz

Originally published Friday, December 11, 2009 in "El Comercio" of Ecuador (elcomercio.com) under the heading Venezuela completa la entrega de aviones Mirage a Ecuador

MARACAY, VENEZUELA - Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez yesterday dispatched during an anniversary ceremony for the Venezuelan Air Force the final three Mirage 50 aircraft being donated to Ecuador.

“With this act the departure of our Mirage airplanes to Ecuador becomes a reality, and there are those who say they are just scrap metal, but they are combat aircraft in perfect condition”, Chavez said.

Chavez stated that “three of these already have arrived there” in the month of October, and “these three make the six [we promised]”.

The ceremony, held in the city of Maracay, some 100 Kilometers from Caracas, Ecuadorian pilots led by the defense envoy from the Ecuadorian Embassy in Caracas, Colonel of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Ramón Paz y Miño and major Santiago Galarza.

The president emphasized that the gesture is a “reaffirmation” of the “true South American unity” that drives his government and and assures that the donated aircraft will “help defend the sovereignty and peace of Ecuador”.

In January, Chavez also recalled, the first six Chinese-built K8 airplanes and the Brazilian-made T27s arrived in Venezuela.

On Thursday the president issued a decree that changed the air force’s anniversary date to November 27 in commemoration of the uprising of pilots who sought to reissue Chavez’ failed coup [on then constitutional president Carlos Andrés Pérez] on February 4, 2002, nine months later.