BOGOTA - Colombia has added two Cessna A-37B Dragonfly fighters to its active inventory. The aircraft were acquired from the Dominican Republic Air Force (FARD in Spanish), which had them in storage for 18 years.
In order to return the aircraft to airworthiness, Combat Air Command No. 3 (Cacom) technicians completely dismantled the aircraft and replaced parts that showed signs of damage and corrosion. As part of the work, they replaced beams and bulkheads, installed new internal fuel tanks, overhauled flight control systems, changed hydraulic lines, and installed new landing gear. The work took about a month and a half and was followed by test flights.
Colombia has been making incremental upgrades to its air fleet lately. Bogota acquired two secondhand two-seat Kfirs from Israel in July to improve its training capabilities. It's not clear what role the A-37s will play. However, Colombia currently operates three A-37Bs and four OA-37s in a counter-insurgency (COIN) role. It is likely that the additional aircraft will also fill that role.
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