AIRFORCES, Inc. Reports: The Surinam Air Force (sometimes simply referred to as luchtmacht) is an independent part of the National Army (or Nationale Leger) alongside the army, navy and military police. With a colonel as Commander-in-Chief, consisting of some 2.000 man and a budget of less than $ 10 million the National Army is a very limited power in the international environment although internally and politically it remains a force to be reckoned with. The air force forms a relatively large part of the armed forces and it's history started soon after the country gained independence and is closely linked with the country's recent history.
The first military aircraft of the young air force was a Hughes 500 helicopter, simply registered SAF-001 and being used for light observation tasks. Unfortunately the aircraft was written off in March 1982, but in May of the same year a couple of Britten-Norman Defenders were delivered, providing the air force with a slow but valuable observation and light transportation aircraft. Later the number of Defenders increased to four and currently at least one is still operated by the air force, another two are (temporarily) stored.
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