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Academia de Força Aérea | |
 | |
| Motto | Macte animo! Generose puer sic itur ad astra (Latin) |
|---|---|
Motto in English | Young, cheer up! This is the way to the skies (from Aeneid by Virgil IX, 641) |
| Type | Air force academy |
| Established | 17 October 1960 |
| Commander | Brig. Marcelo Gobett Cardoso |
| Undergraduates | More than 700 cadets (Aviation, Intendency, Infantry |
| Location | , , 13643-000 , 21°59′07″S 047°20′07″W / 21.98528°S 47.33528°W |
| Campus | Air Force Base, 251.246 m2 |
| Language | Portuguese |
| Nickname | Eagle's Cradle (Ninho das Águias) |
| Website | www |
The Brazilian Air Force Academy (AFA, Academia da Força Aérea in Portuguese) is the Brazilian Air Force's educational institution that provides initial officer training for the main Officer Board of Brazil's Air Force Command. The academy is located east of Pirassununga city, in São Paulo State county, and it is the largest Brazilian Air Base as well as the largest Air Force Academy of Latin America. All three Officer Formation Courses (CFOs) of Academia da Força Aérea are recognized as Superior Degree by Brazil's Ministry of Educations.
The academy fulfills its mission of "training officers for the Air Force Aviators Board, Air Force Quartermasters Board and Air Force Infantry Boards, developing the attributes in each cadet on military martiality, intellectuals and professionals, in addition to ethical, moral, civic and social concerns, obtaining, at the end of this process, a position to become leaders of a modern Air Force". The Air Force Academy is, along with Academia Militar das Agulhas Negras (Military Academy of the Black Needles) and Escola Naval (Naval College), one of the Brazilian Military Academies.
The Air Force Academy is the home base of the First and Second Aerial Instruction Squadrons as well as home of the internationally known Smoke Squadron. In Aeronautics Instruction matters Academia have one of the most selective military aviation trainings of the World. Cadets learn to fly as second year strats, and with less than 15 hours of experience cadets must be already able to perform the solo flight.