| Ecuadorian Navy Armada del Ecuador |
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|---|---|
Ecuadorian Navy insignia |
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| Active | 1832 - present |
| Country | Ecuador |
| Branch | Navy |
| Size | 7,258[1] |
| Part of | Military of Ecuador |
| Engagements | Ecuadorian-Peruvian War 1941 |
| Commanders | |
| Commander-in-chief | Rear Admiral Aland Molestina Malta |
| Insignia | |
| Ecuadorian Naval Jack | |
The Ecuadorian Navy is responsible for the surveillance and protection of national maritime territory and has a personnel of 7,258[1] men to protect a coastline of 2,237 km which reaches far into the Pacific Ocean. The vessels are identified by the ship prefix B.A.E.: Buque de la Armada del Ecuador (Ship of the Ecuadorian Navy).
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Organise, train, equip and maintain naval capabilities, as well as to assist and support all procedures involving national security and development. Contribute to the achievement of safeguarding national objectives in times of peace and war.
Maintain highly trained naval forces to secure victory within the maritime zone in order to support developing communities. As a consequence operate highly qualified military personnel which is able to fulfil its role based on elevated moral, values and principles.
The roots of the Ecuadorian Navy or (Armada Ecuatoriana) date back to 1823 whilst forming a part of the Gran Colombian fleet. In 1832 the by then, Ecuadorian congress established officially "The Ecuadorian Maritime Department". On the 25th July 1941 during the Ecuadorian–Peruvian War, the gunboat Calderon commanded by Rafael Morán Valverde encountered the Peruvian destroyer Almirante Villar in the Jambeli channel.[2] The Ecuadorian gunboat opened fire on Villar, keeping its distance while doing shots for elevation, but the Peruvian destroyer returned fire for the duration of the chase, which was ended by the Peruvians when the Calderon took refuge in the channels. The Calderon was hit twice in the encounter, leaving the Villar unharmed, despite some Ecuadorian claims of heavy damage.[3] However, this event had no influence over the general outcome of the war as Puerto Bolivar was lost to Peruvian Troops only two days later.
Today, the Ecuadorian Navy is a compact, efficient and well-balanced force. However, limited funds hinder any major acquisitions and the chances of maintaining a strong force within the Pacific Ocean. Since introduction of a restructuring program within the Armed Forces, ("PATRIA I"), the Navy's structure became simplified. It supervises the Pacific Coast and Galápagos Islands all in one naval zone. Most sea-going assets are based at Guayaquil. The Navy consists of the following vessels:
| Vessel | Origin | Type | Class | In service[4] | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Training ship (1 in service) | |||||
| BAE Guayas (BE-21) | Spain | Sail training ship | steel-hulled barque | Yes | as an ambassador of its country, the Guayas is a participant in tall ship regattas. By the end of 2008 the Guayas had visited 60 harbours in 25 countries and covered about 340,000 nautical miles (630,000 km). |
| Submarines (2 in service) | |||||
| BAE Shyri (S101) | Germany | Type 209/1300 | Shyri class | No | under heavy overhaul and upgrade in ASMAR, Chile; was slightly damaged after the tsunami in Talcahuano. Refit works currently restarted. |
| BAE Huancavilca (S102) | Germany | Type 209/1300 | Shyri class | Yes | |
| Guided missile frigates (2 in service) | |||||
| BAE Morán Valverde (FM-01) | United Kingdom | Leander-class frigate | Condell-class frigate | Yes | extensively reffited between April 2004 and December 2005. Acquired from Chile in March, 2008.[5] |
| BAE Presidente Eloy Alfaro (FM-02) | United Kingdom | Leander-class frigate | Condell-class frigate | Yes | acquired from Chile in March, 2008. |
| Guided missile corvettes (6 in service) | |||||
| BAE Esmeraldas (CM-11) | Italy | Tipo 550 class corvette | Esmeraldas class | Yes | refitted in 2006 under the Esmeraldas program[6] |
| BAE Manabí (CM-12) | Italy | Tipo 550 class corvette | Esmeraldas class | Yes | |
| BAE Los Rios (CM-13) | Italy | Tipo 550 class corvette | Esmeraldas class | Yes | |
| BAE El Oro (CM-14) | Italy | Tipo 550 class corvette | Esmeraldas class | Yes | |
| BAE Galápagos (CM-15) | Italy | Tipo 550 class corvette | Esmeraldas class | Yes | |
| BAE Loja (CM-16) | Italy | Tipo 550 class corvette | Esmeraldas class | Yes | |
| Fast attack craft (3 in service) | |||||
| LAE Quito (LM-25) | Germany | TNC 45 Seawolf class FAC | Quito class | Yes | |
| LAE Guayaquil (LM-26) | Germany | TNC 45 Seawolf class FAC | Quito class | Yes | |
| LAE Cuenca (LM-27) | Germany | TNC 45 Seawolf class | Quito class | Yes | |
| Auxiliaries (6 in service) | |||||
| BAE Huacolpo (TR-61) | United States | LST-542-class tank landing ship | Huacolpo class | No | used as transport and listed as active in 2007 but may be not operational. |
| BAE Calicuchima (TR-62) | United Kingdom | ammunition supply ship | Kintebury class | Yes | ex-RMAS Throsk (A379)[7] |
| BAE Atahualpa (TR-63) | United States | Water harbour tanker | YW type | Yes | ex-US YW 131[8] |
| BAE Quisquis (TR-64) | United Kingdom | Water harbour tanker | Waterfall class | Yes | ex-Waterside (Y-20)[9] |
| BAE Taurus (TR-65) | Ecuador | Coastal oil tanker | Taurus class | Yes | civilian ship bought in 1987. Built by Astinave, Guayaquil. Currently status is unknown. |
| BAE Chimborazo (RA-70) | United States | Fleet tug | Abnaki-class tug | Yes | ex-USS Chowanoc (ATF-100)[10] |
| Scientific research vessels (2 in service) | |||||
| BAE Orion (BI-91) | Japan | Oceanographic research ship | Orion class | Yes | |
| LAE Sirius | Ecuador | Oceanographic research ship | Sirius class | Yes | [11] |
| Name | Origin | Type | Version | Used by | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Naval artillery | ||||||
| QF 4.5 inch naval gun | United Kingdom | dual-purpose naval gun | Mark VI | Condell class frigate | ||
| Oto Melara 76/62 Compact Gun | Italy | dual-purpose naval gun | 76/62 Compact | Tipo 550 class corvette | ||
| Oto Melara Twin 40 Compact Gun | Italy | Close-in weapon system (CIWS) | Twin 40L70 | Tipo 550 class corvette | ||
| Raytheon Phalanx 20mm Gatling Gun | United States | Close-in weapon system (CIWS) | Phalanx Block 0 | Condell class frigate | ||
| Anti-ship missiles | ||||||
| MBDA Exocet | France | anti-ship missile (AShM) | MM40 Block 2 | Condell class frigate Tipo 550 class corvette |
||
| MBDA Exocet | France | anti-ship missile (AShM) | MM38 | TNC 45 Seawolf class FAC | ||
| Surface-to-air missile | ||||||
| MBDA Aspide | Italy | surface-to-air missile (SAM) | Aspide 1A | Tipo 550 class corvette | ||
| Torpedoes | ||||||
| Atlas Elektronik SST | Germany | 533 mm heavyweight torpedo | SST-4 mod 0 | Type 209 submarine | ||
The Ecuadorian Naval Aviation (Aviación Naval Ecuatoriana) was formed in 1967 with fixed wing aircraft and received some helicopters in 1973. It remains the least effective section of the navy; capable of performing limited maritime patrol missions, it consists of fixed wing and a rotary wing element. Aircraft are based at Base Aérea Simón Bolívar in Guayaquil and the Eloy Alfaro Air Base in Manta. The most recent acquisition of the ANE are two Heron 1 and four Searcher Mk. III[12] from Israel. These have increased the Navy's coastal surveillance capacity significantly.
| Aircraft | Origin | Type | Version | In service | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Maritime patrol aircraft | ||||||
| Beechcraft Super King Air | United States | maritime surveillance aircraft | CATPASS 250MP | 1 | two units delivered in January and June 1997 respectively. CATPASS conversion includes a bottom-mounted surface-search radar, FLIR and ESM provisions. | |
| CASA CN‑235 Persuader | Spain | maritime patrol aircraft | CN‑235‑MPA | 1 | equipped with surface-search radar. | |
| Helicopters | ||||||
| Bell 206 JetRanger
Bell TH-57 SeaRanger |
United States | training helicopter | 206B
TH-57A |
3
3 |
||
| Bell 230 | United States | radar surveillance | 230T | 1 | two units delivered in total. One unit crashed at sea in 2009. | |
| Bell 430 | United States | utility helicopter | 430 | 2 | two units delivered in August 1, 2010. The first 430 received a Garmin GNS400 GPS coupled to the autopilot. Both were equipped with a Honeywell Mark XXII EGPWS, right hand sliding door, hoist provisions and some maintenance items.[13] | |
| Trainer Aircraft | ||||||
| Beechcraft T‑34 Mentor | United States | advanced trainer | T-34C-1 | 3 | ||
| ENAER T-35 Pillán | Chile | basic trainer | T-35B | 4 | ||
| Unmanned Aerial Vehicles | ||||||
| IAI Heron | Israel | patrol UAV | Heron I | 2 | [14] | |
| IAI Searcher | Israel | patrol UAV | Searcher III | 4 | [15] | |
| Utility Aircraft | ||||||
| Beechcraft Super King Air | United States | light transport | B200
B300 B350 |
2
1 1 |
||
| CASA CN-235 | Spain | tactical transport | CN-235M-100 | 1 | ||
The Coast Guard (Cuerpo de Guardacostas de la Armada) became fully operational in 1980. Their mission is to control maritime activities on national territory, including all river zones. The objective is the internal security, protection of human life at sea and environmental protection. It disposes of around 250 men and 30 major as well as 40 smaller, partially very modern patrol vessels.[16]
The Naval Infantry Corps (Cuerpo de Infanteria de Marina) was formed on 12 November 1962. It maintains a strength of around 1700[17] marines, with their HQ in Guayaquil. The units are individually spread across the naval coast of Ecuador and are equipped with infantry support weapons, including 60 mm and 81 mm mortars, 106 mm recoilless rifles (RCLs) and High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicles. However, it lacks amphibious assault and sealift capacity. The Ecuadorian Marines are to maintain a high level of alert in order to execute special operations in difficult territory as well as to provide a fast response to counter amphibious incursions. Structure: