History of the Finnish Air Force from 1944-1960

The Finnish Air Force had a difficult time after the Continuation War.
The Lapland War and the reduction
At the Moscow Armistice, a truce was signed between Finland and the Soviet union on 4 September 1944
The Finnish Air Force had to fight against the Germans in Lapland. At the same time, they had to return to peacetime strength.
As a part of the treaty, all of the Finnish Air Force's aircraft had to return to their home bases. No flights were allowed without the permission of the allied control commission. A separate Air Group called Lentoryhmä Sarko, led by colonel Olavi Sarko (colonel) was formed for the war in Lapland.
The Soviet Control Commission had a group, led by Andreev, and 18 other officers whose task it was to investigate the FAF. They held monthly interviews, and were informed about the Finnish network of air fields, number of available aircraft, engines, weaponry, personnel strengths and so on.
These provisions were in power until the end of 1945. In May, only physical education and shooting training was conducted. Flight training was allowed to continue only on 1 October 1945. It would take until 1948 before normal conditions returned somewhat and the air force academy courses resumed. Only 2-4 officers were accepted yearly. Many officers retired and went to the civil sector. From Dec 5 1944 the FAF had to be the same size as on 1 January 1939. NCO courses began in 1950
Reorganization, round 1
The FAF reorganized itself into flight regiments (Lentorykmentti)
* LeR 1 was based at Pori and Vesivehma
* LeR 2 was based in Rissala
* LeR 3 was based in Utti and Vesivehma
* LeR 4 was based at Luonetjärvi and Kemi
* The Air Force School (Lentosotakoulu) was based at Kauhava
Immediately after the truce, FAF had 519 aircraft of 40 different types. The monthly reports to the Control commission reveals that the strength declined quickly (e.g. the first number reported also included aircraft that already had been scrapped), the following month the numbers had declined to 497.
In January 1945 the aircraft were divided between the regiments and the surplus were transferred to be stored at Tampere. In April 1945, 71 of the stored aircraft were scrapped since preservation would require too much labor and resources. A short time later another round of scrapping removed all foreign aircraft in storage since they were considered obsolete. This work was performed by colonel Eino Arto.
In December 1945 the FAF listed 196 war aircraft. These were 152 fighters and 44 bombers and did not include transport, liason and training aircraft of whom there were 78. 102 of the fighters were Bf 109's.
On 8 March 1945 it was decided that the swastika roundel should be changed into the white and blue roundel from 1 April 1945. Other markings, such as badges and symbols were changed at the same time
The Paris Peace agreement came into power on 15 September 1947. It limited the fighter strength to 60. It also prohibited bomber aircraft with internal bomb bays. The Air Force was limited to a personnel strength of 3,000.
Only the Bf 109 was good enough of the fighters that remained. Other aircraft, such as transport and training aircraft were not included in the limitations. Five Bristol Blenheim bombers were rebuilt into aerial photography and mapping ac.
The Messerscmitt Bf 109 was a wartime product with a stated planned lifespan of 100 hours. In peacetime it was even less. Finland decided that the hull had to be overhauled after 300 hours and total overhaul the engine after 110 hours. The aging aircraft, the lack of spares began taking its toll, and accident rates increased. In the autumn of 1944, LeR 1 and 4 asked to put the MTs in usage ban, however the situation in LeR 3 was somewhat better and they continued flying.
In the summer of 1951 the fighter situation was described as catastrophic. It was considered to be in such a bad condition that it jeopardized the lives of pilots.
As for the training aircraft, the sitiation was not so bad, although the Stieglitz, Viima, Pyry were obsolete
The airfields were also in grave need of upgrades. Only the airfields that also had commercial activities were in good shape. In 1951 the Air Force announced that it would need 600 MMk (approx. 21 M € in 2021) to repair and operate its airfields. The state had allocated only 3 MMk (approx 105,000 EUR) for the task.
In 1952 the air defence units were removed from the Air Force and attached to the army. An AF department was created at the HQ, and a position for the inspector of the Air Force was created. There were a number of name changes of the units. The Flight Regiments (Lentorykmentti) changed into Flights (Lennosto). The Air Force Acaademy changed from Lentosotakoulu into Ilmasotakoulu. The Flight Depot (Lentovarikko) became The Air Force Depot (Ilmavoimien varikko), a new unit was created, the Air Force Liaision Flight (Ilmavoimien yhteyslento).
The AF commander, GenLt Frants Helminen became the Inpector of the Air Force. On 06 March 1953 a GenMaj Artola was appointed the new commander of the Air Force. He was the first (former) pilot in this position. Officers from other branches were included in the air force, and officers and NCO's from tha AF were moved to the Army and the Navy. The reorganization created a chaos that lasted many years.
The work on creating a network of radars was delayed many years. The flights were suggested to be led by colonels since they were responsible for a large area even during peace time. There was a rivalry between the commander and the inspector of the af. This was especially after the army general maj Adolf Ehrnrooth became the inspector of the AF in 1956, which led to that the AF matters were coordinated from the HQ's operative department.
In March 1954 the AF commander made a thorough review of the current organization and its future needs. The goal was to create a cadre air force that offerd the best possibilities for readiness. The work was appreciated but only a few of the identified gaps were closed and only a few positions were filled.
The 1950's was also a time when foreign matters began influencing.
Reorganization, round 2
In January 1957 the flight numbers were removed and replaced by regions.
* LeLv 1 was disbanded and reformed into Satakunnan Lennosto (Satakunta Air Command)
* LeLv 2 was disbanded and reformed into Karjalan Lennosto (Karelia Air Command)
* LeLv 3 was disbanded and merged with Karjalan Lennosto
* LeLv 4 was disbanded and reformed into Lapin Lennosto (Lapland Air Command)
* The Air Force Academy (Ilmasotakoulu) was based at Kauhava
In February 1957 new flags were chosen in a competition. The winning designs were done by colonel Olavi Seeberg, Chief of the HQ, who also made the selection. The graphic artis Olaf Erikson was selected to finish the designs.
Olavi Seeberg, now a Maj.Gen. became the new commander of the AF in 1958. There was a lot of speculations why Artola had left, some suggested it was due to the many accidents at the time, some said it was due the bad state of the air force, some say it was because the Prime Minister's son had been killed in a flying accident, but the General himself said in a private interview later that there was no drama behind the scenes, just a normal transfer.
In reality the situation was dire. From the end of the war until 1954, the Air Force (and the Defense Force in general) were operating obsolete and worn material, and since little money was allocated it was only a question of slowing down the decline. The AF was not prioritized when there were precious little money in the defense budget.
The Air Force now began emphasizing the air bases' requirements when aircraft changed, and effort was given to increase the readiness of control and management systems to a greater extent.
de Havilland Vampire jet fighters were bought to replace the Bf 109's. There were only funding for 6 aircraft. The first 3 arrived in Pori on 23 January 1953. Two years later a bit more money was allocated to buy 4 Vampire trainers, and a year later 5 more. A new trainer aircraft, the Valmet Vihuri was also designed and built in 1951. An order for 30 units was placed and deliveries started in 1954. A further 20 were ordered one year later.
Things began slowly to change.
New fighters
During the "A-program" (A-ohjelma) in 1956-57, the defense budget was raised to 5B FIM (156 MEUR in 2021), and half was allocated for the Air Force. The Air Force began looking into procuring a modern and effective fighter, and suggested the Mystère IVB or Hawker Hunter. The whole thing turned into a farse, with political meddling. Instead a prototype fighter was ordered from the UK, the Folland Gnat. The Air Force was initially against the decision, but gave in after Air Force test pilot Lauri Pekuri flew the aircraft and gave some positive feedback (he also flew the Mystère IV). Pekuri would also be the first Finn to fly faster than the sound, while diving in a Gnat.
After a quick decision, 18 aircraft were ordered on 7 October 1956. The deal was valued 840,000 GBP and reserve parts for 250,000 GBP (21 MEUR and 6.3 MEUR in 2021). At the same time Valmet Oy made a deal to license produce 20 ac. The interest for the Gnat cooled down after production delays, and when other aircraft became available. The early production models had many teething problems. In all the order was cancelled after 13 aircraft had been delivered.
New training aircraft
By the end of 1956 it was decided to replace the old training aircraft. In 1957 the training process was to change, and would go from propeller aircraft, to light jets, to fighter jets. Therefore working groups were set up to find an initial trainer aircraft and a training jet.
Saab Safir won the competition and the Valmet Tuuli was retired. The jet trainer group was unanimous in their recommendation on the Potez-Fouga CM.170R Magister. Both were delivered quickly. The first Safirs arrived on 12 December 1958. 18 Fougas were bought directly from France and were delivered ahead of time, also on 12 December 1958. Valmet produced a further 62 Fougas on license.
The period 1952-54 was a difficult period when it came to training. All the Bf 109's were run down, and only a few jets had arrived. 60 pilots were trained, and they flew a minimum of 195 hours per year. They still operated the obsolete Stieglitz, Pyry and Viima. The Vampires were placed at Pori which was the only Air Force airfield with an asphalt runway. However training could be conducted at Utti during winters.
After a suitable tarmac runway had been built at Tikkakoski, the Vampires were transferred to Hämeen Lennosto. It was now also possible to become a pilot through recruitment. The first such pilots were approved in 1959.
There were additional procurement programs, called "H-programs" (H-ohjelma) (H1, H2, H3 etc.) until 1966.
Radar development
As for surveillance and operation management, there was a program to establish new radars.
The German radars, that had been operated during the war (since 1943) were to be replaced by a domestically developed radar, called the VRRVI. It was developed by Techn.-Dr Jarmo Pohjanpalo and 10 such were produced. 9 were placed in permanent structures around the country. 1 was a mobile unit. These became the surveillance and guidance network for the Air Force. Development continued and resulted in the VRRVY, which was a combined surveillance and altitude radar. 10 such were produced by 1957.
In 1960, Europe was affected by the crisis in Berlin. NATO aircraft (and Soviet) could operate in the air space over Finland, and NATO:s routes to the Soviet Union went straight over Finland. Both officers and politicians alike were concerned that it could not uphold its obligations to the Finno-Soviet Treaty of 1948. It was important to be able to supervise the airspace above 20,000 m and outside the borders of Finland. On 1 May 1960 Gary Powers was shot down in his Lockheed U-2 reconnaissance aircraft. The maps in the aircraft indicated that the route would have taken him across Finland to Norway). Several new long-distance radar were hastily ordered from Marconi in the UK. These were placed in Tampere, Kuopio and Rovaniemi.
The Note crisis of 1961 gave impetus to the need for new equipment and funds were given to the Air Force to acquire new fighters and missiles. On paper, missiles were prohibited according to the peace treaty, but it was important to show to the Soviet Union that Finland could protect her own air space. The crisis was eventually solved by the politicians, but president Kekkonen was still willing to give money to the air force so that they could improve the national defense. The surface-to-air missiles were dropped after several rounds of discussion, but air-to-air missiles were approved both by the western and eastern powers. The requirements were set: A-A missiles had already been pointed out by a 1956 working group. It had to be capable of Mach 2 and a ceiling of approx. 20,000 m. Requests were sent both to the east and to the west. The purchase process was a completely political process and the requirements from the air force were not important.
A Finnish trade delegation raised the question of buying fighters with the Soviet Union. Initially they were offered MiG-19 but this was not suitable for the FAF because it did not have SAM missiles. The Soviet Union then offered to sell the modern MiG-21F-13. The first 10 aircraft arrived at Rissala Air Base on 24 April 1963 and the remainder arrived in November. It was quite a jump to go from Vampires to a Mach 2 fighter.

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