During BroncoFest III, on October 20, 2001, the OV-10 Bronco Association proudly announced the formation of the Venezuelan Wing of the OV-10 Bronco Association (VWOBA). This wing is mainly comprised of our friends in Special Operations Group 15 of the Venezuelan Air Force (FAV). The OBA has had a long-term association with the Venezuelan Bronco crews, known as the Bronqueros, and we're happy to formalize our association with them!

Many VWOBA pilots have thousands of flight hours in the OV-10A and E. A large part of their flying is devoted to border patrol and combat operations against guerilla forces such as the FARC. These guerillas are responsible for a long campaign of terror, drug trading, and the deaths of thousands of innocent people, and they often attempt to flee from Colombian authorities by crossing the border into Venezuela. These countries have established cooperative programs to prevent these forces from finding refuge by simply crossing the border. As 1Lt Angel Condi pointed out during BroncoFest III, what Americans think of as their Bronco past is now South America's Bronco present.

Sincerely,
Mike "Merlin" Whaley
Webmaster, OBA
merlin@ov-10bronco.net