The Brazilian Air Force (Portuguese: Força Aérea Brasileira, FAB) is the air branch of the Brazilian Armed Forces and one of the three national uniformed services. The FAB was formed when the Brazilian Army and Navy air branches were merged into a single military force initially called "National Air Forces" in 1941. Both air branches transferred their equipment, installations and personnel to the new force. According to Flight International (Flightglobal.com) and the International Institute for Strategic Studies, the Brazilian Air Force has an active strength of 80,937 military personnel and operates around 578 aircraft. The Brazilian Air Force is the largest air force in the Southern Hemisphere. Source: Wikipedia (en)