2017 Chilean Military Parade
| 2017 Chilean Military Parade | |
|---|---|
| Date | 19 September 2017 |
| Venue | O'Higgins Park |
| Locations | Santiago, Chile |
| Country | Chile |
| Participants | 7,952 military and police personnel |
The 2017 Chilean Military Parade was held at O'Higgins Park in Santiago on 19 September 2017 to commemorate the Day of the Glories of the Army.
Presided over by President Michelle Bachelet, the military parade involved 7,952 personnel from the Chilean Armed Forces and Carabineros de Chile.[1][2][3]
The parade was the eighth and final one presided over by Bachelet. The ceremony commemorated the bicentenary of the Chilean flag and included a tribute to Chilean personnel who had served with the United Nations Stabilisation Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH), which ended in 2017 after 13 years.[4][1]
Background
[edit]The annual military parade is held on 19 September as the principal ceremony commemorating the Day of the Glories of the Army. The 2017 edition commemorated the 207th anniversary of the Chilean Army and was the final parade of Bachelet's second presidency.[1][3]
The ceremony was planned to emphasize the multiple roles performed by the armed forces. The Army increased the presence of motorized and armoured units and included personnel from its forest-fire reinforcement brigades, which had participated in the response to the 2017 Chile wildfires.[5][4]
The 2017 edition also included a joint Army, Navy and Air Force formation representing Chilean personnel who had participated in MINUSTAH following the conclusion of the mission that year.[1]
Parade
[edit]Bachelet arrived at O'Higgins Park aboard the presidential Ford Galaxie and reviewed the military academies of the Army, Navy, Air Force and Carabineros.[2]
The opening ceremony included an allegory commemorating the bicentenary of the Chilean flag. The Club de Rodeo Chileno Gil Letelier entered the parade ground with 200 mounted flag bearers, followed by the traditional chicha en cacho and cueca ceremony.[2][1]
Brigadier General Oscar Mezzano, commander of the presenting forces, subsequently requested presidential authorization to begin the march-past.[2]
Official sources reported a total of 7,952 participants. The institutional contingents were reported as 4,104 personnel from the Chilean Army, 1,242 from the Chilean Navy, 1,108 from the Chilean Air Force and 1,348 from Carabineros.[2][1][6] Women accounted for approximately 12 percent of the participants.[7]
The Navy participated with 1,242 personnel. Its contingent included 392 cadets from the Arturo Prat Naval Academy, followed by personnel from the Naval Polytechnic Academy, the Grumetes School and the Amphibious Expeditionary Brigade.[8]
The Air Force's aerial component included ENAER T-35 Pillán training aircraft, the Halcones aerobatic team, F-16 fighters and a formation of S-70A Black Hawk, Bell 412, UH-1H and Bell 206 helicopters. Poor weather conditions reduced the planned aerial display, preventing several transport and tanker aircraft from participating.[9][10]
The Army presentation included motorized and armoured formations, logistical units and personnel from the Lautaro Special Operations Brigade. A formation representing the Army's forest-fire reinforcement brigades also participated in recognition of military personnel involved in the response to the major wildfires earlier that year.[5][1]
A joint contingent of Army, Navy and Air Force personnel represented Chile's participation in MINUSTAH. Chile had contributed military personnel to the United Nations operation in Haiti throughout its 13-year existence.[1][6]
Military bands from Argentina, Colombia and Mexico also participated, with approximately 150 foreign military personnel invited to the ceremony.[4][7]
Among the foreign military guests were Colombian Army commander General Alberto José Mejía Ferrero, Honduran Army commander Brigadier General René Orlando Ponce Fonseca and Argentine Army deputy chief of staff Major General Santiago Julio Ferreyra.[1]
The parade lasted approximately two and a half hours.[1]
References
[edit]- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 "Ejército conmemora sus 207 años de historia en la Gran Parada Militar 2017" (in Spanish). Chilean Army. 19 September 2017. Retrieved 19 September 2026.
- 1 2 3 4 5 "Mandataria encabezó Gran Parada Militar 2017" (in Spanish). Government of Chile. 19 September 2017. Retrieved 19 September 2026.
- 1 2 "Bachelet participa en su última Parada Militar en honor a las Glorias del Ejército". Xinhua (in Spanish). 20 September 2017. Retrieved 19 September 2026.
- 1 2 3 "Con inédito inicio desde el edificio Bicentenario y 7.952 efectivos desfilando: Así se vivirá la Parada Militar 2017". Emol (in Spanish). 18 September 2017. Retrieved 19 September 2026.
- 1 2 "Brigada acorazada será una de las novedades de la Parada Militar 2017". La Tercera (in Spanish). 16 September 2017. Retrieved 19 September 2026.
- 1 2 "La última de Bachelet: revisa las fotos de la tradicional Parada Militar 2017". El Mostrador (in Spanish). 19 September 2017. Retrieved 19 September 2026.
- 1 2 "Las imágenes de la última Parada Militar de Michelle Bachelet". La Tercera (in Spanish). 19 September 2017. Retrieved 19 September 2026.
- ↑ "Operaciones de aeronaves FACH en la Parada Militar 2017". TallyHo (in Spanish). 20 September 2017. Retrieved 19 September 2026.
- ↑ "El Ejército de Chile presenta sus nuevos vehículos en la 'Gran Parada Militar 2017'". Infodefensa (in Spanish). 21 September 2017. Retrieved 19 September 2026.
