has a long history of parachute training. In 1943, at the former Alfonsos Field School of Aeronautics and with the support of the Air Force, cadet gymnastics instructor Achile Garcia Charles Astor first introduced civil parachute training in Brazil. Seeing the usefulness of having a parachuting unit, the Electronics and Flight Protection Administration conducted studies to see how such a unit could be created under the auspices of the air force. The results of that study gave rise to the Para-SAR. In 1946, the Brazilian Army formed its parachute school, the now-named General Penha Brazil Parachutist's Instruction Center. It graduated its first class of Brazilian Air Force students in 1959. See also Academia da Força Aérea Aerial Demonstration Squadron Alberto Torres Brazil and weapons of mass destruction Brazilian Army Brazilian Army Aviation Command Brazilian Naval Aviation Brazilian Navy Military history of Brazil Military ranks of Brazil Rui Moreira Lima References Bibliography External links Brazilian Air Force website Brazilian Air Force page at Scramble History of Brazilian Air Force in World War II History of the Brazilian Air Force Milavia – Brazilian Air Force Military orders and medals from Brazil Military units and formations established in 1941