Air Battle of Alto Canepa
After a failure of negotiations, on 9 February, fiercest fighting broke out, and the FAP was now very active, launching a total of 16 combat sorties – including few by Mirage 5Ps and Su-22s. Obviously as more was at the stake, and threats higher than originally calculated, the Peruvian High Command concluded that it was about the time to bring some of reserves to bear. The main targets of FAP strikes were Coangos and Base del Sur. The activity continued into the following night, FAP Canberras bombing Ecuadorian positions in the Cenepa Valley, and in the morning of 10 February, FAP A-37s and Su-22s also flew a series of strikes against Tiwintza and Cueva de los Tayos. AEP helicopters were involved as well – a fact confirmed when Ecuadorians again claimed two FAP Mi-8 as shot down; another claim that was never confirmed.
The increased and intensified appearance of the FAP fighter-bombers and helicopters finally resulted in Ecuadorian decision to establish air superiority over the battlefield. When the GCI-station “Halcon” – obviously posted on one of the mountain peaks in the Loja area, from where it could see deep over northern Peru – informed the COMAC about tracking five “red” (meaning Peruvian) aircraft approaching the combat zone at speeds between 300 and 400km/h, at 12:42hrs, Col. Buchelli ordered Col. Salgado of the COM-1 to arrange for the Mirages and Kfirs to be scrambled. The two officers agreed that this time the fighters were to intercept and shot down whatever FAP aircraft they might find. In order to enable the later task, they have had to organize also the evacuation of all FAE assets already operating over the Condor Cordillera. Consequently, at 12:47hrs, the COS-1 issued the order for two Mirage F.1JAs and two Kfirs to be scrambled – probably from Mariscal Lamar airfield, or from Macas. (Note: Ecuadorian sources all give Taura AB as the airfield from which the FAE interceptors involved in the following air battles came; however, Taura AB is over 200km away from the combat zone, while in their narratives FAE pilots clearly stated that they engaged barely eight minutes after taking off, and only then engaging afterburners increasing their speed to supersonic; considering these facts, it is obvious that the Mirages and Kfirs were based closer to the combat zone).
Airborne by 12:49hrs, the two Mirages, flown by Maj. Raul Banderas (on FAE807) and Capt. Carlos Uzcategui Soli (on FAE806), approached the combat zone as first, followed by a pair of Kfir C.2s, flown by Capt. Mauricio Mata (on FAE905) and Capt. Wilfrido Moya (on FAE909). While interceptors were flying towards south-east, at 12:55hrs, the COMAC recalled a FAE T-34C that acted as FAC, away from Condor Cordillera, in order to prevent a possible “blue-on-blue” engagement. Meanwhile, at 12:53hrs, two A-37s based at Macas were put on alert.
This time the FAE interceptors arrived in time to even make a few patrol turns before engaging; the difference to earlier events was that some of FAP fighters – probably Mirage 2000Ps – were flying high, thus exposing themselves to detection by FAE radars. Indeed, Maj. Banderas later stated to have had the first enemy fighter on his radar scope barely eight minutes after taking off. The planes his Cyrano IV radar detected were two FAP Su-22Ms, flown by Lt.Col. Victor Manuel Maldonado-Begaza and Maj. Enrique Caballero Orrego “Poeta”, of the FAP Escuadrón de Caza 111 “Los Tigres”. These cut the corner over the border, penetrating as deep as 16km into the Ecuadorian airspace before taking a course parallel to the boundary and then descending to a level of 600m above the ground in preparation for an attack against Tiwintza.
Banderas selected afterburner accelerating and turning so to bring his and the Mirage of his wingman to a deep six o’clock position behind the two Sukhois. While doing so, his RWR warned him that his aircraft was detected and tracked by the radar of an enemy fighter. At 13:15hrs, ignoring the warnings, Capt. Uscategui approached to the firing distance and launched one R.550 Magic, starting what was to become the first-ever air-to-air combat between two Mach-2 capable fighters in Latin American history. His missile hit the Sukhoi flown by Lt.Col. Maldonado-Begaza, forcing him to eject before his fighter crashed into the jungle bellow. Meanwhile, Banderas scored a hit at Orrego’s Su-22M as well, but the sturdy Sukhoi continued flying. In a hurry because of the warnings from his RWR, Banderas swiftly selected the second Magic and fired again, the missile this time cutting the Peruvian fighter in two, the wreckage falling to the ground.
The two FAP-pilots never knew they were under attack: their fighters were not equipped with RWRs. Lieutenant-Colonel Maldonado-Begaza ejected safely, but was injured while parachuting through the jungle canopy. He survived for eight days in the jungle, without food or medicine, but finally succumbed to his wounds: his body, and the wreckage of his fighter were found on 26 February 1995; the body of Maj. Orrego and the wreckage of his fighter were found only five years later. The FAP never mounted a search and rescue operation for the two Sukhoi-pilots then there was no sign of them surviving the interception: their SABRE radios could simply not penetrate the thick jungle around them.
With their RWRs still screaming warnings of them being tracked by enemy fighters, the two victorious FAE Mirages descended deep over the jungle canopy and accelerated to supersonic speed, blasting away as they went. Neither Banderas nor Uscategui ever saw any of two FAP Mirages that obviously pursued them for almost 30 seconds, but they were not taking any chances (Carlos Uzcategui Soli was killed in an aircraft accident, in 2002; in the later years of his service a problem with his vision was detected, which prevented him from flying fast jets).