President Javier Milei ratified Brigadier General Gustavo Javier Valverde as head of the Argentine Air Force (FAA).
Brigadier General Valverde has actively accompanied the minister in significant acts, such as the launch of the purchase of F-16s from Denmark, where Valverde illustrated the complexity of the system and the "great challenge" it poses for the force, showing a management synergy with the Ministry of Defense.
Although he is originally from Buenos Aires (according to records of his counterpart Isaac, the Chief of the Joint Staff), Valverde is strongly linked to the province of Mendoza through his training and professional performance. Indeed, in the military sphere, all recognize his abilities as a fighter pilot and flight instructor.
The permanence of a Chief of Staff has been an exception, which ratifies Valverde as a strategic piece in the new military scheme that Milei intends for Argentina. During his ministerial tenure, Petri praised the head of the Air Force on social media and in public statements on repeated occasions. In fact, at the IV Air Brigade in El Plumerillo, in Mendoza, he has participated in various military aviation and combat courses, a central area in his career.
Operational Profile: The brigadier is an expert combat pilot, having developed a career focused on flight capabilities and airspace defense.
Role in the G-20: A prominent precedent is his role as Chief of the Development Operations Department of the Joint Aerospace Command, during the G-20 Leaders' Summit held in Argentina. This experience is key in managing high-complexity and security operations.
Valverde stays, the rest changes: While Valverde remains in his position, President Milei and now former Minister of Defense Luis Petri appointed new leaders in the rest of the leadership, seeking a "strategic renewal".
- Chief of the Joint Staff (JEMCO): Marcelo Dalle Nogare, replacing Brigadier General Xavier Julián Isaac.
- Chief of the Army General Staff: Brigadier General Alberto Presti.
- Chief of the Navy General Staff: Rear Admiral Carlos Allievi.
Valverde's ratification as head of the Air Force in this new organizational chart underscores the Government's intention to ensure operational stability in a highly technical force with immediate challenges, especially in terms of re-equipment.
Brigadier General Gustavo Javier Valverde's Education: His military training began in the province of Mendoza, where he completed his secondary studies at the General Espejo Military Liceo, located in the Sixth Section. Valverde graduated from that institution in 1984, a step that marked the beginning of his service career. Subsequently, he would consolidate his path by graduating from the Military Aviation School in 1989, which made him a military aviator with a specialization in combat pilot and later allowed him to obtain a degree in Aerial and Aerospace Systems, laying the foundation for his current "highly technical" profile that led him to the top of the Argentine Air Force.
According to official sources, the brigadier is recognized by Milei for "his vast experience in the world of aviation".
This decision makes him the only Chief of Staff of the three Armed Forces (Army, Navy, and Air Force) to remain in his position in the leadership, marking an exception to the total renewal decreed by the libertarian government.
Valverde's continuity — as official sources emphasize — highlights "recognition of his career", but above all his "highly technical" profile within military aviation, which is valued in the current Ministry of Defense management, until a few hours ago led by another Mendoza native, now national deputy for Mendoza Luis Petri.
Valverde's ratification takes place in the context of a national defense restructuring and amidst the search for the modernization of the Armed Forces, especially in flight capability and aerospace control.
