<P> The British Royal Air Force was the first independent air force in the world . The RAF was founded on 1 April 1918 by amalgamation the British Army's Royal Flying Corps and the Royal Naval Air Service . On establishment the RAF comprised over 20,000 aircraft, was commanded by a Chief of the Air Staff who held the rank of major - general and was governed by its own government ministry (the Air Ministry). </P> <P> Arguably, the Finnish Air Force was the first independent air Force in the world, formed on 6 March 1918, when the Swedish count, Eric von Rosen gave Finland the second aircraft, a Thulin Typ D. Some considered that the Finnish Air Force did not officially exist during the Finnish Civil War, and the Red Guards had its own air force . </P> <P> Over the following decades most countries with any substantial military capability established their own independent air forces. The South African Air Force was formed on 1 February 1920 and the Royal Australian Air Force was formed shortly afterwards on 31 March 1921, although it was not until 1922 that the head of the Service was titled as Chief of the Air Staff, placing him on a par with his Australian Army and Navy counterparts . The Canadian Air Force was formed at the end of World War I, and was abolished and reorganized several times between 1918 and 1924 . It became the permanent Royal Canadian Air Force when it received the "Royal" title by royal proclamation on 1 April 1924 . It did not however become independent of the Canadian Army until 1938 when its head was also designated as Chief of the Air Staff . Similarly, the Royal New Zealand Air Force was established in 1923 as the New Zealand Permanent Air Force but did not become independent of the New Zealand Army until 1937 . Other British - influenced countries also established their own independent air forces . For example, the Royal Egyptian Air Force was created in 1937 when Egyptian military aviation was separated from Army command. The Afghan Air Force was established on 22 August 1924, with support of The Soviet Union and great Britain, but the civil war destroyed most of the planes and it wasn't until 1937, when King Mohammed Nadir Shah took power and reestablished the Afghan air Force . </P> <P> Outside of the British Empire, the Finnish Air Force was established as a separate service on 4 May 1928 and the Brazilian Air Force was created in 1941 . Both the United States Air Force and the Philippine Air Force were formed as a separate branches of their respective armed forces in 1947 . The Israeli Air Force came into being with the State of Israel on 18 May 1948, but evolved from the pre-existing Sherut Avir (Air Service) of the Haganah paramilitary . The Japan Air Self - Defense Force was not established until 1954; in World War II Japanese military aviation had been carried out by the Army and Navy . Unlike all these countries, the Mexican Air Force remains an integral part of the Mexican Army . </P>

The fighter force of air force is comprised of