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684_0 | Terrorism in Tajikistan stems largely from the forces of the political opposition who opposed the comprehensive peace agreement that ended the civil war in 1997. President Emomali Rahmonov and UTO leader Said Abdullah Nuri signed the agreement on 27 June, believing it would bring an end to hostilities. However, dissident Islamist militants led by Tohir Yo‘ldosh and Juma Namangani formed the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan in 1998, allying with Al-Qaeda and vowing to unite Central Asia as an Islamic state.
The latest terror attacks took place in the Qabodiyon District on November 6, 2019, when a policeman and a border guard were killed by several Islamic State militants. 15 terroristi were also killed.
Banned terrorist organizations |
684_1 | Prosecutor-General Bobojon Bobokhonov announced on 15 January 2007 that the Tajik Supreme Court added ten entities to the Tajik government's list of banned terrorist organizations at the end of 2006. Groups the Supreme Court added include the Islamic Party of Turkestan, Khaar Dimna and Tochikistoni Ozod.
Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan
Six members of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan and Hizb ut-Tahrir allegedly attacked Kyrgyz and Tajik border posts in Batken on 12 May 2005, killing several border guards. Their hearings on 29 August 2006 were brief because lawyers for two of the defendants and some witnesses did not go to court. One of the defendants is a woman and one is a Tajik citizen. |
684_2 | On 12 May 2006, the anniversary of the 2005 border attack and the Andijan massacre in Uzbekistan, several militants attacked Tajik border guards before passing into Kyrgyzstan, killing three Tajik guards and a Kyrgyz customs official. More than 200 Kyrgyz security forces tracked down the militants, killing four and capturing one while losing four men. Khunoynazar Assozadeh, a spokesman for the Tajik Interior Ministry, gave an initial statement saying that more than six militants of an unknown organization "attacked a border post near the village of Lakkon, which is in the Isfarah district of Tajikistan's Soghd province, from Kyrgyz territory. They shot and killed two of [our] border guards and wounded another. They also seized 19 automatic rifles and one heavy-caliber machine gun before [returning to] Kyrgyzstan and heading toward [Kyrgyzstan's] Batken region." Sadyrbek Dubanayev, deputy commander of Kyrgyz border forces, disagreed with Assozadeh's account, saying, "Right now [12 |
684_3 | p.m., Bishkek time] fighting between those criminals and [our] border guards is continuing. One criminal was killed, and the rest of the group– three or four individuals– are trying to escape toward the mountains." Dubanayev also said militants had attacked Uzbek border guards the night before. The Tajik and Kyrgyz governments later said the militants were members of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan. |
684_4 | Tohir Abdujabbor, an expert based in the Khujand, said Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiyev's shakeup of the government possibly led to the attack. He also said criminal groups had divided the area between each other and may have taken advantage of the situation. Tashtemir Eshaliyev, head of security in the Batken Province, said the militants were from Kanibadam, Sogdh Province whose actions were tied to the anniversary of the Andijan massacre and said they were members of Hizb ut-Tahrir. Qosimshoh Iskandarov, chairman of the Center for the Study and Prevention of Conflicts, a Tajik think tank, said, "Today's attacks could be the work of either Islamic groupings or criminal gangs involved in drug-smuggling operations. I know some people– many, in fact– are suggesting that those events may be the work of secret services or governments in the region. But I don't think government structures are involved." |
684_5 | Tajik Interior Minister Humdin Sharifov told journalists during a press conference in Dushanbe on 17 July that police had arrested 10 IMU members so far that year. Sharifov attributed two bombings in Dushanbe in January and June 2005, an attack on an Interior Ministry building in Qayroqqum in January, and the assassination of a Defense Ministry official to IMU members who trained in Afghanistan and entered Tajikistan through Uzbekistan. He had earlier stated on 17 April that four IMU members were arrested and two more suspects were wanted in connection with the 2005 bombings which killed one person. |
684_6 | Police arrested four suspected IMU members in Soghd Province on 14 July. Security forces raided their homes, finding "laptops with files containing texts of a religious and extremist nature calling for jihad, a DVD with a call for 'holy war,' and extremist literature in the Uzbek language." When seven convicted IMU members were sentenced on 22 May, Sughd prosecutor Abdughaffor Qalandarov said the cell had planned to attack sites in Tajikistan and had links to the late IMU leader Juma Namangani. The seven maintained their innocence and said they were tortured to make them confess. |
684_7 | Mahmadsaid Juraqulov, head of the anti-organized crime department in the Interior Ministry of Tajikistan, told reporters in Dushanbe on 16 October 2006 that the "[Islamic Movement of Turkmenistan] is the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan," and that Uzbek secret services manufactured the change in name. Juraqulov also said that the IMT is not a major security threat to Tajikistan or Kyrgyzstan. "Everyone knows that it is in Uzbekistan that [the IMU] wants to create problems. For them, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan are just regrouping bases they're trying to reach."
2010 bombing
The government blamed the IMU for a suicide car bombing of a police station in Khujand on September 3, 2010. Two policemen were killed and 25 injured.
Hizb ut-Tahrir |
684_8 | Hizb ut-Tahrir activity is primarily in northern Tajikistan near the Fergana Valley. The Tajik government arrested 99 members of Hizb ut-Tahrir in 2005, sixteen of whom were women, and 58 members in 2006. Out of the 92 extremist suspects detained in 2006, 63% were suspected of membership in Hizb ut-Tahrir. The government detained 10% more extremists in 2006 than in 2005. |
684_9 | 2006 |
684_10 | The Khujand city court sentenced ten men, who had called for the government to be overthrown, to jail terms ranging from 9 to 16 years for membership in HuT on 19 May 2006. Two members of HuT in Khujand were sentenced on 7 June to 10 and 13 years in prison and were barred from engaging in public religious activities for five years following their release. Makhmadsaid Jurakulov, Chief of Police in Soghd, announced on 31 July 2006 that police had detained Moghadam Madaliyeva, the suspected leader of Hizb ut-Tahrir's female organization in the north. Tajik police arrested 92 terrorists in 2006, 58 of whom were members of HuT. Russia's Federal Security Service arrested Rustam Muminov, a member of Hizb ut-Tahrir who fought against the Tajik government in the civil war, on 17 October 2006. The FSB deported Muminov to Tashkent, Uzbekistan on 27 October. The FSB said Muminov "participated in military operations and punitive expeditions against supporters of the Tajik president and took part |
684_11 | in the smuggling of weapons, narcotics, and gold into Tajikistan from Afghanistan" during the civil war. The Uzbek government wanted him extradited for his alleged involvement in the 2005 civil unrest in Uzbekistan. |
684_12 | 2007
On 26 January 2007 a Tajik court found HuT member Makhmudzhon Shokirov guilty of "publicly calling for violent change of the constitutional order in Tajikistan" and "inciting ethnic, racial, and religious enmity," sentencing him to ten and a half years imprisonment. Iso Tavakkalov, judge of the Chkalovsk court in northern Tajikistan, told journalists on 5 April that 31-year-old Akmal Akbarov had been found guilty of violating Articles 307, 187, and 189 of the criminal code for his membership in Hizb ut-Tahrir. The court sentenced him to nine years and nine months imprisonment and ordered the state to confiscate his property. Tavakkalov said the court considered Akbarov's apology and his three children when sentencing. |
684_13 | Sughd bunkers
In late 2006 Tajik police found an underground bunker used by militants in the Sughd Region. The police found banned terrorist literature, audio and video tapes advocating terrorism, instructions on bomb manufacture, instructions on the use of Kalashnikov and other arms, and a map of Sughd. Tajik security forces found another bunker, 15 meters long, along with explosives near Isfara, on 29 January 2007. The Sughd region's Prosecutor General office said it believed Militant members of HT, the IMU, and possibly other terrorist organizations targeting the governments of Tajikistan and Uzbekistan used the bunker. Police are interrogating suspects.
Islamic Renaissance Party of Tajikistan
Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant |
684_14 | Two Americans, a Swiss and a Dutch national were killed and two others injured in a terrorist attack in the Danghara district. A car hit the cyclists and then the occupants of the vehicle got out and stabbed them. Four terrorists involved in the attack were later killed by police officers, who were also attacked and injured with knives by the attackers, while another was injured and arrested. Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attack released a video of the five attackers who pledge allegiance to the terror group.
Cooperation with NATO member states
The governments of Tajikistan and the United States plan to hold their first joint counter-terrorism drill from 28 January to 9 March 2007 at the military range in Fakhrabad military training center. United States Marines will train Tajik border guards and Special Forces in counter-terrorism operations. |
684_15 | First Deputy Foreign Minister Saimumin Yatimov said the Tajik government does not have an agreement on the "NATO contingent's presence at the airport of Dushanbe, and the length of their deployment will depend on the stabilization of the situation in Afghanistan. We are part of the Anti-Terrorism Coalition, and stability in Afghanistan is in our country's best interest." There are 200 French troops involved in NATO counter-terrorism operations in Afghanistan. The Tajik government is considering letting the Indian and Russian governments open a second base mutually accessible, in Aini military airfield. An agreement is expected to be reached "with Tajikistan's national and international interests in mind."
Cooperation with SCO member states |
684_16 | Marzbon-2006
Border guards and officials from the defense, interior, and emergencies ministries, migration officials, and counternarcotics officials of the governments of Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and Russia held joint counterterrorism and counternarcotics exercises entitled "Marzbon-2006" on 7–8 August 2006. |
684_17 | Xinjiang terror threat
The Chinese and Kyrgyz governments increased security along their borders with each other and Tajikistan on 11 January 2007 after Chinese government officials expressed concern that "international terrorists" were traveling through Xinjiang and Central Asia to carry out attacks. The warning followed a high-profile raid on a training camp in Akto County, Xinjiang run by East Turkestan Islamic Movement members. General Sadyrbek Dubanayev, deputy chief of Kyrgyzstan's border guards, said, "After the announcement of the special operation by the Chinese side, we briefed everyone [security authorities on the Kyrgyz side] and then Kyrgyzstan and China decided to increase security along the border." |
684_18 | President Rahmonov addressed representatives of SCO member states in St. Petersburg, Russia on 7 June 2002. He warned that the three evils were still a danger to Afghanistan's security and that they are fueled by "hunger, misery and poverty" in addition to drug trafficking. He urged SCO members to support the Afghan government to deter terrorism. He also expressed his support for the establishment of the Regional Anti-Terrorism Structure force.
Yury Baluyevsky, the Chief of the Russian General Staff, asked the chiefs of the General Staffs of Azerbaijan, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Ukraine to unite against "terrorism, cross-border crime and the drug mafia." |
684_19 | The Tajik Defense Ministry held their first joint counterterrorism drill with China, entitled "Cooperation-2006," from 21–23 September 2006 on the Mumirak training grounds, in the Khatlon region, Tajikistan. Defense Ministry spokesman Faridun Muhammadaliev said Chinese special forces worked with Tajik air and land forces with the Tajik army "contributing ground forces artillery, one special forces company of its rapid-reaction-force brigade, and one air forces company." The drill took place under the auspices of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation.
Legislation
Several articles of Tajikistan's Criminal Code bar terrorism and other actions connected to revolutionary activities. Article 307 of the code bans "public calls for overthrow of the constitutional regime of the Republic of Tajikistan." Article 187 forbids "organizing a criminal organization." Article 189 prohibits "inciting ethnic, communal or religious hatred."
See also
List of journalists killed in Tajikistan |
684_20 | References
External links
Tajikistan
Human rights abuses in Tajikistan |
685_0 | Tau Epsilon Phi (), commonly known as TEP or Tep, is an American fraternity with 13 active chapters, 6 active colonies, and 10 official alumni associations chiefly located at universities and colleges on the East Coast. The national headquarters is located in Troy, New York, and the official colors of the organization are lavender and white (although most chapters use purple instead of lavender).
Ideals
The organization's creed asserts its governing ideals as "friendship, chivalry, service." TEP attracts and accepts brothers of all religions and ethnicities who agree to be bound by these ideals. Chapters uphold these ideals through participation in various social, academic, athletic and charity events. |
685_1 | History
The organization was founded on October 10, 1910 by ten Jewish men at Columbia University, as a response to the existence of similar organizations which would not admit Jewish members. The first pledge, Maximillian Nemser, was initiated in 1911 and, in 1912, the first new chapter was founded at New York University. Continued expansion led to the adoption of a national constitution in 1916.
In 1920, the opening of a chapter at McGill University in Canada's then-largest city, Montreal, made ΤΕΦ an international fraternity. The McGill chapter has since been disbanded. The oldest remaining chapter, as of 2015, is the Nu chapter at University of Georgia. Beginning in 1923, the organization has published a nationally distributed magazine, The Plume. |
685_2 | ΤΕΦ began as exclusively Jewish, but began admitting non-Jewish members (predominantly Catholics) in the 1950s. President Dwight D. Eisenhower was inducted as an honorary member during his administration. Washington, D.C. mayor Vincent C. Gray was the first black member of Tau Epsilon Phi and was elected president of his local chapter for two consecutive terms. |
685_3 | In 1986, Sidney Suntag, who served as Executive Secretary from 1946 to 1979, published the book The History of Tau Epsilon Phi: 75 Years of Friendship 1910–1985, recounting the national history of the fraternity. |
685_4 | In September 2010, a group of fraternity members called “TEPs for Justice” filed a civil lawsuit against the national Tau Epsilon Phi organization. The plaintiffs alleged that the national executive director and board of directors had been operating the fraternity for personal financial gain and that they drove chapters away by making unreasonable financial demands on them (the fraternity had shrunk from 42 active chapters in 1999 to just 13 in 2010). They further argued that the executive director failed to hold elections for the position for over 10 years, even though the fraternity's constitution required it biennially. The executive director stated that elections could not take place because none of the chapters were in good standing due to failure to pay dues, and thus there was no one who could legitimately vote. While the judge in the case ordered a new election overseen by an independent party, that order was automatically stayed after the national organization filed for |
685_5 | Chapter 7 bankruptcy in January 2011. In May 2011, all allegations were rescinded, the parties settled all outstanding cases and the fraternity agreed to hold new national elections. |
685_6 | After the new national elections, Tau Epsilon Phi went on to continue its operations from a new beginning. The fraternity was now back in the control of the brotherhood of Tau Epsilon Phi and progress was made in its expansions efforts. In 2013 the fraternity established the Alpha Tau colony at Rowan University that became its first chapter since 1996. Following the success of the group the national organization re-established groups at University of Maryland, Rutgers University-New Brunswick and the University of Buffalo. Tau Epsilon Phi has since reorganized its leadership structure and began the process of hiring staff after the 2016 Grand Council term. |
685_7 | In 2018 Tau Epsilon Phi hired a new Executive Director and re-established its staff to its chapters and colonies. Since then, the fraternity has continued to hold its biennial elections and hired a Chapter Services Consultant and Expansion Consultant. Tau Epsilon Phi is currently focused on expansion efforts to re-establish its presence at its previous campuses where it has had previous history as well as exploring new campus opportunities.
Organization
Grand Chapter
As of October 25, 1997, the Constitution of Tau Epsilon Phi required that a Grand Chapter meeting be held every two years. The Grand Chapter consists of delegates from each local undergraduate and alumni chapter. The Grand Chapter serves as the supreme legislature with sole responsibility for electing the Grand Council. The Grand Chapter, while in session, also serves as TEP’s Board of Directors, authorizing or approving all fraternity business, including any modifications to the Constitution and Statutory Code. |
685_8 | Chapters
Notable alumni
Some notable alumni:
Arts and entertainment:
Jeff Altman – stand-up comedian
Howard Benson – Grammy-winning music producer and multi-instrumentalist
Larry David – actor, writer, comedian, and television producer
David Duchovny – actor, writer and director
Mat Franco – entertainer, magician, winner of Season 09 of America's Got Talent
Benny Goodman – musician and bandleader
Larry King – TV and radio host
Gary Kott – writer and supervising producer of The Cosby Show, Kott worked on the program during its five consecutive years of number one Nielsen ratings.
Harold Rome - Tin Pan Alley and Broadway songwriter
Ed Sabol – filmmaker, founder of NFL Films
Robert Sherman – songwriter
Jerry Springer – TV and radio host
George Stephanopoulos – TV journalist
Marc Turtletaub – movie producer
Joseph Wapner – judge, The People's Court |
685_9 | Sports and athletics:
Red Auerbach – general manager, Boston Celtics
Bryan Clark – professional wrestler
Jared Ross – professional hockey player
Eddie Fogler – college basketball coach
Howie Roseman – general manager, Philadelphia Eagles
Jedd Fisch – offensive coordinator, Michigan Wolverines
Bob Vogel - college and professional football player Ohio State University Buckeyes and Baltimore Colts
Neal Walk - college and professional basketball player University of Florida and various NBA teams |
685_10 | Politics and government:
Omar Bradley – General of the Army and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (accepted honorary membership)
Dwight D. Eisenhower – 34th President of the United States (accepted honorary membership)
Kenneth A. Gottlieb, representative in the House of Representatives of Florida
Vincent C. Gray – mayor, Washington, D.C.
Louis Harris – founder, Harris Poll
Irving R. Kaufman – judge, United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
Rick Kriseman - Mayor, St. Petersburg, Florida
Elliott H. Levitas – U.S. Representative, Georgia's 4th congressional district
Marvin Mandel – governor, Maryland
David Saperstein - United States Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom, the first non-Christian to hold this office.
Melvin Steinberg – fifth Lieutenant Governor of Maryland
Kirill Reznik – state delegate, Maryland House of Delegates
Michael S. Steele – lieutenant governor, Maryland and Chairman, Republican National Committee |
685_11 | Rick Santorum – U.S. Senator, Pennsylvania
Leo M. Gordon – judge, United States Court of International Trade
Robert C. Wright - Pennsylvania State Representative and judge Delaware County Court of Common Pleas |
685_12 | Business, science, and engineering:
Max Abramovitz – architect
Sir Cary Cooper CBE - Professor and renowned British psychologist, President of the British Academy of Management, President of Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development
Samuel J. LeFrak – chairman, LeFrak Corporation
Jonas Salk – discoverer of polio vaccine
Raymond Kurzweil – author and inventor
Harris Rosen - hotelier, investor, and businessman. Founder of the Rosen Hotels & Resorts
Bernard Siegel – director, Genetics Policy Institute
Chad Trujillo – astronomer and co-discoverer of 12 trans-Neptunian objects, including Eris
Neil Woodward – American Naval officer and a former NASA astronaut
David S. Salomon, Phd. – Breast Cancer Researcher, Cancer gene discoverer.
Other:
Guy Fulton – Architect
Mike Sager – Bestselling author and award-winning journalist
See also
List of social fraternities and sororities
List of Jewish fraternities and sororities
References
External links
Official website |
685_13 | Historically Jewish fraternities and sororities in the United States
North American Interfraternity Conference
Student organizations established in 1910
Student societies in the United States
1910 establishments in New York City |
686_0 | The Westland Whirlwind was a British twin-engined heavy fighter developed by Westland Aircraft. A contemporary of the Supermarine Spitfire and Hawker Hurricane, it was the first single-seat, twin-engined, cannon-armed fighter of the Royal Air Force.
When it first flew in 1938, the Whirlwind was one of the fastest combat aircraft in the world and with four Hispano-Suiza HS.404 20 mm autocannon in its nose, the most heavily armed. Protracted development problems with its Rolls-Royce Peregrine engines delayed the project and only 114 Whirlwinds were built. During the Second World War, only three RAF squadrons were equipped with the aircraft but, despite its success as a fighter and ground attack aircraft, it was withdrawn from service in 1943.
Design and development |
686_1 | By the mid-1930s, aircraft designers around the world perceived that increased attack speeds were imposing shorter firing times on fighter pilots. This implied less ammunition hitting the target and ensuring destruction. Instead of two rifle-calibre machine guns, six or eight were required; studies had shown that eight machine guns could deliver 256 rounds per second. The eight machine guns installed in the Hurricane fired rifle-calibre rounds, which did not deliver enough damage to quickly knock out an opponent, and were dispersed at ranges other than that at which they were harmonised. Cannon, such as the French 20 mm Hispano-Suiza HS.404, which could fire explosive ammunition, offered more firepower and attention turned to aircraft designs which could carry four cannon. While the most agile fighter aircraft were generally small and light, their meagre fuel capacity limited their range and tended to restrict them to defensive and interception roles. The larger airframes and bigger |
686_2 | fuel loads of twin-engined designs were favoured for long-range, offensive roles. |
686_3 | The first British specification for a high-performance machine-gun monoplane was F.5/34 but the aircraft produced were overtaken by the development of the new Hawker and Supermarine fighters. The RAF Air Staff thought that an experimental aircraft armed with the 20 mm cannon was needed urgently and Air Ministry specification F.37/35 was issued in 1935. The specification called for a single-seat day and night fighter armed with four cannon. The top speed had to be at least greater than that of contemporary bombers – at least at . |
686_4 | Eight aircraft designs from five companies were submitted in response to the specification. Boulton Paul offered the P.88A and P.88B (two related single engine designs differing in engine: Hercules radial or Vulture in-line), Bristol the single-engined Type 153 with cannon in wings and the twin-engined Type 153A with cannon in nose. Hawker offered a variant of the Hurricane, the Supermarine Type 312 was a variant of Spitfire and the Supermarine Type 313 a twin-engined (RR Goshawk or Hispano 12Y) design with four guns in the nose and potentially a further two firing through the propeller hubs if the 12T was used, the Westland P.9 had two Rolls-Royce Kestrel K.26 engines and a twin tail. |
686_5 | When the designs were considered in May 1936, there was concern that on the one hand a two engine design would be less manoeuvrable than a single-engined design and on the other that uneven recoil from cannon set in the wings would give less accurate fire. The conference favoured two engines with the cannon set in the nose and recommended the Supermarine 313. Although Supermarine's efforts were favoured due to their success with fast aircraft and the promise of the Spitfire which was undergoing trials, neither they nor Hawker were in a position to deliver a modified version of their single-engined designs quickly enough - over two years for Supermarine. Westland, which had less work and was further advanced in their project, was chosen along with the P.88 and the Type 313 for construction. A contract for two P.9s was placed in February 1937 which were expected to be flying in mid-1938. The P.88s were ordered in December along with a Supermarine design to F37/35 but both were cancelled |
686_6 | in January. |
686_7 | The Westland design team, under the new leadership of W. E. W. "Teddy" Petter designed an aircraft that employed state-of-the-art technology. The monocoque fuselage was tubular, with a T-tail at the end, although as originally conceived, the design featured a twin tail, which was discarded when large Fowler flaps were added that caused large areas of turbulence over the tail unit. By the employment of the T-tail, the elevator was moved up out of the way of the disturbed airflow caused when the flaps were down. Handley Page slats were fitted to the outer wings and to the leading edge of the radiator openings; these were interconnected by duraluminium torque tubes. In June 1941, the slats were wired shut on the recommendation of the Chief Investigator of the Accident Investigation Branch, after two Whirlwinds crashed when the outer slats failed during vigorous manœuvres; tests by the Aeroplane and Armament Experimental Establishment (A&AEE) confirmed that the Whirlwind's take-off and |
686_8 | landing was largely unaffected with the slats locked shut, while the flight characteristics improved under the conditions in which the slats normally deployed. |
686_9 | The engines were developments of the Rolls-Royce Kestrel K.26, later renamed Peregrine. The first prototype, L6844, used long exhaust ducts that were channelled through the wings and fuel tanks, exiting at the wing's trailing edge. This configuration was quickly changed to more conventional, external exhausts after Westland's Chief test pilot Harald Penrose nearly lost control when an exhaust duct broke and heat-fractured an aileron control rod. The engines were cooled by ducted radiators, which were set into the leading edges of the wing centre-sections to reduce drag. The airframe was built mainly of stressed-skin duralumin, with the exception of the rear-fuselage, which used a magnesium alloy stressed skin. With the pilot sitting high under one of the world's first full bubble canopies and the low and forward location of the wing, all round visibility was good (except for directly over the nose). Four 20 mm cannon were mounted in the nose; the 600 lb/minute fire rate made it the |
686_10 | most heavily armed fighter aircraft of its era. The clustering of the weapons also meant that there were no convergence problems as with wing-mounted guns. Hopes were so high for the design that it remained top secret for much of its development, although it had already been mentioned in the French press. |
686_11 | L6844 first flew on 11 October 1938, construction having been delayed chiefly due to the new features and also because of the late delivery of the engines and undercarriage. L6844 was passed to RAE Farnborough at the end of the year, while further service trials were later carried out at Martlesham Heath. The Whirlwind exhibited excellent handling characteristics and proved to be very easy to fly at all speeds. The only exception was the inadequate directional control during take-off which necessitated an increased rudder area above the tailplane. |
686_12 | The Whirlwind was quite small, only slightly larger than the Hurricane but with a smaller frontal area. The landing gear was fully retractable and the entire aircraft had a very clean finish with few openings or protuberances. Radiators were in the leading edge on the inner wings rather than below the engines, which contributed to the overheating problems.. This careful attention to streamlining and two Peregrine engines powered it to over 360 mph (580 km/h), the same speed as the latest single-engine fighters. The aircraft had short range, under combat radius, which made it as marginal as an escort as the Hurricane and Spitfire. The first deliveries of Peregrine engines did not reach Westland until January 1940. |
686_13 | By late 1940, the Supermarine Spitfire was scheduled to mount 20 mm cannon so the "cannon-armed" requirement was being met and by this time, the role of escort fighters was becoming less important as RAF Bomber Command turned to night flying. The main qualities the RAF were looking for in a twin-engine fighter were range and carrying capacity (to allow the large radar apparatus of the time to be carried), in which requirements the Bristol Beaufighter could perform just as well as or even better than the Whirlwind. |
686_14 | Production orders were contingent on the success of the test programme; although ACAS was impressed by the design the highly experimental design needed careful examination Delays caused by over 250 modifications to the two prototypes led to an initial production order for 200 aircraft being held up until January 1939, followed by a second order for a similar number, deliveries to fighter squadrons being scheduled to begin in September 1940. Earlier, due to the lower expected production at Westland, there had been suggestions that production should be by other firms (Fairey or Hawker) and an early 1939 plan to build 800 of them at the Castle Bromwich factory was dropped in favour of Spitfire production; instead a further 200 would be built by Westland. |
686_15 | Despite the Whirlwind's promise, production ended in January 1942, after the completion of just 112 production aircraft (plus the two prototypes). Rolls-Royce needed to concentrate on the development and production of the Merlin engine, and the troubled Vulture, rather than the Peregrine. Westland was aware that its design – which had been built around the Peregrine – was incapable of using anything larger without an extensive redesign. After the cancellation of the Whirlwind, Petter campaigned for the development of a Whirlwind Mk II, which was to have been powered by an improved Peregrine, with a better, higher-altitude supercharger, also using 100 octane fuel, with an increased boost rating.This proposal was aborted when Rolls-Royce cancelled work on the Peregrine. Building a Whirlwind consumed three times as much alloy as a Spitfire.
Operational history |
686_16 | Many pilots who flew the Whirlwind praised its performance. Sergeant G. L. Buckwell of 263 Squadron, who was shot down in a Whirlwind over Cherbourg, later commented that the Whirlwind was "great to fly – we were a privileged few... In retrospect the lesson of the Whirlwind is clear... A radical aircraft requires either prolonged development or widespread service to exploit its concept and eliminate its weaknesses. Too often in World War II, such aircraft suffered accelerated development or limited service, with the result that teething difficulties came to be regarded as permanent limitations". Another 263 Squadron pilot said "It was regarded with absolute confidence and affection". By comparison the test pilot Eric Brown described the aircraft as "under-powered" and "a great disappointment". |
686_17 | An aspect of the type often criticised was the high landing speed imposed by the wing design. Because of the low production level, based on the number of Peregrines available, no redesign of the wing was contemplated, although Westland did test the effectiveness of leading-edge slats to reduce speeds. When the slats were activated with such force that they were ripped off the wings, the slats were wired shut. |
686_18 | As the performance of the Peregrine engines fell off at altitude, the Whirlwind was most often used in ground-attack missions over France, attacking German airfields, marshalling yards, and railway traffic. The Whirlwind was used to particularly good effect as a gun platform for destroying locomotives. Some pilots were credited with several trains damaged or destroyed in a mission. The aircraft was also successful in hunting and destroying German E-boats which operated in the English Channel. At lower altitudes, it could hold its own against the Messerschmitt Bf 109. Though the Peregrine was a much-maligned powerplant, it was more reliable than the troublesome Napier Sabre engine used in the Hawker Typhoon, the Whirlwind's successor. The twin engines meant that seriously damaged aircraft were able to return with one engine knocked out. The placement of the wings and engines ahead of the cockpit allowed the aircraft to absorb a great deal of damage, while the cockpit area remained |
686_19 | largely intact. The rugged frame of the Whirlwind gave pilots greater protection than contemporary aircraft during crash landings and ground accidents. According to P. J. R. Moyes: |
686_20 | The first Whirlwinds went to 25 Squadron based at North Weald. The squadron was fully equipped with radar-equipped Bristol Blenheim IF night fighters when Squadron Leader K. A. K. MacEwen flew prototype Whirlwind L6845 from Boscombe Down to North Weald on 30 May 1940. The following day it was flown and inspected by four of the squadron's pilots and the next day was inspected by the Secretary of State for Air, Sir Archibald Sinclair and Lord Trenchard. The first two production Whirlwinds were delivered in June to 25 Squadron for night-flying trials. It was then decided to re-equip 25 Squadron with the two-seat Bristol Beaufighter night fighter, as it was already an operational night fighter squadron. |
686_21 | The first Whirlwind squadron would be 263 Squadron, which was reforming at Grangemouth, after disastrous losses in the Norwegian Campaign. The first production Whirlwind was delivered to 263 Squadron by its commander, Squadron Leader H. Eeles on 6 July. Deliveries were slow, with only five on strength with 263 Squadron on 17 August 1940 and none serviceable. (The squadron supplemented its strength with Hawker Hurricanes to allow the squadron's pilots to fly in the meantime.) Despite the Battle of Britain and the consequent urgent need for fighters, 263 Squadron remained in Scotland, Air Chief Marshal Hugh Dowding, in charge of RAF Fighter Command, stated on 17 October that 263 could not be deployed to the south because "there was no room for 'passengers' in that part of the world". |
686_22 | The first Whirlwind was written off on 7 August when Pilot Officer McDermott had a tyre blow out while taking off in P6966. In spite of this he managed to get the aircraft airborne. Flying Control advised him of the dangerous condition of his undercarriage. PO McDermott bailed out of the aircraft between Grangemouth and Stirling. The aircraft dived in and buried itself eight feet into the ground. On recent inspection of the salvaged wreck of P6966, it was noticed that the defective tyre fitted was not of the correct size for a Whirlwind. Instead, it was the correct size for a Hurricane which 263 Squadron was also flying. |
686_23 | No. 263 Squadron moved south to RAF Exeter and was declared operational with the Whirlwind on 7 December 1940. Initial operations consisted of convoy patrols and anti E-boat missions. The Whirlwind's first confirmed kill occurred on 8 February 1941, when an Arado Ar 196 floatplane was shot down; the Whirlwind responsible also crashed into the sea and the pilot was killed. From then on the squadron was to have considerable success with the Whirlwind while flying against enemy Junkers Ju 88s, Dornier Do 217s, Messerschmitt Bf 109s and Focke-Wulf Fw 190s.
263 Squadron also occasionally carried out day bomber escort missions with the Whirlwinds. One example was when they formed part of the escort of 54 Blenheims on a low-level raid against power stations near Cologne on 12 August 1941; owing to the relatively short range of the escorts, including the Whirlwinds, the fighters turned back near Antwerp, with the bombers continuing on without escort. Ten Blenheims were lost. |
686_24 | The squadron mostly flew low-level attack sorties across the channel ("Rhubarbs" against ground targets and "Roadstead" attacks against shipping). The Whirlwind proved a match for German fighters at low level, as demonstrated on 6 August 1941, when four Whirlwinds on an anti-shipping strike were intercepted by a large formation of Messerschmitt Bf 109s and claimed three Bf 109s destroyed for no losses. A second Whirlwind squadron, 137, formed in September 1941, specialising in attacks against railway targets. In the summer of 1942, both squadrons were fitted with racks to carry two bombs, and nicknamed Whirlibombers. These undertook low-level cross-channel "Rhubarb" sweeps, attacking locomotives, bridges, shipping and other targets. |
686_25 | The worst losses of 137 Squadron occurred on 12 February 1942 during the Channel Dash, when they were sent to escort five British destroyers, unaware of the escaping German warships Scharnhorst and Gneisenau. Four Whirlwinds took off at 13:10 hours and soon sighted warships through the clouds about from the Belgian coast. They descended to investigate and were immediately jumped by about 20 Bf 109s of Jagdgeschwader 2. The Whirlwinds shot at anything in their sights but were heavily outnumbered. While this was happening, at 13:40, two more Whirlwinds were sent up to relieve the first four and two more Whirlwinds took off at 14:25; four of the eight Whirlwinds failed to return. |
686_26 | From 24 October until 26 November 1943, Whirlwinds of 263 Squadron made several heavy attacks against the German blockade runner Münsterland, in dry dock at Cherbourg. As many as 12 Whirlwinds participated at a time in dive bombing attacks carried out from using bombs. The attacks were met by very heavy anti-aircraft fire but virtually all bombs fell within of the target; only one Whirlwind was lost during the attacks.
The last Whirlwind mission to be flown by 137 Squadron was on 21 June 1943, when five Whirlwinds took off on a "Rhubarb" attack against the German airfield at Poix. P6993 was unable to locate the target and instead bombed a supply train north of Rue. While returning, the starboard throttle jammed in the fully open position and the engine eventually lost power. It made a forced landing in a field next to RAF Manston but the aircraft was a write-off, although, as in many other crash landings in the type, the pilot walked away unhurt. |
686_27 | No. 263 Squadron, the first and last squadron to operate the Whirlwind, flew its last Whirlwind mission on 29 November 1943, turning in their aeroplanes and converting to the Hawker Typhoon in December that year. On 1 January 1944, the type was declared obsolete. The remaining serviceable aircraft were transferred to No. 18 Maintenance Unit, while those undergoing repairs or overhaul were allowed to be repaired only if they were in near-flyable condition. An official letter forbade aircraft needing repair to be worked on.
[[File:Whirlwind Mk I, 263 Sqn Exeter, in flight over West Country.jpg|thumb|P6969 'HE-V of 263 in flight over the West Country]]
The aircraft was summed up by Francis Mason as follows: |
686_28 | VariantsP.9 prototypeSingle-seat twin-engine fighter aircraft prototype. Two built (L6844 and L6845), can be distinguished from later production samples by the mudguards above the wheels (Though the first production sample (P6966) had them as well), the exhaust system and the so-called 'acorn' on the joint between fin and rudder. L6844 had a distinctive downward kink to the front of its pitot tube, atop the tail not seen again in following models. L6844's colour was dark grey. L6844 had opposite-rotation engines, L6845 had the same rotation engines as per production machines.Whirlwind ISingle-seat twin-engine fighter aircraft, 400 ordered, 2 prototypes were built and 114 productions were built, 116 were built.Whirlwind IISingle-seat twin-engine fighter-bomber aircraft, fitted with underwing bomb racks, were nicknamed "Whirlibombers". At least 67 conversions made from the original Mk I fighter.Experimental variantsA Mk I Whirlwind was tested as a night fighter in 1940 with No. 25 |
686_29 | Squadron. |
686_30 | The first prototype was armed with an experimental twelve 0.303 (7.7 mm) machine guns and another one 37 mm cannon.Green 1961, p. 125.Merlin variantWestland proposed fitting Merlin engines in a letter to Air Marshal Sholto Douglas. The proposal was rejected but Westland used the design work already performed in developing the Welkin high-altitude fighter. |
686_31 | Operators Royal Air Force
No. 25 Squadron RAF tested three aircraft between May and July 1940. (might have carried code letters "ZK")
No. 263 Squadron RAF operated Whirlwinds between July 1940 and December 1943. Aircraft had applied the squadron's "HE" code letters.
No. 137 Squadron RAF operated Whirlwinds between September 1941 and June 1943. Aircraft had applied the squadron's "SF" code letters.US Navy'''
One aircraft P6994 was sent to the US for trials in June 1942 and survived there until at least late 1944.
Survivors
After retirement in December 1943, all but one of the surviving Whirlwinds were sent to No. 18 Maintenance Unit RAF at Dumfries, Scotland, where they were scrapped. P7048 was retained by Westland and was granted a civil certificate of airworthiness on 10 October 1946, with the registration G-AGOI. It was used as a company hack for a short time before being withdrawn in 1947 and scrapped.Buttler 2002, p. 16. |
686_32 | In October 1979, the remains of Whirlwind P6966, the first Whirlwind to be lost, were recovered near Grangemouth by enthusiasts in a dig group. The two Peregrine engines were recovered, as well as many pieces of the airframe.
The Whirlwind Fighter Project began building a full-scale replica Whirlwind in 2011–2012, with the intention to have it built in approximately four years though dependent on the volunteers and funding.
Plans for a 2/3 scale replica were marketed for home building in the late 1970s and early 1980s as the Butterworth Westland Whirlwind.
Specifications (Whirlwind I)
See also
References
Notes
Citations |
686_33 | Bibliography
Air Ministry. Pilot's Notes: The Whirlwind I Aeroplane, Two Peregrine I Engines. Air Publication 1709A. London, UK: Air Ministry, June 1940.
Bingham, Victor. Whirlwind, The Westland Whirlwind Fighter. Shrewsbury, UK: Airlife Publishing Ltd., 1987. .
Buttler, Tony. British Secret Projects: Fighters and Bombers 1935–1950. Earl Shilton, Leicester, UK: Midland, 2004. .
Buttler, Tony. "Reap The Whirlwind: Britain's Pioneer Cannon Fighter". Air Enthusiast. No. 99, May/June 2002, pp. 2–16. .
Cordury, Niall. Whirlwind; Westland's Enigmatic Fighter. Stroud, UK: Fonthill Media Limited, 2013.
Franks, Richard A. The Westland Whirlwind: A Detailed Guide to the RAF's Twin-engine Fighter (Airframe Album 4). Bedford, UK: Valiant Wings Publishing, 2014.
Green, William, ed. "Foremost with Four Cannon." Flying Review International, Volume 19, No. 7, April 1964.
Green, William. Warplanes of the Second World War, Fighters, Vol. 2. London: Macdonald, 1961. |
686_34 | Heffernan, Terry. "Something Special from Somerset – Part 2". Aeroplane Monthly. Vol. 13, No. 2, February 1985, pp. 60–64. .
James, Derek N. Westland Aircraft since 1915. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1991. .
James, Derek N. "Westland's Double Trouble" (Database). Aeroplane, Vol. 34, No. 5, May 2006, pp. 60–73. .
Mason, Francis K. Royal Air Force Fighters of World War Two, Volume One. Windsor, Berkshire, UK: Hylton Lacy Publishers Ltd., 1969.
Meekoms, K. J. and E. B Morgan. The British Aircraft Specifications File: British Military and Commercial Aircraft Specifications 1920–1949. Tonbridge, Kent, UK: Air-Britain (Historians) Ltd., 1994.
Moyes, Philip J.R. Westland Whirlwind (Profile No. 191). London: Profile Publications, 1967.
Price, Alfred. "The Vortex from Yeovil: The Story of the Westland Whirlwind Fighter". Air International. Vol. 48 No. 3, March 1995, pp. 157–164. . |
686_35 | Richards, Denis. The Hardest Victory: RAF Bomber Command in the Second World War. London: Coronet, 1995. . |
686_36 | Robertson, Bruce. Westland Whirlwind Described. Dandenong, Victoria, Australia: Kookaburra Technical Publications, 1970.
Taylor, John W. R. Jane's All The World's Aircraft 1982–83. London: Jane's Yearbooks, 1982. |
686_37 | Further reading
Crawford, Alex and Phil H. Listemann. "Westland Whirlwind Mk.I." (Allied Wings No.4). London: Casemate Pub & Book Dist. Llc, 2008.
Green, William and Gordon Swanborough. WW2 Aircraft Fact Files – RAF Fighters, Part 3. London: Jane's, 1981.
Hall, Alan W. Westland Whirlwind F.Mk.I (Warpaint Series no.54). Luton, Berfordshire, UK: Warpaint Books, 2006. No ISBN.
James, Derek N. Westland (Images of England). Gloucestershire, UK: Tempus Publishing Ltd., 1997.
James, Derek N. Westland: A History. Gloucestershire, UK: Tempus Publishing Ltd., 2002.
Mondey, David. Westland (Planemakers 2). London: Jane's Publishing Company, 1982.
Morgan, Eric B. "Westland P.9 Whirlwind." Twentyfirst Profile, Vol. 2, No. 14. New Milton, Hertfordshire, UK: 21st Profile Ltd.
Ovcácík, Michal and Karel Susa. Westland Whirlwind: Mk.I Fighter, Mk.I fighter-bomber. Prague, Czech Republic: Mark 1 Ltd., 2002. |
686_38 | Taylor, John W.R. "Westland Whirlwind" Combat Aircraft of the World from 1909 to the Present. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1969. |
686_39 | External links
The Westland Whirlwind Flight 5 March 1942
"Flying Arsenal Pace Bombers on Raids." Popular Science, June 1942, p. 65.
colour profiles
Aircraft Types and their Characteristics – Whirlwind Flight'' 18 June 1942
Whirlwind Fighter Project
1930s British fighter aircraft
Whirlwind (Fighter)
Low-wing aircraft
Cruciform tail aircraft
Twin piston-engined tractor aircraft
Aircraft first flown in 1938 |
687_0 | The Brazilian telephone numbering plan uses a two-digit area code plus eight-digit local phone numbers for landlines and nine digits for mobile lines. Public utility services use short phone numbers (usually three digits), always starting with 1.
Local dialing
As established by ANATEL, the Brazilian federal telecommunications regulatory agency, the format for a local phone number is nnnn-nnnn (eight digits) for landlines, and nnnnn-nnnn (nine digits) for mobile lines. The first digits of the local number identify the service associated with the phone number:
1: special short public utility numbers (see below)
2 to 5: landlines
6 to 8: Unused (iDEN was disestablished in 2018)
91000 to 99999: mobile phones |
687_1 | 0 is reserved for long-distance calls and cannot be used as a local initial digit (see below). 901 to 909 have been reserved for automated system of national collect calls (see below) since 1982 and cannot be used a local initial digits. 900 was used to premium-rate telephone numbers in the 1990s, but is not in use now. |
687_2 | Until the 1990s, there were also certain regions in São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Paraná, Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul with three-digit area codes and five (n-nnnn) or six-digit (nn-nnnn) phone numbers. In the city of São Paulo, although the area code has two digits, there were still six-digit telephone in use; 3X-nnnn phone numbers (with X=4 to 7) changed to 60X-nnnn and then to 310X-nnnn, 9X-nnnn phone numbers (with X=2 or 3) changed to 69X-nnnn and then to 669X-nnnn (today 269X-nnnn), and 6n-nnnn phone numbers which were changed directly to the eight-digit format (nnnn-nnnn) at that time. Even shorter numbers used to exist in previous decades, especially in small towns and before direct distance dialing became universal. |
687_3 | In the late 1990s, the 7-digit telephone numbers beginning with 9 in the area of DDD 11 also had their prefixes changed, and their numbers were replaced by prefixes beginning with 69 (now 29) or 64 (now 24) in the cities of São Paulo and Guarulhos respectively.
Landlines using prefixes beginning with 8 and 7 had their prefixes changed in 2000 and 2001 respectively for 8-digit numbers, and new area codes 22, 28, 64, 66, 87, 88, 89, 93, 94, 97 and 99 are included at this time.
Until 2005, some localities still used seven-digit local numbers (nnn-nnnn), such numbers being changed to eight digits (nnnn-nnnn).
Except in the case of the states of São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, the numbers of 7-digit landlines were given the number 3 preceding the old number, and the numbers of 7-digit mobile phones were given the number 9 preceding old number between late 90's until the inclusion of the ninth digit. |
687_4 | In the state of Rio de Janeiro, only the 7-digit numbers beginning with 3 and 8 received the 3 preceding the old number, while the other numbers received the number 2 preceding the old number.
In the interior and litoral of the state of São Paulo, in many cases the old prefix of 7-digit numbers have been completely changed, but this numbers standardized with an 8-digit number starting at 3 in landlines and 9 in mobiles until the inclusion of the ninth digit.
In the Greater São Paulo and neighborhood cities using DDD 11, the cities today uses numbers initializing with 2, 3, 4 or 5, with the prefixes started in 2 are used mainly in São Paulo and Guarulhos, started in 3 mainly in São Paulo and Osasco, started in 4 used mainly in the metropolitan region and started in 5 used exclusively in numbers allocated to the city of São Paulo. |
687_5 | Numbers beginning with 8 are reserved for mobile phones and numbers beginning with 7 after change of prefixes started for this number in 2001 were initially reserved for trunking, however they were later also intended for mobile phones.
Until 2008, the initial digit 6 was used for landlines in some parts of São Paulo and neighbouring cities in area code 11, but Anatel required that 6 be released for mobile use. Fixed-line numbers starting with 6 in that area were gradually changed during 2008 to new prefixes starting with 2. In other areas of Brazil, the initial digit 6 was not in use at that time, so no change was necessary because at this time landlines used prefixes beginning with 2, 3 or 4 outside the Greater São Paulo region. |
687_6 | Today, landline numbers usually use the number 3 at the beginning of the number. The use of the initial digit 2 is occasional except in Greater São Paulo and the state of Rio de Janeiro. The use of initial digit 4 is also occasional except in Greater São Paulo and digit 5 is only used in São Paulo, despite Anatel's plans to allocate part of the prefixes started by such digit to rural landlines.
Numbers starting with 300n and 400n are reserved for a special case of non-geographic numbers (see below).
Numbers starting with 1500 and 1700 are used by some Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to provide dial-up Internet access. Those ISPs have special pricing agreements with local landline operators and customers are charged less than the price of regular local calls when calling such dial-up access numbers. |
687_7 | Local directory assistance can be obtained by dialing 102, but the service is charged as a regular local call in most instances except from payphones. However, all local landline telephone companies offer on-line directory inquiries on their Web sites. Mobile lines are not available for inquiry, for privacy and security reasons.
Mobile telephony
Mobile phone numbers in Brazil are assigned the same geographic area codes as fixed lines, according to the subscriber's place of residence or most frequent use. Until the inclusion of the ninth digit, mobile phone numbers start with the digits 6, 7, 8 or 9. These initial digits are known to the public, so one always knows beforehand if one is calling a fixed or a mobile line. |
687_8 | After replacing the landline numbers that started in 7 in 2001 (with 7 or 8-digits in Greater São Paulo and 7-digits in other regions), these numbers were initially reserved exclusively for radiophone use (iDEN technology), but soaring demand for new mobile numbers eventually forced unused number ranges starting with 7 to be released for general mobile use.
Historically, at the time mobile numbers had seven or eight digits, the higher ranges of the 9 initial digit (96-99) were originally assigned to the old state monopolies before the privatization of Brazil's telephony system, and later to their privatized direct successors. In order to create a competitive market, later the Brazilian government auctioned further mobile service licenses, filling the available number ranges backwards - first with the lower ranges of 9 (91-95), then 8, and so on. |
687_9 | As a consequence, in the beginning 9 (today 99) was more commonly assigned to mobile operators that used older technologies such as AMPS (analog), TDMA and CDMA, while for some time 8 (today 98) was specifically reserved for all new GSM licenses. Now GSM is universally adopted by Brazilian mobile operators and, combined with number portability and the inclusion of a ninth digit to the left (see below), this distinction is no longer observed or meaningful.
Ninth digit for mobile numbers
Brazilian mobile phone numbers always have nine digits now, but seven digits were usual in the first years, then eight digits became the standard for several years. The last area code to convert fully from seven to eight digits was 61 (comprising the national capital city, Brasília, and neighbouring areas), in 2005. |
687_10 | However, the popularity of multiple-SIM mobile phones in Brazil makes the country have more active mobile lines than inhabitants (as of November 2016, 248 million vs. 206 million), and by 2010 the country's most populous and economically important area code, 11 of metropolitan São Paulo (an area where over 20 million people live), was getting close to exhausting its available mobile numbers. Overlays and extra area codes were considered, but deemed confusing and impractical for local conditions.
So, on December 10, 2010, ANATEL announced the inclusion of a ninth digit (in the format 9nnnn-nnnn) to mobile phone numbers used in the São Paulo metropolitan region (area code 11). This change was meant to increase the numbering capacity in metropolitan São Paulo from 44 million to 370 million, thereby eliminating the perennial shortage of available numbers in that area. |
687_11 | Telecom providers would have 24 months to implement the ability to dial a new digit to the left of all cell phone numbers of area code 11, but the measure ended up being implemented a few months ahead of that initial schedule, on July 29, 2012. On that date, the digit 9 was added to the left of all existing mobile numbers in the 11 area code, regardless of their former initial digits. So, for example, mobile number (11) 8765-4321 became (11) 98765-4321. |
687_12 | In order to standardize the mobile numbering plan in Brazil, ANATEL started gradually rolling out the change to nine digits in other area codes and states as well. The last three states to implement the ninth digit in mobile numbers (the Southern states of Paraná, Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul, corresponding to area codes 41 through 55) did so on 6 November 2016. Initial digits 6 through 8 remain reserved for mobile lines, but as of September 2020 all mobile numbers in Brazil still start with 9 after the ninth digit was added, and it was not yet necessary to use the other reserved initial digits. |
687_13 | Landline numbers (starting with 2, 3, 4 or 5) and trunked radio mobile telephony (iDEN) numbers were not changed and remained with eight digits. As iDEN numbers had the same format as the former 8-digit regular mobile numbers, and some old 8-digit standard mobile numbers also used the initial digit 7 of iDEN numbers, some confusion happened for some time, with people adding an initial 9 when calling iDEN numbers, which would not allow the call to be placed. This is no longer a problem, as iDEN service was discontinued on 31 May 2018. On that date, users who still had iDEN phones had to replace them with standard phones with GSM/3G/4G network support, and the number with one in 9-digit format. |
687_14 | Despite this fact, mobile phones registered outside the 11-19 (São Paulo), 21, 22, 24 (Rio de Janeiro) and 27-28 (Espírito Santo) areas are usually displayed on WhatsApp (widely used by Brazilians to send text, voice and video messages due to the privileged access granted by mobile operators, in contrast to the assumption of network neutrality present in the Marco Civil da Internet) with the old 8-digit number. |
687_15 | Public utility
The format for public utility service phone numbers is 1nn. It includes all emergency (as well as some non-emergency) services, such as:
100: Human Rights Secretariat
112: universal emergency number for all GSM phones (redirects to 190)
128: standard emergency number in Mercosul (in Brazil, redirects to 190)
136: Ministry of Health hotline
147: Digital television transition hotline (2010–2023)
153: Municipal Guards
181: anonymous crime reporting (some areas only, others may use different, more miscellaneous numbers)
188: Centro de Valorização da Vida (Suicide prevention helpline)
190: Military Police
191: Federal Highway Police
192: ambulance
193: firefighters
194: Federal Police Department
197: Civil Police
198: state Highway Patrol
199: Civil Defense
911: emergency number in the United States (redirects to 190) |
687_16 | Most citizens only know the 190 (Military Police) number for emergencies, but 192 (ambulance), 193 (firefighters) and 199 (civil defense) are also commonly known. Usually a call to 190 (military police) describing an emergency with a non-criminal nature will be redirected to the proper number or provide assistance if they are qualified to (as in cases of choking children).
By law, 136 is printed on the packaging of all tobacco products sold in Brazil, so it is usually thought to be just a smoking cessation help hotline. That hotline does exist and can be accessed by this number, but 136 is actually a more comprehensive contact channel between citizens and the Ministry of Health. |
687_17 | In 2013, a law was approved that added two new numbers, 112 and 911, to mimic the emergency numbers from European countries and United States, respectively. A call to those numbers is redirected to the same lines as 190. The law was made because of the large number of foreign tourists expected for the 2014 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, so the redirecting numbers were initially reachable only from the 12 World Cup host cities, but later the change was extended to the entire country. |
687_18 | Some states and municipalities may have additional short 1nn public utility numbers for other services. For example, in many cities, such as São Paulo, one can get information, make requests and complaints about most services and issues with the municipal administration by dialing 156. Regional utilities for services such as electricity and water supply may also have short access numbers starting with 1. In contrast to emergency numbers, which are always toll-free, calls to such services may or may not be charged.
Landline telephone companies' customer service numbers have been normalized as 103, followed by a two-digit code. For example, Embratel customers contact the company's customer service dialing 103-21. For most mobile carriers, the number is 105, followed by a one-digit code (e.g., 105-2 for Claro).
For cable and satellite television operators, the number is 106, followed by a two-digit code (e.g., 106-21 for Net and 106-11 for SKY Brasil).
Long-distance dialing |
687_19 | The Brazilian system for long-distance dialing is relatively unusual and somewhat confusing, insofar as the choice of long-distance carrier determines the actual digit sequence to be dialed.
The standard format for writing down — but not for calling since 1999 — a long-distance phone number in Brazil is (aa) nnnn-nnnn, where aa is the area code and nnnn-nnnn is the local phone number. Due to persistence of old habits from the time when carrier codes were not used (see below), the format (0aa) nnnn-nnnn is still commonly seen, but this usage is discouraged, since it may confuse customers when actually calling, despite the mobile carriers give the option to complete the call with the old dialing (0aa) nnnn-nnnn with their own code in the configuration of the GSM/UMTS/HSPA/LTE SIM cards sold in the country. Area codes are distributed geographically. See the list of Brazilian area codes for a full list. |
687_20 | To dial a long-distance number within Brazil, one needs to use a carrier selection code, in order to choose which long-distance carrier will be used. The carrier selection code is specified before the area code; so, to actually place a call, one should dial 0-xx-aa-nnnn-nnnn, where xx is the two-digit carrier selection code. Because of that, sometimes long-distance phone numbers are written down as (0xxaa) nnnn-nnnn, with two actual letters x as placeholders, which the caller will replace by a carrier code.
For example, to call the number 2345-6789 in Rio de Janeiro (area code 21) using the long-distance carrier TIM (selection code 41), one would dial 0 41 21 2345 6789. |
687_21 | The use of carrier selection codes can be very confusing, because of the obvious added complexity, the different rates charged by different carriers, and even which long-distance carriers can be used to place the call, since not all of them service the entire Brazilian territory, and some are only available from mobile or from VoIP lines. For example, Claro (selection code 21) is available from any telephone line in all of Brazil, but Sercomtel (code 43) only in Londrina and some neighbouring cities.
ANATEL's Web site used to have a useful on-line system where the standard rates of all available carriers could be compared for the particular long-distance call one wants to place, but it was taken down in March 2013.
Some examples of carrier selection codes are:
12 Algar Telecom
14 Oi (formerly Brasil Telecom)
15 Vivo
21 Claro
31 Oi (formerly Telemar)
41 TIM (Telecom Italia Mobile)
43 Sercomtel |
687_22 | Area codes in Brazil are popularly known as "DDD codes" (códigos DDD) or simply "DDD", from the initials of "direct distance dialing" (discagem direta à distância in Portuguese). This was how the service was first advertised when it first appeared in the late 1960s, and the name stuck.
As of January 2009, Embratel is the only carrier offering operator-assisted long-distance calls, by dialing 0800-703-2110. Long-distance directory inquiries can be made dialing 0800-703-2100. However, subscriber numbers can also be obtained by a search at the destination telephone company's website. See the "External links" section below for a useful site with links to Brazilian directory assistance pages. |
687_23 | Collect calls
In Brazil, collect calls are automated. The phone number to be called is prefixed with a special code. Then, as the person being called answers the telephone, he/she listens to a short standard recording informing him/her that it is a collect call. Next, the call is established and the caller is supposed to say his/her name and location within the next six seconds. If the person being called hangs up within those six initial seconds, nothing is charged. Otherwise, the remaining time of the call is charged to the recipient's phone line.
This used to cause problems with answering machines and faxes, but the switch to digital voice mailboxes operated by the telephone companies largely eliminated that problem. Also, the widespread use of caller ID combined with the easily recognizable electronic tune played before the collect-call warning makes many people hang up immediately if they hear the tune and the number has not been recognized. |
687_24 | Local collect calls are dialed with the 9090 prefix; so, to call nnnn-nnnn collect, one would dial 9090-nnnn-nnnn.
To collect calls for long-distance numbers, one should dial 9 before 0-xx-aa-nnnn-nnnn, but not all numbers receipt this calls.
For example, to call the mobile number 99990-6666 registered in Greater São Paulo (area code 11) outside of this area using the long-distance carrier Vivo (selection code 15), one would dial 9 0 15 11 99990 6666.
International collect calls, for countries for which it is available, are not automated and must be placed through Embratel's international operator, dialing 0800-703-2111. One can also call an English-speaking AT&T operator directly by dialing 0800-890-0288. |
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