FARC: Canada's New Air Force?

Colombians surprised to hear the name of the Marxist paramilitary group associated with CF-18s and Hercules.

The Harper government's recent decision to restore the original name of the Royal Canadian Air Force was pretty well received here, but the proposed French translation raised eyebrows and made headlines across Colombia. Military brass were considering the name les Forces Arienne Royale Canadienne, the abbreviation of which would have been FARC. FARC is also the name of the most infamous guerilla paramilitary group in Colombia, a group that's waged war against the Colombian military for the past 50 years. After BBC reported on the proposed name before EFE, the biggest Spanish-language news wire on the planet, ran with the story, which ended up in Colombian newspapers, radio shows, television broadcasts and more, all having a bit of a laugh at Canadian ignorance of one of the major South American conflicts of the past century. The military eventually against using FARC and dropped the "forces" from the name, going with ARC as the French abbreviation.