CHILEAN ARMY


'CHILEAN ARMY'

'Military manpower'
Military age18 years of age required for military service (2006)
Availability age 18-49: 3,815,761 (2005 est.)
Fit for military service 3,123,281 (2005 est.)
Reaching military age annually150,084 (2005 est.)
'Military expenditures'
Dollar figure $3.6 billion (2006 est.)
Percent of GDP 3.9% (2006 est.)
See AlsoMilitary of Chile

The 'Chilean Army ("Ejército de Chile" in Spanish)' is the land arm of the Military of Chile. This 45,000-person army (12,700 of which are conscripts)[1] is organized into six divisions and an air brigade.
Since the last years and after several major reequipment programs, the Chilean Army has become one of the most technologically advanced and professional armies of America[2][3]
The Chilean Army is mostly supported by the United States, Germany, Israel, The Netherlands, Switzerland, United Kingdom, France, Ecuador, India and Spain.

Contents
Peacekeeping
Structure
Military Equipment
Guns (Rifles, pistols, grenade launchers and machine guns)
Artillery
Air defense
Anti tanks systems
Transport
Aircraft inventory
Commanders-in-chief
References
External links

Peacekeeping



UNIFIL withdrew in the early 90's

MINUSTAH United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Haiti.

UNFICYP United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus, embedded in the Argentine Battalion [2]

Structure


Structure of the Chilean Army (click on image to enlarge)

Military Equipment


The Chilean Army has acquired in the last few years Leopard 1V tanks,'s from the Netherlands Army (via RDM), M113 armoured personnel carriers (APCs) from USA and Italy, M-109´s SPH from Switzerland and AIFV-B APCs from the Belgian Army (via SABIEX). Now is due to receive new Leopard 2A4 main battle tanks (MBTs) from the German Army to boost defence capabilities. Also 200 Humvees are expected to arrive during 2007. Their goal is to have a completely modernized (and mostly mechanized) army by 2015. They are also modifiying the operational structure, creating Armoured (and 1 Special Operations) Brigades throughout the entire territory, while conserving the current divisional scheme. Further acquisitions of more M-109's self propelled howitzers, Flakpanzer Gepard self propelled anti air vehicles and new attacks helicopters.
In all, the Chilean army has about 202 Leopard 1's, 427 M113's, 169 AIFV's and are going to receive 118 Leopard 2's from Germany. They also have around 300 of FAMAE Piranhas (Mowag Piranha) LAV's. Their main assault rifle is currently the licenced built SG-542 with some Heckler & Koch G3 still in service.
Chilean Leopard 1A5.

Chilean soldiers with a HMMWV.

Chilean soldiers with a Rheinmetall MG3.

M-109A3 Kawest with desert camouflage of the Chilean army.

Two AIFV YPR-754.

M-113A2 with a HMMWV.

YPR-754.


★ 202 'Leopard 1' V Main Battle Tank (100 aprox to be replaced by the Leopard 2A4)

★ Several numbers of Leopard chassis-based vehicles

★ 118+ 'Leopard 2' A4 Main Battle Tank

★ 169 'AIFV' YPR-765

★ 20 'AIFV' Armored Personnel Carrier variants equipped with Twin 'SPIKE' ATGM and M2 Browning machine gun

★ 427 'M113' A2 APCs

★ 300 'Mowag Piranha LAV' 's manufactured in Chile by 'FAMAE'
Guns (Rifles, pistols, grenade launchers and machine guns)

''PISTOLS''

CZ-75 Semi-automatic pistol (Main Pistol of the army)
''RIFLES''

SG 510-4 manufactured in Chile by FAMAE (Main Assault rifle)

SG 542 manufactured in Chile by FAMAE (Main Assault rifle)

SG 540 manufactured in Chile by FAMAE (Main Assault rifle)

SG 550 - 500+ manufactured in Chile by FAMAE (Main Assault rifle)

Heckler & Koch G36 (Will receive in 2008)]]

Heckler & Koch G3 (In service only in mountain troops, artillery and engineers)

M82 Barrett rifle (A1 version) High-Powered Sniper Rifle

FN F2000(For paratroopers)
''OTHER GUNS''

★ Rheinmetall MG42 (Converted into MG3)

SIG 710-3

Rheinmetall MG3 (Standard Machine Gun)

M2 Browning machine gun

FN M249

FN P90

SIG SG 552

Heckler & Koch MP5
''GRENADE LAUNCHERS''

Mk 19 grenade launcher

Milkor MGL grenade launcher

Artillery



★ 24+ x M109 howitzer KAWEST Upgraded by RUAG, Switzerland

★ 47 x AMX-13 Mk. F3 155 mm Self Propelled Howitzer

★ Soltam M68 155mm Towed Howitzer

★ Soltam M71 155mm Towed Howitzer

M101 howitzer/33 105mm Towed Howitzer (Upgraded by FAMAE)

Oto Melara M56 105mm Towed Howitzer (Mountain Artillery)

Air defense



Gepard (Cheetah)

Mistral missile launchers mounted on UNIMOG trucks

M163 VADS self-propelled anti-aircraft gun

Anti tanks systems



AT4 Anti-tank weapon (Infantry Squad AT weapon)

MILAN Anti-tank weapon

Carl Gustav recoilless rifle Anti-tank weapon

Bofors 106mm Recoilless Gun mounted on IMI Storm jeeps.

IMI MAPATS mounted on IMI Storm jeeps.

Rafael Spike ATGM, on YPR 765 and MD-530F (manufactured in Israel).

Transport


Land transport assets:

★ 200+ HMMWV (Some will replace the "AT role" Storm Jeeps. The rest for Recon units).

★ The standard transport for troop commanders is the IMI Storm (manufactured in Israel).

★ MB-1017A (Most used truck)

★ Armoured Unimog trucks

Ducati Multistrada

Aircraft inventory



! style="text-align: center; background: #aacccc;"|Aircraft
! style="text-align: center; background: #aacccc;"|Origin
! style="text-align: center; background: #aacccc;"|Type
! style="text-align: center; background: #aacccc;"|Versions
! style="text-align: center; background: #aacccc;"|In service[4]
|-----
| Aérospatiale Lama
|
| search and rescue
| SA 315B
| 1
|-----
| Aérospatiale Puma
|
| transport helicopter
| SA 330L
| 4
|-----
| CASA C-212 Aviocar
|
| tactical transport
| C-212-100
C-212-300
| 4
2
|-----
| CASA CN-235
|
| tactical transport
|
| 3
|-----
| Cessna 172
|
| utility
|
| 3
|-----
| Cessna 208
|
| utility
|
| 8
|-----
| Cessna Citation
|
| VIP transport
| Citation II
Citation III
| 1
1
|-----
| Eurocopter Cougar
|
| transport helicopter
| AS 332B
AS 332M2
| 1
1
|-----
| Eurocopter Ecureuil
|
| utility helicopter
| AS 350
AS 355
| 3
1
|-----
| MD Helicopters MD 530
|
| utility helicopter
| MD 530F
| 19
|-----

Commanders-in-chief



Rank Name Took Office Left Office Position
Brigadier José Miguel Carrera Verdugo March 31, 1813 November 23, 1813 Army Commander-in-chief
Colonel Bernardo O'Higgins Riquelme November 27, 1813 September 2, 1814 Army Commander-in-chief
Brigadier José Miguel Carrera Verdugo August 28, 1814 October 2, 1814 Army Commander-in-chief
Captain General Bernardo O'Higgins Riquelme April 17, 1819 January 28, 1823 Army Commander-in-chief
Captain General Ramón Freire Serrano February 21, 1823 April 2, 1830 Army Commander-in-chief
Divisional General José Joaquín Prieto Vial April 2, 1830 September 18, 1841 Army Commander-in-chief
Divisional General Manuel Bulnes Prieto September 18, 1841 October 18, 1866 Army Commander-in-chief
Divisional General Marcos Maturana del Campo October 18, 1866 December 21, 1870 Senior General Officer
Divisional General Juan Manuel Jarpa Caamaño August 8, 1871 December 31, 1875 Senior General Officer
Divisional General Basilio Urrutia Vásquez August 8, 1871 April 7, 1879 Senior General Officer
Divisional General Justo Arteaga Cuevas April 8, 1879 July 18, 1879 Field Commander-in-chief
Divisional General Erasmo Escala Arriagada July 18, 1879 March 28, 1880 Field Commander-in-chief
Divisional General Manuel Baquedano González April 3, 1880 May 3, 1881 Field Commander-in-chief
Divisional General Cornelio Saavedra Rodríguez May 3, 1881 December 19, 1883 Inspector General
Divisional General Emilio Sotomayor Baeza January 4, 1884 August 22, 1888 Inspector General
Divisional General José Francisco Gana Castro August 22, 1888 September 4, 1891 Field Commander-in-chief
Divisional General Marco Aurelio Arriagada September 14, 1891 August 28, 1894 Inspector General
Divisional General Adolfo Hölley Urzúa August 28, 1894 October 13, 1900 Inspector General
Divisional General Emilio Körner Henze October 13, 1900 April 19, 1910 Inspector General
Divisional General Jorge Boonen Rivera April 19, 1910 April 26, 1921 Inspector General
Divisional General Arístides Pinto Concha April 26, 1921 February 13, 1922 Inspector General
Divisional General Luis Altamirano Talavera February 13, 1922 November 28, 1924 Inspector General
Divisional General Pedro Pablo Dartnell Encina November 28, 1924 January 23, 1925 Inspector General
Divisional General Mariano Navarrete Ciris January 31, 1925 November 10, 1925 Inspector General
Divisional General Juan Emilio Ortiz Vega November 11, 1925 January 7, 1927 Inspector General
Divisional General Francisco Javier Diaz Valderrama February 18, 1927 March 20, 1930 Inspector General
Divisional General Pedro Charpin Rival March 21, 1930 November 7, 1930 Inspector General
Divisional General Bartolomé Blanche Espejo November 7, 1930 August 4, 1931 Army Commander-in-chief
Divisional General Pedro Charpin Rival August 5, 1931 August 22, 1931 Army Commander-in-chief
Divisional General Indalicio Téllez Cárcamo August 25, 1931 June 11, 1932 Army Commander-in-chief
Divisional General Agustín Moreno Ladrón de Guevara June 15, 1932 August 2, 1932 Army Commander-in-chief
Divisional General Luis Otero Mujica August 3, 1932 December 26, 1932 Army Commander-in-chief
Divisional General Pedro Vignola Cortés December 26, 1932 December 21, 1933 Army Commander-in-chief
Divisional General Marcial Urrutia Urrutia December 23, 1933 March 27, 1934 Army Commander-in-chief
Divisional General Oscar Novoa Fuentes March 27, 1934 December 20, 1938 Army Commander-in-chief
Divisional General Carlos Fuentes Rabe December 26, 1938 August 23, 1940 Army Commander-in-chief
Divisional General Oscar Escudero Otárola August 23, 1940 March 8, 1943 Army Commander-in-chief
Divisional General Arturo Espinoza Mujica August 12, 1943 October 11, 1944 Army Commander-in-chief
Divisional General Alfredo Portales Mourgues November 8, 1943 November 12, 1945 Army Commander-in-chief
Divisional General Oscar Fuentes Pantoja November 12, 1945 November 29, 1946 Army Commander-in-chief
Divisional General Guillermo Barrios Tirado November 29, 1946 August 2, 1947 Army Commander-in-chief
Divisional General Ramón Cañas Montalva August 2, 1947 October 8, 1949 Army Commander-in-chief
Division General Guillermo Barrios Tirado October 8, 1949 January 9, 1950 Army Commander-in-chief
Divisional General Rafael Fernández Reyes January 9, 1950 October 28, 1952 Army Commander-in-chief
Divisional General Santiago Danús Peña November 3, 1952 March 11, 1953 Army Commander-in-chief
Divisional General Carlos Mezzano Camino March 11, 1953 June 10, 1954 Army Commander-in-chief
Divisional General Enrique Franco Hidalgo June 11, 1954 March 17, 1955 Army Commander-in-chief
Divisional General Raúl Araya Stiglich March 17, 1955 May 8, 1956 Army Commander-in-chief
Divisional General Luis Vidal Vargas May 8, 1956 November 3, 1958 Army Commander-in-chief
Divisional General René Vidal Merino November 3, 1958 November 13, 1958 Army Commander-in-chief
Divisional General Oscar Izurieta Molina November 14, 1958 November 3, 1964 Army Commander-in-chief
Divisional General Bernardino Parada Moreno November 4, 1964 July 4, 1967 Army Commander-in-chief
Divisional General Luis Miqueles Caridi July 5, 1967 May 3, 1968 Army Commander-in-chief
Divisional General Sergio Castillo Aránguiz May 3, 1968 October 24, 1969 Army Commander-in-chief
Divisional General René Schneider Chereau October 27, 1969 October 22, 1970 Army Commander-in-chief
Divisional General Carlos Prats González October 26, 1970 August 23, 1973 Army Commander-in-chief
Captain General Augusto Pinochet Ugarte August 23, 1973 March 10, 1998 Army Commander-in-chief
Lieutenant General Ricardo Izurieta Caffarena March 11, 1998 March 10, 2002 Army Commander-in-chief
Lieutenant General Juan Emilio Cheyre Espinosa March 11, 2002 March 10, 2006 Army Commander-in-chief
Army General Oscar Izurieta Ferrer March 11, 2006 ''Present'' Army Commander-in-chief


References



1. International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS), The Military Balance, 2002-2003
2.
[1]
3. http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/1981.htm
4. "World Military Aircraft Inventory", Aerospace Source Book 2007, ''Aviation Week & Space Technology'', January 15 2007.


External links



Official Chilean Army site

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