SAUDI ARABIAN ARMY

'Saudi Arabian Army''الجيش العربي السعودي'
'Military manpower'
Conscription age	18 years of age
Availability	males age 18-49: 7,648,999
Active troops	200,000 (Ranked 25th)
'Military expenditures'
USD figure	$31.255 billion (2006)

'Saudi Arabian Army' (Arabic: ''الجيش العربي السعودي'') ,Also called 'Royal Saudi Land Force' (Arabic: ''القوات البرية الملكية السعودية''). Is a branch of the Saudi Armed Forces. The total number of active troops is around 70,000. The Army is capable to conduct air assault operations with a lift capability of up to 5 battalions at a time, both day and night.
The current Chief of the Saudi General Staff is Field Marshal Saleh Al-Muhaya.

Contents

History

Structure

Ranks

Main equipment

References

External links

See also

History

1902 is considered to be the birth year of the Saudi Army, when 63 men led by King Abdulaziz Ibn Saud supported by the Kuwaiti Prince Mubarak Al-Sabah, who had armed the men with weapons and horses, conquered the city of Riyadh. During World War I, the British supported King Abdulaziz's army in his fight against the Ottoman Empires Army. Britain remained the major ally of the Saudis until the Saudi conquest of the Hejaz region in 1935.
After the discovery of oil and the meeting between King Ibn Saud and the American President Franklin D. Roosevelt on February 14th, 1945, the Americans became the new major ally of House of Saud.
Other events that led to an expansion of the Saudi Army were the Arab-Israeli conflict in 1948, the fall of Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi in the Iranian Revolution in 1979 and the subsequent fears of possible Shia's actions and in the last years the first Gulf War in 1990. In the year 2000, Saudi Arabia's government spent billions of dollars to expand the Saudi Forces including the Saudi Army.
'Wars involving Saudi Army':

★ The Unification of Saudi Arabia (1902-1933).

★ 1948 Arab-Israeli War more than 3000 Saudi Troops participated in combat in Palestine.

★ 1967 RSLF deployed over 20000 troops in Jordan.

★ 1973 during the Yom Kippur War Saudi Arabia masterminded the 1973 Oil Crisis and sent over 3,000 Saudi soldiers from the troops in Jordan to fight on the Syrian frontline.

★ Gulf War (1990-1991) Together with the allied forces, Saudi Armed Forces and SANG took a major part in the Battle of Khafji and the Liberation of Kuwait.

Structure

The Royal Saudi Land Forces consist of eight principal combat brigades:^[1]

'Armor'

★ 4th (King Fah’d) Armored Brigade

★ 8th Armored Brigade

★ 12th Armored Brigade
Three armored brigades consists of three tank battalions, a mechanized infantry battalion, and a support battalion.
A typical Saudi armored brigade has an armored reconnaissance company, three tank battalions with 42 tanks each, two tank companies with 30 tanks, three tank troops with 12 tanks, a mechanized infantry battalion with 54 AIFVs/ APCs,
and an artillery battalion with 18 self-propelled guns. It also has an army aviation company, an engineer company, a logistic battalion, a field workshop, and a medical company.^[2]
'Mechanized'

★ 6th Mechanized Brigade

★ 8th Mechanized Brigade

★ 10th Mechanized Brigade

★ 11th Mechanized Brigade

★ 20th Mechanized Brigade
Five mechanized brigades consists of one tank battalion, three mechanized infantry battalions, an artillery battalion, and a support battalion.
A typical Saudi mechanized brigade has an armored reconnaissance company, one tank battalion with 37-42, three mechanized infantry battalion with 54 AIFVs/APCs each, two infantry companies with 33 APCs, three infantry platoons with 12 APCs, and an artillery battalion with 18 self-propelled guns. It also has an army aviation company, an engineer company, a logistic battalion, a field workshop, and a medical company. It has 24 anti-tank guided weapons launchers and four mortar sections
with eight 81mm mortars.^[2]
'Infantry'

★ unknown number of infantry brigades

★
★ 2nd Motorized Infantry Brigade

★
★
★ 5th Combined Arms Battalion

★
★
★ 6th Combined Arms Battalion

★
★
★ 7th Combined Arms Battalion

★
★
★ 8th Combined Arms Battalion

★
★ 10th Infantry Brigade
Each infantry brigade consists of three motorized battalions, an artillery battalion, and a support battalion.
'Airborne'

★ The Airborne Brigade

★
★ 4th Airborne Battalion

★
★ 5th Airborne Battalion
The airborne brigade consists of two paratroop battalions and three special forces companies. The SF companies report to the King.
'Artillery Battalions'

★ five artillery battalions

★
★ 14th FA (Towed, 155) Battalion

★
★ 15th FA (MLRS) Battalion

★
★ 18th Missile (MLRS) Battalion
The separate Royal Guard Regiment consists of three light infantry battalions.

Ranks

'Officers (up) Enlisted (down)'

Main equipment

The Saudi government spends billions of dollars to arm the military forces and usually buys the military equipment from the main allies US and UK.

'Saudi Army'
' Main battle tanks '
M1A2 Abrams[4]	315
M1A1 Abrams[4]	58
AMX-30	290
MBT 2000[4]	150
M60A1/A3 Patton	450[7]
' Recons and Inf. Transporters '
AMX-10P IFV	570[7]
M2A2 Bradley IFV	400[7]
Al-Fahd APC	100[10]
M113 APC	3000[7]
EE-11 Urutu APC	20[12]
Panhard M3 APC	150[13]
LAV III AFV (National Guard)	1130[14]
Cadillac Gage Commando AFV (N. G.)	290 (810 in storage) [7]
Piranha AFV (N. G.)	440 [7]
HMMWV (Humvee)	600 + (250 for N.G.)
Panhard AML-60/90 Armoured Car	300[7]
' Howitzers & Artillery '
M109A2 SP 155 mm Howitzer	280[18]
AMX-GCT SP 155 mm Howitzer	60[7]
M198 howitzer 155mm	90 [20]
FH-70 155mm	72 [21]
M102 howitzer 105mm	140[7]
' Rocket artillery '
Astros II MLRS	60 [23][24]
' Mortars '
M224 Mortar
Brandt 60mm LR Gun-mortar
M30 107 mm Mortar
' Unmanned aerial vehicles '
SAGEM Sperwer
' Anti-tank missiles '
Baktar-Shikan
Brimstone missile
Swingfire
FGM-148 Javelin
BGM-71 TOW
' Automatic grenade launchers '
M203 grenade launcher
XM320

★ (Anti-Air systems belong to Air Defense Forse)

References

1. http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/gulf/rslf.htm
2. http://www.mafhoum.com/press7/197P82.pd
3. http://www.mafhoum.com/press7/197P82.pd
4. http://www.defenseindustrydaily.com/2006/08/the-2006-saudi-shopping-spree-29b-to-upgrade-m1-abrams-tank-fleet/index.php
5. http://www.defenseindustrydaily.com/2006/08/the-2006-saudi-shopping-spree-29b-to-upgrade-m1-abrams-tank-fleet/index.php
6. http://www.defenseindustrydaily.com/2006/08/the-2006-saudi-shopping-spree-29b-to-upgrade-m1-abrams-tank-fleet/index.php
7. Military Balance 2005- page 135
8. Military Balance 2005- page 135
9. Military Balance 2005- page 135
10. http://www.army-guide.com/eng/product1154.html?PHPSESSID=1468a56d6d726fd59b3d91e02f95dd45
11. Military Balance 2005- page 135
12. http://www.army-guide.com/eng/product.php?prodID=553
13. http://www.army-guide.com/eng/product1081.html?PHPSESSID=ba71fd373081628815304aaf4118861c
14. http://www.army-guide.com/eng/product1055.html?PHPSESSID=ba71fd373081628815304aaf4118861c
15. Military Balance 2005- page 135
16. Military Balance 2005- page 135
17. Military Balance 2005- page 135
18. http://www.army-guide.com/eng/product3236.html?PHPSESSID=e414064882e746ba3023bf9b06a93151
19. Military Balance 2005- page 135
20. http://www.army-guide.com/eng/product1196.html?PHPSESSID=ba71fd373081628815304aaf4118861c
21. http://www.army-guide.com/eng/product1176.html?PHPSESSID=ba71fd373081628815304aaf4118861c
22. Military Balance 2005- page 135
23. http://www.army-technology.com/projects/astros/
24. http://www.army-guide.com/eng/product3277.html?PHPSESSID=ba71fd373081628815304aaf4118861c

External links

★ CIA World Factbook

★ Pakistani tanks deal

★ 2006 Military spending of Saudi Forces

★ latest French tanks deal

See also

★ Military of Saudi Arabia

★ Saudi Arabian National Guard

★ King Khalid Military City

★ Saudi Arabia