Saudi Arabian Army

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Royal Saudi Land Forces
القوات البرية الملكية السعودية
Royal Saudi Land Forces.png
Emblem of the Royal Saudi Land Forces
Founded1744[1]
Country Saudi Arabia
AllegianceKing of Saudi Arabia
BranchArmy
TypeLand forces
RoleGround-based warfare
Size75,000[2]
Part ofArmed Forces of Saudi Arabia
Garrison/HQMinistry Of Defense
Anniversaries13 January; 119 years ago
EquipmentList of equipment
EngagementsList of wars
DecorationsOrder of the Battlefield SA.png
Websitewww.mod.gov.sa
Commanders
Current
commander		Lt. Gen. Fahd Al-Mutair
Insignia
FlagFlag of the Royal Saudi Land Forces.png
War flagChief of General Staff flag of the Saudi Armed Forces.svg

Royal Saudi Land Forces (Arabic: القُوَّاتُ البَرِّيَّةُ المَلَكِيَّة السُّعُودِيَّة‎ Al-Quwwat al-Bariyah al-Malakiyah as-Sa'udiyah) is a land warfare service branch of the Armed Forces of Saudi Arabia. It is part of the Ministry of Defense (Saudi Arabia), which is one of the two military departments of the Government of Saudi Arabia, together with the Ministry of National Guard.[3]

History[]

A column of M-113 APCs and other military vehicles of the Royal Saudi Land Forces travel along a channel cleared of mines during Operation Desert Storm., Kuwait - 1 March 1991.
The 20th Brigade of the Royal Saudi Land Forces display a 155 mm (6 in) GCT self-propelled gun, left, and AMX-10P infantry combat vehicles

The modern Army of Arabia has its roots in the Saudi state, which was dating to 1744,[1] and is considered to be the birth year of the Saudi army. As of 1901 the ground forces was re-established as a separate branch of the armed forces with the starting of the modern Saudi state. and it is considered the oldest branches of the Saudi Arabia's military.[4]

Conscription lasted up until dissolved the War chancellery.[1] Historically, the MoW was created to unify the armies of the state under one military power. It was existed until 1933, when it was renamed "Agency of Defence" under the Finance Minister administration as Agent. By 1944, the Agency was developed (MoD) and incorporated into the Armed Forces Inspectorate.[5][6]

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 hostile's actions, and as well as the Gulf War in 1990. In the year 2000, Saudi Arabia's government spent billions of dollars to expand the Saudi military including the Army.[citation needed] The current minister of defense is Prince Mohammad bin Salman, who was appointed on 23 January 2015.[7]

A Saudi M60A3 tank being transferred

Wars involved[]

Main article: List of wars involving Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabian army UH-60 Blackhawk helicopter during Operation Desert Shield.

Structure[]

A Saudi Arabian (HMMWV) with a QCB machine gun mounted on top depart for the seaport of Mogadishu in Somalia
US Marines training members of the Saudi Arabian Army

The combat strength of the Saudi Army consists of 4 Armoured, 5 Mechanized, 2 Light Infantry (1 Royal Guards, 1 Special Forces) Brigades. The Saudi Army deployed the 12th Armoured Brigade and 6th Mechanized Brigade at in the Tabuk area. It deployed the 4th Armoured Brigade, and 11th Mechanized Brigade at in the Khamis Mushayt area. It deployed the 20th Mechanized Brigade and 8th Mechanized Brigade at King Khalid Military City near Hafr al Batin. The 10th Mechanized Brigade is deployed at Sharawrah, which is near the border with Yemen and about 150 kilometers from Zamak.[12]

Despite the addition of a number of units and increased mobility achieved during the 1970s and 1980s, the army's personnel complement has expanded only moderately since a major buildup was launched in the late 1960s. The army has been chronically understrength, in the case of some units by an estimated 30 to 50 percent. These shortages have been aggravated by a relaxed policy that permitted considerable absenteeism and by a serious problem of retaining experienced technicians and noncommissioned officers (NCOs). The continued existence of a separate national guard also limited the pool of potential army recruits.[12]

Armor

  • 4th (King Khaled) Armoured Brigade
  • 6th (King Fah'd) Armoured Brigade
  • 7th (Prince Sultan) Armoured Brigade
  • 8th (King Fah'd) Armoured Brigade
  • 10th (King Faisal) Armoured Brigade
  • 12th (Khalid ibn al-Walid) Armoured Brigade

A typical Saudi armoured brigade has an armoured reconnaissance company, three tank battalions with 35 tanks each, a mechanized infantry battalion with 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.[13]

Mechanized

  • 11th Mechanized Brigade
  • 12th Mechanized Brigade
  • 13th Mechanized Brigade
  • 14th Mechanized Brigade
  • 20th Mechanized Brigade

A typical Saudi mechanized brigade has an armoured reconnaissance company, one tank battalion with 40 tanks, three mechanized infantry battalions with 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. It has 24 anti-tank guided weapons launchers and four mortar sections with a total of eight 81 mm (3 in) mortars.[13]

Infantry

  • 16th (King Saud) Light motorized infantry brigade
  • 17th (Abu Bakr Assiddeeq) Light motorized infantry brigade
  • 18th (King Abdullah) Light motorized infantry brigade
  • 19th (Umar ibn Al-Khattab) Light motorized infantry brigade

Each infantry brigade consists of three motorized battalions, an artillery battalion, and a support battalion. Army brigades should not be confused with Saudi Arabian National Guard brigades.[citation needed]

Airborne Units and Special Security Forces

  • The 1st Airborne Brigade
    • 4th Airborne Battalion
    • 5th Airborne Battalion
  • 64th Special Forces Brigade
    • 85th Special Forces Battalion

The Airborne Brigade is normally deployed near Tabuk. The Airborne Brigade has two parachute battalions and three Special Forces companies. Saudi Arabia is expanding its Special Forces and improving their equipment and training to help deal with the threat of terrorism. The Special Forces have been turned into independent fighting units to help deal with terrorists, and report directly to Prince Sultan.[citation needed]

Artillery Battalions

  • five artillery battalions
    • 14th FA (Towed, 155) Battalion
    • 15th FA (MLRS) Battalion
    • 18th Missile (MLRS) Battalion

Aviation

  • 1st Aviation Group
  • 2nd Aviation Group
  • 3rd Aviation Group
  • 4th Aviation Group

The separate Royal Guard Regiment consists of four light infantry battalions.[citation needed]

Saudi Arabian Army Structure (click to enlarge).

Ranks[]

RSLF officer[]

Rank group General/flag officers Field/senior officers Junior officers Officer cadet
 Saudi Arabian Army[14]
  • v
  • t
 Fariq Awwal Fariq Liwa Amid Aqid Muqaddam Raid Naqib Mulazim Awwal Mulazim 08.RSA-OC.svg
فريق أول‎‎
Fariq 'awal 		فريق
Fariq 		لواء
Liwa 		عميد
Amid 		عقيد
Aqid 		مقدم
Muqaddam 		رائد
Ra'id 		نقيب
Naqib 		ملازم أول
Mulazim awwal 		ملازم
Mulazim

RSLF enlisted[]

Junior enlisted Non-commissioned officers (NCOs) Warrant officers (WOs)
Private
(Pte) 		First class private
(Pfc) 		Corporal
(Cpl)
(VSgt) 		Sergeant
(Sgt) 		Staff sergeant
(SSgt) 		Warrant officer
(WO)
E-1/2 E-3 E-4 E-5/6 E-7 E-8 E-9
No chevron
(Arabic: جندي Jundi‎) 		One chevron
(Arabic: جندي أول Jundi Awaal‎) 		Two chevrons
(Arabic: عريف Areef‎) 		Three chevrons
(Arabic: وكيل رقيب Wakil Raqib‎) 		Four chevrons
(Arabic: رقيب Raqib‎) 		Four chevrons with stripe
(Arabic: رقيب أول Raqib Awaal‎) 		stripe
(Arabic: رئيس رقباء Rais Ruquba‎)

Equipment[]

Main article: List of equipment of the Saudi Arabian Army

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b c Historical Dictionary of Saudi Arabia (15 March 2020). Historical Dictionary of Saudi Arabia. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 480. ISBN 9781538119808.
  2. ^ International Institute for Strategic Studies (14 February 2018). The Military Balance 2018. Routledge. pp. 358–359. ISBN 978-1-85743-955-7.
  3. ^ "Royal Saudi Land Forces". www.globalsecurity.org. Archived from the original on 2015-10-29. Retrieved 2006-12-09.
  4. ^ Wynbrandt, James (2004). A Brief History of Saudi Arabia (1st ed.). p. 353. ISBN 9781438108308. Archived from the original on August 8, 2017. Retrieved October 10, 2016.
  5. ^ Lebkicher, Roy (1952). The Arabia of Ibn Saud. R.F. Moore Company.
  6. ^ "Middle East: Saudi Arabia". The World Factbook. Langley, Virginia: Central Intelligence Agency. 17 October 2018. Retrieved 21 October 2018.
  7. ^ "The $2 Trillion Project to Get Saudi Arabia's Economy Off Oil". Archived from the original on 2016-10-15. Retrieved 2017-06-22.
  8. ^ Vassiliev, Alexei (March 2013). King Faisal: Personality, Faith and Times - Alexei Vassiliev - Google Książki. ISBN 9780863567612.
  9. ^ Halliday, Fred (2002). Revolution and Foreign Policy: The Case of South Yemen, 1967-1987. Cambridge University Press. p. 160. ISBN 9780521891646.
  10. ^ Edgar O'Ballance (1979). No victor, no vanquished: The Yom Kippur War (1979 ed.). Barrie & Jenkins Publishing. pp. 28–370. ISBN 978-0-214-20670-2.
  11. ^ Asher, Dani (2014). Inside Israel's Northern Command: The Yom Kippur War on the Syrian Border. Lexington: University Press of Kentucky. pp. 415–418. ISBN 978-0813167374.
  12. ^ Jump up to: a b Pike, John. "Royal Saudi Land Forces". www.globalsecurity.org. Archived from the original on 2015-10-29. Retrieved 2006-12-09.
  13. ^ Jump up to: a b "Accéder Google Francais".
  14. ^ "الرتب" [Ranks]. rslf.gov.sa (in Arabic). Saudi Arabian Army. Archived from the original on 22 October 2017.
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