UAE army - history, features and interesting facts

Today, the United Arab Emirates impress with their idyll and luxury. Very strict laws apply here. Police rides in luxury cars. And the term of service in the UAE army depends on whether a person graduated from school or not. But not always in this country everything was so smooth. In the early 70s of the last century, she was shocked by armed conflicts. In this connection, I had to create my own army.

Historical reports

The UAE Army was established in 1976. Two years later, a geographical split occurred in the country - its composition left Dubai and Ras al-Khaimah. The second city indicated subsequently returned. And Dubai to this day retains substantial sovereignty in the military sphere.

The history of the UAE Armed Forces is specific in that they were not united until the designated year. Each represented its own emirate. After the formation of the union, their unity was only theoretical. In practice, each was controlled by the emirate.

The forces represented the following territories:

1. Abu Dhabi. Year of foundation - 1965. By 1975, the number of soldiers was 15, 000. At the disposal of the army were two squadrons of fighters, 135 armored cars and the same number of combat helicopters. In 1996, she transformed into the eastern UDF team.
2. Dubai Year of appearance - 1971. By 1975, the army consisted of 3, 000 soldiers. After 20 years, the composition has expanded significantly - up to 20, 000 fighters. The technical equipment includes armored vehicles, 105 helicopters, and a special attacking aircraft. In 1996, she was transformed into the UDF Central Team.
3. Ras al Kaimah. The year of foundation is 1969. The initial strength of the army is 30 soldiers. In the process of development, the composition increased to 9, 000 soldiers. In the arsenal there are armored cars and two groups of infantry. In 1996, the UDF Northern Team was created on the basis of these forces.

Call issue

In the UAE army, according to the law of 2014, all males who are in the age range of 18-30 years should serve.

There are two variations in the length of compulsory service:

1. Minimum 9 months. It is held by citizens who have graduated from high school and have produced documentary evidence of this.
2. 2 years maximum. It is assigned to citizens who do not have basic secondary education.

There is a third option for being in the UAE army. It is provided for girls. The service for them is voluntary and lasts 9 months.

About weapons

Its lion's share is produced in the west. And in the 90s of the last century, the country concluded several key agreements with Russia. They concerned the supply of equipment such as infantry fighting vehicles, MLRS and air defense systems.

Between 1998 and 2000, the UAE entered into two solid agreements with France and the United States. Both relate to the supply of aircraft. In the first case, it is a Mirage-2000-9 aircraft, in the second - F-16C / D Block 60. Suppliers created these special orders according to the criteria set by the emirates.

The subtleties of contracts

The armament of the UAE was significantly replenished in the 90s, thanks to cooperation with some European countries, as well as Indonesia and the United States. This process is presented in chronological order.

Year	Partner Country	Technics	Number of units	Contract period	Amount (in dollars)
1993	France	Tanks Leclerc	436	1994-2003	3.6-4.6 billion
1994	Czech	Trucks "Tatra"	1100	180 million
1994	Holland	Frigates "Cortener"	2	1996-1998	350 million
1998 …	France…	Aircraft Mirage-2000-9	thirty	5.5 billion
		Upgraded modifications "Mirage-2000-5"	33
1999	Indonesia	Patrol aircraft CN-235-200MPA	4	150 million
2000	USA	Aircraft F-16C / D;	80	6.4 billion
2000	Russia	SAM 96K6 "Shell S-1"	50	2003-2005	734 million

UAE Ground Forces

Without them, it is difficult to imagine the army of a given country. They involved about 45, 000 fighters.

The ground forces of the United Arab Emirates are formed by nine brigades. They are reflected in this table:

Type of brigade	Number
King's Guard	1
Armored	2
Infantry with special equipment	3
Infantry	2
Artillery	1

There are also two special Dubai brigades. They are infantry, mechanized.

Artillery form three regiments. They are formed by three batteries of 8 self-propelled guns M109 / L47.

Brigades with special equipment have divisions, each of which is equipped with 24 G-6 self-propelled guns.

In the arsenal of infantry formations there are howitzers with a parameter of 10.5 cm.

Armament of the land structures of the UAE

Their combat and technical capabilities are presented in the tables below. They also reflect partner countries.

The review begins with tanks. Here the leader in procurement is the Leclerc model.

About her and other modifications below:

Name	Production	Appointment	Number of units
Leclerc	French	Combat	390
AMX-30			45
OF-40 Mk.II Lyon	Italian		36
Scorpio	British	Easy	76

Further, in the military potential of the UAE army, such types of equipment as infantry fighting vehicles, armored personnel carriers and armored personnel carriers are presented:

Name	Production	Appointment	Number of units
AML-90	French	BRM	50
Vbl		Armored car	25
AMX-10P		BMP	16
M3 panhard		Armored personnel carrier	370
Vcr			80
Ferret	British	BRM	37
Saladin		BRM	20
TPz 1 Fuchs	German	Chemical and biological intelligence	16
BMP-3	Russian	BMP	415
FNSS ACV	Turkish	Armored personnel carrier	136
RG-31 Nyala	Canadian	Armored car	76
EE-11 Urutu	Brazilian	Armored personnel carrier	120

Weapons are not without autonomous artillery for field tasks. This technique is featured here:

Name	Production	View	Number of units
G6	South African	Howitzer 15.5 cm	78
M109A3	American	Howitzer 15.5 cm	125
AMX-13 F3 AM	French	Howitzer 15.5 cm	18

There is also a towed analogue of the indicated artillery. Only two modifications appear here:

1. L-118. This is a light gun with a parameter of 10.5 cm. Supplier - England. The number of units is 73.
2. 59-1 - howitzer with a parameter of 13 cm. Country - China. The number of units is 20.

The UAE’s armed potential contains multiple launch rocket technologies:

Name	Production	View	Parameter (cm)	Number of units
LAU-97	Belgian	MLRS	7	18
Firos 25	Italian	MLRS	12, 2	48
BM9A52 "Tornado"	Russian	MLRS	thirty	6

There are mortars in the arsenal. The statistics for them are as follows:

Name	Production	Parameter (cm)	Number of units
Brandt	French	8.1	20
Brandt		12	21
L16	English	8.1	114

Anti-tank weapons

The UAE Armed Forces provide at their forefront and funds against tanks. A substantial number of devices are purchased in Europe and the USA. Their list is displayed below:

View	Production	Model	Number of units
HOT	German	heavy	50
Milan	French	mobile	230
BGM-71 TOW	American	mobile	25
Karl Gustaf M2	Swedish	8.4 cm RPG	250

Air defense and ballistics

Here, the armed forces of the United Arab Emirates have more modest indicators. And in this regard, they only cooperate with European partners:

View	Production	Option	Number of units
Mistral	French	mobile MANPADS	20
M-3VDA		ZSU	42
Gcf-bm2		ZSU	20
Blowpipe	English	mobile MANPADS	20

As for ballistic weapons, the UAE army has only one Soviet-made missile, the SS-1C Scud-B. The number of launchers is 6.

About the Air Force

Today it is one of the key sectors of the UAE Armed Forces. Its staff includes nearly 4, 000 employees and about 368 units of aircraft. The pride are the Mirage 2000 models.

Also loved in the Emirates, the brainchild of American-made - F-16 Fighting Falcon. It is often abbreviated as F-16 FF.

As you know, the country is formed by seven emirates. And the Air Force is only in Abu Dhabi and Dubai.

To date, only citizens with a UAE passport are allowed to drive combat vehicles. Foreigners maintain bases and are involved in training programs.

The history of the Air Force in the Emirates started in 1968. Then the first forces appeared in Abu Dhabi. Their work was supervised by British services. In 1972, funding here improved significantly, and tangible progress began.

In 1999, the two emirates combined with military aircraft. But, despite this, their certain autonomy remained. And Abu Dhabi became the location of the Western Command, and Dubai - Central.

Combat potential

As already noted, the basis of the country's military aviation is the fighters of American and French production. There are tankers, patrol, reconnaissance and training equipment.

The table below includes only models of the indicated purpose. Modifications to the transport and general profile are not taken into account.

Designation	Production	Functions	Number of units
F-16 FF	American	A fighter for many tasks	79
Mirage 2000	French	A fighter for many tasks	68
Airbus A330 MRTT	The European Union	Tanker	3
AH-64 Apache	American	For percussion tasks	28
Pilatus PC-7 Turbo Trainer	Swiss	For educational purposes	thirty
Air Tractor AT-802	American		24
Grob G 115	German		12
Eurocopter AS 350 Ecureuil	French		fourteen
Bombardier dash 8	Canadian	For patrolling	2
Viking air
MQ-1 Predator	American	For intelligence
Denel Dynamics Seeker	South African