Hungarian Ground Forces
The Hungarian Ground Forces are one of the branches of the Hungarian armed forces. It is the army which handles Ground activities and troops including artillery, tanks, APC's, IFV's and ground support. Hungary's Ground forces currently pulled out of Iraq and are currently in service in Afghanistan and KFOR.
Hungary was supported by the Soviet Union during the Cold War but since the Soviet Union's fall, Hungary cut tanks, closed garrisons, and minimized troop strength since 1991. The Hungarian Army now deals with national security, peacekeeping and international conflicts. Hungary joined NATO in 1999, and has spent millions of dollars to advance their army with technological equipment and weapons.
A listing of current land force units is here [1].
Military Equipment
- RS4/4 parachute
- RS4/4 LA parachute
- MANTA parachute
- 40 mm grenade launcher
- 93M frag grenade
- 96M frag grenade
- Black Ka'bar bayonet
- AN/PVS-14 Gen3 Monocular Night Vision
- HALEM-2 laser rangefinder
- 15/80 binocular
- PSZNR-5 recce locator
- FMG 68 decontamination vehicle
- VSBRDM 2 ABC recce vehicle
- SSM-1 chemical marker
- IH-95 radiation level and contamination meter
- CAM radiation level and contamination meter
- VFK chemical recce pack
- DS-10 regiment decontamination pack
- TMF-2 automatic weather station
- 93M protecting suit
- 96M protecting suit
- DECOCOM 3000 decontamination container
- regiment decontamination trailer
- 82 mm mortar
- 60 mm mortar
Small Arms
Armoured Personnel Carriers, Tanks, Amphibious Vehicles
- Soviet Union BTR-80 (691 pieces, most of them modernized, in use, few others stored in working condition)
- Russia BTR-80A ( Nato caliber development process ) (30 mm autocannon turret versions) [4]
- Russia BTR-80K ( Nato caliber development process )
- there is also an unknown number of modernized Hungarian-upgraded BTR-80s for technical rescue, medical rescue and NBC missions (these vehicles are entering service starting with 2009).
- Soviet Union T-72 - 14 Main Battle Tanks (several hundred tanks of various types: T-55, T-72 in storage, the rest are being used as targets for firing).
- Russia PTS (amphibious vehicle)- very large tracked amphibious vehicle used for crossing water bodies and building bridges across rivers
- United States Cougar H MRAP - 13 pieces - to Afghanistan
- United States MaxxPro MRAP - 30+ pieces - to Afghanistan
- United States M1151 HMMWV - 30-100 (?) pieces - most of them used in Afghanistan and the Special Forces [5]
Artillery: ATGMs, RPGs, Mortars, Howitzers etc.
Transport Vehicles
Air Defense
- France Mistral [10] - approx. 185 (originally 45 bought in 1998, +140 ordered in 2009, with deliveries undergoing).
- Soviet Union SA-6 Gainful [11] - 4 batteries (each consisting of multiple launch units) - Will probably be replaced by US-made Patriot systems
See also
Sources
