Armed Forces of Gabon

Armed Forces of Gabon
Coat of arms of Gabon
Founded	1960
Service branches	Land Forces[1] Air Force Navy
Leadership
President	Ali Bongo Ondimba
Minister of National Defence	Etienne Massard Kabinda Makaga
Chief of Staff	Jean Claude Ella-Ekogha
Manpower
Military age	20 years of age[1]
Active personnel	5,000 (2017)
Expenditures
Budget	$81.52 million (FY17)
Percent of GDP	0.55% (FY17)
Industry
Foreign suppliers	France  United States
Related articles
History	1964 Gabon coup d'etat 2012–2013 Central African Republic conflict

Gabon has a small, professional military of about 5,000 personnel, divided into army, navy, air force, gendarmerie, and national police. Gabonese forces are oriented to the defense of the country and have not been trained for an offensive role. A well-trained, well-equipped 1,800-member guard provides security for the president.

Army

Military members from the Gabonese Armed Forces stand in formation during the opening day ceremony for the June 2016 Central Accord Exercise in Libreville, Gabon

Order of battle

• 1 Republican Guard Battalion group – Libreville with:
  • 1 Light Armored Recon. Squad;
  • 3 Infantry Coys;
  • 1 Artillery Battery;
  • 1 Air Defense Battery.
• 1 Airborne Regiment with:
  • 3 Airborne Coys;
  • 1 Recon and Support Coy;
  • 1 Command Coy.
• 1 Light Armored Recon Battalion with:
  • 1 Logistic and Command Coy;
  • 2 Armored Sqds.
• 1 Support Command Regiment with:
  • 1 Artillery Battery;
  • 1 Mortar Battery;
  • 1 MRLS Battery;
  • 1 Engineer Coy;
  • Logistic Units.
• 7 × Military Regions with:
  • 1 Motorized Infantry Battalion or Coy-each.

Equipment

Heavy Weapons and Vehicles

	Origin	Type	Acquired	Notes
Panhard AML-90	France	Armoured Car	16	6 delivered from France in 1968, another 10 in 1980[2]
EE-9 Cascavel	Brazil	Armoured Car	14[3]
EE-11	Brazil	Armoured Car	12[4]
Panhard AML 60	France	Armoured Car	8	8 delivered from France in 1980[5]
ERC 90 Sagaie	France	Armoured Car	9[6]
ERC-20 Kriss	France	Self-propelled anti-aircraft gun	4[7]	Armed with 20mm anti-aircraft cannon.
Matador (mine protected vehicle)	South Africa	APC	24[8]
EE-3 Jararaca	Brazil	Armoured Scout Car	12[9]
M3A1	United States	Armoured Scout Car	13[10]	Delivered from France.
Berliet VXB-170	France	APC	15[11]
Panhard M3	France	APC	7[12]
Véhicule Blindé Léger	France	Armoured Scout Car	14[13]
Cadillac Gage Commando	United States	APC	15
Peugeot P4	France	Military Off-road vehicle	N/A
M101 howitzer	United States	Howitzer	4
Mortier 120mm Rayé Tracté Modèle F1	France	Mortar	4
Milan ATGM	France	Anti-tank Missile	4	4 launchers and 40 missiles delivered.
Mistral (missile)	France	MANPAD	N/A	60 Missiles delivered.

Small Arms

• MAT-49
• Beretta M12
• M16 Rifle^[14]
• FN FAL^[14]
• FN CAL^[14]
• AKM^[14]
• AKMS
• AK-47^[14]
• FAMAS^[15]
• FN MAG^[14]
• RPD^[14]
• Browning M2

Air Force

Order of battle

• Fighter Squadron 1-02 Leyou at BA02 Franceville with:
  • Mirage F-1AZ
  • MB-326M Impala I
• Heavy Transport Squadron at BA01 Libreville with:
  • C-130 Hercules
  • CN-235
• Ministerial Air Liaison Group (Groupe de Liaison Aérien Ministériel or GLAM) at BA01 Libreville with:
  • 1 Falcon-900EX
  • 1 Gulfstream-III

Facilities

• BA01 Libreville
• BA02 Franceville
• Tchibanga

Current inventory

A Gabonses ATR-42 on approach

Retired aircraft

Previous aircraft operated by the Air Force consisted of the CM.170 Magister, C-130H Hercules, Embraer EMB 110, Fokker F28, Aérospatiale N 262, Reims C.337, and the Alouette II helicopter.^[19][20]

Navy

Equipment

The Gabonese Navy uses a P400-class patrol vessel similar to this one

References

Gabon articles
History	Timeline Battle of Gabon French Congo French Equatorial Africa Kingdom of Orungu West Africa Campaign (World War II) 1964 coup d'état
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