Military of the Czech Republic
Armáda České republiky |
 
The coat of arms and roundel |
| Manpower |
| Military age | 18 years of age |
Available for
military service | 2,414,728, age 15–49 (2005 est.) |
Fit for
military service | 1,996,631, age 15–49 (2005 est.) |
Reaching military
age annually | 66,583 (2005 est.) |
| Active personnel | 25,177 military and 13,628 civil personnel[1] |
| Expenditures |
| Budget | $ 2,84 billion (2008) |
| Percent of GDP | 1.43% (2008)[2] |
The Czech Armed Forces (Czech: Armáda České republiky) comprise of the military, air forces and support units. After joining NATO in March 12, 1999, the Czech Republic is completing a major overhaul of the extensive Czechoslovak Armed Forces (about 200,000) which until 1989 formed one of the pillars of the Warsaw Pact military alliance. Czech forces have been gradually downsized from 90,000 in 1993 to 63,601 in 1999[3] to 35,000 in 2005 and at the same time modernized and reoriented toward defensive posture. In 2004 the army transformed into a fully professional organization and compulsory military service was abolished.
[edit] Structure of the Czech Armed Forces
Structure of the Czech Armed Forces consists of three parts:
- General Staff of Czech Armed Forces (Praha)
Structure of the Czech Armed Forces
[edit] Equipment
Czech
BVP-2 on a Military parade in Prague, 28 October 2008.
Armored Czech Tatra 813 truck as rocket launcher.
ShKH Ondava: 152mm Self-propelled cannon howitzer
Equipment size at July 1, 2008:[4]
Main battle tanks:
- 179x T-72 MBT (30x T-72M4CZ, rest in reserve)
IFV:
Artillery:
Non armoured vehicles:
- 114x Land Rover Defender 110 TDi - light off road vehicle
- 588x Tatra T 810 - (military trucks)
- 95x Tatra T815 (4x4, 6x6, 8x8 versions) military heavy trucks[5]
- 19x Dingo 2 armored military truck
- 19x Iveco LMV armored light off road vehicle
Air-defence systems:
Combat aircraft and helicopters:
Support/transport aircraft and helicopters:
Training aircraft and helicopters:
VIP transport
Small arms & hand weapons:
[edit] Recent operations
The Czech Republic is a member of the UN and the OSCE and has contributed to numerous peacekeeping operations, including IFOR/SFOR in Bosnia, Desert Shield/Desert Storm, Afghanistan, Kosovo and Iraq.
Current deployments (as of 2005):
[edit] Uniforms
Military band Olomouc in different types of uniforms:
[edit] Commanding officers
- Highest Commander of the Armed Forces: President of the Republic Václav Klaus
- Chief of the General Staff: Lieutenant General Vlastimil Picek
- Chief of the General Staff Office: Colonel Milan Šeiner
- First Deputy Chief of the General Staff: Lieutenant General Jaroslav Kolkus
- Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the ACR-Chief of Staff: Lieutenant General František Hrabal
- Deputy Chief of the General Staff - Director of JOC (Operations Commander): Major General Josef Prokš
- Director of Division for Development of Forces Branches - Operations Division: Brigadier General Josef Bečvář
-
- Immediately Subordinated Offices:
- Military Regional Office, Boletice
- Military Regional Office, Brdy
- Military Regional Office, Březina
- Military Regional Office, Hradiště
- Military Regional Office, Libavá
- Support Policy Division: Director Major General Pavel Jevula
- Immediately Subordinated Institutions:
- Central Military Hospital, Prague
- Military Hospital, Brno
- Military Hospital, Olomouc
- Institute of Aviation Medicine, Prague
- Communication and Information Systems Division:Director - Chief of the Signal Corps of ACR: Colonel Jan Kaše
- Immediately Subordinated Institutions:
- 6th Communication Centre
- Research and Communication Centre 080
- Information Technology Development Agency
- Force Planning Division: Acting Director Colonel František Mičánek
- Reconnaissance and Electronic Warfare Department: Director Colonel Miroslav Žižka
- Immediately Subordinated Office:
- Military Geography and Hydrometeorology Office
- Military Aviation Authority: Director Colonel Josef Otta
[edit] See also
[edit] References
[edit] External links
