Kenya Defense Forces

Kenyan Armed Forces Kenya Defense Forces
guide
Commander in Chief :	Uhuru Kenyatta
Military Commander:	General Julius W. Karang
Military leadership:	Chief of Defense Forces
Headquarters:	Nairobi
Military strength
Active soldiers:	24,120 (2006)
Reservists:	no
Conscription:	no
Resilient population:	Men (16-49): 6,361,268 Women (16-49): 6,106,870 (2010)
Eligibility for military service:	18–26 years
household
Military budget:	$ 354 million
Share of gross domestic product :	1.8% (2012)
history
Founding:	1963

Kenyan soldiers

The Kenya Defense Forces (KDF) are the armed forces of the Republic of Kenya . They were formed from parts of the King's African Rifles in 1963, after Kenya gained independence . Commander in chief is the Kenyan President.

history

The history of the Kenyan armed forces is closely related to the British colonial forces in British East Africa . In 1902 the King's African Rifles were formed from various existing units as a regiment . It took part in the Mau Mau War in 1953 in what is now the central region of Kenya . After Kenya gained independence in 1963, three battalions of the regiment, which were completely taken over, formed the basis for the Kenyan land forces . The Air Force and Navy were built up with British help in the years that followed.

In 1982, some air force soldiers attempted a coup . As a result, more than 1,000 soldiers from the air force were dismissed, the Kenya Air Force was dissolved as an independent branch and the remaining units were subordinated to the land forces. The air force was only regained its independence in 1994. In the 1990s, the Kenyan army was mainly used to secure the border, during the Somali civil war , on the Kenyan-Somali border. Since 2007 it has provided a contingent for AMISOM in Somalia .

organization

The highest political management level is the Ministry of State for Defense , from which the Chief of Defense Forces , a general , leads the three branches of the armed forces . The officers' training and further education schools are also directly subordinate to the Ministry:

• Kenya Military Academy for the training of cadets ( officer cadets )
• Defense Staff College for the training of staff officers
• National Defense College for the education and training of top management personnel

The army is currently being modernized by purchasing new weapon systems such as the Mil Mi-28 attack helicopter, the Nora B-52 howitzer and the BOV . This is probably related to the fact that Kenya is repeatedly the target of attacks by the al-Shabaab militias from Somalia.

Armed forces

Kenya Army

The approximately 20,000 strong Kenyan army is divided into 5 brigades and has the following weapon systems.

vehicles

• 76 Vickers MBT main battle tank
• 72 Panhard AML armored cars
• 20 Ferret reconnaissance tanks
• 10 Alvis Saladin reconnaissance vehicles
• 100 humvees
• 30 155mm howitzer Nora B-52
• 12 40 * 122-mm rocket launchers BM-21
• 85–105 armored personnel carriers BMP-1
• Transport tank BOV (are currently being delivered)
• 24 BTR-60 armored personnel carriers
• 35 WZ551 transport trolley
• 52 UR-416 transport trolley

Air defense systems

• Rapier (rocket) SAM
• Buk M1 SAM
• Mistral (rocket) (portable infantry version)
• 40 mm Bofors gun
• Oerlikon 35mm twin cannon
• 20 mm Oerlikon cannon
• ZPU-4
• M45 quad mount

artillery

• 6 203mm howitzer 2S7
• 9 Mod 56 105mm howitzer
• 40 M119 105mm howitzer
• 12 Brandt 120 mm mortars
• 60 81 mm mortar L16

Infantry weapons

• FN Browning HP pistol
• HK G3 assault rifle
• AK-101, AK-47 assault rifles
• Assault rifle L1 A1
• Assault rifle M16 (rifle)
• IMI Galil assault rifle
• Submachine gun HK MP5
• Submachine gun Sterling
• Machine gun FN Minimi
• Machine gun IMI Negev
• Machine gun FN MAG
• AA-52 machine gun
• Browning M2 machine gun
• Machine gun PK
• Panzerfaust rocket tube 80
• M20 Super Bazooka
• Guided missile MILAN

Kenya Air Force

The Kenya Air Force has 2,500 soldiers and the following aircraft and helicopters (as of 2015).

Aircraft	origin	use	version	active	Ordered	Remarks
Northrop F-5	United States	Fighter plane	F-5E / EM / F-5F	21st
Harbin Y-12	People's Republic of China	Transport plane		11
Alenia C-27J	Italy	Transport plane			3	Closing in 2019
Coarse G 120A	Germany	Trainer		6th
de Havilland Canada DHC-5	Canada	Transport plane		3
De Havilland DHC-8	Canada	Transport plane		3
Mil Wed-28	Russia	Attack helicopter	Wed-28N	16
Mil Wed-8	Russia	Transport helicopter	Wed-17	3
Aérospatiale SA 330	France	Transport helicopter		14th

Kenya Navy

The Kenya Navy has a strength of 1,620 soldiers.

Web links

Commons : Military of Kenya  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

• Ministry of State for Defense (English)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b} GlobalDefence.net: Kenya Armed Forces Survey ( Memento from December 26, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) from April 17, 2006. Accessed May 2, 2013
2. ^ ^{A b c} Central Intelligence Agency : World Factbook . Accessed May 1, 2013
3. ^ The New York Times: Kenya Disbands its Air Force after Coup Bid, August 22, 1982. Accessed May 2, 2013