Bahamas Armed Forces

Armed Forces of the Bahamas Royal Bahamas Defense Force
guide
Commander in Chief de jure :	Governor General Cornelius A. Smith
Commander in chief de facto :	Prime Minister Perry Christie
Defense Minister:	Dr. Bernard Nottage
Military Commander:	Commodore Roderick Bowe
Headquarters:	Coral Harbor Base , New Providence
Military strength
Active soldiers:	1061
Conscription:	no conscription
Resilient population:	approx. 127,000 (men and women aged 16 to 49)
Eligibility for military service:	Reaching the age of 16
household
Military budget:	$ 39,250 million (2015)
Share of gross domestic product :	0.5%
history
Founding:	1979

Flag of the warships of the Bahamas

The armed forces of the Bahamas are known as the Royal Bahamas Defense Force (RBDF). It consists exclusively of a naval unit and has no army or air force, the existing units are assigned to the navy . In addition to the RBDF, there is also a police unit, the Royal Bahamas Police Force , which can be integrated into the armed forces if necessary. The headquarters are on New Providence in the Coral Harbor Base .

history

The Royal Bahamas Defense Force has been gradually built up since 1976 and officially founded in 1979 by the Defense Act, Chapter 211 of Parliament, and thus emerged from the maritime arm of the Royal Police Force . As early as 1980, there was the first military conflict between the young armed forces. The HBMS Flamingo was sunk by MiG 21 fighter planes belonging to the Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias Cubas when it tried to arrest two Cuban fishing boats that were fishing illegally in the territorial waters of the Bahamas. Ultimately, Cuba paid compensation of US $ 10 million.

organization

With more than 1000 soldiers , the RBDF is the largest navy in the Caribbean Commonwealth of Nations. The uniforms and equipment were initially based on the former British colonial rulers, but this has now been converted to American standards.

Despite the fact that there are no land forces , the RBDF has two special forces , the Special Operations Unit for maritime operations and a Commando Squadron , an amphibious infantry unit .

The Navy also has several aircraft that are integrated into the armed forces' air wing .

Furnishing

Ships

image	class	number of pieces	units	Commissioning
	Bahamas class	2	HMBS Bahamas HMBS Nassau	1999 2000
	Legend class	2 (another 7 ordered)	HMBS Arthur Dion Hanna Durward Knowles	20th June 2014 July 31, 2014

Air Wing

image	class	number of pieces
	Super King Air 350	1
	Cessna 208B	1

artillery

image	class	number of pieces
	M101 (howitzer)	15th

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b c} Overview of the Command Structure of the Armed Forces in Central America. Published by RESDAL, page 3. Accessed April 5, 2015.
2. ^ Name of the Minister of Defense on the government website . Retrieved April 5, 2015.
3. ↑ Presentation of the commander on the government website . Retrieved April 5, 2015.
4. ↑ Contact details with office . Retrieved April 5, 2015.
5. ↑ Manpower of the armed forces of Central America. Published by RESDAL, page 4. Accessed April 5, 2015.
6. ↑ ^{a b c} CIA World Factbook . Military section. Retrieved April 5, 2015.
7. ↑ Government Budget Spending, page 8. Retrieved April 5, 2015
8. ↑ ^{a b} History of the Armed Forces . Defense Force website. Retrieved April 5, 2015.
9. ↑ Bahama Pundit: The Flamingo affair (Engl.)
10. ↑ Article about the orders of the RBDF , accessed on April 28, 2015

Web links

Commons : Armed Forces of the Bahamas  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

• Website of the Royal Bahamas Defense Force (Engl.)