Hungarian Ground Forces
This article may require Brig. Gen. Gábor Lőrincz[1] |
The Hungarian Ground Forces (
The predecessors of the Hungarian ground forces include the
History
In 1963, the Ground Forces of Hungary included the
According to Michael Holm, the 3rd Army Corps at Cegléd, Military Unit Number 6639, was established on 1 November 1966. It remained identically organized in 1970 and 1980, but by 1988, it was restructured to include four mechanized infantry brigades, one tank brigade, one artillery brigade, and three artillery regiments (AA Missile, Anti-Aircraft Artillery, and Anti-Tank Artillery), along with other smaller units.[3]
With the dissolution of the Warsaw Pact in 1991, both the 5th Army and the 3rd Mechanized Corps were disbanded. The Hungarian Defense Forces inherited the assets and personnel of the Hungarian People's Army. However, due to the changed geopolitical situation and economic constraints, the Army underwent significant force reduction and asset adjustments.[4]
After Hungary's accession to NATO, the procurement of newer and more modern multi-purpose equipment began. This included various vehicles, communication equipment, unmanned aerial vehicles, and modernization of existing assets such as radar locators and anti-aircraft missile complexes.[5] However, the lack of resources in the armed forces limited significant improvements until the mid-2010s.
In 2021, the Hungarian Ground Forces completed their mission in Afghanistan and announced the conclusion of evacuations on August 26, 2021. Airlift operations successfully evacuated 540 people, including Hungarian citizens, Afghans, and their families who had previously worked for Hungarian forces.[6] Prior to the withdrawal, the number of Hungarian troops present in Afghanistan had already been reduced to ten.[7]
Structure
As of 2020, the main combat formations of the HDF Land Command are as follows:
- 1st Explosive Ordnance Disposal and River Flotilla Regiment "Honvéd" at Újpest military port in Budapest,[8] consisting of:
- 1st Explosive Ordnance Disposal Company
- Special Explosive Ordnance Disposal Company
- River Flotilla
- Explosive Ordnance Disposal K-9 Company
- Logistics Company
- Logistics Battalion
- Training Company
- 2nd Special Forces Brigade "vitéz Árpád Bertalan" at Szolnok Air Base,[9] including:
- Command Company in Szolnok
- László Bercsényiin Szolnok Air Base
- 88th Mixed Light Battalion in Szolnok Air Base
- consisting of:
- Command Company in Debrecen
- 3rd Infantry Battalion "APCs
- 39th Infantry Battalion in Debrecen, equipped with BTR-80 APCs
- 62nd Infantry Battalion in Hódmezővásárhely, equipped with BTR-80 APCs
- Operations Support Engineer Battalion in Debrecen
- Logistics Battalion in Debrecen
- Combat Engineer Company in Debrecen
- Signal Company in Debrecen
- 24th Reconnaissance Regiment "Gergely Bornemissza" in Debrecen,[11] comprising:
- Command and Signal Company in Debrecen
- Reconnaissance Company in Debrecen
- Long-Range Reconnaissance Company in Debrecen
- Tactical Intelligence (HUMINT) Company in Debrecen
- Electronic Warfare Company in Debrecen
- Unmanned Aerial VehicleCompany in Debrecen
- Logistics Company
- 25th Infantry Brigade "György Klapka" in Tata,[12] including:
- Command Company in Tata
- 1st Infantry Battalion in Tata, equipped with BTR-80 APCs
- 2nd Infantry Battalion in Tata, equipped with BTR-80 APCs
- 11th Tank Battalion in Tata, with 44x Leopard 2A7+ main battle tanks[13]
- 36th Anti-tank Missile Battalion in Tata, with 9K115-2 Metis-M anti-tank missiles
- 57th Garrison Support Battalion in Tata
- 101st Artillery Battalion in Tata, with 24x self-propelled howitzers[13]
- Logistics Battalion in Tata
- 37th Engineer Regiment " consisting of:
- Command Support Platoon in Szentes
- Bridge Building Battalion in Szentes
- Low Water Bridge Building Company in Szentes
- Water Purification Company in Szentes
- Construction Engineer Company in Szentes
- Training Company in Szentes
- 43rd Signal and Command Support Regiment "József Nagysándor" in Székesfehérvár,[15] including:
- Command and Guard Company
- Combat Command Main C4ICentre
- Transdanubian Signal and C4I Centre
- Lowland Signal and C4I Centre at Szolnok Air Base
- Signal Battalion
- Logistics Battalion
- 93rd CBRN defense Battalion "Sándor Petőfi" in Székesfehérvár,[16] comprising:
- Command Company
- CBRN-decontaminating Company
- CBRN-reconnaissance Company
- CBRN-support Company
- Support Company
Equipment
Ranks and insignia
See also
- Military of Hungary
- Royal Hungarian Army (1922–1945)
- Royal Hungarian Landwehr(1867–1918)
Citations
- ^ "Magyar Honvédség Szárazföldi Parancsnokság - Honvédelem". 21 December 2022.
- ^ "Order of battle of the Hungarian People's Army, 1963". 2.bp.blogspot (in Hungarian).
- ^ Holm, Michael. "3rd Mechanised Corps (3. Gépesített Hadtest)". ww2.dk. Retrieved 24 November 2020.
- ^ "A megújuló honvédség" [Renewal of the Army] (in Hungarian). Retrieved 2022-04-24.
- ^ "2K12 KUB in Service of 12th Air-defense Missile Regiment". 27 Nov 2012.
- ^ "Hungary ends evacuations in Afghanistan after airlifting 540 people". Reuters. Retrieved 5 August 2022.
- ^ "As US gears up to withdraw from Afghanistan, Hungary only has a handful of troops left there". REMIX NEWS. 15 April 2021.
- ^ "MH 1st Explosive Ordnance Disposal and River Flotilla Regiment". Honvédelem (in Hungarian).
- ^ "MH 2nd Special Forces Brigade". Honvédelem (in Hungarian).
- ^ "MH 5th Infantry Brigade". Honvédelem (in Hungarian).
- ^ "MH 24th Reconnaissance Regiment". Honvédelem (in Hungarian). 9 March 2018.
- ^ "MH 25th Infantry Brigade". Honvédelem (in Hungarian).
- ^ a b Adamowski, Jaroslaw (December 20, 2018). "Hungary signs deal to buy dozens of tanks, howitzers from Germany's KMW". Defense News. Retrieved 4 May 2020.
- ^ "MH 37th Engineer Regiment". Honvédelem (in Hungarian).
- ^ "MH 43rd Signal and Command Support Regiment". Honvédelem (in Hungarian).
- ^ "MH 93. Petőfi Sándor Vegyivédelmi Zászlóalj". Honvédelem (in Hungarian).
References
- ISBN 978-1-85743-988-5.