Brazilian Army
From Roach Busters
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| Active | 1824 - |
| Country |  Brazil
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| Branch | Army |
| Size | 190,000 active personnel 82 aircraft |
| Part of | Ministry of the Army |
| Headquarters | Brasília/DF |
| Patron | Luís Alves de Lima e Silva |
| Motto | Braço Forte, Mão Amiga |
| March | "Canção do Exército" |
| Anniversaries | August 25 (Soldier's Day) April 19 (Brazilian Army Day) |
| Engagements | War of Independence Argentina-Brazil War War of the Farrapos War of the Triple Alliance World War I |
| Commander-in-Chief | President João de Oliveira Mendonça |
| Commander | Gen. Paulo Mendonça (no relation to the President) |
| Notable commanders | Luís Alves de Lima e Silva Eurico Gaspar Dutra Artur da Costa e Silva |
The Brazilian Army (Portuguese: Exército Brasileiro) is the land arm of the Brazilian military.
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[edit] History
After the Brazilian declaration of independence from Portugal in 1822, the Brazilian Army was essential to avoid a fragmentation of the new Brazilian Empire. It destroyed any separatist tendencies of the early years, supporting the authority of Emperor Dom Pedro I across his vast empire. By the Regency Era it was complemented by the National Guard, a paramilitary militia.
On May 1 1865, Brazil, Uruguay and Argentina signed the Triple Alliance to defend themselves against aggression from Paraguay, which was ruled by the dictator Francisco López, who invaded the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso, the north of Argentina and was heading for Uruguay. Supported by the UK (because Paraguay objectives conflicted with the English Empire capitalism thoughts) and with overwhelming numbers, the Alliance defeated Lopez.
After World War I, under a contract where French army officers came to Brazil, the Brazilian Army was restructured according to lessons learned by the French in the war.
In 1964, Brazilian Army General Humberto de Alencar Castello Branco took power in a state coup, beginning a military dictatorship in Brazil that has lasted to this day. Since then, the Brazilian Army has undergone an extensive modernization process, and now boasts modern equipment, superbly trained and highly motivated soldiers, and able commanders. Among Latin American countries, Brazil's military is second only to the Confederate States of Latin America in terms of power.
[edit] Organization
[edit] Strength
Active troops: 190,000
Reserves:
- Trained first-line: 1,115,000
- Subject to immediate recall: 400,000
- Second-line: 225,000
[edit] Headquarters
General HQ:
- Army General Headquarters (Quartel-General do Exército) - Brasília
Military Commands:
- Amazon Military Command - HQ: Manaus
- East Military Command - HQ: Rio de Janeiro
- Northeast Military Command - HQ: Recife
- Plateau Military Command - HQ: Brasília
- South Military Command - HQ: Porto Alegre
- Southeast Military Command - HQ: São Paulo
- West Military Command - HQ: Campo Grande
Military Regions:
- 1st Military Region - States of Rio de Janeiro and Espírito Santo (HQ: Rio de Janeiro)
- 2nd Military Region - State of São Paulo (HQ: São Paulo)
- 3rd Military Region - State of Rio Grande do Sul (HQ: Porto Alegre)
- 4th Military Region - State of Minas Gerais (HQ: Belo Horizonte)
- 5th Military Region - States of Paraná and Santa Catarina (HQ: Curitiba)
- 6th Military Region - States of Bahia and Sergipe (HQ: Salvador)
- 7th Military Region - States of Rio Grande do Norte, Paraíba, Pernambuco and Alagoas (HQ: Recife)
- 8th Military Region - States of Pará and Maranhão (HQ: Belém)
- 9th Military Region - State of Mato Grosso (HQ: Campo Grande]]
- 10th Military Region - States of Ceará and Piauí (HQ: Fortaleza)
- 11th Military Region - State of Goiás and the Distrito Federal (HQ: Brasília)
- 12th Military Region - State of Amazonas (HQ: Manaus)
[edit] Main units
- 1 armored cavalry brigade
- 2 armored battalions
- 2 mechanized infantry battalions
- 1 armored artillery battalion
- 3 mechanized infantry brigades
- 3 mechanized infantry battalions
- 1 armored battalion
- 1 armored artillery battalion
- 4 mechanized cavalry brigades
- 3 armored battalions
- 1 mechanized infantry battalion
- 1 artillery battalion
- 12 motorized infantry brigades
- 1 mountain brigade
- 1 parachute infantry brigade
- 1 special operations brigade
- 4 jungle infantry brigades
- 1 frontier brigade
[edit] Equipment
[edit] Individual weapons
- FN M2HB .50 BMG heavy machine gun
- M971 7.62×51mm general purpose machine gun
- M964 FAP 7.62×51mm squad automatic weapon
- IMBEL MD-3 5.56×45mm assault rifle
- M964A1 7.62×51mm assault rifle
- IMBEL MD97 5.56×45mm assault rifle
- M4 5.56×45mm carbine (used by special forces)
- Taurus M972 9×19mm submachine gun
- IMBEL M973 9×19mm pistol
- Taurus M975 9×19mm pistol
- Barrett M82A1 12.7×99mm anti-materiel rifle (used by special forces)
- Heckler & Koch PSG-1 7.62×51mm sniper rifle (used by special forces)
- ACGL 7.62×51mm sniper rifle
- AT4 81mm anti-tank weapon
[edit] Artillery
- M108 105mm self-propelled howitzer
- M109A5 155mm self-propelled howitzer
- ASTROS II self-propelled multiple rocket launcher
- SS-30 (fires 127mm rockets)
- SS-40 (fires 180mm rockets)
- SS-60 (fires 300mm rockets)
- SS-80 (fires 300mm rockets)
- AV-SF-70 Skyfire 70mm rocket system
- M114 155mm towed howitzer
- L118 105mm towed howitzer
- OTO Melara Mod 56 105mm towed howitzer
- M101A1 105mm towed howitzer
- M2 120mm towed mortar
- M30 107mm towed mortar
- M936 AGR 81mm towed mortar
- RO 81mm towed mortar
- M949 AGR 60mm light mortar
- Brandt 60 60mm light mortar
- Oerlikon 35mm towed anti-aircraft autocannon
- Bofors 40mm L/70 towed anti-aircraft autocannon
- Bofors 40mm L/60 towed anti-aircraft autocannon
- M40 106mm recoilless rifle
- Carl Gustav 84mm recoilless rifle
[edit] Missiles
- ERYX anti-tank guided missile
- MILAN anti-tank guided missile
- 9K38 Igla (SA-18) surface-to-air missile
- Roland 2 surface-to-air missile
- FOG-MPM anti-tank/surface-to-air missile
[edit] Armored vehicles
- Leopard 2A5 main battle tank (being upgraded to 2A6 standard)
- EE-T2 Osório main battle tank
- M60A3 main battle tank (being upgraded to M60T standard)
- MB-3 Tamoyo III medium tank (being modernized)
- M41B/C Walker Bulldog light tank (being upgraded to M41D standard)
- EE-3 Jararaca scout car (being modernized)
- EE-9 Cascavel armored reconnaissance vehicle (being modernized)
- EE-11 Urutu armored personnel carrier (being modernized)
- EE-18 Sucuri II tank destroyer (being modernized)
- EE-T4 Ogum armored fighting vehicle (being modernized)
- AV-VBL light multi-purpose armored vehicle
- AV-VB4-RE light armored reconnaissance vehicle
- CBTP SL Charrua armored personnel carrier
- M113A3 armored personnel carrier
[edit] Support vehicles
- M60 Armored Vehicle Launched Bridge (AVLB)
- M60 Armored Vehicle Launched MICLIC (Mine-Clearing Line Charge),
- M60 Panther remotely-controlled mine-clearing tank
- M728 Combat Engineer Vehicle (CEV)
- M88A1 armored recovery vehicle
- Caterpillar D9 armored bulldozer
- M1083 standard cargo truck
- M35 2-1/2 ton cargo truck
- Heavy Equipment Transport System
- Heavy Expanded Mobility Tactical Truck
- Medium Tactical Vehicle Replacement all-terrain vehicle
- Commercial Utility Cargo Vehicle
- Logistics Vehicle System (LVS)
- Pionierpanzer 3 Kodiak combat engineer vehicle
- Bergepanzer BPz3 Büffel armored recovery vehicle
- AIL Storm II mini-SUV
- Plasan Sand Cat all-wheel drive off-road vehicle
- Wolf all-wheel drive off-road vehicle
[edit] Helicopters
- Eurocopter AS 532UE Cougar transport helicopter
- Eurocopter AS 550A-2 Fennec scout/liaison/attack helicopter
- Eurocopter AS 365K Panther transport/attack helicopter
- Helibras HB 350-1 utility/attack helicopter
- Sikorsky S-70A Black Hawk transport helicopter
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 Brazilian Army  Brazilian Air Force  Brazilian Navy
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