3rd Armored Division (Jordan)

The King Abdullah II 3rd Armored Division (Arabic:3 فرقة الملك عبدالله الثاني المدرعة) is a former armored division[1] in Jordanian Armed Forces and it was equipped and trained for high intensity combat operations against militarily organized enemies as well as peacekeeping missions, the division was deactivated in 2018.

King Abdullah II 3rd Armored Division
فرقة الملك عبدالله الثاني المدرعة 3 الملكية
3rd Royal Armored Division insignia
Active1969–2018 (Deactivated)
CountryJordan
BranchJordanian Armed Forces
TypeDivision
RoleConventional warfare, peacekeeping
Size~ 15,000 (2012 est.)
Garrison/HQAmman, Al-Muwaqqar
ColorsKA2 Desert Digital
Engagements
Commanders
Current
commander		Brigadier General Jumah T. Alhrout

History

The 3rd Armored Division was formed in 1969.

The Division functions as the Jordanian strategic reserve and it is deployed between Zarqa, to the northeast of Amman to Qatraneh in the south on the way to Saudi Arabia.[1][2][3][4][5][6]

Since Qatraneh has a strategic position vis-a-vis the attack routes along the Dead Sea, the 40th Armored Brigade was usually based there.[4][5]

Kenneth Pollack, a U.S. military analyst, wrote in c.2002 that 'from 1948 to 1956, the Arab Legion was far superior to any of the other Arab militaries. In battle, it generally gave as good as it got, and the Israelis considered it their most dangerous adversary. However, after 1956, the Jordanian capabilities began to decline. In 1967 they performed worse than in 1948, although the exceptional performance of the 40th Armoured Brigade and a number of Israeli mistakes helped disguise the deterioration somewhat. Thereafter Jordanian capabilities continued to gradually erode.'[7]

In the 1973 Yom Kippur War, the 40th Armoured Brigade was sent to the Syrian front and played a significant role in the fighting.

King Abdullah II became Battalion Commander of the Second Royal Armored Battalion – 40th Armored Brigade in January 1992. In 1993, he was in the 40th Armored Brigade with the rank of Colonel.[5]

This Division was involved in the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, reprisal operations, the Six-Day War, the Battle of Karameh, the War of Attrition, Black September and the Yom Kippur War.

In 2018, the 3rd Armored Division HQ with many support units and one armored brigade (91st) has been deactivated, the remaining two armored brigades (40th, 60th) and some units merged with Jordanian Central Command.

Organisation

The Division is deployed between Zarqa, to the northeast of Amman to Qatraneh in the south on the way to Saudi Arabia.[1][2][5]

Units
  • Division Command HQ – (Deactivated in 2018)
  • 3rd Royal Communication Group – (Deactivated in 2018)
  • Field Reconnaissance Battalion (Army Knights) – (Deactivated in 2018)
  • King Hussein 40th Armored Brigade – (Transferred to Central Command in 2018)
    • Brigade HQ
    • Signal Company
    • Prince Hussein bin Abdullah II 1st Armored Infantry Battalion (IFV)
    • 2nd Royal Tank Battalion
    • Prince Ali bin Al Hussein 4th Tank Battalion
    • Services Companies
    • Medical Company
    • Brigade Maintenance Workshop
  • Prince Hassan 60th Armored Brigade – (Transferred to Central Command in 2018)
    • Brigade HQ
    • Signal Company
    • Royal Guard 3rd Armored Infantry Battalion (IFV)
    • 3rd Royal Tank Battalion
    • 5th Royal Tank Battalion
    • Services Companies
    • Medical Company
    • Brigade Maintenance Workshop
  • 91st Royal Armored Brigade – (Deactivated in 2018)
    • Brigade HQ
    • Signal Company
    • King Ali 5th Armored Infantry Battalion (IFV) - (Transferred to Central Command in 2018)
    • 10th Royal Tank Battalion
    • 11th Royal Tank Battalion
    • Services Companies
    • Medical Company
    • Brigade Maintenance Workshop
  • Division Artillery – (Merged with Central command in 2018)
    • Division Artillery HQ
    • 2nd SP Artillery Battalion
    • 7th SP Artillery Battalion
    • 23rd SP Artillery Battalion
    • 24th Heavy Artillery Battalion
  • 3rd Royal Field AD Group – (Merged with Central command in 2018)
    • Group HQ
    • Signal Company
    • 4th Field AD Battalion
    • 73rd Field AD Battalion
  • Division Engineer Battalion (Merged with Central command in 2018)
  • Supply & Transport Battalion (Merged with Central command in 2018)
  • Administrative Transport Group – (Deactivated in 2018)
  • Medical Support Group – (Deactivated in 2018)
  • Construction Group – (Deactivated in 2018)
  • Maintenance Group – (Deactivated in 2018)
  • Division Training Center – (Deactivated in 2018)

Unit summary
NumberUnit TypeEquipment
6
 Tank Battalion Al-Hussein, M577A2, M106A2
3
 Armored Infantry Battalion AIFV, M113A2MK1J, M577A2, YPR-765 prat, M106A2,
3
 Self-Propelled Artillery M110A2 Howitzer, M109A3L Howitzer, M113A2, M577A2, M901 ITV, M35, DAF Military trucks
2
 Field ADA Battalion 9K33 Osa, Strela-10, PTRL, M163 Vulcan, ZSU-23-4 Shilka, Igla-S, 9K38 Igla, Strela-3
1
 Engineer Battalion M113A2, M35, CEV, Armored tracked bulldozer (CAT D6T, D7G/R, D8R, D9, Komatsu D155A), Wheeled bulldozer (CAT 924H, 966H), excavators, graders (CAT 12G, 120M), dump trucks, Backhoe loaders, loaders, M58 MICLIC, Aardvark JSFU, Combat Dozer UDK1 and Bomb disposal robots.
1
 Command & Control & Communication Group M577A2, M113A2, Humvee, RG-12
1
 Supply & Transport Battalion FMTV, M35, M800 & M900 Trucks, DAF Military trucks, fuel tankers, Toyota trucks and many other vehicles.
1
 Medical Support Group M113A2 Ambulance, HMMWV M997 Ambulance, Toyota Land Cruiser Ambulance, Mobile Field Hospitals on trucks.
1
 Maintenance Group M113A2, M88 Recovery Vehicle, M578 Light Recovery Vehicle, AL Monjed ARV, Chieftain ARV, YPR-806, M109 Van, M35 Trucks, M800 & M900 Trucks.
1
 Construction Group Wheeled bulldozer, M35, excavators, dump trucks, Backhoe loaders, loaders.
1
 Administrative Transport Group
gollark: Which apparently does come back on updates.
gollark: Candy Crush and Xbox Live and whatever else.
gollark: It's better than 8 I guess, sure.
gollark: I don't actually *use* Windows. I just vaguely remember them being there.
gollark: *File* Explorer.

References
  1. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2013-10-14. Retrieved 2013-05-30.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  2. Rubin, Barry M; Keaney, Thomas A (2002). Armed Forces in the Middle East: Politics and Strategy. ISBN 978-0-7146-5255-9.
  3. http://www.janes.com/extracts/extract/emedsu/jords100.html
  4. "Jordan" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-12-15. Retrieved 2013-04-17.
  5. "ihracat.ssm.gov.tr" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2009-11-22. Retrieved 2013-05-14.
  6. IISS Military Balance 2004–2005, p.127-128
  7. Kenneth Pollack, Arabs at War, Council on Foreign Relations/University of Nebraska Press, 2002, p.355
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.