Guyana Defence Force
The Guyana Defence Force (GDF) is the military of Guyana, established in 1965. It numbers about 2500 soldiers [4] and has military bases across the nation. [5] The Commander-in-Chief of the Defence Force is always the incumbent President of Guyana. [4]
Guyana Defence Force | |
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![]() GDF Emblem | |
![]() Guyana Defence Force Flag | |
Motto | "SERVICE"[1] |
Founded | 1 November 1965 (de facto) 22 May 1966 (de jura)[2] |
Service branches | ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Leadership | |
Commander-in-Chief | ![]() |
Chief of Staff | Brigadier Godfrey Bess |
Manpower | |
Military age | 18 years of age |
Conscription | No |
Expenditures | |
Percent of GDP | 1.69% (2018)[3] |
Industry | |
Foreign suppliers | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Related articles | |
History | Rupununi Uprising |
Ranks | Military ranks of Guyana |
History
The GDF was formed on 1 November 1965. Members of the new Defence Force were drawn from the British Guiana Volunteer Force (BGVF), Special Service Unit (SSU), British Guiana Police Force (BGPF) and civilians. Training assistance was provided by British instructors.
In January 1969, the GDF faced their first test when the Rupununi Uprising, a bloody separatist movement in southern Guyana, attempted to annex the territory to Venezuela that was contained 3 days later with a balance of between 70 and 100 dead.
The GDF is an integral part of the Guyanese nation. Resources and equipment of the GDF are used to help other Guyanese; examples include medical mercy flights and the construction of roads and airstrips by the Engineering Corps.
Enlistment into the force is voluntary for officers and soldiers. Basic training is done within GDF training schools, which has also trained officers and soldiers from Commonwealth Caribbean territories. However, officers are trained at two of the world-renowned British officer training schools: Royal Military Academy Sandhurst (Infantry Training) and Britannia Royal Naval College (Coast Guard Training).
The training and skills gained by the members of the GDF have been used when they move either into civilian life or into the sister military organizations, the Guyana People's Militia (now the Second Infantry Battalion Group Reserve) and the Guyana National Service.
Role of the GDF
- Defend the territorial integrity of Guyana.
- Assist the civil power in the maintenance of law and order when required to do so.
- Contribute to the economic development of Guyana.
Organization
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- 1st Infantry Battalion Group
- 2nd Infantry Battalion Group (Reserve)
- 1 Special Forces Company
- 1 Support Weapons Company
- 21st Artillery Company
- Engineer Battalion
- 41st Construction Company
- 42nd FD Company
- 43rd EME Company
- Signals
- Headquarters
- Defense Communication Center
- Signal Center and Switchboard
- Technical Workshop
- School of Signals
- Technical Stores
- GDF Band Corps
- Medical Corps
- Air Corps
1st Infantry Battalion Group
In the 1980s, Guyana National Service provided infantry battalions for use by the GDF for the purposes of national security. Those battalions were amalgamated in 1988 to form what is now the 1st Infantry Battalion Group. The now combined battalion is today required to carry out the tasks protecting the country in case of wartime and to help the local authorities in emergency situations.[6]
GDF Band Corps
The Guyana Defence Force Band Corps is the official musical unit of the GDF whose role is to provide musical accompaniment for ceremonial functions of the GDF.[7] The members were drawn from the Rifle Companies and the defunct Volunteer Force and were brought out during regimental military parades. The Guyana Defence Force Steel Band would soon follow the main band's lead after its own establishment in 1970, three years after the original band was founded.[8]
Medical Corps
The Medical Corps provides medical and dental care to all the members of the GDF and their immediate families. It often liaises with the Health ministry for medical procedures and protocol to be carried out effectively. The corps is situated in Base Camp Ayanganna which includes facilities such as a medical laboratory and a dental lab.[9]
Army equipment
Infantry weapons
- Walther PPK hand gun
Germany - M16A2 rifle
United States - Type 56 rifle
China - Type 63 rifle
China - AKM rifle
Soviet Union - AK 47 rifle
Soviet Union - G3
Germany - PK MG
Soviet Union - FN MAG MG
Belgium - RPG-7 anti tank rocket propelled grenade launcher
Soviet Union
Armoured vehicles
- 10 Ford F-350 Pickup
United States - 4 Shorland APC
United Kingdom - 6 EE-9 Cascavel armoured car
Brazil - 12 EE-11 Urutu APC
Brazil
Artillery and mortars
- 12 D-30 122mm towed howitzer
Soviet Union - 6 M-46 130mm towed howitzer
Soviet Union - 12 L16 81mm Mortar
United Kingdom - 18 M-43 82mm mortar
Soviet Union - 18 M1938 mortar 120mm
Soviet Union - 6 Type 65 82mm recoilless rifle
China - 6 Type 63 multiple rocket launcher
China - 6 ZPU 4x 14.5 mm anti-aircraft gun
Soviet Union - 18 Launchers of 100 missiles SA-7 Grail MANPAD
Soviet Union
Aircraft inventory
The Defence force air wing was formed in 1968 and was then renamed the Guyana Defence force air command in 1973. Seven Britten-Norman BN-2A Islander were delivered over a five-year period in the 1970s and then were supplemented by Short Skyvans series 3Ms in 1979. In 1986 3 Mil Mi-8 were delivered. The GDF currently operates three fixed-wing aircraft and four helicopters.
Aircraft | Origin | Type | Versions | In service [10] | Notes | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Transport and liaison aircraft | ||||||
Short Skyvan [11][12][13] | ![]() | Utility transport | SC-7 Skyvan 3M | 1 | In service since 1979. | |
Harbin Y-12 Panda | ![]() | STOL Utility transport | Y-12 | 1 | In service since 2002. | |
Britten-Norman BN-2 Islander[14] | ![]() | Utility transport | BN-2 | 2 | In service since 2018. | |
Helicopters | ||||||
Bell 206 JetRanger | ![]() | Utility helicopter | 206B | 2 | In service since 1976. | |
Bell 412 [15] | ![]() | Utility Helicopter | 412 | 1 | In service since 1984. | |
RotorWay Exec 162F | ![]() | Light helicopter | 162F | 1 | In service since 2004. |
Former aircraft
Aircraft | Origin | Type | Versions | In service[10] | Notes | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Transport and liaison aircraft | ||||||
Beechcraft Super King Air | ![]() | Transport and patrol aircraft | King Air 200 | 1 | In service from 1975 to 1992. | |
Britten Norman Islander [16] | ![]() | Transport and patrol aircraft | BN-2A | 7 | In service from 1971 to 2001.[17][18][19] One (8R-GES) crashed on the 15 December 1986 and another (8R-GFN) was destroyed in a crash on the 6 January 2001.[20][21] | |
Cessna 182 | ![]() | Liaison aircraft | 182J Skylane | 1 | In service from 1982 to 1994. | |
Cessna 206 | ![]() | Transport and patrol aircraft | U206G Stationair | 1 | In service from 1975 to 1995. | |
Embraer EMB 110 Bandeirante | ![]() | Transport aircraft | 110P | 1 | In service from 1984 to 1994. | |
Helio Super Courier | ![]() | Liaison and patrol aircraft | H-295 Super Courier | 3 | In service from 1968 to 1971. | |
Helicopters | ||||||
Aerospatiale Alouette III [22] | ![]() | Utility helicopter | SA-319B | 2 | In service from 1975 to 1982. | |
Bell 212 [23] | ![]() | Utility helicopter | 3 | In service from 1976 to 1994. | ||
Mil Mi-8 | ![]() | Transport and utility helicopter | Hip | 3 | In service from 1985 to 1991. |
Coast Guard
The Guyana Defence Force Coast Guard is the naval component of the Guyana Defence Force.
- 1 River-class minesweeper
United Kingdom - GDFS Essequibo is ex-Royal Navy Orwell (M2011) c 1985; 890 tons full load transferred to Guyana in 2001 - 8 T-44 patrol boats
United States - 18 tons full load; ex-United States Coast Guard motor lifeboats[24] - 1 Kimbala class LCU
Netherlands - 7 Metal Shark Boats Defiant-Class patrol boats
United States - 5 28' and 2 38'[25]
References
- GDF. "Where it all began". www.gdf.mil.gy.
- DeRouen, Karl R. (2005). Defense and Security: A Compendium of National Armed Forces and Security Policies. ABC-CLIO. p. 116. ISBN 9781851097814.
- "South America: Guyana". The World Factbook. CIA. 15 March 2020. Retrieved 6 April 2020.
- "Guyana Defence Force". Global Security.
- "3 soldiers killed in explosion at Guyana military base - CityNews Toronto". toronto.citynews.ca. Retrieved 2020-08-17.
- "This website is currently unavailable". box757.bluehost.com.
- "This website is currently unavailable". box757.bluehost.com.
- "This website is currently unavailable". box757.bluehost.com.
- "This website is currently unavailable". box757.bluehost.com.
- "World Military Aircraft Inventory", Aerospace Source Book 2007, Aviation Week & Space Technology, January 15, 2007.
- "Video footage of the 8R-GRR Skyvan shortly after landing (piloted by Mike Rogers)". 2008-01-23. Retrieved 2013-01-21.
- "Photo of the GDF Short SC-7 Skyvan, 8R-GGK (airliners.net)". 2008-12-07. Retrieved 2013-01-21.
- "Article with exterior and interior photos of the 8R-GGK Skyvan". 2007-04-06. Retrieved 2013-01-21.
- "Defence Force Islanders arrive in Guyana" (Press release). Department of Public Information of Guyana. 8 August 2018. Retrieved 10 August 2018.
- "Article about the Bell 412 and other GDF aircraft at the Guyana Times website (with a larger resolution photograph of the Bell 412 in flight)". 2012-02-09. Retrieved 2013-01-21.
- "Historical photograph of the BN-2A Islander, code 8R-GEE (post in discussion thread at Key Publishing Ltd. forums)". 2009-01-10. Retrieved 2013-01-21.
- "Video footage of the 8R-GFN Islander while it was still operating". 2008-01-24. Retrieved 2013-01-21.
- "Video footage of the 8R-GFN Islander while it was still operating". 2008-01-24. Retrieved 2013-01-21.
- "Video footage of the 8R-GFN Islander while it was still operating". 2008-01-24. Retrieved 2013-01-21.
- "Overview of accidents and crashes of Guyanese civilian and military aircraft". 2013-01-11. Archived from the original on 2012-10-17. Retrieved 2013-01-21.
- "Photo of the tail section of the crashed GDF BN Islander 8R-GFN". 2013-12-14. Retrieved 2013-01-21.
- "Historical photograph of the GDF Aerospatiale Alouette III, 8R-GEL (post in discussion thread at Key Publishing Ltd. forums)". 2006-03-25. Retrieved 2013-01-21.
- "Historical photographs of the GDF Bell 212 (post in discussion thread at Key Publishing Ltd. forums)". 2009-01-12. Retrieved 2013-01-21.
- https://www.44mlb.com/mlb-to-guyana.htm
- http://guyanachronicle.com/2014/03/21/gdf-gets-three-patrol-boats-from-u-s-valued-340m