List of equipment of the Somali Armed Forces

The following is a list of active equipment of the Somali Armed Forces. Retired equipment is listed at the bottom.

Small arms

Name	Image	Caliber	Type	Origin	Notes
Pistols
Makarov PM[1]		9×18mm	Semi-automatic pistol	Soviet Union
Submachine guns
Uzi[1]		9×19mm	Submachine gun	Israel
Rifles
AKM[2]		7.62×39mm	Assault rifle	Soviet Union
AK-74		5.45×39mm	Assault rifle	Soviet Union	Used by National Intelligence and Security Agency special forces Gaashaan and Waran.[3] and Danab commandos.[4]
AK-74M		5.45×39mm	Assault rifle	Russia	Used by NISA special forces Gaashaan and Waran.[5] and Danab commandos.[6]
Vz. 58[7]		7.62×39mm	Assault rifle	Czechoslovak Socialist Republic
PM md. 63		7.62×39mm	Assault rifle	Socialist Republic of Romania
AK-63[8]		7.62×39mm	Assault rifle	Hungarian People's Republic
Zastava M70		7.62×39mm	Assault rifle	Yugoslavia
Type 56[9]		7.62×39mm	Assault rifle	China
MPT-76		7.62×51mm	Battle rifle	Turkey	450 delivered.[10]
M16[11]		5.56×45mm	Assault rifle	United States
M4A1		5.56×45mm	Carbine Assault rifle	United States	Used by Special Forces.[citation needed]
M14		7.62×51mm	Battle rifle	United States
Heckler & Koch G3		7.62×51mm	Battle rifle	West Germany	Used by the Danab Brigade and the "Gorgor" Brigade, also used by Camp TURKSOM NCOs and officer cadets.[12][13]
Type 56		7.62×39mm	Semi-automatic rifle	China	Used for ceremonial purposes by the Presidential Guard.[citation needed]
Sniper rifles
SVD[14]		7.62×54mmR	Designated marksman rifle Sniper rifle	Soviet Union
Machine guns
RP-46[1]		7.62×54mmR	Light machine gun	Soviet Union
SG-43[15]		7.62×54mmR	Medium machine gun	Soviet Union
Browning M1919[15]		7.62×51mm	Medium machine gun	United States
KPV		14.5×114mm	Heavy machine gun	Soviet Union
DShK[16]		12.7×108mm	Heavy machine gun	Soviet Union
RPD[1]		7.62×39mm	Squad automatic weapon	Soviet Union
RPK[1]		7.62×39mm	Squad automatic weapon	Soviet Union
PKM[2]		7.62×54mmR	General-purpose machine gun	Soviet Union
Zastava M84[17]		7.62×54mmR	General-purpose machine gun	Yugoslavia
Rocket propelled grenade launchers
RPG-2[15]		40mm	Rocket-propelled grenade	Soviet Union
RPG-7[2]		40mm	Rocket-propelled grenade	Soviet Union
Grenade launchers
AGS-17[citation needed]			Grenade launcher	Soviet Union

Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected

Name	Image	Type	Origin	Quantity	Notes
Casspir		MRAP	South Africa	9[18]	Status:In service
BMC Kirpi		MRAP	Turkey	24[19]	Status:In service
BMC Kirpi II		MRAP	Turkey	N/A[20]	Status:In service

Armored personnel carriers

Name	Image	Type	Origin	Quantity	Notes
AT105 Saxon[18]		Armored personnel carrier	United Kingdom	50[citation needed]	Status:In service Donated second hand by Djibouti April 2013.
Iveco VM 90[18]		Armored personnel carrier	Italy	Unknown	Status:In service Donated by Italy.
RG-31 Nyala[18]		Infantry mobility vehicle	South Africa	Unknown	Status:In service

Utility vehicles

Name	Image	Type	Origin	Quantity	Notes
Toyota 4Runner		Utility vehicle	Japan	Unknown	Status:In service Unknown amount in service, Used by Armed Forces for awareness against SARS-nCov-2[21][22]
Toyota Land Cruiser		Utility vehicle	Japan	10[23]	Status:In service Donated by Turkey.
Mitsubishi Triton		Utility vehicle	Japan	26+[24]	Status:In service Donated by Turkey.
Trucks
M939[25]		Utility truck	United States	Unknown	Status:In service
BMC 245-16P 4x4		Utility truck	Turkey	14[26]	Status:In service Donated by Turkey.
Iveco 4x4		Utility truck	Italy	3+[27]	Status:In service Donated by Turkey.

Boats

Name	Image	Type	Origin	Quantity	Notes
ONUK MRTP 16		Patrol boat	Turkey	Unknown	Status:In service
Grand RIB		Rigid inflatable boat	Ukraine	Unknown

Individual Equipment

Model	Origin	Image	Type	Notes
PASGT	United States  Turkey		Combat helmet	Donated from Turkey [when?][citation needed]
FAST	United States  Turkey		Combat helmet	Utilised by Commando Brigade, donated from Turkey.
M1 Woodland	United States  Somalia		Camouflage pattern	Bought from the U.S. in the 1980s; Standard issue across all branches.[1][page needed]
Desert Battle Dress Uniform	United States  Somalia		Camouflage pattern	Bought from the U.S. in the 1980s.[citation needed]
M2008 Digital Camouflage	Turkey		Camouflage pattern	Donated from Turkey.[1]

Retired equipment

Among firearms associated with the Somali National Army and reported by Jane's Infantry Weapons 2009/10 were Soviet TT pistols, British Sterling submachine guns; German Heckler & Koch G3 and Belgian FN FAL assault rifles, U.S. M14 rifles, Soviet RPD machine guns; Soviet RPK machine guns; Soviet RP-46 machine guns; French AA-52 machine guns; Belgian FN MAG machine guns; Soviet DShK heavy machine guns; U.S. M2 Browning .50 cal heavy machine guns; and U.S. M79 grenade launchers and Soviet RPG-2 grenade launchers.^[1]

Previous arms acquisitions included the following equipment, much of which was unserviceable circa June 1989:^[28] 293 main battle tanks (30 Centurions; 123 M47 Patton, 30 T-34, 110 T-54/55 from various sources). Christopher F. Foss, writing in the second edition of Jane's Main Battle Tanks said that 'Kuwait was believed to have supplied Somalia with about 35 Centurions.'^[29] The Military Balance 1987–88 (p. 112) listed 30 Centurions held by the Somali Army.

Other armoured fighting vehicles included 10 M41 Walker Bulldog light tanks, 30 BRDM-2 and 15 Panhard AML-90 armored cars (formerly owned by Saudi Arabia). The IISS estimated in 1989 that there were 474 armoured personnel carriers, including 64 BTR-40/BTR-50/BTR-60, 100 BTR-152 wheeled armored personnel carriers, 310 Fiat 6614 and 6616s, and that BMR-600s had been reported. SIPRI also reported BTR-70s had been sold to Somalia.^[30] The IISS estimated that there were 210 towed artillery pieces (8 M-1944 100 mm, 100 M-56 105 mm, 84 M-1938 122 mm, and 18 M198 155 mm towed howitzers). Other equipment reported by the IISS included 82 mm and 120 mm mortars, 100 Milan and BGM-71 TOW anti-tank guided missiles, rocket launchers, recoilless rifles, and a variety of Soviet air defence guns of 20 mm, 23 mm, 37 mm, 40 mm, 57 mm, and 100 mm calibre. SIPRI also reported that 9K32 Strela-2 air defence missiles had been transferred.^[30]

In addition, U.S. M151 trucks had been sold to Somalia by December 1987.^[31]

IISS Military Balance 2022 lists only armoured personnel carriers and utility vehicles.

Name	Image	Type	Origin	Quantity	Notes
BRDM-2		Amphibious armored scout car	Soviet Union	Unknown	Status:In_retired
ZU-23-2[18]		Autocannon	Soviet Union	Unknown	Status:In_retired

Name	Image	Type	Origin	Quantity	Notes
Rocket artillery
BM-21 Grad[32]		Multiple rocket launcher	Soviet Union	Unknown	Status:In_retired

References

Bibliography

• Bonn International Center for Conversion. Lee-Enfield SMLE (PDF) (Report). SALW Guide: Global distribution and visual identification. p. 3.
• International Institute for Strategic Studies (February 2016). The Military Balance 2016. Vol. 116. Routledge. ISBN 9781857438352.
• IISS Military Balance 1989–90, Brassey's for the IISS. 1989.
• Jones, Richard D.; Ness, Leland S., eds. (27 January 2009). Jane's Infantry Weapons 2009/2010 (35th ed.). Coulsdon: Jane's Information Group. ISBN 978-0-7106-2869-5.
• Small Arms Survey (2012). "Surveying the Battlefield: Illicit Arms In Afghanistan, Iraq, and Somalia". Small Arms Survey 2012: Moving Targets. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-19714-4. Archived from the original (PDF) on 31 August 2018. Retrieved 30 August 2018.

This page was last edited on 20 May 2024, at 15:07