Military equipment of Cyprus

FN P90 in the hands of Cypriot National Guard during a parade in Larnaca

Currently, the Cyprus National Guard is a combined arms force and represents the organised air, land and sea capabilities of the Republic of Cyprus. Equipment has in the past, and usually still is, imported from other countries, since the country has only very limited heavy industrial and commercial industrial capacity due to its small population and land mass (excluding the territory currently controlled by the Turkish Army). The role of maintaining, upgrading and modifying military equipment is primarily the task of the National Guard Technical Corps, though more complex activities rely upon the availability of civil contracts.

Currently operational equipment

This list contains equipment which is currently in use by the Cypriot armed forces.

Small arms AK-101 AK-74 AK-47 HK G3 MG3 HK11 Zastava M70 FN P90 Glock 17 HK USP FN Five-Seven Zastava M57 Main Battle Tanks T-80U[1] T-80UK [2] AMX-30B2[3] Artillery M101[4] M1944[5] M-56[6] BM-21[7] M-63 Plamen[8] MKF3[9] TRF1[10] Zuzana [11] Aircraft Mil Mi-35PN Hind-F [12] Agusta-Westland AW139 [13] Piaggio P.166[14] BN-2B Turbine Defender [15] BN-2T Maritime Defender [16] Pilatus PC-9 [17] Bell-206 Long Ranger[18] Aerospatiale SA-342L Gazelle [19] Watercraft Corrubia class FPB [20] SAB-12 Evagoras class FPB [21] Shaldag class FPB [22] Type 32L Esterel class FPB [23] Dilos class PB[24] Rodman 55 class FAB [25] Rotork class LCP [26] Nautimar HD-7 RIB [27] Barracuda RIB [28] Mostro RIB [29]

Air-defense systems TOR-M1 [30] Aspide [31] Mistral [32] SA-7 Grail [33] GDF-005 [34] FFL[35] M55A4B1[36] M55A4 [37] Bofors 40 L/60[38] ZSU-23-2[39] ZPU [40] M2 Browning [41] Anti-tank rockets and missiles 9M117 Bastion 9M119M Refleks 9M133 Kornet [42] MILAN Mk-3 MILAN 9M120 Ataka-V 9K114 Shturm HOT-2 HOT APILAS LAW RPG-7V1 EM-67 M40A1 SPG-9 Other missiles MBDA MM-40 Exocet Block-II Fighting vehicles BMP-3 ELBO Leonidas-I ELBO Leonidas-II VAB-VCI VAB-VTT VAB-VCAC AMX-VCI EE-9 Cascavel EE-3 Jararaca BREM-1 Unmanned aerial vehicles Hermes 450 Miscellaneous ELBO G-Wagen ELBO "Onesilos" ELBO Steyr 6x6 truck ACMAT [43] Spaceflight Hellas-Sat

Currently non-operational equipment

This list contains equipment no longer currently in service with the Cypriot armed forces.

Small arms Thompson Lee Enfield Mk-IV M1 Garand M1 Carbine FN FAL Sten Sterling Bren Springfield Main Battle Tanks M48A5 MOLF [44] M47 Patton [45] T-34/85[46] Artillery QF-6 M116 M101 ZIS-3 QF-25 QF-106 AA 106mm M114A1 M107A1 M110A2 Aircraft Agusta-Bell AB-47J Fairchild Hiller FH-1100 Dornier Do-27Q Beechcraft C45 Expeditor Piper PA-22 Colt T-6A Harvard Air-defense systems S-300PMU-1 Gargoyle [47]

Watercraft P-4 class MTB [48] Type 108 class MTB [49] R-151 class GMM [50] R-218 class GMM [51] Esterel class FPB [52] Plascoa class PB [53] Astrapi V class SB [54] Anti-tank rockets and missiles Shmel AT-1 M20A1 Super Bazooka 85mm B-10 82 mm Recoilless M18A1 57 mm Recoilless Fighting vehicles BTR-152V1 Marmon Herrington Mk-IVF Daimler Dingo M113 Valentine KMC Commer Carrier Miscellaneous KMC 6x6 truck ZIL-157 GS truck GAZ-69 Bedford TK truck Land Rover Series II 109

Notes

1. ^ 27 included in batch of 41 tanks acquired in 1998. Further batch of 41 (including T-80Us) ordered in 2008. Cyprus Mail: Is this military spending necessary? Wednesday, February 22, 2006
2. ^ 14 included in batch of 41 tanks acquired in 1998. Further batch of 41 (including T-80UKs) ordered in 2008. Cyprus Mail: Is this military spending necessary? Wednesday, February 22, 2006
3. ^ 104 acquired, including 52 AMX-30, in 1993. All vehicles upgraded to AMX-30B2 standard by 2008.
4. ^ Reportedly 18 artillery pieces remain in service.
5. ^ In service since at least 1972. Possibly 20 pieces survived the 1974 conflict and have remained in service since.Acquired from Russia.
6. ^ Reportedly as many as 72 pieces in service. Acquired from Greece.
7. ^ 18 artillery pieces procured from Russia in 2005.
8. ^ Reportedly acquired 24 towed pieces in the early 1990s from former Yugoslavia.
9. ^ 12 self-propelled artillery pieces known to be in service. Acquired from France.
10. ^ 12 pieces acquired from France
11. ^ 12 self-propelled pieces acquired from Slovenia, via Greece, in early 2000s. Reportedly transferred as partial payment from Greece for S-300s.
12. ^ 12 aircraft acquired in Mi-35P variant in 2001-2003. One aircraft lost in accident. Remaining eleven upgraded to Mi-35PN standard in 2008. Cyprus Mail: Is this military spending necessary?, Wednesday, February 22, 2006
13. ^ Three aircraft on order. Greek-language Cyprus newspaper "The Citizen", 13th November 2008
14. ^ Reportedly 2 aircraft to be transferred from Italian sources as part of EU agreement on border patrol.
15. ^ One in service. British origin.
16. ^ One in service. British origin.
17. ^ Two examples acquired from Sweden. One lost in crash in 2005, other grounded indefinitely.
18. ^ Reportedly three acquired from Belgian source in 1980s. One lost in crash in 2003.
19. ^ A total of six aircraft acquired, but only four made operational. Three operational in 2008. One grounded due to technical problems.
20. ^ Four vessels acquired from Cantierre Navale Vittoria of Italy in 2006-2007.
21. ^ Two vessels in service. Ex-Yugoslav source.
22. ^ One vessel in service. Acquired in Israel in 1998.
23. ^ One vessel. Acqired in France in 1983.
24. ^ Ex-Hellenic Navy patrol boat, transferred 2002.
25. ^ Two vessels in service. Acqired in Spain in 2002.
26. ^ Approx. three in service.
27. ^ Domestically produced assault water craft. Numerous examples and variants.
28. ^ Domestically produced water craft.
29. ^ Domestically produced water craft.
30. ^ 6 self-propelled systems procured from Greece, 6 more on order at a cost of $60 million US dollars. Greek-language newspaper "The Citizen" 13th November 2008
31. ^ 24 systems procured from Italy in two successive batches.
32. ^ Possibly 30 in service. Acquired from France.
33. ^ Reportedly 328 missiles and 20 launchers in possession, acquired from Syria in the early 1980s. Considered obsolescent and earmarked for destruction in 2009. Cyprus Mail: Cyprus to destroy stockpile of SAM missiles, Thursday, October 30, 2008, by Stefanos Evripidou
34. ^ Reportedly 30 in service
35. ^ Reportedly numerous in reserve.
36. ^ Numerous examples in service. Yugoslav-origin.
37. ^ Not known how many survived the 1974 conflict. Possibly retired.
38. ^ Not known how many survived the 1974 conflict. Possibly retired.
39. ^ Unknown number, acquired from Russia
40. ^ Unknown number of ZPU-1 variant acquired from Russia.
41. ^ Large number in service.
42. ^ Reported to be 26 systems on order at a cost of $28 million US dollars. Greek-language newspaper "The Citizen" 13th November 2008
43. ^ http://www.cyprus-mail.com/cyprus/army-halts-all-acmat-vehicles-after-fatal-accident
44. ^ 61 vehicles belonging to the Greek Army ELDYK contingent in Cyprus, briefly transferred to the Cyprus National Guard in 2003. Reverted to Greek control after the political intervention of the US Embassy in Cyprus.
45. ^ One vehicle captured intact from the Turkish Army during the 1974 invasion. The vehicle was reported to be in service as late as 1993.
46. ^ A total of 35 vehicles were acquired from a USSR in 1964-65. A number (probably 11-13) were destroyed or captured during the war. The remaining handful of T-34's were withdrawn from service in 1985.
47. ^ Two battalion systems acquired, but transferred to Greece due to international political considerations. Cyprus Mail: Cyprus hands S300s to Greece in arms swap, By Jean Christou, Wednesday, December 19, 2007
48. ^ Six purchased in 1964-65. All lost in 1974
49. ^ Three purchased in 1970-71. All lost in 1974
50. ^ Two purchased in 1964. one lost in 1964, another - 1974
51. ^ Stricken in 1970-71
52. ^ Embargoed, purchased by Hellenic Navy in 1975.
53. ^ Two vessels purchased in France in 1981-83. One stricken in 1991, another in 2004-2006
54. ^ Domestically produced Fletcher Malibu class speed boats. Six were produced in 1986. In 2006-2007 replaced by RIB boats.

References

See also

• Armoured vehicles of the Cypriot National Guard
• Turkish invasion of Cyprus
• Military operations during the Turkish invasion of Cyprus