Royal Brunei Armed Forces
Angkatan Bersenjata Diraja Brunei
Royal Brunei Armed Forces badge
Brunei Darussalam Ensign
Founded31 May 1961 (1961-05-31), as Brunei Malay Regiment[1]
Current form1 January 1984 (1984-01-01)[1]
Service branches Royal Brunei Land Forces
 Royal Brunei Navy
 Royal Brunei Air Force
HeadquartersBolkiah Garrison, Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei Darussalam
WebsiteMinDef.gov.bn
Leadership
Supreme CommanderFM Hassanal Bolkiah
Minister of DefenceFM Hassanal Bolkiah
Minister of Defence IIHalbi Mohd Yussof
CommanderMG Haszaimi Bol Hassan
Personnel
Military age18
Conscriptionno
Active personnel7,200[2]
Reserve personnel700[2]
Expenditures
BudgetIncrease$597.67 million BND (2022)[3]
Percent of GDP4.5% (2006)
Industry
Foreign suppliers Australia
 Brazil
 Canada
 France
 Germany
 Indonesia
 Italy
 Japan
 South Korea
 Netherlands
 Singapore
 Sweden
  Switzerland
 United Kingdom
 United States
Related articles
RanksMilitary ranks of the Brunei
Ministry of Defence of Brunei headquarters

The Royal Brunei Armed Forces (RBAF); Malay: Angkatan Bersenjata Diraja Brunei, (ABDB),[1] is the collective term for all of the military forces or service branches of the sultanate of Brunei Darussalam. The RBAF consists of three primary military branches; the Royal Brunei Land Forces (RBLF), the Royal Brunei Navy (RBN), and the Royal Brunei Air Force (RBAirF).

The head of the Royal Brunei Armed Forces is the supreme commander, and is held by the Sultan of Brunei, its incumbent is Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah, holding the rank of field marshal (FM). The RBAF / ABDB are controlled and managed by the Ministry of Defence Brunei Darussalam (MinDef).

The forerunner to the Royal Brunei Armed Forces were formed on 31 May 1961,[1] with British military support; 31 May is annually marked as Armed Forces Day.[4]

Name

Upon inception, the Royal Brunei Armed Forces were originally known as the Brunei Malay Regiment (Askar Melayu Brunei, AMB). On 31 May 1965, the word 'Diraja' (Malay for 'Royal') was added to the title, hence it became known as the Royal Brunei Malay Regiment (Askar Melayu Diraja Brunei, AMDB). It finally adopted its current name on 1 January 1984, that is on the day Brunei was granted independence from the United Kingdom.[1]

Organisation

Branches

The Royal Brunei Armed Forces consists of three primary military branches.

Royal Brunei Land Forces

The Royal Brunei Land Forces (RBLF) (Malay: Tentera Darat Diraja Brunei – TDDB), is a brigade sized army formation; it consists of three operational battalions, along with an additional support battalion. The role of the Royal Brunei Land Forces is to maintain the security of Brunei, and to defend the sovereignty of the country. Its main responsibility is to oppose any threat from within or outside the country, and to maintain peace and security in the country.[5] The Royal Brunei Land Forces is the largest of the three armed services of Brunei.

Royal Brunei Navy

The Royal Brunei Navy (RBN) (Malay: Tentera Laut Diraja Brunei – TLDB), is the naval defence force of Brunei Darrussalam. It is a small, but relatively well-equipped force, whose main responsibility is to conduct search and rescue (SAR) missions, and to deter and defend the Brunei sovereign waters against attack mounted by sea-borne forces.[6] Headquartered at Muara Naval Base, as of 2023, the Royal Brunei Navy has an operational inventory of twenty ships or similar surface vessels, the RBN does not operate any submarines or submersibles.

Royal Brunei Air Force

The Royal Brunei Air Force (RBAirF) (Malay: Tentera Udara Diraja Brunei – TUDB), is a small, primarily helicopter-based air force, which is tasked with supporting the other branches of the armed services, defending Bruneian air space, and carrying out search and rescue (SAR) operations. It was originally created in 1965, as the Air Wing of the Royal Brunei Malay Regiment (Malay: Askar Melayu Diraja Brunei – AMDB, the forerunner of today's Royal Brunei Armed Forces, RBAF), and was established as an independent air force; the Royal Brunei Air Force on 1 October 1991. The RBAirF main inventory consists of a range of rotary-wing helicopters; formerly ten Bell 212, four Sikorsky S-70A-14 (now transferred to the Royal Malaysian Air Force), and a solitary Bell 214ST. The Bell 212s were replaced between 2013 to 2015 by twelve Poland-manufactured Sikorsky S-70i Blackhawks[7][8] Two Bell 206 helicopters are used for rotary-wing training.[8]

The Royal Brunei Air Force fixed-wing inventory is limited to four Swiss-built Pilatus PC-7 Mk.II turboprop training aircraft (three of which are also used by the Alap-Alap Formation aerobatic display team), and a solitary CASA/IPTN CN 235-300 Persuader aerial transport aircraft.[9] On 14 July 2014, the Commander of the Royal Brunei Armed Forces announced plans to order the Lockheed Martin C-130J Super Hercules in the near future,[10] though this never materialised. As of 2023, the Royal Brunei Air Force operates twenty manned aircraft[8] and four unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV).

Support Services

The former Support Services of the Royal Brunei Armed Forces (RBAF) had the responsibility of providing support services to units within the RBAF, in all aspects pertaining to their administration, security, health, logistics, communication, transportation, and technical equipment service support. The Support Services of the RBAF also worked closely with other units of all service branches in the Royal Brunei Armed Forces to undergo and help co-ordinate military training and operations. As part of the reorganisation of the RBAF, the Support Services was disbanded in early 2009, and its various units were relocated.[11]

Bands

The RBAF Band was established on 31 May 1962, at Port Dickson in Malaysia. It originally had twenty-one members, and was then badged as the regimental band of the Royal Brunei Malay Regiment. On 1 January 1984, Major Haji Manaf bin Kamis became the first local musician to be appointed Director of Music. Kamis was the judge at a competition which chose the official anthem of ASEAN. Since 2003, the band has been led by Major Awg Jaya bin Metussin. It has participated in events such as the Edinburgh Military Tattoo, the Brunei Darussalam International Tattoo, and the Berlin Military Music Festival.[12] The RBAF Band first participated in the Hari Merdeka celebrations and the Kuala Lumpur International Tattoo in Malaysia in 2007, and has since become a regular participant.[13]

The 2nd and 3rd Battalion Royal Brunei Land Forces Pipes and Drums are also part of the larger RBAF Band, and are more modelled on those of the British Army Brigade of Gurkhas, which station a battalion in rotation in Brunei. Bands are also maintained in the Royal Brunei Navy and the Royal Brunei Air Force.

Affiliated to the RBAF Band is the Band of the Armed Forces Military Cadet Corps.

Training Institute

Training Institute of the Royal Brunei Armed Forces badge

The Training Institute of the Royal Brunei Armed Forces is also known as the Military Training Institution. It provides basic military training to all new recruits to the Royal Brunei Armed Forces. Other military courses are also offered and conducted in the institution to personnel of the Royal Brunei Armed Forces.[14]

Recruitment

Only Bruneian citizens of the Malay ethnicity (Bumiputera) are allowed to enlist in the Royal Brunei Armed Forces.[15] The Malay ethnicity comprises the Belait, Bisaya, Brunei, Dusun, Kedayan, Murut, and Tutong indigenous races, as defined in the Constitution of Brunei.[16] Military service is not compulsory for any segment of the population; there is no conscription. Both women and men work in the military.

Cadets

The Royal Brunei Armed Forces (RBAF) Military Cadet should not be confused with the RBAF Military Cadets of Higher Institutions (not officially members) despite sharing the same name. The two are visually identified by the uniforms they wear; the old disruptive pattern material (DMP) woodland camouflage for the higher institutions, while the official Military cadets wear multi-scale digital camouflage.[17]

Equipment and operations

The Royal Brunei Armed Forces (RBAF) use a wide range of foreign-procured equipment across all three service branches; with a large percentage originating from the United Kingdom, France/Europe, and the United States of America.

The Bruneian military lacks any recent combat experience, but has been deployed regionally in humanitarian and peacekeeping missions. Notably, since 2004, the Royal Brunei Armed Forces have formed part of the peacekeeping mission in Mindanao, the Philippines.[18] Brunei also has extensive military relations with the United Kingdom (the Sultan of Brunei being an honorary air chief marshal of the Royal Air Force and an honorary admiral of the Royal Navy.[19]) and Singapore.

On 6 May 2023, ten members of the Royal Brunei Armed Forces took part in the 6,000-strong royal parade in London, England, to celebrate the coronation of King Charles III.[20]

31 May is the Armed Forces Day of Brunei, which celebrates the founding of the Royal Brunei Armed Forces. It is an annual national holiday, and the events on the day include military parade in front of the Sultan, and public exhibition of its equipment and armament. On 31 May 2011, Royal Brunei Armed Forces celebrated its golden jubilee.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "RBAF Introduction". MinDef.gov.bn. Bolkiah Garrison, Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei: Defence Information Technology Unit, Ministry of Defence, Brunei Darussalam. 2015. Retrieved 17 December 2023.
  2. 1 2 The Military Balance 2023. London, England: International Institute for Strategic Studies, Routledge. 15 February 2023. p. 234. ISBN 978-1032508955.
  3. ↑ Haris, Nabilah; Bandial, Ain (28 February 2022). "MinDef tables $597 million budget to support national security — Minister highlights the RBAF's key role in Brunei's pandemic response". TheScoop.co. Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei Darussalam: The Scoop, Scoop Media. Archived from the original on 3 June 2022. Retrieved 16 December 2023.
  4. ↑ "Berita Parajurit, vol 9" (PDF). MinDef.gov.bn. Bolkiah Garrison, Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei: Defence Information Technology Unit, Ministry of Defence, Brunei Darussalam. 31 May 2023. Retrieved 8 January 2024.
  5. ↑ "Royal Brunei Land Forces". MinDef.gov.bn. Defence Information Technology Unit, Ministry of Defence, Brunei Darussalam. Archived from the original on 2 April 2007. Retrieved 20 April 2007.
  6. ↑ "Royal Brunei Navy". MinDef.gov.bn. Defence Information Technology Unit, Ministry of Defence, Brunei Darussalam. Archived from the original on 2 April 2007. Retrieved 20 April 2007.
  7. ↑ "Black Hawks for Brunei". DefenseIndustryDaily.com. Defense Industry Daily, LLC. 22 November 2011. Retrieved 31 October 2022.
  8. 1 2 3 "World Air Forces 2023". FlightGlobal.com. FlightGlobal International, DVV Media International Ltd. 2023. p. 14. Retrieved 24 June 2023.
  9. ↑ "Royal Brunei Air Force". MinDef.gov.bn. Defence Information Technology Unit, Ministry of Defence, Brunei Darussalam. Archived from the original on 2 April 2007. Retrieved 20 April 2007.
  10. ↑ "Brunei to buy military aircraft". BT.com.bn. The Brunei Times. 14 July 2014. Archived from the original on 14 July 2014. Retrieved 14 July 2014.
  11. ↑ "Royal Brunei Armed Forces Support Services". MinDef.gov.bn. Defence Information Technology Unit, Ministry of Defence, Brunei Darussalam. Archived from the original on 28 April 2007. Retrieved 20 April 2007.
  12. ↑ "Royal Brunei Armed Forces Band - Ministry of Defence". yumpu.com.
  13. ↑ "News". MinDef.gov.bn. Defence Information Technology Unit, Ministry of Defence, Brunei Darussalam.
  14. ↑ "Royal Brunei Armed Forces Training Institute". MinDef.gov.bn. Defence Information Technology Unit, Ministry of Defence, Brunei Darussalam. Archived from the original on 19 July 2007. Retrieved 20 April 2007.
  15. ↑ "Military record, Brunei". travel.state.gov. Archived from the original on 18 April 2007. Retrieved 20 April 2007.
  16. ↑ "Brunei: the abode of peace". Hawaii.edu. Archived from the original on 13 September 2006. Retrieved 20 April 2007.
  17. ↑ "Higher Institutions Military Cadets Battle..." MinDef.gov.bn. Bolkiah Garrison: Defence Information Technology Unit, Ministry of Defence, Brunei Darussalam. Retrieved 17 December 2019.
  18. ↑ "Brunei deploys 16th International Monitoring Team to Mindanao". DFA.gov.ph. Bolkiah Garrison, Bandar Seri Begawan: Department of Foreign Affairs, Republic of the Philippines. 13 September 2019. Retrieved 4 March 2023.
  19. ↑ The Air Force list, 2006. TSO. 2006. ISBN 0-11-773038-6. OCLC 655307582.
  20. ↑ "Berita Parajurit, vol 9 – His Majesty King Charles III, coronation grand procession" (PDF). MinDef.gov.bn. Bolkiah Garrison, Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei: Defence Information Technology Unit, Ministry of Defence, Brunei Darussalam. 31 May 2023. pp. 32–33. Retrieved 8 January 2024.

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