This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. (March 2015) |
The Third Field Army is a field army of the Egyptian Army, with its headquarters in Suez. It is now part of the Unified Command of the area east of the canal (Egypt).
| Third Field Army | |
|---|---|
| الجيش الثالث الميداني | |
 | |
| Active | November 1968 – present |
| Country |  Egypt |
| Type | Field Army |
| Role | Defense of Suez and South Sinai |
| Size | 90,000 - 120,000 |
| Part of | Unified Command of the area east of the canal |
| Headquarters | Suez |
| Colors Identification | Red, White and Black |
| Engagements | |
| Commanders | |
| Field Army Commander |  Major General Khaled Qenawi |
| Notable commanders | Kadri Osman Ahmed Badawi Abdul Munim Wassel Osama Askar |
On 31 January 2015 a "unified command" was established to oversee counterterrorism operations east of the Suez Canal.[1] Osama Askar, commander of the Third Army, was promoted to lieutenant general and given command of the new "unified command."[2] Askar will also retain his seat on the SCAF. Askar's former deputy, Muhammad Abdullah, has been appointed commander, and Tarek Anwar Helal the chief of staff, of the Third Army.[3]
In May 2018 the Third Army comprised the 4th Armoured Division; the 19th Infantry Division, which included an armoured brigade, but whose remaining troops might have been un-mechanized infantry; the 23rd Mechanized Division; and the 11th Armoured Brigade.[4] Previous army commander Osama Askar had previously commanded the 23rd Mechanized Division earlier in his career.[5] The 23rd Division, under Brig Gen Ahmad 'Aboud el Zommer, was previously part of the Second Field Army during the Yom Kippur War.[6]
Operation Badr order of battle, 1973
editJust before the beginning of Operation Badr in October 1973, the army had the following troops under its control:[6]
- Headquarters Third Army (Southern Canal Zone) - Maj Gen Abdel Mun'im Wasel
- Chief of Staff - Maj Gen Mustafa Shaheen
- Chief of Artillery - Maj Gen Munir Shash
- 7th Infantry Division* - Brig Gen Ahmad Badawi Said Ahmad
- 2nd Infantry Brigade
- 11th Mechanized Infantry Brigade
- 8th Mechanized Infantry Brigade
- 19th Infantry Division* - Brig Gen Yusuf Afifi Mohamed
- 5th Infantry Brigade
- 7th Infantry Brigade
- 2nd Mechanized Infantry Brigade
- 4th Armoured Division - Brig Gen Mohamed Abd el Aziz Qabil
- 2nd Armored Brigade
- 3rd Armored Brigade*[7]
- 6th Armored Brigade
- 6th Mechanised Division - Brig Gen Mohamed Abul Fath Muharam
- 22nd Armored Brigade*[7]
- 113th Mechanised Brigade
- 1st Mechanised Brigade
- 130th Independent Amphibious Brigade[8] - Col Mahmoud Shu'aib. At the start of the war the brigade had seventy-four BTR-50 or OT-64 SKOT armoured personnel carriers and 24 PT-76 amphibious light tanks.[9]
- 25th Independent Armored Brigade*[10] - Col Ahmed Helmy Badawy
- 7th Infantry Division* - Brig Gen Ahmad Badawi Said Ahmad
As a brigadier general, Ahmed Badawi commanded the 7th Infantry Division during the Yom Kippur War, and after the Third Field Army became encircled, was placed in command of the cut-off force. The isolated part of the army was made up of the 7th and 19th Infantry Divisions, plus two independent armoured brigades, on the east bank, and a mixture of units in Suez city itself.[11]
Notes
edit- ^ "Egypt's New Military Brass". www.washingtoninstitute.org. Retrieved 2016-01-30.
- ^ "Egyptian army makes leadership changes". Middle East Monitor – The Latest from the Middle East. Retrieved 2016-01-30.
- ^ "Egypt: Land of the Generals". Middle East Eye. Retrieved 2016-01-30.
- ^ "Egyptian Army Maps". Egyptian Institute for Studies. May 17, 2018.
- ^ "Osama Askar". timep.org. Retrieved 2017-10-18.
- ^ a b Dupuy, Trevor N. (2002). Elusive Victory: The Arab-Israeli Wars, 1947-1974. Military Book Club. ISBN 0-9654428-0-2.
- ^ a b Attached to 19th Division
- ^ Joseph Bermudez. "The Egyptian 130th Amphibious Brigade". www.dtic.mil. Marine Corps Gazette. Archived from the original on March 31, 2016. Retrieved 2016-03-20.
- ^ Asher, Dani (2009). The Egyptian Strategy for the Yom Kippur War: An Analysis. McFarland. p. 260. ISBN 9780786454006.
- ^ Attached to 7th Division
- ^ Trevor Dupuy, Elusive Victory, 1978, 543.
References and external links
edit- Dani Asher (2009). The Egyptian Strategy for the Yom Kippur War: An Analysis. p. 11.
- https://search.wikileaks.org/plusd/cables/1976CAIRO16857_b.html - Third Army commander Maj Gen Ahmad Badawi speaks to State Department officials, 7 December 1976.