| Royal Australian Armoured Corps | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Active | 9 July 1941 – Present |
| Country | Australia |
| Branch | Army |
| Type | Corps |
| Role | Armour |
| Size |
4 Regular Regiments 5 Reserve Regiments |
| Commanders | |
| Ceremonial chief | HRH The Prince of Wales |
The Royal Australian Armoured Corps (RAAC) is a corps in the Australian Army. The corps was formed on 9 July 1941 as the Australian Armoured Corps to provide personnel to use Armoured Fighting Vehicles. It is the senior arms corps within the army and was granted the Royal prefix in 1948. Units of the RAAC include tank regiments, reconnaissance regiments and armoured personnel-carrier regiments.[1]
Current units[]
- Regular Army
- 1st Armoured Regiment – Armoured
- 2nd Cavalry Regiment – Reconnaissance
- B Squadron, 3rd/4th Cavalry Regiment – Light Armoured
- 2nd/14th Light Horse Regiment (Queensland Mounted Infantry) – Reconnaissance
- Army Reserve
- 1st/15th Royal New South Wales Lancers – Light cavalry / Reconnaissance
- 3rd/9th Light Horse (South Australia Mounted Rifles) – Light cavalry / Reconnaissance
- 4th/19th Prince of Wales's Light Horse – Light cavalry / Reconnaissance
- A Squadron, 10th Light Horse Regiment – Light cavalry / Reconnaissance
- 12th/16th Hunter River Lancers – Light Armoured
Equipment[]
The RAAC is primarily equipped with three types of vehicle:
- M1A1 Abrams – the Abrams is Australia's main battle tank (MBT), and equips 1st Armoured Regiment.
- ASLAV – the ASLAV is a variant of the LAV II vehicle designed specifically for the Australian Army, and is used in the armoured reconnaissance role with 2nd Cavalry Regiment and 2nd/14th Light Horse Regiment.
- Bushmaster – the Bushmaster IMV is an Australian-built wheeled armoured vehicle that is used in the Infantry Mobility role with the 3rd/4th Cavalry Regiment as well as the Cavalry role with the 12th/16th Hunter River Lancers.
- Landrover – Re-equipped Land Rover 6x6 LRPV used in the Light Cavalry/Reconnaissance role of the Reserve forces.
- M113 – the M113 is an armoured personnel carrier that served in the light armoured and armoured reconnaissance roles primarily with Reserve forces, it is now used in support roles in some Regiments.
Deployments[]
- Japan : 1946–1949
- Vietnam : 1965–1971
- East Timor : 1999 – Present
- Iraq : 2003 – 2008
- Afghanistan : 2006 – Present
See also[]
- List of Australian armoured units
- Royal Armoured Corps
- Royal Canadian Armoured Corps
- Royal New Zealand Armoured Corps
- Australian Armoured Units of World War II
Notes[]
- ↑ Dennis (et al) 2008, p. 461.
References[]
- Dennis (et al), Peter (2008). The Oxford Companion to Australian Military History. Second Edition. South Melbourne: Oxford University Press.
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The original article can be found at Royal Australian Armoured Corps and the edit history here.