Armed Forces of the lfu orld

Finlond
Although theoretcalLy a :te-'.:z :c;nlry, Finland
signed a treaty with the USSR ln 1948 which re
quires herto fight anyaggressorattacking the USSR
across her territory. ln case of this happening the
Soviet Union would provide either direct mllitary
assistance or aid as required by the circumstances
Desplte these treaty Iimitations and the restrictions
they place on its armed forces, Finland has de-
veloped its own arms industry which manufactures
armoured vehjcles, artlllery pieces, mortars and
small arms for the home market and, by certain
expediencies, for the export one as well. However,
major weapon systems have tended to be bought
from the USSR and Sweden for poljtrcal reasons,
with occasional purchases f rom France, the UK and
the USA.

The Army
At the mornent the Finn;sh army co'nprises some
30,900 men of whom 22,30O are short-term con-
scripts. They form the following front-line unlts:

one armoured brigade (of one tank battalion, one
armoured infantry battalion, one f ield artillery
battalion plus supporting units),
six infantry brigades,
seven independent infantry battalions,
one commando tnfantrY blgade,
two field artillery regiments,
two independent f ield artillery battalions,
two coastal artillerY reglments,
two independent coastal artr llery battalions,
one mobile coastal artillery battalion,
The Finnish armed forces use a mix tur e of S c;: e :
Until 1960 the army used mainly ex-German and innish infantr'7
ex-soviet World War ll armoured equipment refur- and indigenous equipment; F
-are
m a inlv a'rme d w ith d er iv ativ e s o f th e S ovie t'Ei
- :'-
bished ln Finland. fhis mat1riel was initially sup- manifactured to high standards at VaLmet'
plemented and then supplanted by more modern ---
Soviet vehrcles. During the late 1960s and early modernization programrTre. At the s:^-='.--=
1970s the inttial deliveries were supplemented by opporlJn tywasta(enro eolace l-i i. =-:--.' -
wheeled APCs used in small numbe's .. = ----
'1
--
other small purchases. On the M BT f ront about 00
T-54 and T-55s were purchased. the former be ng try brigades, and several hundred l::: :=- ;---
relegated to training or havrng thelr turrets taken off and built SISU XA-1 B0 wheeled;',rC: -' = :==-
or static defence roles. ln 1980 a maior re- orderedfordeliveryfrornthen-ld-'3:1. -- -':: -
f

one air-defence regiment (including a SAM equipment programme was started for the Parola In 1980 Finland embarked on a moderntzaxa:.
battalion), Armoured Brigade. The tank component was up- programme for the Parola Armoured Brigace. T:e
five independent air-defence baitalions, graded byan orderin l984tothe USSR for'100of jts meChanized inf antry are re-equipping'ii:;. :- e
two engineer battalions, i-;Z Mgts armed with a 125-mm (4 92-in) main BMP - 1 M I CV iL|u s tr a te d he r e, w h il e th e ar:t' o : : +=
gun BTR-50 APCs are also be ng replaced by the battalion has received l0a T-72s to repiace ::
one signals regiment, and ohsolescent T-54/5s.
one siqnais battallon BMP-1 ordered in 1980 as the first phase of the

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Armed Forces of the World t/[
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terms of artillery the Finns rely on both indigenous
and foreign-built models, the firm Tampella being
especially prominent with severa.l highly successf ul
designs, Like most Scandinavian countries, Fin-
land's coastlines require great emphasis to be
placed on coastal artillery, and weapons up to 152-
mm (6-in) calibre are founo.
A full list of the equipment used by the army
includes:

Armour: PT-76 light tank; T-54 (training), T-55 and

T-72 (on order) MBTs; and BTR-50P1(50PU, BTR-
60PB/60PU and SISU XA-1 80 APCs;
Artillery: (towed) 76-mm (3-in) M/02,76-mm M/36,
'1
05-mm (4.13-in) Ml41 ,122-mm (4.8-in) M60 and
130-mm (5.12-in) Mr56 [ield guns; 105-rrm M 37
10. 105-mm M61137,'l 50-mm {5.91-in) M/40 and
'1
52-mm (6-in) Ml3B howitzers; and 155-mm (6.1-
in) M/74 gun-howitzer;
(coastal) 1 OO-mm (3.94-in). 1 30-m m and 1 52-mm ;
and
(morta rs) 6O-m m (2.36-i n ), B 1 -m m \3.2-in) ; 1 20-
mm (4.72-in) and l6O-mm (6 3-in);
Air-delence: (towed) 20-mm Flak 38, 23-mmZU-
23, 30-mm, 35-mm GDF-002, 40-mrn L/60 and
L/70 Bofors and 57-mm 5-60;
(self-propelled) ZSU-57-2 ; and
(SAM)SA-3 and SA-7;
Anti-armour: 55-mm M55 rocket-launcher; 75-mm
Miniman LAW; 95-mm (3.74-ln)95 SMbB-61
recoilless rif le; and SS.1 1 , TOW and AT-4'Spigot'
ATGWs;and
Small arms: 9-mm M35 and 7,65-mm Parabellum
pistols; 9-mm M31 SMG; 7.62-mm M62 rifle; and
1.62-mm M62 and 7.62-mm M32 MGs.
To supplement the regular forces there are
700,000 reservists for all the services, and these
would be mobilized to create units of up to brigade
strength for the army within seven Military Areas.
The Navy
The Finnish navy is like the other services in being
limited in size, having only 2,700 men of whom
1.400 are conscripts. A plan to increase its capabili-
ties was announced in 1974 but monetary problerns
had by 1980 severely limited the scope of this prog-
ramme. The main offensive capability is centred on
a small force of missile craft which is being
creased in numbers by the bullding of the 'Helsinki'
..
.$r'
class armed with Swedish RBS15F SSMs. The last
of the Soviet-built 'Riga' class frigates has been
converted to a minelayer, whilst treaty limitations
prevent the acquisition of any submarines. A four-
vessel class of fast attack craft based on the 'Hel-
sinki' design is also being procured to introduce
greater commonality into the fleet. A full listing of
the current and fJture fleet is:
Corvettes: two'Tu runmaa' class ;
Missilecraft: one'lsku' class (trials), four'Tuima'
class, two (+ 1O) 'Helsinki' class;
Fast attack craft: six'Nuoli' class and four
'Helsinki' class (planned) ; squadron perwing. the equipment is relatively soph-
Coastal patrol craft: one plus four building;
Large patrol craft: five;
Large minelayers : three ;
lnshore minesweepers: 1 3;
in- Amphibiouswarfare: 11 coastal transports and 14
LCU s;
Finland's dense forests and multiplicity of lakes
and bogs severely limit theemploymentof
conventional artillery, so Tampella have
produc ed a range of excellent mortars.
lcebreakers: nine plus two building ; and
Miscellaneous: 10.
The Air Force
The Finnish air force has 2,900 men, including
1.300 conscripts, and is tasked'with defending Fin-
nish air space. To do this it is divided into three
I fighter wings, wh:cn are each assigned to an a,r-
defence d strict. Although Lhere is only one f ighrer'
isticated, The airqraft include 27 Soviet-supplied
third-generation MiG-21bis'Fishbed-N' multi-role
airpraft, 12 new-build Swedish Saab J35S Drakens
and six refurbished J35F Drakens. A further 20 or so
J35Ds are to be delivered to equip a fourth squadron
from the mid-1 9B0s if funds permit.
To provide tactical reconnaissance there is a f light
of six first-generation MiG-21 'Fishbed-C' day
fighters, whilst to train fighter pilots in operational
techniques there is an OCU with eight BAe Hawks,
three Saab J35Cs, a few modified J35BSs and up ro
eight MiG 2'1 U/UMs. The fighter squadrons use AA-
2 'Atolls' on the MiGs and a mixture of Rb27 radar-
guided and Rb28 lR-guided Falcon missiles on the
Drakens. For primary and basic training duties there
is a fleet of 30 locally designed and built Valmet
Vinka piston-engined trainers with 15 Fouga Magis-
Ier and 2-l Hawk jet trainers, both licence-built. A
f urther 5 Hawks are due to replace the Magisters in
'1

due course. The transport inventory is minimal, in-

cluding only three Fokker F.27 Friendship Mk .100s
and three multi-role Learjet 35As. Rotary-wing
duties (inc uding SAR missions) are undertaken by
six Mll Mi-B 'Hips'and two Hughes 500s. No expan-
sion in either area is seen in the foreseeable f uture.
To assist the armed forces there is also a Frontier
Guard of 3,500 men in seven battalions and a 600-
man Coastguard. The latter has some 50 patroLcraf:
of various sizes and three Mi-B helicopters.

The Finnish air force flies a combination of

Western and Soviet aircraft; SaabJ3S Drakens
have been produced under licence atValmet,
while others were purchased direct.