The Togolese Armed Forces (French: ''Forces Armées Togolaises'', FAT) is the national military of the Republic of Togo which consists of the Army, Navy, Air Force, and the

National Gendarmerie The National Gendarmerie (french: Gendarmerie nationale, ) is one of two national law enforcement forces of France, along with the National Police. The Gendarmerie is a branch of the French Armed Forces placed under the jurisdiction of the Min ...

. The total military expenditure during the

fiscal year A fiscal year (or financial year, or sometimes budget year) is used in government accounting, which varies between countries, and for budget purposes. It is also used for financial reporting by businesses and other organizations. Laws in many j ...

of 2005 was 1.6% of the country's GDP. Military bases exist in

Lomé Lomé is the capital and largest city of Togo. It has an urban population of 837,437

, Temedja,

Kara Kara or KARA may refer to: Geography Localities * Kara, Chad, a sub-prefecture * Kára, Hungary, a village * Kara, Uttar Pradesh, India, a township * Kara, Iran, a village in Lorestan Province * Kara, Republic of Dagestan, a rural locality i ...

Niamtougou Niamtougou is a market town in and district capital of Doufelgou District (Préfecture), in the Kara Region of Togo. It is located north of Kara Kara or KARA may refer to: Geography Localities * Kara, Chad, a sub-prefecture * Kára, Hungar ...

, and Dapaong. The current Chief of the

General Staff A military staff or general staff (also referred to as army staff, navy staff, or air staff within the individual services) is a group of officers, enlisted and civilian staff who serve the commander of a division or other large military u ...

is Brigadier General Dadja Maganawe, who took office on December 6, 2020.

Army

The current chief of staff of the army is Colonel Blakimwé Wiyao Balli. The elite presidential bodyguards of the Republic of Togo Armed Forces are reportedly trained by

Benjamin Yeaten Benjamin Yeaten (born 28 February 1969), widely known by his old radio call sign "50", is a Liberian militia leader and mercenary, who served as the Armed Forces of Liberia's deputy commander and director of the Special Security Service (SSS) duri ...

, an internationally wanted

Liberia Liberia (), officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country on the West African coast. It is bordered by Sierra Leone to its northwest, Guinea to its north, Ivory Coast to its east, and the Atlantic Ocean to its south and southwest. ...

n military commander and war criminal.

Equipment

Armor

Air Force

The Republic of Togo Air Force (French: ''Armée de l'Air Republic of Togo'') was established in 1964, and French influence remains in the choice of aircraft used. Since 2020, the air force's chief of staff is Colonel Tassounti Djato. The

C-47 Skytrain The Douglas C-47 Skytrain or Dakota (RAF, RAAF, RCAF, RNZAF The Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) ( mi, Te Tauaarangi o Aotearoa, "The Warriors of the Sky of New Zealand"; previously ', "War Party of the Blue") is the aerial service br ...

was the first aircraft used; it was part of the force from 1960 to 1976. Replacing the C-47s were two DHC-5D Buffalo

STOL A short takeoff and landing (STOL) aircraft is a conventional fixed-wing aircraft that has short runway requirements for takeoff and landing. Many STOL-designed aircraft also feature various arrangements for use on airstrips with harsh condit ...

transports in 1976. Also in the same year, Togo acquired five ex-

German Air Force The German Air Force (german: Luftwaffe, lit=air weapon or air arm, ) is the aerial warfare branch of the , the armed forces of Germany. The German Air Force (as part of the ''Bundeswehr'') was founded in 1956 during the era of the Cold War as ...

Fouga Magister Fouga (also known as Air Fouga) was a French manufacturing company established by Gaston Fouga at Béziers during 1920. Originally specialising in the repair of railway rolling stock, the firm eventually became most noted for the aircraft it p ...

armed jet trainers and seven EMB.326GBs from Brazil to form the Escadrille de Chasse. Togo's armed jet trainer fleet was upgraded in 1981 by the deliveries of five Alpha jets and by three piston engine Aerospatiale TB-30 Epsilons in 1986. The Fouga Magisters were returned to France in 1985. During its existence the official name changed from ''Section Air der Forces armées'' in 1964 to ''Escadrille Nationale D Togolaise'' (ENT) in 1973, to ''Groupement Aerienne Togolais'' (GAT) in 1980, and finally to ''Armée de l'Air Togolaise'' in 1997. At present its operations are concentrated in the Lomé Transport Base at Lomé Tokoin Airport, where the transport aircraft are based, and the Niamtougou Fighter Base at

Niamtougou International Airport Niamtougou International Airport is an airport serving the north of Togo near Niamtougou. It is an international airport and Togo's second largest after Lomé-Tokoin Airport. The airport is located in Baga, north of Niamtougou. History Opene ...

, where the combat units are located. It acquired the Bayraktar TB2 UCAV from Turkish company Baykar in August 2022.

Aircraft

Current inventory

Navy

The National Navy was created on May 1, 1976, to guard the roughly of Republic of Togo coast and the seaport of Lomé. It currently has 2 wooden-hulled patrol boats, the ''Kara'' (P 761), and the ''Mono'' (P 762), which have both been in service since 1976. On 7 July 2014, the Republic of Togo navy received a RPB 33 patrol boat that was named ''Agou'' (P 763). Currently, the navy's chief of staff is

ship captain A sea captain, ship's captain, captain, master, or shipmaster, is a high-grade licensed mariner who holds ultimate command and responsibility of a merchant vessel.Aragon and Messner, 2001, p.3. The captain is responsible for the safe and efficie ...

Atiogbé Ametsipe.

Equipment

References

*Aircraft information files Brightstar publishing File 338 sheet 4

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Military Of Togo Military of Togo