Tanzania People's Defence Force
Encyclopedia
The Tanzania Peoples’ Defence Force (TPDF) (Swahili
Swahili language
Swahili or Kiswahili is a Bantu language spoken by various ethnic groups that inhabit several large stretches of the Mozambique Channel coastline from northern Kenya to northern Mozambique, including the Comoro Islands. It is also spoken by ethnic minority groups in Somalia...

: Jeshi la Ulinzi la Wananchi wa Tanzania (JWTZ)) was set up in September 1964. From its inception, it was ingrained in the troops that they were a people’s force under civilian control. They were always reminded of their difference from the colonial armed forces. The TPDF was given a very clear mission: to defend Tanzania
Tanzania
The United Republic of Tanzania is a country in East Africa bordered by Kenya and Uganda to the north, Rwanda, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west, and Zambia, Malawi, and Mozambique to the south. The country's eastern borders lie on the Indian Ocean.Tanzania is a state...

 and everything Tanzanian, especially the people and their political ideology.
Tanzanian citizens are able to volunteer for military service from 15 years of age, and 18 years of age for compulsory military service upon graduation from secondary school. Conscript service obligation was 2 years as of 2004.

History

The formation of the TPDF was a result of the disbandment of the Tanganyika Rifles after a mutiny in 1964. Soldiers of the regiment mutinied on January 1964. The Mutiny began in Colito barracks in Dar es Salaam
Dar es Salaam
Dar es Salaam , formerly Mzizima, is the largest city in Tanzania. It is also the country's richest city and a regionally important economic centre. Dar es Salaam is actually an administrative province within Tanzania, and consists of three local government areas or administrative districts: ...

, then spread to Kalewa
Kalewa
Tahan is a town at the confluence of the Chindwin River and the Myittha River in Kale District, Sagaing Division of northwestern Burma...

 barracks in Tabora
Tabora
Tabora is the capital city of Tanzania's Tabora Region with a population of 127,880 . Tabora region is one of the largest geographical regions of Tanzania.- History :...

 with Nachingwea, a new barracks, following suit. The mutiny was over pay, promotions, the removal of British officers and Africanisation. Julius Nyerere
Julius Nyerere
Julius Kambarage Nyerere was a Tanzanian politician who served as the first President of Tanzania and previously Tanganyika, from the country's founding in 1961 until his retirement in 1985....

 conceded that the "soldiers had genuine grievances and the demands presented a perfectly reasonable case." However, he could not tolerate a mutiny. The mutiny raised questions about the place of the military in the newly independent Tanganyika — a military under a foreign command and not integrated into the country’s system. After the mutiny, the army was disbanded and fresh recruits were sought within the Tanganyika African National Union
Tanganyika African National Union
The Tanganyika African National Union was the principal political party in the struggle for sovereignty in the East African state of Tanganyika . The party was formed from the Tanganyika African Association by Julius Nyerere in July 1954 when he was teaching at St. Francis' College...

 (TANU) youth wing as a source.

Wars fought

TPDF officers also trained African National Congress
African National Congress
The African National Congress is South Africa's governing Africanist political party, supported by its tripartite alliance with the Congress of South African Trade Unions and the South African Communist Party , since the establishment of non-racial democracy in April 1994. It defines itself as a...

 fighters in Morogoro
Morogoro
Morogoro is a city with an urban population of 206,868 in the southern highlands of Tanzania, 190 km west of Dar es Salaam. It is the capital of the Morogoro Region...

. TPDF officers also participated in the training of the new Democratic Republic of Congo army, but were later withdrawn because of the war in the Congo.

The most significant TPDF involvement in the Uganda-Tanzania War
Uganda-Tanzania War
The Uganda–Tanzania War was fought between Uganda and Tanzania in 1978–1979, and led to the overthrow of Idi Amin's regime...

 following a Ugandan invasion of Kagera
Kagera Region
Kagera Region is located in the northwestern corner of Tanzania. Bukoba, Kagera Region's capital, is a fast growing town situated on the shore of Lake Victoria. Bukoba lies only 1 degree south of the Equator and is Tanzania's second largest port on the lake. The region neighbors Uganda, Rwanda and...

 in 1978. Idi Amin
Idi Amin
Idi Amin Dada was a military leader and President of Uganda from 1971 to 1979. Amin joined the British colonial regiment, the King's African Rifles in 1946. Eventually he held the rank of Major General in the post-colonial Ugandan Army and became its Commander before seizing power in the military...

 with the help of Libya
Libya
Libya is an African country in the Maghreb region of North Africa bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Sudan to the southeast, Chad and Niger to the south, and Algeria and Tunisia to the west....

, accused Julius Nyerere of being at the root of his troubles and of waging war against Uganda. Amin invaded Tanzanian territory on 1 November 1978 and annexed Kagera. Julius Nyerere told the nation that Tanzania had the reason to fight Amin, was intent on fighting Amin and had the ability to defeat him. The war effort was not for the army alone on 22 November 1978, but for the entire population, the nation understood him and the reaction was predictable. In April 1979, Tanzania took Kampala and Amin fled the country to Libya
Libya
Libya is an African country in the Maghreb region of North Africa bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Sudan to the southeast, Chad and Niger to the south, and Algeria and Tunisia to the west....

 and eventually ending up in Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...

 after falling out of favour with Muammar al-Gaddafi
Muammar al-Gaddafi
Muammar Muhammad Abu Minyar Gaddafi or "September 1942" 20 October 2011), commonly known as Muammar Gaddafi or Colonel Gaddafi, was the official ruler of the Libyan Arab Republic from 1969 to 1977 and then the "Brother Leader" of the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya from 1977 to 2011.He seized power in a...

. Unlike Amin’s soldiers, the TPDF had a relaxed relationship with the locals and at times went out of their way to assist them.

The TPDF employs a delibarate policy of drawing its officers from various regions of the country. This policy has ensured a development of a national force that has tended to promote stability.

Tanzanian Army

The army, which makes up the majority of the TPDF, is currently in the throes of converting from a socialist style army structure into something approaching the Western model and is suffering considerable difficulties in the process, having major disciplinary problems and a large inventory of equipment, much of which is unserviceable. Still organised in infantry brigades, the army is in reality a battalion-based organisation. One informed observer previously described the current Tanzanian Army as being a force of about 15 lightly armed infantry battalions mounted in transport that sometimes works. While a very large slice of the equipment inventory remains in storage, great efforts have been made in improving the mechanical serviceability of the logistical vehicle fleet and infantry transport.
  • 5 × infantry brigade
  • 1 × tank brigade
  • 3 × artillery battalion
  • 2 × air defence artillery battalion
  • 1 × mortar battalion
  • 2 × anti-tank battalion
  • 1 × engineer battalion
  • 1 × central logistic/support group


Current senior officers include:
  • Chief of Staff: Lt. General Abdulrahman Amir Shimbo
  • Commander of Land Forces Maj Gen Salum Mustafa Kijuu
  • Chief of National Service: Maj Gen SN Kitundu

Army Equipment

In 1989-90 Tanzania added 30 T-62
T-62
The T-62 is a Soviet main battle tank, a further development of the T-55. Its 115 mm gun was the first smoothbore tank gun in use.The T-62 was produced between 1961 and 1975. It became a standard tank in the Soviet arsenal, partly replacing the T-55, although that tank continued to be...

 Soviet made tanks, 80 85 mm Chinese made artillery, 20 122 mm Chinese made howitzer
Howitzer
A howitzer is a type of artillery piece characterized by a relatively short barrel and the use of comparatively small propellant charges to propel projectiles at relatively high trajectories, with a steep angle of descent...

s. This added to an existing 40 76 mm howitzer
Howitzer
A howitzer is a type of artillery piece characterized by a relatively short barrel and the use of comparatively small propellant charges to propel projectiles at relatively high trajectories, with a steep angle of descent...

, 40 85 mm guns, 200 122 mm howitzer
Howitzer
A howitzer is a type of artillery piece characterized by a relatively short barrel and the use of comparatively small propellant charges to propel projectiles at relatively high trajectories, with a steep angle of descent...

 and 50 130 mm guns. The following below are tanks currently in use by the Tanzanian Forces: Type 59
Type 59
The Type 59 main battle tank is a Chinese produced version of the Soviet T-54A tank, an improvement over the ubiquitous T-54/55. The first vehicles were produced in 1958 and it was accepted into service in 1959, with serial production beginning in 1963...

 heavy tank (30 in service) Type 62
Type 62
The Norinco Type 62 is a Chinese light tank developed in the early 1960s and is based on the Chinese Type 59 with a reduced main gun caliber, lighter armour and a smaller suite of electronics and other equipment to help reduce weight. The Type 62 is still used by the Chinese People's Liberation...

 light tank (66 in service) Type 63 (armoured personnel carrier)
Type 63 (armoured personnel carrier)
The Type 63 is a Chinese armoured personnel carrier that entered service in the late 1960s. It was the first armoured vehicle designed in China without Soviet assistance. The design is simple and is comparable to other APCs of its time such as the M113.Approximately 3,000 were produced by Norinco,...

 (30 in service) BRDM-2
BRDM-2
The BRDM-2 is an amphibious armoured patrol car used by Russia and the former Soviet Union. It was also known under designations BTR-40PB, BTR-40P-2 and GAZ 41-08...

/BTR-40
BTR-40
The BTR-40 is a Soviet non-amphibious, wheeled armoured personnel carrier and reconnaissance vehicle. It is often referred to as the Sorokovka in Soviet service. It is also the first mass-produced Soviet APC...

 combat vehicle (20 in service) BTR-152
BTR-152
The BTR-152 was a non-amphibious Soviet wheeled armored personnel carrier that entered Soviet service in 1950. By the early 1970s it had been replaced in the infantry vehicle role by the BTR-60...

 armoured personnel carrier (10 in service) T-62
T-62
The T-62 is a Soviet main battle tank, a further development of the T-55. Its 115 mm gun was the first smoothbore tank gun in use.The T-62 was produced between 1961 and 1975. It became a standard tank in the Soviet arsenal, partly replacing the T-55, although that tank continued to be...

 tanks (30 in service)

There is only one howitzer currently in service for the TPDF.85mm Artillery (80 in service)Chinese 122mm howitzer
Howitzer
A howitzer is a type of artillery piece characterized by a relatively short barrel and the use of comparatively small propellant charges to propel projectiles at relatively high trajectories, with a steep angle of descent...

s ( 20 in service) D-30 122 mm guns (240 in service)BM-21 rocket launchers (50 in service, AA)
  • 350 mortars
  • 350 Anti-Aircraft (AA) Guns 20 SA-3 launchers 20 SA-6 launchers SA-7


Small arms Type 56RPD
RPD
The RPD is a 7.62mm light machine gun developed in the Soviet Union by Vasily Degtyaryov for the intermediate 7.62x39mm M43 cartridge. It was created as a replacement for the DP machine gun chambered for the 7.62x54mmR Mosin rifle round...

RPG-7
RPG-7
The RPG-7 is a widely-produced, portable, unguided, shoulder-launched, anti-tank rocket-propelled grenade launcher. Originally the RPG-7 and its predecessor, the RPG-2, were designed by the Soviet Union, and now manufactured by the Bazalt company...

SA-7 MANPADS

Air Force

The current Commander of Air Force Command: is Maj Gen Ulomi.

A few of the Tanzanian air wing's transport remain serviceable. However, its Shenyang F-5
Shenyang J-5
The Shenyang J-5 , originally designated Dongfeng-101 - , and also Type 56 before being designated J-5 in 1964, is a Chinese-built single-seat jet interceptor and fighter aircraft derived from the Soviet Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-17. The J-5 was exported as the F-5...

s, and Chengdu F-7
Chengdu J-7
The Chengdu Jian-7 is a People's Republic of China-built version of the Soviet Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21. Though production ceased in 2008 it continues to serve, mostly as an interceptor, in several air forces, including China's.-Design and development:...

s are reported to fly rarely because of airworthiness problems. Tanzania's long coastline means that transports are also used for patrol flights.

In Tanzania, early 1980s; Contrary to what is usually reported, Tanzania never purchased any J-7Is from China. Instead, the Jeshi La Wananchi La Tanzania (Tanzanian People's Defence Force Air Wing, TPDF/AW) was given 14 MiG-21MFs and two MiG-21Us by the USSR in 1974. Many of these were lost in different accidents due to the poor training, and two were said to have been lost when their pilots defected. Nevertheless, the few surviving examples took part in the war against Uganda, in 1978-1979, when they saw much action, even if one was shot down in a case of fratricide fire (it was lost to SA-7s fired by Tanzanian troops). The Tanzanian Army captured seven MiG-21MFs and one MiG-21U trainer from the Ugandan Air Force, as well as a considerable amount of spare parts. All of these were flown out to Mwanza AB, to enter service with the TPDF/AW. In 1998, Tanzania purchased four additional MiG-21MFs from the Ukraine, but these were reportedly in a very poor shape, and not used very often. Meanwhile, in 1980, an order for 10 F-7Bs and two TF-7s was issued to China, and in 1997 also two F-7Ns were purchased from Iran, together with four ex-Iraqi Air Force transports of an unknown type. Today, no Russian-supplied MiG-21s remain in service with the TPDF/AW, and only three or four F-7s remain operational. The TPDF/AW MiG-21MFs are now confirmed to have carried serials - in black or green - underneath the cockpit, but no details about these are known.

Current air force equipment

! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Aircraft
! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Origin
! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Type
! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Versions
! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|In service
! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Notes
|-----
| Shenyang F-5 Fresco
|  Mainland China
| Ground attack fighter
|
| 8
|
|-----
| Shenyang F-6 Farmer
|  Mainland China
| Multi role fighter
|
| 3
| *At least 3 Operational, total numbers in operation unknown.
|
|-----
| Chengdu F-7 Skybolt
|  Mainland China
| Multi role fighter
|
| 11
| reportedly at the airfield at Ngerengere (Air Forces Monthly
Air Forces Monthly
Air Forces Monthly is a military aviation magazine published by Key Publishing, based in Stamford, United Kingdom.Sister publications include Air International, Air Enthusiast, Airliner World, Airports International, FlyPast and Today's Pilot.-External links:*http://www.airforcesmonthly.co.uk/* via...

, November 2009
|-----
| Shaanxi Y-8
Shaanxi Y-8
The Shaanxi Y-8 or Yunshuji-8 aircraft is a medium size medium range transport aircraft produced by Shaanxi Aircraft Company in China, based on the Soviet Antonov An-12. It has become one of China's most popular military and civilian transport/cargo aircraft, with many variants produced and exported...


|  Mainland China
| Medium transport
|
| ?
| Status unknown
|-----
| Harbin Y-12
Harbin Y-12
-See also:-Bibliography:* Taylor, John W R. . Jane's All the World's Aircraft 1988-89. Coulsdon, Surrey, UK: Jane's Information Group, 1988. ISBN 07106-0867-5....


|  Mainland China
| Light transport
|
| ?
| Status unknown
|-----
| de Havilland Canada DHC-5 Buffalo
De Havilland Canada DHC-5 Buffalo
The de Havilland Canada DHC-5 Buffalo is a short takeoff and landing utility transport, a turboprop aircraft developed from the earlier piston-powered DHC-4 Caribou...


|  Canada
| Medium transport
|
| 4
|
|-----
| Beechcraft King Air A100
Beechcraft King Air
The Beechcraft King Air family is part of a line of twin-turboprop aircraft produced by the Beech Aircraft Corporation...


|  United States
| Light transport
|
| 1
|
|-----
| Gulfstream V
Gulfstream V
The Gulfstream V is a business jet aircraft produced by Gulfstream Aerospace. It is also used by the US military under the designation C-37A. The G500 and G550 are improved versions which are currently in production...


|  United States
| VIP transport
|
| ?
| status unknown
|-----
| Fokker F27 Friendship
Fokker F27
The Fokker F27 Friendship is a turboprop airliner designed and built by the Dutch aircraft manufacturer Fokker.-Design and development:Design of the Fokker F27 started in the 1950s as a replacement to the successful Douglas DC-3 airliner...


|  Netherlands
| medium transport
|
| ?
| Status unknown
|-----
| Agusta-Bell AB205
|  Italy
| Light helicopter
|
| 1
| Licenced copy built by Italy
|-----
| Agusta-Bell AB206 JetRanger
Bell 206
The Bell 206 is a family of two-bladed, single- or twin-engine helicopters, manufactured by Bell Helicopter at its Mirabel, Quebec plant. Originally developed as the Bell YOH-4 for the United States Army's Light Observation Helicopter program, the 206 failed to be selected...


|  United States
| Light helicopter
|
| 2
| Licenced copy built by Italy
|-----
| Shengyang FT-5
|  Mainland China
| Basic trainer
|
| 2
|
|-----
| Nanchang BT-6
|  Mainland China
| Basic trainer
|
|2
|TPDF operates four air bases at Dar es Salaam, Morogoro, Tabora and Zanzibar.
|-----
| Agusta-Bell AB412 Griffon
Bell 412
The Bell 412 is a utility helicopter manufactured by Bell Helicopter. It is a development of the Bell 212 model, the major difference being the composite four-blade main rotor.-Design and development:...


|  Italy
| Police helicopter
|
|?
|Status unknown
|-----

Naval Command

The navy operates 7 fast attack craft and 12 patrol boats.

The current Commander of the Naval Command: is Rear Admiral (Maj Gen) SS Omar.

Former CDF's

  • Major General Sarakikya 1964-1974;
  • Lieutenant General Abdallah Twalipo 1974-1980;
  • General David Musuguri 1980-1988;
  • General Ernest Kiaro 1988-1994;
  • General Robert Mboma 1994-2002
  • General George Waitara 2002-2007
  • General Davis Mwamunyange
    Davis Mwamunyange
    General Davis Mwamunyange is the Chief of Defence Forces of the Tanzania People's Defence Force. He was appointed by the Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete in September 2007. Before his appointment he was the Chief of General Staff.-References:...

     2007-

Chiefs of Staff

  • Brigadier General Tumainiel Kiwelu 1975-1980;
  • Major General Imrani Kombe 1980-1983;
  • Major General M.N. Mwakalindile 1983-1988;
  • Lieutenant General Kiwelu 1988-1994;
  • Lieutenant General G. F. Sayore from 1994-2001
  • Brigadier General Francis J.Louis 1998-2003:
  • Lieutenant General Iddi Gahu 2001-2006
  • Lieutenant General Davis Mwamunyange
    Davis Mwamunyange
    General Davis Mwamunyange is the Chief of Defence Forces of the Tanzania People's Defence Force. He was appointed by the Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete in September 2007. Before his appointment he was the Chief of General Staff.-References:...

     2006-2007
  • Lieutenant General Abdulrahman Shimbo 2007-

External links

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