Eusko Gudarostea

The Eusko Gudarosteaestablished in 1936, is the heir of the ancient militias of Euskadi, dating back to 1700. It is the branch of Euskadiko Indar Armatuak responsible for land-based military operations. It is the second largest branch of the armed forces after the Armada Nazional.

The Eusko Gudarostea currently has a strenght of 90,000 men and women. About 75,000 are professionals and it is planned to reach fully professionalization by 2016.

Structure
Since the formation of the nation, the military has been undergoing a process of integration and modernization not only in equipment but also in their structure and organization. In this process the Eusko Gudarostea has now a simple and effective organization that has an impact on improved effectiveness.

The major operational command is EKG HQ. It is located in Gasteiz and it is split into divisions and subordinate units ranging from brigades to sections. Corps are made up of two or more divisions, but are now unlikely to be deployed as a purely national formation due to the size of the Eusko Gudarostea.

There are four Regional EKG HQ:
 * EKG Regional Headquarters Europe (EKG HQ-EU)
 * EKG Regional Headquarters Caribe (EKG HQ-CB)
 * EKG Regional Headquarters Africa (EKG HQ-AF)
 * EKG Fast Reaction Force Headquarters (EKG HQ-FR)

The standard operational units are structured as follows, although various units can have their own structure, conventions, names and sizes.

Organization
Given its dependence on Regional Army HQs:

Clothing and armour
Basic combat clothing has a full cut allowing free movement. Bellows pockets provide ample carrying capacity. The material (fabric) offers good mechanical properties but still allows good air permeability.

The fibres (aramid/viscose FR) are flame- and wash-resistant.

The flak jacket accommodates:
 * Flexible ballistic protection
 * Hard ballistic protection
 * Electronic jacket
 * Load-bearing structure.

The electronic jacket integrates the electronics (computer unit, manager unit, radio, man-machine interface, GPS, cables and connector), flexible water bottle, Bofors Ak 5C magazines and grenades, and optimises weight distribution on the soldier.

The equipment is autonomous and can be used alone. The NRBC combat clothing is similar to permanent combat clothing. It is designed to allow combat phases to be carried out with the same efficiency as that achieved with conventional combat clothing.

Camouflage
The EKG have selected the Kermel V50 and VMC40 fabrics to equip its troops.

Portable electronic platform (PEP)
The PEP lies at the heart of the infantry combat system. Designed to utilise all the electronic resources found on the electronic jacket (computer, energy manager, peripheral equipment interfaces, user interfaces), The system is built around a USB 4.0. digital data bus. This choice of open broadband digital data bus and extensive connectivity gives the portable electronic platform, and hence the system, strong interoperability.

Individual energy sources
Peripheral equipment can be connected to the physical connection ports situated at the front of the battery units. Power sources will be made of two fuel cells, provided partially by Natech group.

Individual weapons

 * BOFORS AK 5C => Assault rifle
 * Heckler & Koch HK416 => Assault rifle
 * Heckler & Koch HK417 => Assault rifle
 * Heckler & Koch MP7 => Submachine gun
 * BOFORS CBJ-MS => Personal defence weapon
 * Barrett M82 => Sniper rifle
 * Accuracy International Arctic Warfare => Sniper rifle
 * FN Minimi => Light machine gun
 * BOFORS P-10 => Pistol
 * Sphinx 3000 => Pistol
 * Heckler & Koch USP => Pistol
 * M72 LAW => Grenade launcher
 * NLAW => Anti tank guided missile system
 * AT4 => Anti tank guided missile system

Crew weapons

 * M2 Browning => Machine gun
 * Carl-Gustaf M3 => Multi-role, man-portable shoulder-fired weapon
 * FGM-148 Javelin => Anti-tank missile
 * RBS 70 MPMS => Man-portable air-defence system
 * MAPAM => Advanced Mortar System

BOFORS AK 5C remain the infantryman’s basic weapon. FN Minimi and other weapons can accommodate a telescopic night sight with no need for changes.

BOFORS AK 5C accommodates a man-machine interface, a second grip and a telescopic sight. The sight is equipped with a day imager and a night imager (the infantryman’s sight will be light intensifying, and one soldier per squad will have a thermal sight: uncooled IR), a restitution eyepiece, a clear sight for instinctive shooting. The sight has an integrated video camera that transmits received images to the system. A wire connection links the weapon to the system.

TheFN Minimi sight uses similar technology to the BOFORS AK 5C IR sight. The sight supports man-machine interfaces and integrates resources for radio communication with the rest of the Félin system.

Precision rifle sight is based on the use of uncooled infrared sensors, combined with adapted magnifying optics. It also includes radio communication resources.

Helmet
The helmet is composed of three components: head protection, communication headset and optronic equipment. The ballistic shell optimises protection and load-bearing ergonomics (weight distribution). It can accommodate various items required for the mission (facial protection screens) and its shape is compatible with all firing positions of the weapons used.

A lightweight, integrated protective shield protects the infantryman from various threats (wind, rain, dust, UV). Non-linear earplugs afford auditory protection. The NBC mask can be equipped with a filter cartridge or linked to the ventilation powerpack. A tube built into the NBC mask can be used to take in liquids (water, food).

The communication headset is linked to the radio. It holds the microphone and earpiece and works by bone vibrations (bone conduction transducer). It works independently from the helmet and can therefore remain in operation when the helmet is removed.

The optronic equipment is composed of mission interface overshell integrating the optronics, head camera (EBCMOS light intensification technology), image display units (OLED technology) allowing data and icons transmitted on the bus system to be displayed, images and video coming from the weapon or the head camera. The image display unit is fixed to the helmet: its screen can be brought into line with infantryman's eye. When not in use, it can be folded away so as not to hinder the soldier.

Information network
The information network allows information to be shared throughout the infantry section. Each radio can subscribe to two networks simultaneously. This offers the squad leader some flexibility in organising communication networks in his section. Each network has an audio conference channel, with priority given to the squad leader, an alert channel from the infantryman to his leader, and a data transmission channel. Voice and data transmission is based on tried and tested satellite communication. Each sub-network works from a base carried by the squad leader. As information network sets are all identical, a soldier can replace his commander if necessary by configuring his set as base. The radio is configured by the soldier computer, thereby limiting the number of control buttons needed on the set.

Dismounted soldier’s Terminal Information System (TIS)
The TIS is made up of software supported by the computer, a man-machine interface and a communication interface box connected to a PR4G VS4 portable radio set.

Multipurpose infrared binoculars
Based on uncooled IR technology.

Transport/Carrying Case
The weapon and subsidiary systems are transported and stored in a Storm iM3220 plastic moulded carry case with foam cut-outs designed for each part.

Collective recharging unit (MRC)
Used to recharge the soldiers’ individual batteries. It uses hydrogen fuel cells manufactured by Natech.

Vehicle kits
Kits have a common structure and are designed for easy integration into modern vehicles, where they provide the power supply for the mounted soldiers’ systems.