NationStates Jolt Archive

(OOC: after the succes of "the van Luxemburgian Soldier" and the raise of several dangers to my Nation, I decided to create a summum of the complete van Luxemburgian Army. I will try to make the Specs as realistic as possible for me. note that all sales were made over several NS years, and most has been license produced by a mostly Government owned Comapny, VDZ & VL weapons. C&C please!)

The Van Luxemburgian Armed Forces

The Royal Van Luxemburgian Army

The Van Luxemburgian Soldier (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showpost.php?p=9145080&postcount=1)
VDZ & VL weapons, for information on the JK-1a and other weapons. (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=437506)

The Normal Peace-time Army of van Luxemburg consists of all men and women that voluntarily got into this branche of the Armed Forces. it's very mobile and Well-Trained. the standard firearm is the VDZ & VL JK1a, however mostly the FAMAS FELIN and FN F2000 are being used. the van Luxemburgian Army normally uses European equipment, with the Leclerc MBT as Main Tank, and the VBCI, VAB, and VBL as standard IFV. all IFV's are wheeled, however van Luxemburg is busy designing a Tracked IFV.

Numbers:
Men: 1.38 Million
Leclerc - Main Battle Tanks (20896)
AMX 10 RC - Light Tank (25987)
ERC-90 Sagaie - reconnaissance combat vehicle (11192)
VAB - armoured personnel carrier (40208)
VBL - light armoured vehicle (19990)

Artillery
AMX 30 AuF1 - 155 mm (2072)
MRLS - multiple rocket launcher (4100)
HM-2 155 mm towed howitzer (1030)
BF-50 155 mm towed howitzer (1130)
F3 self-propelled howitzer (550)
RTF1 120 mm Mortar (3610)
M-51 120 mm Mortar (3570)

Non-combat vehicles
60000 Renault Kerax 6x6 Truck, used for multiple purposes (e.g. Troop transport, logistics, Towing)
50000 DAF TROPCO 8x8, used for Multiple purposes (e.g. Troop Transport, Logistics, Towing, Tank and Armoured Vehicle transport.)

Helicopters
Tigre - attack (2000)
NH-90 - tactical transport(1100)
an order has been placed at VDZ & VL for a few thousand JK-H1's and JK-H2's (Still classified)

Van Luxemburgian Camouflage:
Van Luxemburg employs varying Camouflage colours, shown here are Temperate, Woodland, Desert and Alpine on a Leclerc tank. (OOC: Thanks Ato-Sara for creating this Wonderful Camo-scheme)
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v671/lazyjim/VLTankTemperate.png
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v671/lazyjim/VLTankJungle.png
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v671/lazyjim/VLTankDesert.png
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v671/lazyjim/VLTanAlpine.png


The Royal Van Luxemburgian Armee Amphibie et Invasion

This Army has never been employed into action, and hopefully never will be. this army is used to do invasions and amphibic assaults, and is between the training level of the Van Luxemburgian army and the Van Luxemburgian Special forces. most of the soldiers of the VLAAI (OOC: Funny name) have been recruited out of the Van Luxemburgian army, and are the ones that have proven to be good soldiers. the aim of the VLAAI is to transport every fighting man or woman by Armoured Vehicle.

Numbers:
Men: 1.00 Million
Leclerc - Main Battle Tank (10896)
Leopard 2A6 - Main Battle tank (17896)
VDZ & VL JK-V1 "Basher" - Heavy Battle Tank (12476)
AMX 10 RC - Light Tank (35987)
ERC-90 Sagaie - reconnaissance combat vehicle (11192)
VAB - armoured personnel carrier (40208)
VBL - light armoured vehicle (19990)
an order has been done at VDZ & VL for Amphibious Fighting Vehicles of MBT format.

Artillery
AMX 30 AuF1 - 155 mm (9072)
MRLS - multiple rocket launcher (4600)
F3 self-propelled howitzer (8550)
RTF1 120 mm Mortar (4610)
M-51 120 mm Mortar (4570)

Non-combat vehicles
80000 Renault Kerax 6x6 Truck, used for multiple purposes (e.g. logistics, Towing)
70000 DAF TROPCO 8x8, used for Multiple purposes (e.g. Logistics, Towing, Tank and Armoured Vehicle transport.)

Helicopters
Tigre - attack (3289)
NH-90 - tactical transport(5121)
an order has been placed at VDZ & VL for a few thousand JK-H1's and JK-H2's (Still classified)


The Royal Van Luxemburgian Special Forces.

The absolute top of the Ground Forces of van Luxemburg. mostly use every weapon available, and have their own Armouries, which includes most weapons they need. Every man has as good as possible it's own Gear, but most choose another weapon when the mission is different than others. the sentence "Gone shopping" has a whole different meaning at the van Luxemburgian Special Forces. training level varies, and when needed, the Special Forces lend Vehicles from The Van Luxemburgian Armed Forces or lease them at VDZ & VL when needed.

Numbers:
30,000 men training level: High
18,000 men Training Level: Very High
2,000 men Training Level: Almost Unhuman.

(OOC:For comparison: High is of Green Berets level, Very High is of SAS Level, Almost Unhuman is trained to the absolute limit of Human Capability.)

(OOC: Soon more on the Van Luxemburgian Navy and Airforce! meanwhile,
C&C please!)

Cool military factbook here, btw, how much do you spend p/ soldier on training, equipment, etc.

I'm equipping my Soldiers for Roughly $100,000 dollars, that's $40,000 for Battlesuit, $20,000 for assorted weapons and extra communications, and another $ 40,000 for Training and such.

Royal Van Luxemburgian Civilian Defense Forces

The Van Luxemburgian Civilian Defense Forces, shortway VLCDF, consist of all persons of 16-65 who have accepted the invitation to follow training. The persons have an normal Job besides their Job at the VLCDF. the VLCDF is equipped with FAMAS G2 rifles, MINIMI MG's, FRF2 snipers and Eryx AT Missiles. the VLCDF has a very low number of vehicles, which are mostly declared obsolete by the Van Luxemburgian Army. as already mentioned, the VLCDF is completely voluntarily and as present servants get a Weapon which they have to look after and a wage of €500 EUR.
Numbers:
Men: 7.78 Million
AMX30B2 - Main Battle Tanks (11098)
Panhard EML 60/90 (10055)
ERC-90 Sagaie - reconnaissance combat vehicle (9192)
VAB - armoured personnel carrier (20208)
VBL - light armoured vehicle (9990)

Artillery
AMX 30 AuF1 - 155 mm (172)
MRLS - multiple rocket launcher (100)
HM-2 155 mm towed howitzer (930)
BF-50 155 mm towed howitzer (730)
F3 self-propelled howitzer (250)
RTF1 120 mm Mortar (1610)
M-51 120 mm Mortar (1570)

Non-combat vehicles
90000 Renault Kerax 6x6 Truck, used for multiple purposes (e.g. Troop transport, logistics, Towing)
40000 DAF TROPCO 8x8, used for Multiple purposes (e.g. Troop Transport, Logistics, Towing, Tank and Armoured Vehicle transport.)

Helicopters
Gazelle - Light Attack helicopter 2610
Fennec- Light Utility Helicopter 5890
Super Puma - Tactical Transport Helicopter 4123

Royal Van Luxemburgian Armee de l'Air (Airforce)

The RVLAA is a Airforce which tries to have only a few types, but in enormous numbers. most Craft have been produced by VDZ & VL, License produced or are own-design.

Numbers:
Men: 180,000

Non-combat vehicles
10000 Renault Kerax 6x6 Truck, used for multiple purposes (e.g. Troop transport, logistics, Towing)
5000 DAF TROPCO 8x8, used for Multiple purposes (e.g. Troop Transport, Logistics, Towing, Tank and Armoured Vehicle transport.)

Fighters
Mirage 2100 -advanced multirole Stealth fighter specs (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showpost.php?p=9587422&postcount=1) (100)
Mirage 2000-5 - Multirole fighter (2000)
Rafale -Multirole Fighter (3000)

Bombers
B2 - Stealth Bomber - (50)
Jaguar- Ground attack aircraft- (300)

Transport
A400M (700)
C-295 (300)
C17 (95)
C160 (150)

Miscellaneous
SR-71- Spy Aircraft (10)
Pilatus PC-21- Trainer (90)
Mako- advanced trainer, light attack aircraft (40)
Airbus A330 MRTT Tanker (234)
Airbus A310 MRTT Tanker (20)
Global Hawk- UAV reconaissance (45)

The Royal Van Luxemburgian Marine Nationale (Navy)

The Navy of van Luxemburg is well-equipped and consists of many new ships, which have been designed by Van Luxemburg. The Navy employs hit-and-run tactics on their ships, but has the ability to host a full-scale naval war.

specifications of all naval vessels (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showpost.php?p=8908269&postcount=1)

numbers:
Men: 500,000
50 Marseille Class Stealth Frigates
200 Bordeaux Class Stealth Destroyers
40 Le Havre Class Stealth Cruisers
10 Verdun Class Stealth AA Destroyers
110 Nimes Class Stealth Patrol Frigates
10 Montpellier Class Stealth Helicopter Carriers
20 Perpignan Class Stealth Aircraft Carriers
200 MRTP '33 Naval Patrol Boats
8 Diekirch Class SD's

In depth: The Van Luxemburgian Special Forces (Marines)

The Van Luxemburgian Special Forces consist of 3 departments: Ground, Naval and Command VLISS.

Commando Maritieme Jagers

The Maritieme Jagers are specialised in Naval warfare, and may be employed after 8 years of training. They have been trained for 8 years in (Re)capturing of naval vessels, the putting out of order of vessels and Amphibious operations.
http://www.korpsmariniers.com/albums/CAVDKM/200008083_G.jpg
Maritieme Jagers busy disembarking on a tropical beach

The Maritieme Jagers consist of 24,000 men, divided into troops of 1000 men, subdivided into Korpses of 100 men, divided in platoons of 25, made up of recce's of 12, together with one commander.

Spezialcommand "Lëtzebuerg"

Spezialcommand "Lëtzebuerg" is the Ground unit of the Van Luxemburgian Marines, specialized in quick insertion-extraction, sabotage, eliminations and climate-based warfare.
http://www.korpsmariniers.com/albums/CAVDKM/6856_G.jpg
"Lëtzebuergers" during Map recognition.

(OOC: was interrupted, I'll submit VLISS later.)

Internationaal Commando Special Service Rainbow (IC SSR)

The Absolute top of the Van Luxemburgian Special Forces, consisting of 2000 men, they can do almost anything with their training of 8-10 years, much tougher than normal Van Luxemburgian Spec-Ops. their training level can be compared with the limit of Human Capability. therefore, SSR only works in small groups of at maximum 50 (+ commander). A rough estimate of total SSR manpower is 2,000 men.
http://www.korpsmariniers.com/albums/CAVDKM/mariniersniper.jpg
Sniperteam of SSR readying an M-24 sniper.
http://www.korpsmariniers.com/albums/CAVDKM/Scanning_20the_20terrain_jpg.sized.jpg
Patrol scanning area with their Diemaco C7's
http://www.korpsmariniers.com/albums/CAVDKM/Recce_20Platoon_jpg.sized.jpg
The same patrol, somewhat later
http://www.korpsmariniers.com/albums/CAVDKM/7_9811_068_jungletraining.sized.jpg
Patrol on Van Luxemburgian Guyana Island

OOC: I like that you use entirely reasonable equipment instead of hovertanks and rifles that'd have enough recoil to kill a man and absurdly call it modern tech, but then I tend to think that the SDs contradict that and... well, never mind, I'm in danger of wandering off into a rant about technology that I hate.

Things like the size and ability of most of the military look good to me, for what little that's worth to you, but I do have some doubts on the VLCDF. I might just be over-tired or something as I'm reading this, but it looks like you have over 4% of the population in a part-time volunteer military? Certainly the regular military is perfectly fine, and certainly you could have a sort of civilian defence force that size (our Commonwealth Guard is larger, and in reality the DPRK may have 30% of its population in reserve formations), but I wonder if it's entirely realistic to expect that several percent of the population will commit to it as volunteers.

I admit that I really don't know enough about it or about your nation to say for sure. In the Igovian Soviet Commonwealth the army was disbanded and all able citizens officially enroled in the Commonwealth Guard (it is fair to say that the Igovians owe a lot to the Parisians of 1871), but thinking out of character I struggle to imagine even 1% of a typical Western European nation's population volunteering for a national militia organisation. Unless perhaps they thought that another such nation was about to attack them (and maybe saw it as a way out of the regular military!).

Sorry, once I start typing I find it hard to stop, heh. Uhm, a question, maybe, before I finish. How many days a year does the VLCDF train its recruits?

OOC: Actually, the VLCDF was formed to protect the country in times of war, and will only be called up then. they train approximately 30 days a year, and those are in Vacation periods, while other people who refuse to enroll in the Van Luxemburgian military get paid (€500 a year) to be in the VLCDF. and, all marksmanclubs and organizations are also counted in the VLCDF, while weapons of Pistol and PDW size are available for sale, if registered. it isn't that hard to count people in if they "Volunteer" for €500 a year.

OOC: Hm, I still think it a bit optimistic. I don't think that even one of my friends and family would join something hardly a world away from the Territorial Army on what is massively less than TA pay. The training is equivalent to turning-up on more than half the weekends out of the year and getting a few hundred dollars at the end of it, along with a suddenly-increased responsibility to get involved in a fight if it breaks out.
Every society is different, but VL seems to be quite like a modern Western Euopean nation from what little I know about it, so that's loosely on what I've based my skepticism. I think that a volunteer force like that would be likely to get at most a couple of million recruits. An obligation to such a force could yield tens of millions, or, in the case of a loony militarist state, hundreds of millions.

OOC: I'll scale it down to about 8 million troops. and you're indeed right about the Western European look-a-like. I wish even more people knew about my nation, but all those facts doesn't seem to get it any better....

OOC: Well, it seems like a good nation -I mean, maybe not good in the sense that my nation would get along with it, being radical communists as we are, but apparently a quite well developed fiction- so I'll look-out for it in future.
As to the size of the reserve formation, I'll just assume that the people are going through a fairly patriotic period and eight million of them want to play soldiers.

OOC: who didn't dream of driving a Tank when he was 8 ?

;)