Oryx

Monday, 8 August 2016

Photo Report: The Syrian Arab Air Defence Force

By Stijn Mitzer and Joost Oliemans

The Syrian Arab Air Defence Force, once a proud independent service of the Syrian Armed Forces, has suffered tremendously under the five-year long Civil War. While losing dozens of surface-to-air (SAM) and radar sites to the various factions fighting for control over Syria was already a serious blow to its capabilities, Syria's poor financial situation and the transfer of large numbers of personnel from the Syrian Arab Air Defence Force (SyAADF) to the Syrian Arab Army and National Defence Force effectively gave the killing blow to the SyAADF.

Friday, 5 August 2016

Photo Report: The Syrian Arab Navy

Anonymous 4K44 Redut , al-Assad 0 Comments

By Stijn Mitzer and Joost Oliemans

The Syrian Arab Navy is without a doubt the least well known branch of the Syrian Armed Forces, largely due to its marginal role in the Syrian Civil War. It however operates an interesting mix of ships most of which already long retired by other naval forces around the world. This photo report shows various Syrian Arab Navy vessels and units that participated in the 2012 exercise. This exercise featured all branches of the Syrian Armed Forces and was aimed at showing the outside world Syria was a force to be reckoned with.

Saturday, 18 June 2016

Back From Retirement: Sudan’s BO-105s Take To The Skies

Anonymous BO-105 , Exotic Aircraft 0 Comments

By Stijn Mitzer and Joost Oliemans

The Sudanese Air Force has had a turbulent history ever since its founding in January 1956, the year that Sudan gained independence from Great Britain. Originally trained and equipped by Egyptians and the British, it acquired aircraft and helicopters from the Soviet Union in the late 1960s, followed by Chinese examples several years later. The Sudanese Air Force (SuAF) then sought to purchase aircraft from France, but ended up acquiring U.S. F-5s and C-130s. In the late 1980s it began receiving military aid in the form of aircraft and helicopters from Libya, followed by the delivery of more Chinese aircraft shortly after, which would continue to deliver aircraft in the last two decades. In more recent years the SuAF's core is made up by aircraft acquired from Belarus, Russia and China. This is not all however, as the SuAF also operates or used to operate aircraft sourced from a variety of countries such as Germany, Switzerland, the Netherlands and Canada.

Thursday, 28 April 2016

The Ballad Of Abu Hajaar

Anonymous Abu Hajaar , Battle Reports 0 Comments

By Stijn Mitzer and Joost Oliemans

A video obtained by Jake Hanrahan and uploaded by VICE News on the 27th of April 2016 shows off spectacular footage taken by the headcam of an Islamic State fighter as he and his comrades fight their way to Peshmerga positions near Naweran while under heavy enemy fire. The attack, which took place North of Mosul, clearly shows the panic and chaos that occur while on the battlefield, a completely different picture from the one presented in the propaganda videos published by the Islamic State's media department, which almost exclusively shows well-trained and motivated fighters of the Islamic State defeating their opponents without any fear or regard to their own safety.

Sunday, 20 March 2016

Mad Max meets Islamic State: The Birth of the Battle Monstrosity

Anonymous Armour in the Islamic State , BMP-1 0 Comments

By Stijn Mitzer and Joost Oliemans

The Islamic State's rise to the status of one of the most sophisticated designated terrorist groups ever to exist has led to a myriad of DIY projects as the group attemped to equip its fighters with a semblance of armour and heavy firepower. While most of these projects were destined to remain confined to the battlefields of Syria and Iraq, Islamic State forces in Libya managed to assemble an one-off homebred gem that could have come straight out of a Mad Max movie.

Friday, 11 March 2016

North Korean HT-16PGJ MANPADS in Syria

Anonymous DPRK , HG-16 0 Comments

By Joost Oliemans and Stijn Mitzer

Subject to severe sanctions for almost a decade, the proliferation of North Korean conventional armament on the international arms market is an often underreported topic, and many arms deals of the past are completely undocumented. Nonetheless, the traces of these deals still mark many of the world's conflict areas, and every once in a while new footage confirms North Korea's involvement in the international arms trade.

Wednesday, 9 March 2016

Iranian delivered North Korean Type-73 machine guns sighted in Syria

Anonymous GPMG , Iran 0 Comments

By Joost Oliemans and Stijn Mitzer

After the sighting of North Korean Type-73 light machine guns (LMGs) in Iraq, it now appears several examples of this rare firearm have made their way to Syria with the deployment of the Iraqi Shiite militia Kata'ib al-Imam Ali to this country. Kata'ib al-Imam Ali's involvement in Syria has been centered around the regime's offensive in Northern Aleppo in February 2016, aimed at cutting off rebel forces North and North-East of Aleppo.