Thread by @justinf0graphic

ORBAT of the Bersaglieri Brigade Garibaldi of the Italian Army circa 2019. A 🧵
#Italia #ForzeArmate #Military #tank

Overall, the brigade is a combined arms formation comprising Tank and Mechanised regiments supported by a substantial armoured Recon regt, an Artillery regt, an Engineer regt and the brigade’s logistics

Before we go into any more detail, it is important to note that Italian regiments are, in effect, equivalent to a US Army battalion which generally includes between 4-6 companies and up to 1000 soldiers

One of the interesting aspects of the brigade is its cavalry regt. A cavalry unit does not mean that it uses horses to move around but that its mission is to do what light cavalry used to do back in the 18th/19th century

Mainly, provide reconnaissance on the enemy and the terrain. To achieve this effect, a cavalry unit needs to be light and fast so that they can move ahead of the force and be faster than the enemy’s reaction time to recon him and avoid being destroyed in the process

In this case, Italian reconnaissance squadrons are equipped with two types of wheeled vehicles: the VTLM Lince to transport infantry and the B1 Centauro, a tank destroyer

Here is an overview of the composition of one of the reconnaissance squadrons
Credit to Our ORBAT Lord and Saviour: @battle_order

The Italian army is currently in the process of modernising its fleet of vehicles. The Freccia IFV will replace the B1 Centauro. Except for the Heavy armoured squadron of the battalion that will receive the Centauro II

The Brigade’s Tank battalion is equipped with 3 Ariete AMV main battle tank companies. The 4th company was recently disbanded putting the battalion to an estimated 42 tanks

After that, two mechanised infantry battalions equipped with Dardo IFVs provide the main infantry component of the brigade

Looking more closely at the manoeuvre support company is equipped with 120 mn mortar carriers that provide close indirect fire and also Dardo IFVs with ATGMs

The manoeuvre regiments are supported by a field artillery regiment equipped with PzH-2000. The regt also has a dedicated company for target acquisition with MQ-11 drones and Counter-Battery Radars

Finally, the brigade has an engineer battalion with three sappers companies and one heavier company dedicated to more complex engineer operations like bridge laying

All regiments have a dedicated HQ and Services company. In addition to the Command platoon, they are usually comprised of a medical platoon, a transport and material platoon, an MP platoon and an EOD platoon

End of thread + cool photo of Drado IFVs
@CiroNappi6 @ItaMilRadar