Contents
- 1 History
- 1.1 School of Armored Corps
- 1.2 460th Brigade
- 2 Brigade Structure
- 2.1 "School for Armored Corps" (Battalion 195)
- 2.1.1 The "Magen" Battalion
- 2.1.2 The Battalion Commanders
- 2.2 The "Shahak" Battalion (196)
- 2.2.1 The Battalion Commanders
- 2.3 The "Azuz" Battalion (198)
- 2.3.1 The Battalion Commanders
- 2.4 The "Shelah" Battalion (532)
- 2.4.1 The Battalion Commanders
- 2.5 "School for Combat Assistance" (Branch 330)
- 2.6 Brigade Headquarters
- 3 Brigade Commanders
- 4 External Links
- 5 Footnotes
History
School of the Armored Corps
At the start of 1948 the Armored Corps School was established in Netanya. In April 1948 the school moved to Tel Litvinsky but during the War of Independence its operations were halted and most of the tanks used by the school were instead used to create the 8th Brigade, the first armored brigade of the IDF. In September 1949 a training and reinforcement center for the Armored corps was set up in Ramla, which later became BHA"D 5 and the School for the Armored Corps. In 1954 the school moved to the Julis Base (Camp Emmanuel) where it remained until 1985 when due to a lack of live fire ranges it was relocated to Base Siyarim. After the Sinai War (NB: 1956) the school was expanded and received the status of a brigade which was given the name עוצבת בני חיל Utzvat Bnei Chayil/"Son of a Warrior Formation" (Brigade 454).
460th Brigade
After the outbreak of the Yom Kippur War, the brigade was set up under the command of Col Gabi Amir of the Armord Corps School which was then located in Julis. After the war the two brigades continued to exist as separate units with the Armored Corps School holding basic and vocational training courses and the 460th Brigade holding commander and officer courses until in 2003 as part of planned force reduction the BISLASH (NB:454) brigade was merged into the 460th Brigade.
In the past the brigade had been located in the Sinai in the area of Bir Timada, however, after the peace agreement bwtween Egypt and Israel the brigade moved to the Ketziot base. In 1982, shortly after taking part in Peace for Galilee, the brigade moved to bases built for the IDF by the Americans as compensation for Israel's withdrawal from the Sinai:
- Camp Shizafon - named after a species of trees common to the area.
- Camp Magen-Sayarim - the Armored Corps School - was named after Maj Gen Kalman Magen and the name of the Negev Brigade patrol unit that passed on the way to conquer Eilat as part of Operation Ovda in the War of Independence.
During the First Lebanon War, the brigade operated almost entirely in the Central Sector where it seized the town of Jezzine in the Battle of Jezzine which was the first major armored action with the Syrian army at the time as well as the village of Ein a-Tina in a battle known as the KMT-KKSH Battle in which 5 soldiers were killed in a training accident involving two battalions in the brigade. (NB: 196th BN the Tank Commander Course KMT and 198th BN the Command Officer Training KKSH. )
In 2009 the reorganization of the 460th Brigade was complete with training split not according to which brigades the fighters were destined to enter but by the stage of their training. In addition the Sayarim Camp was removed from Armored Corps School training and transferred to the Military Combat Force in order to serve as the military school (The Combat Training School - BISLAK ביסל״ק).
In July 2014 the brigade participated in Operation Tzuk Eitan in the fighting [1] in Deir al-Balah and Khan Yunis.
Structure of the Brigade
The brigade consists of five battalions and the brigade HQ, the HQ and four battalions (195, 196, 330, and 532) are permanently stationed in the Shizafon Camp while 198th BN is located at the Magen-Sayarim Camp.
Armored Corps School Battalion (195)
The Adam battalion today is the school where basic training is carried out, Basic Vocational Training ("professions") and the Instructor's Training Course (Armored Corps). Its motto is: "train the man in the tank to win" or more concisely "the man in the tank will win". The battalion was originally established as part of the 401st Brigade. In May 1981 it was transferred to the 500th Brigade. After that brigade was disbanded, the battalion was reformed as part of the 7th Brigade. With the reorganization of the corps, it became the battalion of the school.
The Magen Battalion
The Magen battalion which had previously been based at the Magen-Sayarim Camp played a similar role for the security office for the Sayarim Camp. It was also responsible for other training programs such as the Armored Corps Instructor Training Course (KMSH) (NB: this could also be KKSH), a Combat Support Training Company (TL) and a Waiting Company. (NB: ???) Since the merger of the Sayarim Camp with Shizafon, the battalion merged with 195th BN to become part of the Armored Corps School.
Battalion Commanders
| Name | Period | Remarks |
|---|---|---|
| Yossi Peled | ||
| Uzi Levatzur | ||
| Dani Yatom | ||
| Ami Even | ||
| Guy Hasson | 2004-2006 | |
| Yair Valensky | 2006-2008 | |
| Chaim Ido | ||
| Ohad Najima | ||
| Ronen Tamim | ||
| Dvir (Dud) Edri | ||
| Barak Charney |
The "Shahak" Battalion (196)
The "Shahak" battalion is the command battalion in which the Tank Commander Course is held (KM''T), a command course for the support company (plugah ha-masa'ayot) and Armor Officers Course (KK''SH) for operating three armor brigades. The battalion's motto is: "only those who dare can win".
Battalion Commanders
| Name | Period | Remarks |
|---|---|---|
| Jacob Lapidot | 1972-Oct 1973 | |
| Amram Mitzna | Oct 1973- | commanded during Yom Kippur War |
| Shlomo Yanai | ||
| Sefi Shoman | -June 1982 | commanded battalion in First Lebanon War, killed in battle |
| Eyal Ben Reuven | ||
| Gershon Hacohen | ||
| Halutzi Rodoy | ||
| Tamir Heiman | later head of Military Intelligence | |
| Dan Neumann | ||
| Amir Hamud | ||
| Gal Shuchmi | 2011-2013 | |
| Rafi Wolfson | 2013-Aug 2015 | |
| Roy Swirski | ||
| Bnei Aaron | ||
The "Azuz" Battalion (198)
The "Azuz" is the TZMA"P (team, platoon, company - advanced training) battalion of the soldiers of the 188th Brigade.
After the brigade moved to Ketziot, the battalion settled south of Nitzana in the Asus river area and hence its name. It had previously served as the training battalion for tank commanders in the 7th and 188th Brigades. This battalion is the only one that remains in the Sayarim Camp after the removal from the camp of the brigade's battalions and the establishment of BISLAK in 2009. The battalion's slogan is "Azuz - a battalion that wins".
Battalion Commanders
| Name | Period | Remarks |
|---|---|---|
| Amir Yaffe | ||
| Dud Hodak | ||
| Ehud Gross | ||
| Beni Lidor | ||
| Eyal Zamir | ||
| Lior Hochman | ||
| Erez Lev-Ran | ||
| Yoav Tilan | ||
| Giani Cohen | 2009-2011 | |
| Vardi Yordo | ||
| Elad Schwartz | ||
| Aryeh Berger | 2014-2015 | received Division Citation |
| Bnei Aaron | 2015-2016 | |
| Nir Tal | 2016-2017 | |
| Miki Shavit | Jul 2017 - |
The "Shelah" Battalion (532)
The "Shelah" battalion is the TZM"P battalion for the 7th and 401st Brigades.
Battalion Commanders
| Name | Period | Remarks |
|---|---|---|
| Tzahak Lev-Ari | ||
| Didi Ben Yoash | ||
| Zvika Zoran | ||
| Efi Dafrin | ||
| German Gitlman | ||
| Hisham Ibrahim | ||
| Neria Yeshurun | ||
| Hanoch Daube |
"School for Combat Assistance" (Branch 330)
The school for armor support training - observation, patrol and mortars. Here they give advanced training to support platoon members and a course for squad leaders. The commanders of the bomb disposal unit are: Omer Levin, Gal Dovinger, Idan Hamo. (NB: Bomb Disposal YAHASAP יחס״פ This is what appeared when I looked it up. It seems odd but the best I can come up with.)
Brigade Headquaters
The brigade headquarters is also responsible for providing the various battalions at Shizafon for training with operational readiness for an emergency, logistical services, medicine, training, etc.
Brigade Commanders
| Name | Period | Remarks |
|---|---|---|
| Gabriel Amir | 1973-1974 | commander during the Yom Kippur War |
| Yossi Peled | 1974-1975 | later commander of Northern Command |
| Aviram Gilad | 1975-1976 | |
| Dan Vardi | 1976-1977 | |
| Amram Mitzna | 1977-1978 | later OC Central Command |
| Giora Lev | 1978-1979 | |
| Ami Morag | 1979-1981 | Medal of Honor |
| Hagai Cohen | 1981-1982 | |
| Nati Golan | 1982-1983 | Medal of Heroism |
| Yitzhak Rabin | 1983-1984 | Rabbi of Torah, Field Corps HQ, commander Armored Corps |
| Yossi Melamed | 1984-1986 | |
| Tzvika Ken-Tor | 1986-1988 | |
| Ami Plant | 1988-1990 | Medal of Valor |
| Amos Malka | 1990-1992 | future Gen (Aluf) |
| Zvi Gendleman | 1992-1993 | future Mayor of Hadera |
| Yiftah Ron-Tal | 1993-1995 | latr commander Ground Forces |
| Udi Adam | 1995-1997 | later OC Northern Command |
| Dan Biton | 1997-1999 | later head of IDF |
| Shmuel Rosenthal | 1999-2001 | |
| Sami Turgeman | 2001-2002 | later commander of Ground Forces |
| Guy Tzur | 2002-Aug 2003 | later commander of Ground Forces |
| Halutzi Rudy | Aug 2003-Sept 2005 | later head of Armored Corps |
| Tamir Heiman | Sept 2005-2006 | Commander Military Colleges and Northern Corps |
| Guy Goldstein | 2006-2008 | |
| Guy Bar-Lev | 2008-Jul 2011 | later Chief Combat Officer |
| Lior Hochman | Jul 2011-Oct 2013 | |
| Guy Hasson | Oct 2013-May 2015 | later Chief Armored Officer |
| Amir Avstein | May 2015-May 2017 | |
| Moran Omer | 17 May 2017- | current brigade commander |
External Links
The division's website 460th Brigade at the Armored Corps site Division 454 - "Bnei Hail" design at the Yad LaShiryon site. Ofir Sasson, 18 facts about BISAL, inventory of land forces Hagai Cohen, Learning from the successes: Brigade Brigade 460 combat in the mirror of the past time, systems 444, August 2012 Testimony of Gabi Amir, commander of the Brigade during the Yom Kippur War, to the Agranat Commission, on the IDF and Defense System archive
Footnotes
1 ^ Nir Segal, the Armored Corps killed more than 500 terrorists in the Eitan cliff on the mako site, August 28, 2014