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WEEKLY NEWSLETTER
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Saudi Arabia
Index
Uniforms worn by personnel of Saudi Arabia's armed services,
including the national guard, were closely patterned on the
British and United States models that influenced those forces
during their early development. The most common uniform colors
were khaki or olive drab for the army and national guard, blue or
white for the navy, and blue for the air force. Officers had
semidress uniforms for various functions and dress uniforms for
formal occasions. All personnel wore berets, and officers also
had visored caps. Members of the Royal Guard Regiment often wore
the flowing white thaub (robe) and white kaffiyah
and qutrah (traditional Arab headgear of skullcap and
scarf). Berets were usually of distinctive colors that designated
branches, e.g., paratroops wore maroon, tank troops wore black,
and the Royal Guardsmen--when in conventional uniforms--wore
bright green berets. National guardsmen wore the traditional redcheckered Arab headdress, although some more modern units wore
red berets. Tribal units often wore the thaub with crossed
bandoliers. The brass badge worn by all ranks depicted the
national symbol--a date palm with crossed sabers beneath a crown,
all enclosed by a wreath.
There were ten grades of commissioned officers in the army,
navy, air force, and air defense force, corresponding to the
grades of second lieutenant (ensign) to general (admiral) in the
United States forces. The Saudi ranks in all services were known
by the same designations; for example, mulazim thani
corresponded to second lieutenant in the army, air defense force,
and air force and to ensign in the navy
(see
fig. 11).
Figure 11. Officer Ranks and Insignia
Enlisted rank structure was the same in all services, and
ranks were known by the same terms. There were seven enlisted
ratings plus the entry level of recruit. Chevrons to denote rank
were worn on both sleeves; the recruit had no chevron. The NCO
grades did not correspond exactly to those of the United States
forces, and the Saudi army or air force warrant officer (the navy
had none) corresponded more closely to master sergeant or
sergeant major rather than to any of the four grades of warrant
officer in the United States forces
(see
fig. 12).
Figure 12. Enlisted Ranks and Insignia
Data as of December 1992
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