Major General Zoltán Somogyi
15:53 July 18, 2023Brigadier General Zoltán Somogyi was born on 27th February 1974 in Fehérgyarmat. He began his military service in August 1992 at the Military Command Collage in Szentendre. He graduated as an artillery officer with a BSc in Land Surveying Engineering in 1996. He served 8 years in a various artillery officer assignments including 4 years as Battery Commander within the HDF 5th Mechanized Infantry Brigade 5th Self Propelled Artillery Battalion in Debrecen. During his artillery officer carrier, he successfully completed the Battery Commander Course of the German Bundeswehr and gathered experiences also in the field of rocket artillery. In 2003 he was deployed to the position of the 2nd Company Commander of the Hungarian Guard and Security Battalion, KFOR Kosovo and in 2004 he assumed command of the Hungarian Guard and Security Contingent, KFOR Skopje.
In 2007, he was appointed to the position of Hungarian Joint Force Command J3 Staff Officer in Székesfehérvár and he was promoted to Major. In 2009, he was assigned as a Liaison Officer to the German Operations Command in Potsdam and to the German MOD Planning Staff in Berlin focused on Hungarian contribution to ISAF operation. In 2010, he graduated from the National Defense University with MSc degree in Military Leadership. In 2012 he graduated the 7th German National Joint Admiral and General Staff Course at the Bundeswehr Command & Staff Collage in Hamburg. Following that, he was appointed to the position of the Military Assistant to the Chief of Land Forces of the Hungarian Joint Force Command and he was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel. From 2013 to 2016, he served as the Head of Combat Support Branch G3 HDF JFC.
During this assignment in 2013-2014 he was deployed for seven months to Afghanistan as a senior advisor and head of a brigade level advisory team. In 2016, he was assigned to the position of Chief G37 HDF Joint Force Command. In 2017, his next appointment was at HDF JFC where he held the post of Chief J3/ACOS Operations and was promoted to the rank of Colonel.
From August 2018 he started and led the planning project of Headquarters Multinational Division Centre. He was appointed to Chief of Staff of the Headquarters Multinational Division Centre on 01 June 2020 and he was promoted to his current rank on the 20th of August 2020.
12 May 2022 – 17 May 2023 he served as Chief of Staff of EUFOR Force HQ in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Since 15 July 2023 he has been assuming the position Director of the General Staff Hungarian Defence Forces.
He is married to his wife Beatrix and lives in Várpalota.
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Expanding airlift capacity in Pápa
13:46 June 24, 2024
Stationed at the Hungarian Defence Forces 47th Air Base, the Heavy Airlift Wing (HAW) reached another significant milestone with the opening of the 3,200 square-meter Combined Aerial Port Facility (CAPF) in Pápa on 19 June. As a result of two years of construction works, the HAW’s airlift capability has been expanded with an increased warehouse capacity, new offices and a parachute drying tower.
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Hungarian Horses Serve the British Royal Family
13:41 June 24, 2024
Defence Minister Kristóf Szalay-Bobrovniczky recently handed over Hungarian-bred Lipizzan horses to the royal British Army in London as a gift of Hungary upon the coronation of King Charles III.
![202406_Black Raven gyakorlat KP_KL (nyitó)](https://defence.hu/media/cache/width_465/images/media/66794cebc56c1305929917.jpg)
Battle management in a multinational force
12:39 June 24, 2024
In a couple of weeks following their successful Combat Readiness Evaluation of Land Headquarters and Units (CREVAL), the personnel of the NATO Forward Land Force Battle Group (NATO FLF BG) took another test. This time, the Hungarian-led tactical sub-unit demonstrated its capabilities during Exercise Black Raven 2024 in the Bakony Hills.
![202406_Szarajevó_Magyar_ház_KB (3)](https://defence.hu/media/cache/width_465/images/media/66794c3ce83be695616988.jpg)
Hungarian House in Sarajevo Renovated
12:36 June 24, 2024
Hungarian peacekeepers recently reoccupied the Hungarian House in Camp Butmir following its overall renovation.
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State Secretary’s Visit to the Eurosatory Exhibition
12:24 June 21, 2024
An official Hungarian delegation headed by Dr. Zsolt Kutnyánszky, MoD State Secretary for Defence Policy, Force Development and Defence Industry, recently visited Eurosatory 2024: The Global Event for Defence and Security in Paris.
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Easily and Quickly
12:07 June 21, 2024
The soldiers of the KFOR Tactical Reserve Battalion and Joint Logistic Support Group Transport Company conducted cross-training to load and secure armored personnel carriers (APCs) onto Goldhofer type trailers and to prepare them for transport. The aim of the training is to facilitate easier and faster transportation of APCs by road to designated areas in case of their deployment outside KFOR Area Of Operations (AOO).
![202406_Pápa_KC-135 Stratotanker_CSG_LD (nyitó)](https://defence.hu/media/cache/width_465/images/media/6672cd8021502208872221.jpg)
KC-135 Stratotanker on Emergency Training
14:21 June 19, 2024
Similarly to last year, an American KC-135 Stratotanker air-to-air refueling tanker aircraft recently landed at the HDF 47th Airbase to simulate a possible emergency with the participation of American and Hungarian military personnel.
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Hungary is Committed to Strengthening European Defence Capabilities
12:02 June 19, 2024
The European Union must become a credible defence actor and Hungary is committed to supporting the creation of these defence capabilities, declared Defence Minister Kristóf Szalay-Bobrovniczky following his discussion with German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius in Berlin.
![VPHÁT Hamadi Meimou_HM_nyitó](https://defence.hu/media/cache/width_465/images/media/6671751783c57365942916.jpg)
The Sahel is Especially Important to Hungary
13:51 June 18, 2024
MoD Deputy State Secretary for Defence Policy László Hajnik received the Mauritanian-born Hamadi Meimou, High Representative of the Coalition for the Sahel in the Balaton Street building of the Ministry of Defence on 11 June.
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“Kelly’s Heroes”
13:00 June 18, 2024
It is safe to say that the task system of the Hungarian KFOR Tactical Reserve Battalion (KTRBN) comprises the widest spectrum in KFOR’s area of operations. The troops of the battalion must be ready to tackle challenges posed by peacekeeping operations such as Crowd and Riot Control (CRC), as well as for the demonstration of “classical” military capabilities.