thumb
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An
Authorised Firearms Officer (AFO) is a British police
officerA police officer is a warranted employee of a police force. Police officers are generally responsible for apprehending criminals, maintaining public order, and preventing and detecting crimes...
who has received training and authorisation to carry and use
firearmA firearm is a device which projects either single or multiple projectiles at high velocity through a controlled explosion. The firing is achieved by the gases produced through rapid, confined burning of a propellant. This process of rapid burning is technically known as deflagration...
s. The designation is significant because within the
United KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...
, police officers do not routinely carry firearms. Police officers of the
Police Service of Northern IrelandThe Police Service of Northern Ireland GC is the police service that covers Northern Ireland...
, however, do routinely carry firearms due to the nature of the threat that they have
historically facedThe Troubles was a period of ethno-political conflict in Northern Ireland which spilled over at various times into England, the Republic of Ireland, and mainland Europe. The duration of the Troubles is conventionally dated from the late 1960s and considered by many to have ended with the Belfast...
. The
Ministry of Defence PoliceThe Ministry of Defence Police is a civilian police force that is part of the Ministry of Defence. The force is part of the Ministry of Defence Police and Guarding Agency which was formed by the merger of the MDP and Ministry of Defence Guard Service on 1 April 2004.The MDP is a special police...
who guard
MoDThe Ministry of Defence is the United Kingdom government department responsible for implementation of government defence policy and is the headquarters of the British Armed Forces....
property and the
Civil Nuclear ConstabularyThe Civil Nuclear Constabulary is a specialist police force responsible for providing law enforcement and security at civil nuclear installations and substances throughout the United Kingdom....
who guard civil nuclear energy facilities also routinely carry firearms.
All police forces in the United Kingdom have an AFO selection process, varying slightly between each force.
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thumb
An
Authorised Firearms Officer (AFO) is a British police
officerA police officer is a warranted employee of a police force. Police officers are generally responsible for apprehending criminals, maintaining public order, and preventing and detecting crimes...
who has received training and authorisation to carry and use
firearmA firearm is a device which projects either single or multiple projectiles at high velocity through a controlled explosion. The firing is achieved by the gases produced through rapid, confined burning of a propellant. This process of rapid burning is technically known as deflagration...
s. The designation is significant because within the
United KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...
, police officers do not routinely carry firearms. Police officers of the
Police Service of Northern IrelandThe Police Service of Northern Ireland GC is the police service that covers Northern Ireland...
, however, do routinely carry firearms due to the nature of the threat that they have
historically facedThe Troubles was a period of ethno-political conflict in Northern Ireland which spilled over at various times into England, the Republic of Ireland, and mainland Europe. The duration of the Troubles is conventionally dated from the late 1960s and considered by many to have ended with the Belfast...
. The
Ministry of Defence PoliceThe Ministry of Defence Police is a civilian police force that is part of the Ministry of Defence. The force is part of the Ministry of Defence Police and Guarding Agency which was formed by the merger of the MDP and Ministry of Defence Guard Service on 1 April 2004.The MDP is a special police...
who guard
MoDThe Ministry of Defence is the United Kingdom government department responsible for implementation of government defence policy and is the headquarters of the British Armed Forces....
property and the
Civil Nuclear ConstabularyThe Civil Nuclear Constabulary is a specialist police force responsible for providing law enforcement and security at civil nuclear installations and substances throughout the United Kingdom....
who guard civil nuclear energy facilities also routinely carry firearms.
Training
All police forces in the United Kingdom have an AFO selection process, varying slightly between each force. As with many police specialties, all Authorised Firearms Officers have volunteered for the role. Candidates are required to gain approval from their superiors before embarking on a series of interviews, psychological and physical fitness tests, medical and assessment days before permission to commence firearms training is approved. There is no guarantee of success, candidates can be returned to their previous role at any point in training if they do not meet the criteria.
Authorised Firearms Officers, who are known to crew
Armed Response VehicleAn Armed Response Vehicle is a type of police car operated by the British police. ARVs are crewed by Authorised Firearms Officers, with the intended purpose of responding to emergency telephone calls believed to involve firearms, or other high-risk situations...
s (ARV) are invited to attend the Training Centre, after they have undergone the written tests and interviews along with the successful completion of their probationary period, with a further two years in a core policing role. The potential AFOs undergo one week of intensive training on the Glock 17 self-loading pistol and the Heckler & Koch MP5 semi-automatic carbine—a variant of the submachine gun fitted with a semiautomatic-only trigger group. This is followed by a further six weeks of training focused on ARVs, such as driving techniques, high speed pursuit methods and safely executing controlled crashes.
Once authorised, officers must go through regular and rigorous refresher courses and retests in all aspects of their training in order to keep their firearms 'ticket', such as being tested every four months, and requalifying for the role each year. Failing in any aspect can result in the officer having their ticket revoked, and any health issues which arise can also result in suspension from firearms duties, temporarily or otherwise.
Use of firearms officers
AFOs are utilised in units such as the
Flying SquadThis article is about the British Police Flying Squad, for the Italian State Police unit see: Reparto volantiThe Flying Squad is a branch of the Specialist Crime Directorate, within London's Metropolitan Police Service. The Squad's purpose is to investigate commercial armed robberies, along with...
(which deals with commercial armed robbery), Diplomatic Protection, and Special Branch (counter-terrorism).
Officers of the
Ministry of Defence PoliceThe Ministry of Defence Police is a civilian police force that is part of the Ministry of Defence. The force is part of the Ministry of Defence Police and Guarding Agency which was formed by the merger of the MDP and Ministry of Defence Guard Service on 1 April 2004.The MDP is a special police...
and the
Civil Nuclear ConstabularyThe Civil Nuclear Constabulary is a specialist police force responsible for providing law enforcement and security at civil nuclear installations and substances throughout the United Kingdom....
are frequently armed due to the high-risk nature of the establishments they protect. They are armed with the
Heckler & Koch MP7The MP7 is a German submachine gun manufactured by Heckler & Koch and chambered for the 4.6x30mm cartridge. It was designed in conjunction with the new cartridge to meet NATO requirements published in 1989 calling for a personal defense weapon class firearm with a greater ability to defeat body...
Personal defence weapon, instead of the MP5 and G36 used by territorial police services.
Legal status of the use of firearms
AFO is the first level of firearms authorisation, the next being
Specialist Firearms OfficerA Specialist Firearms Officer is a British Police officer who has undergone training in the use of police firearms, and therefore is authorised to carry and when necessary use a firearm to prevent an immediate threat to life. All SFOs first train as Authorised Firearms Officers which crew armed...
(SFO), who are trained in skills such as hostage rescue and deal with major incidents or pre-planned operations.
Qualification as an AFO allows the officer to use not only conventional firearms, but also the Baton Gun and Taser. With the exception of a small number of 'Specially Trained Units' (STUs), only AFOs or SFOs can use these less-lethal weapons.
Firearms in use
Different police forces use a variety of firearms. Although, for forces in England and Wales, guidance is provided from ACPO and the
Home OfficeThe Home Office is the United Kingdom government department responsible for immigration control, security and order. As such it is responsible for the police, United Kingdom Borders Agency and MI5. It is also in charge of government policy on security-related issues such as drugs, counter-terrorism...
decisions on what weapons will be employed by an individual force largely rest with the Chief Constable.
Metropolitan Police
Within the
London[]London is the capital of England and the United Kingdom. It has been a major settlement for two millennia, and the history of London goes back to its founding by the Romans, when it was named Londinium. London's core, the ancient City of London, the 'square mile', retains its medieval boundaries...
Metropolitan PoliceThe Metropolitan Police Service is the territorial police force responsible for policing within Greater London, excluding the 'square mile' of the City of London which is the responsibility of the City of London Police....
there are a number of Operational Command Units (OCUs) that employ AFOs.
- The Belmarsh Firearms Team protects Trials at Woolwich Crown Court
Woolwich Crown Court, located at 2 Belmarsh Road, Thamesmead is one of twelve Crown Courts serving Greater London.It stands adjacent to both HM Prison Belmarsh and Belmarsh Magistrate's Court. Operational from 1993, it has 7 courtrooms and deals with more than 750 cases a year. Until recently,...
- The Territorial Support Group
The Territorial Support Group is a Central Operations unit of London's Metropolitan Police Service consisting of 720 officers, that specialises in public order containment among other specialist policing. The TSG is a uniformed unit of the MPS that replaced the controversial Special Patrol Group...
has a small pool of AFOs for certain security tasks.
- The Specialist Crime Directorate
The Specialist Crime Directorate is one of the main branches of the London Metropolitan Police Service. It deals with a wide range of criminality from murder to organised crime. Assistant Commissioner John Yates is currently the head of the directorate...
arms certain surveillanceSurveillance is the monitoring of the behavior, activities, or other changing information, usually of people and often in a surreptitious manner...
officers.
- Some detective
A detective is an investigator, either a member of a police agency or a private person. The latter may be known as private investigators...
s in the Flying SquadThis article is about the British Police Flying Squad, for the Italian State Police unit see: Reparto volantiThe Flying Squad is a branch of the Specialist Crime Directorate, within London's Metropolitan Police Service. The Squad's purpose is to investigate commercial armed robberies, along with...
are armed.
- Special Branch
Special Branch is a label customarily used to identify units responsible for matters of national security in British and Commonwealth police forces, as well as in Ireland's Garda Síochána...
deploys armed officers in its surveillance units, and in A Squad, which protects the Prime MinisterThe Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the political leader of the United Kingdom and the Head of Her Majesty's Government...
and other dignitaries.
- Royalty Protection Department, which protects members of the Royal Family
Image:Roy-fam-2007.jpg|right|500px|thumb|Members of the Royal Family gathered for a dinner celebrating the 60th wedding anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh Image:Roy-fam-2007.jpg|right|500px|thumb|Members of the Royal Family gathered for a dinner...
and guards royal property.
- Special Escort Group
The Special Escort Group is a Specialist Operations unit within London's Metropolitan Police Service.- Role :The unit's purpose is to provide armed motorcycle escorts for members of the British Royal family, protected members of the government, visiting royals, heads of state and other visiting...
, which escorts and protects high-risk convoys and VIPs such as the Prime Minister and the Queen.
- Diplomatic Protection Group
The Diplomatic Protection Group is a Central Operations branch of London's Metropolitan Police Service. The unit's main purpose is to provide specialist protection for diplomatic residencies in London, such as embassies, high commissions and consular sections...
, which guards embassies and government buildings. It also provides the armed guards at ParliamentThe Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom and British overseas territories. It alone has parliamentary sovereignty, conferring upon it ultimate power over all other political bodies in the UK and its territories...
to supplement the Palace of Westminster DivisionThe Palace of Westminster Division is a branch of the Specialist Operations Directorate, within London's Metropolitan Police Service. SO17 is responsible for security at the Palace of Westminster, along with surrounding buildings which house administrative functions...
, which is unarmed.
- Aviation Security
The Aviation Security Operational Command Unit is a Specialist Operations unit of London's Metropolitan Police Service. The unit is responsible for providing law enforcement and security for both Heathrow and London City airports....
, which protects HeathrowLondon Heathrow Airport or Heathrow , located in the London Borough of Hillingdon, is the world's busiest airport in terms of international passenger traffic. It is the world's second busiest airport in total passenger traffic. It is also the largest and busiest airport in the United Kingdom...
and London CityLondon City Airport is a single-runway STOLport, an airport for use by STOL airliners, and principally serving the financial district of London. It is located on a former Docklands site, east of the City of London, opposite the London Regatta Centre, in the London Borough of Newham in East...
airports.
- Specialist Firearms Command
Specialist Firearms Command is a Central Operations branch within Greater London's Metropolitan Police Service. The Command is responsible for providing a firearms-response capability, assisting the rest of the service which is routinely unarmed...
(CO19), which provides armed support to the rest of the service, crewing Armed Response VehicleAn Armed Response Vehicle is a type of police car operated by the British police. ARVs are crewed by Authorised Firearms Officers, with the intended purpose of responding to emergency telephone calls believed to involve firearms, or other high-risk situations...
s and providing Specialist Firearms Officers (SFOs)
See also
- Police use of firearms in the United Kingdom
In the United Kingdom, the majority of police officers do not carry firearms, except in special circumstances. This originates from the formation of the Metropolitan Police Service in the 19th century, when police were not armed, partly to counter public fears and objections concerning armed...
- Specialist Firearms Command (CO19)
Specialist Firearms Command is a Central Operations branch within Greater London's Metropolitan Police Service. The Command is responsible for providing a firearms-response capability, assisting the rest of the service which is routinely unarmed...
- Specialist Firearms Officer
A Specialist Firearms Officer is a British Police officer who has undergone training in the use of police firearms, and therefore is authorised to carry and when necessary use a firearm to prevent an immediate threat to life. All SFOs first train as Authorised Firearms Officers which crew armed...
- Gun politics in the United Kingdom
Gun politics in the United Kingdom generally places its main considerations on how best to ensure public safety and how deaths involving firearms can most effectively be prevented. Unlike in the United States, there is practically no modern organised gun rights lobby in the United Kingdom, and...
External links