Military of Austria

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Military of Austria

The current name of the Military of Austria is Österreichs Bundesheer ("Federal Army of Austria

Austria

Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It borders both Germany and the Czech Republic to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the west....
", official English name Austrian Armed Forces). The main branches are the Land Forces (Kommando Landstreitkräfte; KdoLaSK), Air Forces

Austrian Air Force

History The Austrian Air Force was formed in May 1955 by the victorious Allied powers, it was formed as part of the now fully independent Austrian armed forces ....
(Kommando Luftstreitkräfte; KdoLuSK), Mission Support (Kommando Einsatzunterstützung; KdoEU), International Missions (Kommando Internationale Einsätze; KdoIE), Command Support (Kommando Führungsunterstützung; KdoFüU) and Special Forces (Kommando Spezialeinsatzkräfte; KdoSEK).

Being a landlocked country, Austria has no navy

Navy

A navy is the branch of a nation's military forces principally designated for naval warfare and amphibious warfare; namely, lake- or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions....
.

History
Between 1918 and 1921, the Austrian semi-regular army was called Volkswehr ("People's Defence"), and fought against Yugoslavian

Kingdom of Yugoslavia

The Kingdom of Yugoslavia was a monarchy stretching from the Western Balkans to Central Europe which existed during the often-tumultuous interwar era of 1918?1941....
army units occupying parts of Carinthia

Carinthia (state)

Carinthia is the southernmost Austrian States of Austria or Land. Situated within the Eastern alps it is chiefly noted for its mountains and lakes....
.

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Encyclopedia

The current name of the Military of Austria is Österreichs Bundesheer ("Federal Army of Austria

Austria

Austrian Air Force

Navy

A navy is the branch of a nation's military forces principally designated for naval warfare and amphibious warfare; namely, lake- or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions....
.

History

Between 1918 and 1921, the Austrian semi-regular army was called Volkswehr ("People's Defence"), and fought against Yugoslavian

Kingdom of Yugoslavia

Carinthia (state)

Carinthia is the southernmost Austrian States of Austria or Land. Situated within the Eastern alps it is chiefly noted for its mountains and lakes....
. It has been known as "Bundesheer" since then, except when Austria was a part of Nazi Germany

Nazi Germany

Nazi Germany and the Third Reich are the colloquial English names for Germany under the regime of Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party , which established a Totalitarianism dictatorship that existed from 1933 to 1945....
(1938-1945; see Anschluss

Anschluss

The ' , also known as the ', was the 1938 unification of Austria into Gro?deutschland by Nazi Germany.Austria was merged into Nazi Germany on 12 March 1938....
). The Austrian Army did develop a defense plan in 1938 against Germany, but politics prevented it from being implemented.

In 1955, Austria

Austria

Neutral country

For other uses of Neutral and Neutrality, see NeutralA neutral country takes no side in a war between other parties. A neutralist policy aims at neutrality in case of an armed conflict that could involve the party in question....
and made neutrality a constitutional law. The Austrian Military's main purpose since then has been the protection of Austria's neutrality.

With the end of the Cold War

Cold War

The Cold War was the continuing state of conflict, tension and competition that existed between a number of world powers, including the United States, the Soviet Union, People's Republic of China, France, United Kingdom and those countries' respective allies from the mid-1940s to the early 1990s....
, the Austrian military have increasingly assisted the border police in controlling the influx of illegal immigrants through Austrian borders. The war

Yugoslav wars

The Yugoslav Wars were a series of violent conflicts in the territory of the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia that took place between 1991 and 2001....
in the neighbouring Balkans resulted in the lifting of the restrictions on the range of weaponry of the Austrian military that had been imposed by a 1955 international treaty.

Mission

The main constitutional tasks of today's Austrian military are:

to protect the constitutionally established institutions and the population's democratic freedoms.
to maintain order and security inside the country.
to render assistance in the case of natural catastrophes and disasters of exceptional magnitude.

Equipment

The Austrian military has a wide variety of equipment. Recently, Austria has spent considerable amounts of money modernizing its military arsenal. Leopard 2

Leopard 2

The Leopard 2 is a Germany main battle tank developed by Krauss-Maffei in the early 1970s and first entering service in 1979. The Leopard 2 replaced the earlier Leopard MBT as the main battle tank of the German Army....
main battle tanks, Ulan

ASCOD AFV

The ASCOD Armoured fighting vehicle family is the product of a cooperation agreement between Austrian Steyr-Daimler-Puch and Spain General Dynamics Santa B?rbara Sistemas ....
and Pandur

Pandur 8X8 APC

The Pandur II 8 X 8 is an improved modular all-wheel-drive version of the Pandur 6X6 APC wheeled armoured vehicle. It was developed as a private venture by the Austrian company Steyr-Daimler-Puch Spezialfahrzeuge and is currently in production for the Portuguese Armed Forces....
infantry fighting vehicle

Infantry fighting vehicle

An infantry fighting vehicle is a type of armoured fighting vehicle used to carry infantry into battle and provide fire support for them....
s, C-130 Hercules

C-130 Hercules

The Lockheed C-130 Hercules is a four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft built by Lockheed. It is the main tactical airlifter for many military forces worldwide....
transport planes, S-70 Black Hawk utility helicopters, and Eurofighter Typhoon

Eurofighter Typhoon

The Eurofighter Typhoon is a twin-engine Canard -delta wing Multirole combat aircraft aircraft. It is being designed and built by a consortium of three separate partner companies: Alenia Aeronautica, BAE Systems, and EADS working through a holding company Eurofighter GmbH which was formed in 1986....
multi-purpose combat aircraft have been purchased, along with new helicopters to replace the inadequate ones used after the 1999 Galtür Avalanche

Galtür Avalanche

On February 23 1999 the worst Alpine avalanche in 40 years occurred. It killed 31 people in the small Alpine village of Galt?r, Austria. Three major weather systems originating from the Atlantic accounted for large snow falls totalling around four metres in the area....
.

Austria's current equipment includes:

Infantry weapons

Pistole 80 Sidearm
Steyr AUG
Steyr AUG

The AUG is an Austrian 5.56x45mm NATO assault rifle, designed in the early 1970s by Steyr Mannlicher . The AUG was adopted by the Military of Austria as the StG 77 in 1977, where it replaced the aging 7.62x51mm NATO StG 58 automatic rifle ....
Service Rifle
Steyr SSG 69
Steyr SSG 69

The SSG 69 is a bolt-action sniper rifle produced by Steyr Mannlicher and serves as the standard sniper rifle for the Military of Austria.Adopted in 1969 , it was ahead of its time with the use of synthetics and cold-hammer forged barrels for accuracy.SSG-69 is the Austrian Army's standard issue sniper rifle, the PI is the civilian version...
Sniper Rifle
MG 74
MG42

The MG42 is a 7.92x57mm Mauser universal machine gun that was developed in Nazi Germany and entered service with the Wehrmacht in 1942. It supplanted and in some instances, replaced the MG34 general purpose machine gun in all branches of the German Armed Forces, though both weapons were manufactured and used until the end of the war....
Machine Gun
Browning M2 Heavy Machine Gun
Bill
BILL 1 Anti-tank guided weapon

The RBS 56 BILL is a Sweden manportable SACLOS anti-tank missile developed by AB Bofors. Development began in 1979 and entered production in 1985....
Anti-tank Guided Weapon
Carl-Gustaf
Carl Gustav recoilless rifle

The Carl Gustav is the common name for the 84 mm man-portable multi-role recoilless rifle produced by Saab Bofors Dynamics in Sweden. The first prototype of the Carl Gustav was produced in 1946, and while similar weapons of the era have generally disappeared, the Carl Gustav remains in widespread use today....
Multi-role Recoilless Rifle
81mm Mortar
Mortar

Mortar has several meanings:* Mortar fires shells at a much lower velocity and higher ballistic arc than other ordnance; their shells explode on impact with target....
s
120mm Mortars

Armored Vehicles

114 Leopard 2
Leopard 2

The Leopard 2 is a Germany main battle tank developed by Krauss-Maffei in the early 1970s and first entering service in 1979. The Leopard 2 replaced the earlier Leopard MBT as the main battle tank of the German Army....
A4 Main Battle Tanks
48 SK-105 Kürassier Tank Destroyer
Tank destroyer

A self-propelled anti-tank gun, or tank destroyer, is a type of armoured fighting vehicle designed specifically to engage enemy armor forces, and not produced for an infantry support role....
s
112 Ulan
ASCOD AFV

The ASCOD Armoured fighting vehicle family is the product of a cooperation agreement between Austrian Steyr-Daimler-Puch and Spain General Dynamics Santa B?rbara Sistemas ....
Infantry Fighting Vehicle
Infantry fighting vehicle

An infantry fighting vehicle is a type of armoured fighting vehicle used to carry infantry into battle and provide fire support for them....
s
261 Saurer 4K4E/F Armored Personnel Carriers
71 Pandur I
Pandur 6X6 APC

The Pandur is an Armoured_personnel_carrier developed and produced by the Austrian company Steyr-Daimler-Puch. It was developed during the 1980s as a private venture....
Armored Personnel Carriers
20 Dingo 2
ATF Dingo

The ATF Dingo is a Germany heavily armored military truck based on a Unimog chassis with a V-hull design, produced by the company Krauss-Maffei....
Protected Vehicles
80 M109 A2/A5Ö
M109 howitzer

The M109 is an United States-made Self-propelled artillery 155 mm howitzer, first introduced in the early 1960s. It has been continually upgraded and improved to today's current version, the M109A6 Paladin, currently only used by the United States Army....
Self-propelled Artillery

Aircraft

15 Eurofighter Typhoon
Eurofighter Typhoon

The Eurofighter Typhoon is a twin-engine Canard -delta wing Multirole combat aircraft aircraft. It is being designed and built by a consortium of three separate partner companies: Alenia Aeronautica, BAE Systems, and EADS working through a holding company Eurofighter GmbH which was formed in 1986....
Multi-role fighters
3 Lockheed C-130 Hercules Transport aircraft
13 Pilatus PC-6B Porter
Pilatus PC-6

The Pilatus PC-6 Porter is a civilian utility aircraft built by Pilatus Aircraft of Switzerland....
Transport aircraft
16 Pilatus PC-7 Turbo Trainer
Pilatus PC-7

The Pilatus PC-7 Turbo Trainer is a low-wing tandem-seat training aircraft, manufactured by Pilatus Aircraft of Switzerland. The aircraft is capable of all basic training functions including aerobatics, instrument flight rules, tactical and night flying....
Training aircraft
28 Saab 105
Saab 105

The Saab 105 is an aircraft developed in the early sixties as a private venture by Saab for the Swedish Air Force . It is a high-wing, twin engine Trainer aircraft....
Training aircraft
9 Sikorsky S-70 Black Hawk
Sikorsky S-70

The Sikorsky S-70 is a medium-lift military helicopter family manufactured by Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation. It was developed for the U.S. Army in the 1970s, winning a competition to be designated the UH-60 Blackhawk and spawning a large family in U.S....
Transport helicopters
23 Agusta Bell 212 Twin Huey
Bell 212

The Bell 212 Twin Huey is a two-bladed, twin-engined, medium helicopter that first flew in 1968. Originally manufactured by Bell Helicopter in Mirabel, Quebec, Canada, the 212 is marketed to civilian operators and has a fifteen-seat configuration, with one pilot and fourteen passengers....
Transport helicopters
11 Bell 206 JetRanger
Bell 206

The Bell 206 is a family of two-bladed, single- or twin-engine helicopters, manufactured by Bell Helicopter at its Mirabel, Quebec plant. Originally developed for the United States Army's Light Observation Helicopter program, the 206 failed to be selected....
Training helicopters
11 Bell OH-58 Kiowa Reconnaissance helicopters
24 Alouette
Aérospatiale Alouette II

The Alouette II is a light helicopter originally manufactured by Sud Aviation and later A?rospatiale, both of France. The Alouette II was the first production helicopter to use a gas turbine instead of a conventional heavier piston engine....
helicopters

Traditions

Some of the traditions of the old Austro-Hungarian Army continue to be carried on in Bundesheer. For example, the most famous regiment in the Bundesheer is the "Hoch und Deutschmeister Regiment", now known as Jägerregiment Wien based in "Maria Theresien Kaserne", named after Empress Maria Theresa of Austria

Maria Theresa of Austria

Maria Theresa was the List of rulers of Austria, List of rulers of Hungary, List of rulers of Croatia, Queen of Bohemia, Grand Duchy of Tuscany and a Holy Roman Emperor by marriage to Francis I, Holy Roman Emperor....
. Also nearly every other regiment of the Bundesheer carries on traditions of the famous Austro-Hungarian regiments like "Kaiserjäger", "Rainer", etc.

Austrian commando frogmen

Austria's combat frogmen are part of the commando

Commando

In military science, the term commando denotes an individual soldier, a military unit, and a raid . Contemporarily, commando identifies ?lite light infantry and special forces units specialised in parachuting, rappelling, and amphibious warfare to conduct and effect attacks....
group of the Austrian federal army, the so-called Jagdkommando

Jagdkommando

The Jagdkommando is the Military of Austria' Special Operations group. The duties of this elite unit match those of its foreign counterparts, such as the United States Army Special Forces, being amongst others Counter-Terrorism and Counter insurgency....
. The commando group is available for special operations in multinational operations, and for operational clearing-up in remote reconnaissance

Reconnaissance

Reconnaissance is a military and medical term denoting exploration conducted to gain information. Militarily, its shorthand Australian, Canadian, and British form is recce , its American usage form is recon ....
employments and in military protection of individuals abroad.

They use the Dräger

Dräger

The Dr?gerwerk AG is a German company based in L?beck with a focus on breathing and protection equipment as well as gas detection and analysis systems....
LAR-V oxygen rebreather

Rebreather

A rebreather is a type of breathing set that provides a breathing gas containing oxygen and recycled exhaled gas. This recycling reduces the volume of breathing gas used, making a rebreather lighter and more compact than an open-circuit breathing set for the same duration in environments where humans cannot safely breathe from the atmosphere....
, which weighs 11 kg and has a 1.5 liter oxygen cylinder

Diving cylinder

A diving cylinder, scuba tank or diving tank is used to store and transport high pressure breathing gas as a component of SCUBA . It provides gas to the Scuba diving through the demand valve of a diving regulator....
and allows a dive 3 hours long.

Beyond that they have special tasks within the range of combat frogmen, the paratroops, and personal guards.

Conditions for training as a frogman	Courses covered by frogman training	Further courses
Fitness Jumping into water from a 10m high tower 300 m swimming in clothes 30 minutes continuous swimming 2400 m run under 10 minutes 5000 m run under 24 minutes 8 km march with pack and weapon 24 km march with 10 kg pack & weapon in 3½ hours 30 m abseiling down a tight diagonal rope	Extended swimming training Amphibious course Boarding training (boarding and controlling vessels) Basic diving course Combat frogman basic course Tactical combat diving course Underwater explosives training	Pioneer diver course Ice diving course Deep diving course Helmet diving course Fort defence course Army diving trainer course

External links

http://tauchen.nullzeit.at/Content.Node/wissenswertes/kampfschwimmer_bundesheer.php http://www.doppeladler.com/oebh/jakdo.htm http://www.doppeladler.com/oebh/jakdo.htm?jakdo_02.htm

Military of Austria

History

Mission

Equipment

Infantry weapons

Armored Vehicles

Aircraft

Traditions

Austrian commando frogmen

External links

See also

External links