Major General Bair Takes Office as EU Force Commander in Bosnia
Major General Bernhard Bair of the Austrian Armed Forces has taken over command of the EU military mission in Bosnia-Herzegovina. Bair succeeds Italian Major General Stefano Castagnotto and will hold his new function for the period of one year.
High Reputation for Excellent Work
"The appointment of ... Read more
Austrian Eurofighters Cover Defence Ministers Meeting in Slovakia
During meetings of NATO's Defence Ministers held in Bratislava, Slovakia, from Thursday 22 to Friday 23 October, the Austrian Armed Forces' Eurofighters were significantly involved in the air policing operation "Bratislava09".
Protection Against Air Threats
For the duration of the talks, ... Read more
AirPower09: "Our Air Base Almost Looked Like Woodstock"
From 26th to 27th June 2009, participants from 19 different nations helped transform the military air base in Zeltweg, Styria, into the most thrilling airfield in the world: Highlights such as the first official appearance of the Austrian Eurofighters - including a live interception -, the breathtaking performances by ... Read more
Training Course for UN Peacekeeping Missions in Austria
From 4th to 15th May 2009 potential leaders of UN peacekeeping missions met in Vienna to attend the United Nation's "Senior Mission Leaders Course". The high-level training course was organized by the United Nation's Department of Peacekeeping Operations in collaboration with the Austrian Ministry of Defence ... Read more
Army Invests in the Security of Population and Soldiers
With the procurement of 150 protected multipurpose vehicles and the modernization of the aviation radio system, the Austrian Armed Forces plan to increase the protection of its troops at home and abroad as well as the security of domestic air traffic.
Protected Multipurpose Vehicles
The "Light ... Read more
Austrian Staff-Officers Supported Exercise in Eastern Africa
The "Standby High Readiness Brigade for United Nations Operations" (SHIRBRIG) participated in an exercise from 18th to 28th November 2008 at the International Mines Action Training Centre in Nairobi, Kenya, in support of the "Eastern Africa Standby Brigade".
Regional Security Force ... Read more
Flyout of the F-5 "Tiger" fleet
On Monday Austria handed back its twelve F-5 "Tiger" interceptor planes to the Swiss Air Force. Since July 2004, the Austrian Armed Forces had been leasing the planes to bridge the gap between the retirement of the ageing Saab Drakens and the new Eurofighter jets that Austria is currently receiving. ... Read more
Austria Sent 160 Soldiers to Chad
The Austrian Armed Forces deployed a total of 160 soldiers to the Republic of Chad. The soldiers are part of the European Union's EUFOR mission to protect refugees from the war-torn Sudanese region of Darfur. The contingent comprises special operations forces, medical personnel, and logistic personnel as well as staff ... Read more
General Entacher Takes Over as New Chief of Defence Staff
Following the retired General Roland Ertl, General Edmund Entacher has taken over as Chief of Defence Staff of the Austrian Armed Forces. The 58-year-old General graduated from the Theresan Military Academy in 1974 and has since undertaken a wide number of roles. Entacher served as company commander and S3 of an ... Read more
Chief of Defence Staff Retires from Service
On 30th November 2007 General Roland Ertl retired from the Austrian Armed Forces, where he most recently served as Chief of Defence Staff. Born in Bad Hall on 23rd July 1945, Roland Ertl served in the military for 41 years. In his capacity as Chief of Defence Staff he was the principal military advisor to the Minister ... Read more
Austrian Army Aircraft Help Fight Greek Fires
Firefighting aircraft of the Austrian Armed Forces are helping Greece tackle devastating forest fires. On 27th August 2007 Austria sent two AB-212 helicopters, three PC-6 "Turbo Porter" aircraft and specialist firefighters. The teams were accompanied by a C-130 "Hercules" transporter plane. ... Read more
First Eurofighter Delivered to Austria
Today, the first Eurofighter aircraft has been delivered to Austria. The aircraft AS001 successfully deployed to its new home base at Zeltweg, Styria, where it formally entered service in the Air Force. With the Eurofighter the Armed Forces will operate one of the most advanced multi-role fighters available. In Austria, ... Read more
Soldiers Trained Together with Czech and German Partners
From 18th to 28th April 2007, about 1,000 soldiers of the 3rd mechanized brigade trained for international peace keeping missions. In the Allentsteig training area the Austrian soldiers rallied with a platoon of the Czech 7th mechanized brigade and a couple of German staff officers. Their common goals during exercise ... Read more
New Minister of Defence
Norbert Darabos is Austria's new Minister of Defence and thus head of the Austrian Armed Forces. On Thursday he was inaugurated by Federal President Heinz Fischer. One day later, former Defence Minister Günther Platter handed over the department as the forces' military leaders welcomed Darabos in the Rossau ... Read more
"Handing Over the Baton" to Finland
Marking the end of Austria's 2006 EU presidency from a defence perspective, Minister of Defence Günther Platter handed over a symbolic relay baton to his Finnish colleague Seppo Kääriäinen in the course of a ceremony in Helsinki on 28th June. Platter put great emphasis on the role of the European ... Read more
Flooding in Lower Austria
After massive snowfalls and prolonged winter conditions, a temperature surge in April caused severe flooding in Lower Austrian villages along the Morava River, which forms the border to Slovakia. Local authorities quickly requested assistance from the Austrian Armed Forces, who replied by sending in more than 550 ... Read more
Exercise Peace Summit 06
From 27th March to 7th April 2006, the 23rd mountain troop brigade of the German Bundeswehr and various Austrian troops under the leadership of the Austrian Armed Forces' 6th infantry brigade engaged in a binational peace keeping exercise.
On the territory of the eastern Tyrol, a realistic conflict scenario ... Read more
Alpine Training in the Austrian Armed Forces
The Austrian Armed Forces highly value the ability of soldiers and troops to fight in mountainous terrain. The challenging alpine training starts with basic troop training for recruits and officer cadets, the so-called Einjährig-Freiwillige (one-year-volunteers). In subsequent courses, military personnel can ... Read more
Austrian Armed Forces in UN Missions for 45 Years
On this date, 50 years ago, Austria became a member of the United Nations (UN) with its Army in existence for just two months. Since 1960, approximately 60,000 soldiers have served in 70 peacekeeping missions.
"The soldiers of the Austrian Armed Forces have guaranteed safety and help on foreign and domestic ... Read more
Helping Pakistan: Armed Forces Sent in Specialists
In response to the fatal earthquake in Asia of October 8, the Austrian Armed Forces sent an AFDRU delegation to the strongly affected Pakistan. The catastrophe relief unit departed from Vienna's Schwechat Airport bound for Islamabad, the Pakistani capital on October 14, 2005. On 17th October they had reached their final ... Read more
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