Österreichs Bundesheer

The Austrian Armed Forces have deployed 160 peacekeeping troops to Lebanon. Their task is to help with supply logisitics for the United Nations' UNIFIL mission in the country. The Austrian personnel are stationed in Naqoura, in southwest Lebanon, near the Israeli border. Fully Operational The contingent ...  Read more

More than 290,000 fans visited the AirPower11, bringing Austria’s air show a new attendance record. The show was also a success for the region, which profited by 60,000 additional overnight stays and a regional additional value of 15 million Euro. Spotters Took One Million Photos A staff of some ...  Read more

Between 24 May and 12 June, helicopter crews of the Austrian Air Force take part in the exercise "Italian Call 2011". The exercise is held at Viterbo, north of Rome, and is part of the European Defence Agency's helicopter training programme. Successful Exercise The aim of the exercise is to ...  Read more

Minister of Defence and Sports Norbert Darabos has announced a reduction of the Austrian Armed Forces' fleet of armoured vehicles by more than 50 percent. About 1,000 Items of Equipment More than 500 armoured vehicles will be decommissioned, including all "Kürassier" light tanks, all ...  Read more

On Thursday, the Austrian Armed Forces presented two of the recently ordered IVECO "Light Multirole Vehicles", along with new JCB backhoe loaders. Support During Disaster Relief Missions The 8.5 ton JCB Sitemaster Servo 4CX backhoe loaders will be used by Army engineers to remove the remains of ...  Read more

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 post for the period of one year. High Reputation for Excellent Work "The appointment of an ...  Read more

During the 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

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 demonstration of an interception -, the breathtaking ...  Read more

From 4th to 15th May 2009 potential leaders of the UN peacekeeping missions met in Vienna to attend the United Nation's "Senior Mission Leaders Course". This high-level training course was organised by the United Nation's Department of Peacekeeping Operations in collaboration with the Austrian Ministry of ...  Read more

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 the domestic air traffic. Protected Multipurpose Vehicles The "Light ...  Read more

In November, the "Standby High Readiness Brigade for United Nations Operations" (SHIRBRIG) participated in an exercise at the International Mines Action Training Centre in Nairobi, Kenya, in support of the "Eastern Africa Standby Brigade". Regional Security Force The purpose of the ...  Read more

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

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

Following the retired General Roland Ertl, General Edmund Entacher has taken over as the 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 has served as company commander and as S3 of ...  Read more

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

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

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

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

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

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