Federal Police (Austria)

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Federal Police
Bundespolizei
Logo Polizei (Austria).svg
Federal Police Logo
Agency overview
Formed1 July 2005
Employees23,000
Jurisdictional structure
Federal agencyAustria
Operations jurisdictionAustria
Governing bodyDirectorate General for Public Security
General nature
HeadquartersVienna
Director General responsible
Parent agencyMinistry of the Interior
Facilities
Stations1000+
Website
bmi.gv.at

The Federal Police (German: Bundespolizei) is the main federal law enforcement agency of the Austrian Republic. The Federal Police was formed in July 2005 as one formal unit of police. Before 2005 the police system operated the Gendarmerie for most of the country, and the Polizei in the heavy city and urban areas such as Vienna, Salzburg and Graz. In 2004 it was agreed by the Government of Austria that these two police forces, along with the criminal investigation service, the public security constabulary, and the security authorities, would all form together to become the 'Federal Police of Austria'.[1] The Federal Police is also responsible for border control.[2]

Command[edit]

The current command structure that the Bundespolizei operates is very simple. The Federal Police is commanded by Austrian Federal Ministry of the Interior. The Ministry then delegates to the 9 State Police commands. Depending on the State command, the districts and cities are controlled by either a District Police Command or a City Police Command. These commands then operate through police stations throughout the Province.

The 9 State Police Commands are the same as the general States of Austria.

Firearms[edit]

The standard issue sidearm of the Austrian Federal Police is the Glock pistols in 9mm Parabellum. The most common model used are Glock 17 and Glock 19 while EKO Cobra also gain the Glock 18 with full-auto capability for more firepower.

They are equipped with Steyr AUG (military designation: StG 77) assault rifle, Heckler & Koch MP5 or other weapons required for missions. They're also equipped with batons and Pepper sprays for less-than-lethal options.[3]

Vehicles[edit]

An Austrian Police VW Sharan in the Federal Police livery
Austrian Police motorcycle

The vehicles currently used by the Polizei vary:

Armoured vehicle 'Sonderwagen 4

Armoured SWAT vehicles: There are serveral up-to-date armoured vehicles in operation by the special forces unit EKO Cobra of the interior ministry. The Vienna police currently maintains a Sonderwagen 4 as armoured personnel carrier.

Aircraft[4]

Porsche 911 The Austrian Police experimented with the Porsche 911 in order to crack down on motorway speeding. After a six-month test phase the Polizei decided not to order more 911s due to fact that there wasn't enough room to store the needed equipment and they are too expensive.[5]

Ranks and rank insignia[edit]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "OSCE Policing Profile for the Austrian BundesPolizei". OSCE POLIS. Archived from the original on 2014-03-13. Retrieved 2008-03-30.
  2. ^ "List of national services responsible for border control" (PDF).
  3. ^ Magazin Öffentliche Sicherheit, Ausgabe 1/2 2009: „Verhältnismäßiges Einschreiten“ (Ministry of Interior) (german)
  4. ^ "Austrian Flugpolizei". Bundespolizei. Retrieved 5 September 2018.
  5. ^ "Polizei-Porsche kommt ins Museum - oesterreich.ORF.at". wiev1.orf.at.
  6. ^ "Dienstgrade bei der Polizei ab Oberstleutnant." Bundesministerin der Innere. Wien, am 10. Juni 2015 Retrieved 2019-04-10.

External links[edit]

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