Austrian Air Force

The Austrian Air Force in its current form was created in May 1955 by the victorious Allied powers, subject to restrictions on its use of guided missiles. The Austrian State Treaty of 1955 committed Austria to permanent neutrality. Pilot training started with four Yak-11 Moose and four Yak-18 Max aircraft donated by the Soviet Union, and Austria purchased further light trainer types under the Military Assistance Program. Until 1960 Austria purchased training and support aircraft under the MAP, but no modern fighter aircraft; the role of a fighter was rather inadequately filled by 30 of the already outdated Saab 29 Tunnan bought second-hand from the Swedish Air Force in the early 1960s. From 1970, Austria purchased a total of 40 Saab 105 lightweight multi-role aircraft with the intention to deploy them in trainer, reconnaissance, interception and ground attack roles. As it became clear in the 1980s that the sub-sonic aircraft were inadequate for air combat and airspace interdiction, Austria purchased 28 reconditioned Saab 35 Draken fighter aircraft to supersede the Saab 105 as the Austrian Air Force's main interceptor in 1988. The Saab 105 remained in service as a trainer/surveillance aircraft. Shortly after, the Draken saw their first major use in airspace interdiction starting in 1991 during the Yugoslav Wars, when Yugoslav MiG-21 fighters crossed the Austrian border without permission. In one incident on 28 June, a MiG-21 penetrated as far as Graz, causing widespread demands for action. Following repeated border crossings by armed aircraft of the Yugoslav People's Army, changes were suggested to the standing orders for aircraft armament. Since 1955, Austria's armed forces had been forbidden to operate any guided missile system, including air-to-air missiles and surface-to-air missiles (SAMs). In the post-Cold War environment, and with gun-armed aircraft a relic of a past age, the Austrian Parliament voted to amend this section of its state treaty and in January 1993 modern AIM-9 Sidewinder missiles were ordered from Sweden to arm its fighter aircraft. A higher performance model of the Sidewinder was purchased directly from the United States; deliveries began in 1995. French Mistral SAMs were purchased to add ground-based protection against air attack. The first Mistrals arrived in 1993 and final deliveries were concluded in 1996. The helicopter fleet has included Agusta-Bell (AB) 204s (mainly used for medical evacuation), AB-206s (training and liaison), and AB-212s (used by air-mobile troops and for light transport). 28 French-made Alouette IIIs were used for search-and-rescue tasks, including high mountain operations. The Bell OH-58 Kiowa, a scout helicopter, is mounted with a rapid-firing machine gun, but the air force lacks a true attack helicopter. Most of the helicopters mentioned above, except the AB-212s, are becoming obsolete or have already been retired. After the 1999 Galtür Avalanche, it became apparent that the Austrian Air Force's helicopter complement were too few in numbers and too limited in design. Therefore, 9 US-built UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters were purchased, to be used for transportation during disasters. In 2003 Austria's transport capability was improved when it purchased three C-130 Hercules from the Royal Air Force. These aircraft were needed for the demanding UN peacekeeping missions in which Austria played a role. One of which was retired in 2025, and the others will be retired in 2027 and 2030, being replaced by four C-390 aircraft. In 2005, the Saab Draken fleet was retired (50 years after the type first flew), to be replaced by the Eurofighter Typhoon. Before the first delivery of Typhoons, 12 F-5 Tiger II were leased from Switzerland as a stopgap measure. The Eurofighter purchase was subject to controversy in Austria, and became a political football for some time, but the 15th and final aircraft was delivered on 24 September 2009. As of 2017, possible corruption affairs surrounding the Eurofighter procurement were still being investigated by the Austrian parliament. In July 2017, as a result of the ongoing controversy, the Austrian Ministry of Defense announced the phasing out of the Typhoon starting in 2020, and its replacement by a "militarily more effective and more cost-efficient" air surveillance system; however, this plan was never executed due to budget cuts and COVID-19, with plans instead to replace the Typhoons with upgraded variants. == Organization ==