From June 10 to 21, the Armed Forces will be conducting its largest exercise in more than ten years with the “Schutzschild 24” exercise. A total of around 6,000 soldiers and civilian personnel from Austria, the German Bundeswehrfrom Sweden, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Montenegro will take part. Exercises will take place in Burgenland, Lower Austria, Styria and Carinthia. The exercise command will be based in Wiener Neustadt.
Defense Minister Klaudia Tanner commented on the exercise during a joint press briefing with Major General Martin Dorfer, Director of Operations: “Large-scale exercises such as ‘Schutzschild 24’ are necessary for a smoothly functioning national defense. In addition to the cadre soldiers, the militia, with the participation of around 1,000 militia soldiers, is also sending a strong signal in this exercise as an important integral part of the Armed Forces.” The Minister of Defense continued: “With ‘Schutzschild 24’, the focus is to be placed on military national defence and the joint training of cadre soldiers, militia soldiers and conscripts is to be strengthened. I wish all exercise participants a mission-related and accident-free exercise.”” The main objective of the “Schutzschild 24” exercise is to further develop the operational readiness of the armed forces and to consolidate the core military capabilities for planning and leading a tactical deployment of land, air and special forces as part of a domestic protection operation. In an increasingly fragile security environment in Europe and beyond, the Armed Forces must once again be enabled to provide military national defence. https://militaeraktuell.at/die-oesterreicher-auf-der-enforce-tac-2024/ In the “Protective Shield 24” exercise project, the brigades work together with the military commands, authorities and operational organizations as the main combat carriers. In particular, the exercise involves practising the protection of lines of movement, areas and objects as well as critical infrastructure, the reconnaissance, surveillance and neutralization of enemy groups as well as the rapid deployment of troops and reserves with the cooperation of land, air and special forces. More than 1,100 land vehicles and 15 aircraft will take part in the exercise. This includes around 85 light armored vehicles and over 40 armored combat vehicles. There will be eleven helicopters from the air force, including the AW169, which is currently in servicethree fixed-wing aircraft and Eurofighters will be deployed. In addition, this exercise will be linked to a second exercise, the “European Advance 2024” (EURAD). This second exercise serves to certify and prepare for the Rapid Deployment Capacity, the expanded EU Battlegroup, in 2025.
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