On June 25, a military ceremony was held at the Starhemberg barracks in Favoriten to mark the handover of command of the Command Support School.
Constant changes in technology and operational command have not only shaped military life, but also the time of the school commander. Between 2012 and 2021, Colonel Christian Wally and his team developed the school from command support towards ICT and cyber tasks, enabling a new organizational plan to be adopted in 2020. He has also left his mark on a personal level: “We are saying goodbye to an old-school commander with handshake quality. A true veteran of the telecommunications force is leaving the cyber forces’ radio group,” says Major General Hermann Kaponig, the transition officer of the ICT & Cyber Directorate as the new superior of the Command Support School. “The planned organizational changes will optimize processes and paths by bringing the task areas together,” said Chief of General Staff Robert Brieger in his speech. The structures of the Armed Forces will be further adapted to the current challenges and expanded for the threats in cyberspace. Of course, this also applies to the training of soldiers and civilian staff in the Armed Forces.
“The commander in charge, Colonel Michael Hoffmann, is exactly the right man for the job. He too has already worked as a teaching officer at the school and has also gained experience at the National Defense Academy, the highest military training facility. I wish him every soldier’s happiness for this challenging task,” said Major General Kaponig, wishing his comrade all the best. Friedrich Ofenauer, Member of the National Council and Chairman of the Armed Forces Commission, emphasized the current and future challenges facing the Armed Forces: “Cyber attacks such as the one on the Foreign Ministry were competently fended off by experts from the Armed Forces. They are an essential factor for the security of the Austrian population.” This also includes the appropriate training of personnel and this is carried out with professional competence and leadership at the Command Support School, said Ofenauer. The Command Support School is equipped with state-of-the-art equipment in all areas of cyber force training – from telephones to highly complex communication networks. The school’s soldiers are characterized by flexibility and competence. More than 1,000 course participants are trained in over 100 courses and seminars every year. New systems and technologies are constantly being added, which have to be incorporated into the content of the courses. The means and methods used to train management support personnel on these systems are constantly being improved and adapted to current requirements. Only in this way is it possible to optimally prepare the command personnel of the cyber forces for their tasks.
