April 28th marked the temporary end of military support for the health authorities in Upper Austria. During the 17-month deployment in the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic, the men and women of the Austrian Armed Forces contributed 265,000 hours as part of an assistance mission.

Soldiers and civilian staff from all garrisons in Upper Austria and other federal states were deployed. Military Commander of Upper Austria, Brigadier Dieter Muhr, on the deployment: “Everything that could be made available was sent into action against the pandemic. Naturally, other tasks were streamlined or postponed as a result. The task now is to quickly get back on track and catch up. We are currently focusing on migration, displaced persons from Ukraine and foreign missions.” The deployment began with mass testing, including for the education sector, continued with support at the national border to control entry and, as the pandemic continued, focused on contact tracing. Dieter Muhr with an initial summary: “The cooperation between the authorities and emergency organizations worked well and the Austrian Armed Forces fulfilled all assistance requirements. We have evaluated the operation and are ready for any further missions. Due to the war in Ukraine, it is now necessary to strengthen our military national defense and to deploy it consistently.”