Disaster relief

Police helicopters only fly in emergencies

The police helicopters are only available for "initial general assistance".

(Bild: FEST Klagenfurt)

In the event of disasters, the Austrian Armed Forces are usually called in - if they have the time and the machines. And the Ministry of the Interior with its helicopters?

The topic of flight missions in the event of a disaster remains a hotly debated one. As the army helicopters were not available during the recent snowfalls for the so-called "downwashing" - i.e. freeing trees from snow masses so that they do not fall onto important power lines - a private helicopter had to be ordered. So is there no disaster relief from the air in Carinthia? The Ministry of the Interior (BMI) has two aircraft in Klagenfurt; a twin-engine EC 135 with searchlight and thermal imaging camera and a "work machine" AS 350. And this week, the base was even manned throughout the night. However, a snow mission was not requested.

"Helicopters from the BMI are only deployed when state task forces deem it necessary",

so Oberrat Patrick Maierhofer, Ressortsprecher des Bundesministerium für Inneres

When asked how the Ministry of the Interior deals with emergencies, it states that such measures are not carried out by the air police. And then what? "Transport and reconnaissance flights as well as the evacuation of people from dangerous areas" are the tasks listed by the BMI, referring to the "first general duty to provide assistance", which ends after the arrival of the fire department or rescue services. And police helicopters would only be deployed if the necessity was decided by the state task force. Which was not the case this time.