Editing Austrian Armed Forces (section)

== Organization ==
{{Main|Structure of the Austrian Armed Forces}}
The armed forces consist solely of the army, of which the air force is considered a constituent part.<ref name=":0" /> In 1993, the total active complement of the armed forces was 52,000, of whom 20,000 to 30,000 were conscripts undergoing training of six to eight months.<ref name=":0" /> The army had 46,000 personnel on active duty (including an estimated 19,500 conscripts), and the air force had 6,000 personnel (2,400 conscripts).<ref name=":0" />

=== Governance ===
[[Image:Structure of the Austrian Armed Forces since April 2019.png|thumb|640px|Structure of the Austrian Army after the Bundesheerreform 2019]]
[[Image:Bataillon de la garde autrichienne.jpg|thumb|Austrian Guard Company during the [[Bastille Day parade]]]]
[[Image:VFR Ostösterreich Allentsteig 5845679463.jpg|thumb|[[Allentsteig]] (157 km<sup>2</sup>) is the largest [[Proving ground|training area]] in Austria.]]
[[Image:Zeltweg und Umgebung von Norden Panorama.jpg|thumb|right|[[Zeltweg Air Base]]]]
[[Image:Jägerbataillon 17 (9082965145).jpg|thumb|right|Soldiers of the 17th Infantry Battalion during a manoeuvre]]
<!--[[Image:Jägerbataillon 23 bmlv gv at 2.JPG|thumb|right|Austrian [[Gebirgsjäger]] in the [[Alps]]]]
[[Image:Bundesheer at Airpower11 04.jpg|thumb|right|Paratroopers of the 25th Infantry Battalion exiting a [[Lockheed C-130 Hercules|C-130 Hercules]]]]
[[File:Austrian forces at Combined Resolve II (14236023945).jpg|thumb|Austrian soldiers training with the [[Steyr AUG|StG 77]]]]-->

Under the constitution, the [[President of Austria|President]] is the [[commander-in-chief]] of the armed forces.<ref name=":0">{{cite book|title=Austria: a country study|publisher=[[Federal Research Division]], [[Library of Congress]]|location=Washington, D.C.|url=https://www.loc.gov/item/94021665/|last=Tartier|first=Jean R.|date=1994|editor1-last=Solsten|editor1-first=Eric|edition=2nd|pages=232–245|isbn=0-8444-0829-8|oclc=30664988|postscript=. {{PD-notice}}|editor2-first=David E.|editor2-last=McClave}}</ref> In reality, the [[Chancellor of Austria|Chancellor]] has the decision-making authority, exercised through the Minister for National Defence.<ref name=":0" /> The Chancellor also chairs the National Defence Council, which has as its members a vice-chairman, the minister for national defence, an appointee of this minister, the Chief of the General Staff, and a parliamentary representative.<ref name=":0" /> The minister for national defence, acting in co-operation with the minister for interior, coordinates the work of the four major committees under the National Defence Council: the Military Defence Committee; the Civil Defence Committee; the Economic Defence Committee; and the Psychological Defence Committee.<ref name=":0" /> The Chief of the General Staff acts as the senior military adviser to the Minister for National Defence, assists the minister in the exercise of his authority, and, as the head of the general staff, is responsible for planning.<ref name=":0" /> However, the army commander exercises direct operational control of the Bundesheer in both peacetime and wartime.<ref name=":0" />

Article 79 of the constitution, as amended in 1985, states that the Army is entrusted with the military defence of the country.<ref name=":0" /> Insofar as the legally constituted civil authority requests its co-operation, the army is further charged with protecting constitutional institutions and their capacity to act, as well as the democratic freedoms of the inhabitants; maintaining order and security in the interior; and rendering aid in disasters and mishaps of extraordinary scope.<ref name=":0" /> In administering the armed forces, the Ministry for National Defence is organized into four principal sections and the inspectorate general: Section I deals with legal and legislative matters; Section II handles personnel and recruitment matters, including discipline and grievances; Section III is concerned with troop command, schools, and other facilities, and it also comprises departments G-1 through G-5 as well as a separate department for air operations; and Section IV deals with procurement and supply, quartermaster matters, armaments, and ordnance.<ref name=":0" />

The general troop inspectorate is a separate section of the ministry with responsibility for co-ordination and fulfilment of the missions of the armed forces.<ref name=":0" /> It encompasses a general staff department, an attaché department, and planning and inspection groups.<ref name=":0" />

=== Mission ===
The main constitutional tasks of today's Austrian military are:
* to protect the constitutionally established institutions and the population's democratic freedoms.
* to maintain order and security inside the country.
* to render assistance in the case of natural catastrophes and disasters of exceptional magnitude.

=== Ranks ===
{{main|Ranks of the Austrian Bundesheer}}
Of the eight enlisted ranks, only a sergeant (Wachtmeister) or above is considered an NCO.<ref name=":0" /> There are two warrant officer ranks—Offiziersstellvertreter and Vizeleutnant.<ref name=":0" /> The lowest commissioned rank of officer candidate (Fähnrich)—is held by cadets at the military academy and by reserve officers in training for the rank second lieutenant.<ref name=":0" /> To maintain conformity with grade levels in the civil service, there are only two ranks of general in the personnel system—brigadier general (one star) and general lieutenant (three stars).<ref name=":0" /> However, the ranks of major general (two stars) and full general (equivalent to four stars) are accorded to officers holding particular military commands.<ref name=":0" />