AOS officers

The Armed Offenders Squad (AOS) is a specialist unit of the New Zealand Police designed to "cordon, contain and appeal to" armed and dangerous offenders. Counter-terrorism refers to the practices, tactics, and strategies that governments, militaries, and other groups adopt in order to fight terrorism. ... For the band, see The Police. ... Image File history File links New_Zealand_AOS_01. ... Image File history File links New_Zealand_AOS_01. ... Flag of the New Zealand Police The New Zealand Police is the national police force of New Zealand, responsible for enforcing criminal and traffic law, enhancing public safety, maintaining order and keeping the peace throughout the country. ...

The AOS draw upon a varied arsenal of weapons and are often seen in heavy body armour. By contrast, most front-line police officers in New Zealand are lightly protected and do not carry firearms (see main New Zealand Police article) A bulletproof vest – also called body armour (U.S. body armor) – is an article of protective clothing that works as a form of armour to minimize injury from being hit by a fired bullet. ... Flag of the New Zealand Police The New Zealand Police is the national police force of New Zealand, responsible for enforcing criminal and traffic law, enhancing public safety, maintaining order and keeping the peace throughout the country. ...

History

The AOS was formally started by NZ SAS soldier Shocker Shaw and Police inspector Perry in 1964, in response to the deaths of four police officers in two separate incidents - one in Lower Hutt, Wellington and one in Waitakere, Auckland - that involved firearms. The Special Air Service of New Zealand (NZ SAS) was formed in June 1955 as an elite New Zealand Army unit capable of undertaking special missions. ... 1964 (MCMLXIV) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1964 calendar). ... Lower Hutt is a city in the lower North Island of the country of New Zealand. ... Wellington (Te Whanganui-a-Tara or Poneke in Māori) is the capital of New Zealand, the countrys second largest urban area and the most populous national capital in Oceania. ... Waitakere City is in the west of metropolitan Auckland, New Zealands most populous urban area. ... The Auckland Metropolitan Area, or Greater Auckland, in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest urban area in New Zealand. ...

Requirements

All AOS members are volunteers drawn from the New Zealand Police. They must complete highly rigorous training, and applications are carefully screened. An officer must have served at least two years after their graduation from the Police College before being eligible for membership.

Posting to the AOS is not a full-time duty, and members are officially members of other branches such as the Criminal Investigation Branch (CIB) or general duties. In the event of an incident requiring AOS attendance, the on-duty officers will be paged by the communications centre. They then assemble at their base, to draw arms and get other equipment, before responding the scene. It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Paging (telecommunications). ...

Equipment

In keeping with the weapons available to front-line officers, the AOS are issued with Glock 17 pistols and Bushmaster M4A3 carbines. Other weapons include pump-action shotguns and tear gas. The GLOCK 17 was the first pistol designed and manufactured by the Austrian company GLOCK. It is a locked breech, short recoil 9 mm Luger semi-automatic pistol with a standard magazine capacity of 17 rounds of ammunition. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Pump action shotguns are a subclass of shotguns that are distinguished in the way in which spent shells are extracted and fresh ones are chambered. ... A riot control agent is a type of lachrymatory agent (or lacrimatory agent). ...

When responding to incidents, or executing planned operations, AOS officers utilize both standard marked and unmarked cars, and large four-wheel drive vehicles, such as the Chevrolet Suburban. These are fitted with running boards and roof rails, to allow officers to stand on the side while the vehicle is in motion, as well as having enclosed boxes on the roof for carrying equipment. The Jeep Wrangler is a 4WD vehicle with a transfer case to select low range or high range 4WD. The Lamborghini Murciélago is a 4WD/AWD that powers the front via a VCU if the rear slips. ...

Deployed AOS officers dress in the standard charcoal-coloured tactical clothing worn by police special forces around the world.

See also

• SWAT

Special response teams are heavily armed and armored. ...

External links

• (English) Official website
• (English) Shocker Shaw