The Air Transport Gendarmerie () (GTA) is a branch of the

French Gendarmerie The National Gendarmerie ( ) is one of two national law enforcement forces of France, along with the National Police. The Gendarmerie is a branch of the French Armed Forces placed under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of the Interior, with ad ...

. It is placed under the dual supervision of the Gendarmerie and the Directorate General for Civil Aviation of the Transportation Ministry, and has a strength of about 1,100, commanded by a senior officer or by a

general officer A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

. Its missions are centered on

airport security Airport security includes the techniques and methods used in an attempt to protect passengers, staff, aircraft, and airport property from malicious harm, crime, terrorism, and other threats. Aviation security is a combination of measures and hum ...

, and it also carries out judicial inquiries pertaining to civilian aviation accidents. The GTA was created in 1953 out of existing airport gendarmerie specialist units created from 1946. The Air Transport Gendarmerie should not be confused with the smaller Air Gendarmerie, which provides policing for the

French Air Force The French Air and Space Force (, , ) is the air force, air and space force of the French Armed Forces. Formed in 1909 as the ("Aeronautical Service"), a service arm of the French Army, it became an independent military branch in 1934 as the Fr ...

Air Transport Gendarmerie Bastille Day 2013 Paris t110547

Missions

The GTA's diverse missions include: * police and security in civilian airfields and airports * counter-terrorism * counter-narcotic activities * freight surveillance * surveillance of technical installations of the airports (control towers etc.) * traffic control on the roads within the airports * protection of important visitors stopping for a layover * judicial inquiries pertaining to accidents of civilian aircraft Personnel of the GTA cover a wide range of specialities, including security patrols, freight inspectors, counter-snipers, aviators, dog handlers, auditors, and health inspectors. All personnel follow an initial aviation-related course called . Most personnel receive more specialised training at the .

Units

The GTA headquarters are in Paris. The GTA is divided into two metropolitan groupings and the overseas units. The metropolitan groupings are divided into companies, and both also maintain a . The different companies cover more airports than just the airport in their name. For example the Paris-Orly Company also covers Issy-les-Moulineaux, Beauvais-Tillé, Lille-Lesquin, Toussus-le-Noble & CRNA Nord Athis-Mons, the Strasbourg Company also covers Bâle-Mulhouse, Metz-Nancy-Lorraine et CRNA Est Reims, and the Bordeaux Company also covers Biarritz-Anglet-Bayonne and Pau.

Northern Grouping

The Northern Grouping () is headquartered at Paris-Charles-de-Gaulle airport. It contains the Paris-Charles-de-Gaulle company, the Paris-Orly Company, the Brest Company, and the Strasbourg Company.

Southern Grouping

The Southern Grouping () is headquartered in

Aix-en-Provence Aix-en-Provence, or simply Aix, is a List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, city and Communes of France, commune in southern France, about north of Marseille. A former capital of Provence, it is the Subprefectures in France, s ...

. It contains the Lyons Company, the Bordeaux Company, the Marseilles Company, the Nice Company, and the Toulouse Company.

Overseas Air Transport Gendarmerie

Seven small brigades (typically of ten to twelve gendarmes each) cover overseas installations. Together these are known as the "Overseas Air Transport Gendarmerie" (): *Brigade de

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-Félix Éboué ( Guyane) *Brigade de Nouméa-La Tontouta ( Nouvelle-Calédonie) *Brigade du Lamentin (

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) *Brigade de

Guadeloupe Guadeloupe is an Overseas departments and regions of France, overseas department and region of France in the Caribbean. It consists of six inhabited islands—Basse-Terre Island, Basse-Terre, Grande-Terre, Guadeloupe, Grande-Terre, Marie-Galant ...

*Brigade de Saint-Denis (

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) *Brigade de

Tahiti Tahiti (; Tahitian language, Tahitian , ; ) is the largest island of the Windward Islands (Society Islands), Windward group of the Society Islands in French Polynesia, an overseas collectivity of France. It is located in the central part of t ...

-Faaa ( Polynésie française) *Brigade de Aéroport de Dzaoudzi-Pamandzi (

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)

References

{{Law enforcement agencies of France French Gendarmerie Airport law enforcement units 1953 establishments in France