The Fusiliers Commandos de l'Air (French

French language

French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...

 for "Air Infantry and commando") of France

France

The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

's Armée de l'Air (French Air Force) are equivalent to the United Kingdom

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

's RAF Regiment

RAF Regiment

The Royal Air Force Regiment is a specialist airfield defence corps founded by Royal Warrant in 1942. After a 32 week trainee gunner course, its members are trained and equipped to prevent a successful enemy attack in the first instance; minimise the damage caused by a successful attack; and...

, Germany

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

's Objektschutzregiment der Luftwaffe or the United States Air Force

United States Air Force

The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...

's United States Air Force Security Forces. They are airmen armed and trained as infantry

Infantry

Infantrymen are soldiers who are specifically trained for the role of fighting on foot to engage the enemy face to face and have historically borne the brunt of the casualties of combat in wars. As the oldest branch of combat arms, they are the backbone of armies...

, who provide ground defense of air bases and secure forward base areas. They also participate in forward air control

Forward air control

Forward air control is the provision of guidance to Close Air Support aircraft intended to ensure that their attack hits the intended target and does not injure friendly troops. This task is carried out by a forward air controller . For NATO forces the qualifications and experience required to be...

, combat search and rescue

Combat search and rescue

Combat search and rescue are search and rescue operations that are carried out during war that are within or near combat zones.A CSAR mission may be carried out by a task force of helicopters, ground-attack aircraft, tankers and an airborne command post...

 missions and as air assault

Air assault

Air assault is the movement of ground-based military forces by vertical take-off and landing aircraft—such as the helicopter—to seize and hold key terrain which has not been fully secured, and to directly engage enemy forces...

 infantry.

Organisation

CFPSAA: Commandement des forces de protection et de sécurité de l'Armée de l'Air, headquartered at Base aérienne 102 Dijon-Longvic, has overall responsibility for the Fusilier Commandos together with the French Air Force's firefighters

Aircraft Rescue and Firefighting

Aircraft rescue and firefighting is a special category of firefighting that involves the response, hazard mitigation, evacuation and possible rescue of passengers and crew of an aircraft involved in an airport ground emergency....

. CFPSAA is made up of "...3600 force protection specialists and firemen...34 protection units, 33 fire-fighting...and three intervention paratrooper commandos."

External links

• CFPSAA organisation French Defence Ministry page (French)
• Fusiliers commandos French Defence Ministry page (French)
• French Air Force Organisation French Defence Ministry page (English, short summary)