The
Swedish Coast Guard () is a
Swedish civilian
government agency tasked with:
maritime surveillance and other control and inspection tasks as well as environmental cleanup after oil spills at sea.
co-ordinate the civilian needs for maritime surveillance and maritime information.
follow international development within the field and take part in international efforts to establish border controls, law enforcement at sea, environmental protection at sea and other maritime surveillance tasks.
The Swedish Coast Guard carries out some of its surveillance by air (from its base at Skavsta Airport south-west of Stockholm), and in the winter-time by hovercraft on the ice-covered waters of the Bothnian Bay from its Luleå station. The Coast Guard also has regular maritime duties in Lake Vänern, Europe's third largest lake, operating out of Vänersborg.
Organization
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The Coast Guard has 26 coastal stations, including a aviation coastal station. The stations fall under four regional areas; North (KRN), East (KRO), West (KRV) and South (KRS); with the regional headquarters located in
Härnösand,
Stockholm,
Gothenburg, and
Karlskrona respectively. Four management centers controls the daily operational activities and there is also at least one duty officer around the clock. The Coast Guard's central headquarters is located in the historic 17th century naval city of Karlskrona, which is a
UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The total number of Coast Guard employees across the country amounts to around 800 .
Coast Guard vessels
Surveillance Ships
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The Coast Guard currently has 22 surveillance craft which are used mainly for patrolling with some also given oil spill response capacity.
Environmental Protection Vessels
The Coast Guard currently has 12 environmental protection vessels primarily used for oil spill response, and secondly for patrolling.
Combination
The Coast Guard currently has two ships which combine the characteristics of both environmental protection vessels and surveillance craft.
Hovercraft
The Coast Guard hoperates five
hovercraft mainly in northern Sweden where they can easily travel over both ice, water and land. KBV 593 based in Lulea, KBV 592 based in Umeå, KBV 591 based in Örnsköldsvik, KBV 594 KBV based in Vaxholm, and 595.
Barges
The Coast Guard maintains one large barge, KBV 866 in Härnösand, used for the storage of the absorbed oil.
Boats
The Coast Guard currently has over 100 boats. Some boats are used as a complement to larger ships, while others operate as separate entities. The boats are divided into four groups: High Speed/
Go Fast,
rib-boats,
dinghies and
work boats.
Coast Guard Aviation
Q-300
KBV503]]
The Coast Guard has replaced its
CASA C.212s with three new
Bombardier Dash 8 Q-300 aircraft numbered KBV 501, 502 and 503rd. The new DASH 8 Maritime Surveillance Aircraft currently were modified by FIELD AVIATION in
Toronto, Canada. Coast Guard Aviation Home base is
Skavsta Airport in
Nyköping. Surveillance and reconnaissance flights are conducted along the Swedish coast and
Lake Vänern and lake year round, day or night. Additional regular international assignments are also flown as needed.
Incidents
On October 26, 2006 a Swedish Coast Guard
CASA 212-200 (registration: SE-IVF/serial nr: KBV 585) crashed in the
Falsterbo Canal during a surveillance mission, killing all four onboard. Full article:
2006 Falsterbo Swedish Coast Guard crash
See also
Swedish Armed Forces
Swedish Maritime Administration
Swedish National Board of Fisheries
References
External links
Swedish Coast Guard - official website (some English)
Category:Coast guards
Coast Guard
Category:Border guards
Coast Guard
Category:Borders of Sweden
![Flinterwave [ForestWave Navigation] - Gets company of the Swedish coast guard.wmv](http://web.archive.org./web/20110901120321im_/http://i.ytimg.com/vi/X1iZf967Mn0/0.jpg "Flinterwave [ForestWave Navigation] - Gets company of the Swedish coast guard.wmv")
