National canine capability
The AFP’s role in ensuring Australia’s national and aviation security is supported by teams of highly trained detection dogs and handlers.
Detection teams comprised of one protective service officer and one dog perform part of the AFP’s counter-terrorist first response function at five Australian airports, including Canberra, Sydney, Brisbane, Perth and Melbourne.
These firearms and explosives detection teams use unobtrusive screening techniques to detect a range of military and commercial explosive mixtures, including weapons. When teamed with a bomb appraisal officer and additional AFP officers, they deliver coordinated and highly visible law enforcement.
In addition to regular search duties at designated airports, firearms and explosives detection teams also support aviation security measures including checks on facilities, aircraft, baggage and freight.
Firearms and explosives detection teams also perform screening and search duties at Parliament House in Canberra.
In addition to these teams, detection teams comprised of one AFP police officer and one dog operate at the eleven major Australian airports. These teams will expand to include a trained drug detection dog, giving the AFP the ability to detect, firearms, explosives and drugs at airports and in national operations.
Detection dogs and handlers
The job of a police dog handler is very specialised and requires a high level of motivation, fitness and commitment.
AFP detection dogs begin training at about two years of age, and work for approximately seven years. The dogs require daily training and attention for the length of their operational lives.
All AFP detection dogs are Labradors. They are extremely intelligent; quickly recognising any repetition in their training. For this reason AFP handlers maintain a varied and challenging training program for their dogs.
AFP detection dogs have a highly developed sense of smell and when working with their handler can detect a wide variety of substances.
Almost one-eighth of a dog’s brain and more than 50 per cent of the internal nose is dedicated to its sense of smell. It is estimated that humans have five million sensory cells inside their noses, while a Labrador has 220 million.
Through training AFP detection dogs develop a series of what we call ‘scent-pictures’ for a large variety of substances. Scent-pictures are the equivalent to our ability to recall images, although farmore detailed and precise. It is these ‘scent-pictures’ which the dogs respond to when performing their duties.
Training facility
The AFP’s detection teams are trained and certified at the AFP Canine Facility in the Australian Capital Territory. The facility at Majura includes:
- a state-of-the-art training shed for scenario-based training and workshops
- 40 new dog kennels including 20 for drug detection dogs and 20 for explosive detection dogs
- day runs for all canines
- 10 new isolation kennels for sick or injured dogs
- two new quarantine kennels
- secure storage facilities
Background
The 2005 Wheeler Review into airport security and policing made key recommendations on the structure and operation of Australian airport policing and security.
The AFP developed a unified policing model to enhance existing airport security and provide a community policing presence at eleven major Australian airports, through community policing, investigations, intelligence gathering, and terrorism deterrence and response.
The AFP’s unified policing presence at major airports enables a comprehensive and coordinated approach to addressing criminality and terrorist threats in the aviation sector through:
- Airport Police Commanders, police aviation liaison officers, joint airport intelligence groups,
- counter-terrorist first response teams and airport uniform police at all eleven major airports.
- Joint airport investigation teams at five international airports
APEC Leaders Week 2007
In 2006, in line with the extension of the AFP’s aviation security role, the Government allocated $9.3 million for the AFP to substantially increase the national ability to detect drugs, firearms, explosives and chemicals in the aviation environment.
The addition of 22 APEC handlers and dogs has more than doubled the number of AFP firearms and explosives detection teams to 60 handlers, and 85 to 90 canines.