| Armed Offenders Squad | |
|---|---|
.jpg) AOS member in 2010 | |
| Active | August 1964 – present |
| Country |  New Zealand |
| Agency | New Zealand Police |
| Type | Police tactical unit |
| Role | |
| Headquarters | Wellington |
| Abbreviation | AOS |
| Structure | |
| Officers | 320 part-time[1] |
| Squads | 17[2] |
| Notables | |
| Significant operation(s) | |
The Armed Offenders Squad (AOS) are specialist part-time units of the New Zealand Police based around the country available to respond to high risk incidents using specialist tactics and equipment.[2]
The AOS was established when front-line police officers did not carry firearms. While today officers still do not routinely carry sidearms, they have ready access to firearms if required, including high-powered rifles, and receive firearms training.[3] A new expanding role for the AOS is assisting with planned operations.[1][4]
- ^ a b Leask, Anna (17 January 2012). "Armed offenders callouts soar". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 24 October 2016.
- ^ a b "Armed Offenders Squads". New Zealand Police. Retrieved 24 October 2016.
- ^ "Locked and loaded" (PDF). Police News The Voice of Police. Vol. 45, no. 2. New Zealand Police Association. March 2012. Archived from the original (PDF) on 8 February 2013.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
Police News Marchwas invoked but never defined (see the help page).