If you are German, you probably already have seen my pictures from the Geneva SWAT team in the last Kommando issue. I still can't publish too many of them because the story is also going to be featured in 2 other European magazines before the end of the year...

Back with the green berets.

No képi blanc this time, but the coveted green beret makes for a bad ass look too...

Something completely different for a change...

You'll see much more about my Legion trip but this one is a Gendarme from Swiss Police (Geneva). He was part of an escort during a VIP protection exercise.

I have to keep a balance between the "green" and the "blue" guys ;-)

Last briefing from the squad leader before the beginning of the exercise.

The "REP men" are carrying standard infantry weapons : FAMAS, MINIMI and FRF2.

NCO from 2e REP before a tactical progression training in the Corsican mountains surrounding the compound. He is carrying the good old FAMAS but no optics and accessories are mounted for this exercise.

It was my first day with the Legionnaires in Calvi and they kinda tested me... The Adjudant and the Captain from the company I was going to follow looked at me and said "you look reasonably fit, you are wearing outdoor shoes, so you're coming with us for a little walk this afternoon"...

So I ended up sweating and spiting, running up and down the hills with my equipment, but I kept my mouth shut and after that, they invited me for a beer at the mess and were great hosts for the rest of the week ;-)

GIPN operator (Groupe d'Intervention de la Police Nationale) with a Brügger (B&T) MP9 submachine gun with AIMPOINT Micro T1.
GIPN is a regional SWAT team / intervention group, but they also do some police work in plain clothe.

Back to the Légion Étrangère 2e REP.

There was a lot of portrait shooting opportunities with those guys. Most of them looked quiet "bad ass" ! This one is carrying the FNH minimi machine gun.

More from the photo shooting with the Swiss Police tactical team (GIGG) on the Geneva lake.

One of the other units I have been working with this summer is Geneva's GIGG (Groupe d'Intervention de la Gendarmerie Genevoise).

I have taken tons of pictures with those guys and you can see some of them in the current issue of KOMMANDO magazine. They will also be published later this year in french Police Pro.
During an hostage rescue training on Geneva's lake (Switzerland), one of the operators had a GO-PRO camera on his helmet and shoot a kind of "making off".

They were kind enough to give me this little clip as a souvenir and allow me to put in online ;-)

Very professional, yet very fun and easy going guys to work with ! All in all a very impressive team, my hat off to them ;-)

My pictures made it on the front cover of Gun Trade World magazine.

It was an advertising for a great Irish friend of mine : Daniel's Technologies.

A bit of everything here, french PI2G, combat divers, french special forces 1er RPIMA and BAC Police officers.

Tradition is everything in the légion étrangère, and sometimes it feels like you have been traveling through time... The same picture could probably have been taken in the african desert more than a hundred years ago.

Going to Calvi, Corsica to visit 2e REP was quite the trip...
The place in itself (Camp Raffalli) is stunning with the sea at it's front door and snowy mountains in the background. It is an incredible training field for those "legionnaires parachutistes"  coming from all over the world.

So it is no secret anymore, one of the units I have visited at the beginning of the summer is French Foreign Legion 2e REP (deuxième régiment étranger parachutiste).

An elite within an elite, the légionaires parachutistes are a mythical unit and it was an honor to be accepted there with my friend Soeren, chief redactor for german magazine "Kommando".

I'll be developing the story later with plenty of pics...

 "Legio Patria Nostra !"

(the cover of the magazine is one of my pics, modified by the very talented Tom Weber).

Thank you !

10'000 pages viewed since I have started this photoblog exactly 9 months ago.

That is more than 1'000 per month and I had never expected that ;-)

It is amazing to see where you guys are coming from... I have visitors from literally all over the world.

Now if you enjoy what you see here, please take five minutes and let your buddies know about this blog !

The more traffic I will get, the more my work will be known and  it'll be easier for me to visit new units. And that means more pics for you ;-)

 

French Police Nationale operators from GIPN 33.

French Police officer from BAC (brigade anti criminalité), armed with a B&T GL06 40 mm launcher. The launcher has been widely adopted by french law enforcement agencies for crowd control.

Operators from GIPN 33 (Bordeaux) with HK G36.

Something a bit different for a change: Cougar helicopter cockpit.

Special operator with a FNH SCAR.
Covering his back, the second operator is also using a SCAR but with a B&T suppressor.

Police officers from BAC 69 (Brigade Anti-Criminalité de Lyon).

Combat diver using a STIDD DPD (Diver Propulsion Device) on surface.

The DPD enables Divers to travel farther and faster with more payload. 
It is known to be used by US Navy SEALS.

Operator with FN SCAR and grenade launcher attached, wearing  CRY Precision combat shirt and pants in Multicam. His Opscore helmet is stored in his EAGLE backpack.

Operator from french Gendarmerie PI2G (peloton d'intervention de seconde génération).

PI2G are Gendarmerie's regional intervention groups, equivalent to GIPN for Police Nationale.

Sniper with a swiss Brügger SPR (Special Purpose Rifle) 300 Whisper carbine.

More from my helicopter training day with RAID.

After a first fast rope assault to free the hostages , operators are boarding the  super puma helicopter again for another try with a slightly different tactic.