SWAT
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Special Weapons And Tactics


Active 1967–Present
Type Special Operations
Role Domestic Counter-Terrorism and Law Enforcement
Nickname SWAT, ESU, ETF, SRU, SRT, CIRT, ERT, TRT, HRT, TAC, depends on the agency/department

This article is about Special Weapons And Tactics. For other uses, see Swat. This article may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia's quality standards.
Please improve this article if you can. (November 2008)


SWAT (Special Weapons And Tactics) are elite tactical units in American police departments. Similar organizations in other areas are South Australian STAR Force (Special Tasks and Rescue), London's C019 and Taiwan's Thunder Squad. It is trained to perform high-risk operations that fall outside of the abilities of regular patrol officers, including serving high-risk arrest warrants, barricaded suspects, hostage rescue, counter-terrorism, and engaging heavily-armed criminals. SWAT teams are often equipped with specialized firearms including assault rifles, submachine guns, shotguns, carbines, riot control agents, stun grenades, and high-powered rifles for snipers. They have specialized equipment including heavy body armor, entry tools, armored vehicles, advanced night vision optics, and motion detectors for covertly determining the positions of hostages or hostage takers inside of an enclosed structure.

The first SWAT team was established in the Los Angeles Police Department in the 1960s. Since then, many American police departments, especially in major cities and at the federal and state-levels of government, have established their own elite units under various names; these units, despite their official name, are referred to collectively as SWAT units in colloquial usage.