# Coastwatch

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{{Short description|De facto former coast guard of Australia}}
{{About||the World War II intelligence operatives stationed as observers on Pacific islands|Coastwatchers|the UK's National Coastwatch Institution|National Coastwatch Institution|various maritime patrol organizations|Coast Guard}}
{{Use Australian English|date=February 2015}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2025}}

The '''Australian Coastal Surveillance Organisation''', also known as '''Coastwatch''', was an operational division of the [Australian Customs Service](/source/Australian_Customs_Service) and the de facto Australian [coast guard service](/source/Coast_guard). The former Coastwatch Division is now part of the [Australian Border Force](/source/Australian_Border_Force) [Maritime Border Command](/source/Maritime_Border_Command_(Australia)), a joint civil/military organisation responsible for civil maritime security.

Border Protection Command [Dash 8](/source/Bombardier_Dash_8) aircraft are referred to by their civil call sign "Border Force XX" and are operated by [Cobham Aviation Services](/source/Surveillance_Australia) on behalf of the Australian Border Force. These aircraft carry out civil maritime surveillance service to help protect Australia's borders. The fleet of specialised fixed-wing patrol aircraft and helicopters undertake electronic and visual surveillance of Australia's coastline and offshore maritime areas.

==See also==
* [Surveillance Australia](/source/Surveillance_Australia)
* [Border Protection Command](/source/Border_Protection_Command)
* [Australian Customs Service](/source/Australian_Customs_Service)
* [Coastwatch Oz](/source/Coastwatch_Oz)
* [Tampa affair](/source/Tampa_affair)

==References==
* [http://www.bpc.gov.au/site/page5789.asp Border Protection Command – Aircraft]
* Perry, Donna.  (1998) ''Guarding the north's vast remote coastline is a full-time occupation''. Broome advertiser, 14 October 1998, pp. 34–35

==Further reading==
* Australia. Parliament. [Australian National Audit Office](/source/Australian_National_Audit_Office).(2000)  ''Coastwatch Australian Customs Service''  The Auditor-General audit report, no.38, 1999–2000. ISSN 1036-7632 {{ISBN|0-642-44242-8}}

==External links==
* [http://www.customs.gov.au Australian Customs Service]

Coastwatch
Category:Customs services

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Coastwatch](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coastwatch) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coastwatch?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.