officers have been killed in action: two in Ris-Orangis (near Paris) in 1989 and one in Corsica in 1996. Organisation RAID has a total strength of around 450 men and women, approx. 180 of which are in Bièvres, the rest in the regional branches located in Bordeaux, Guadeloupe, Lille, Lyon, Marseille, Montpellier, Nancy, New Caledonia, Nice, Rennes, Réunion, Strasbourg and Toulouse. The Bièvres (Paris) unit is divided into three main sections with about 60 members each: First Section: The first section deals with the usual tasks of special forces: intervention, monitoring, protection. Second Section: The second section is the Research and Development unit of the RAID. It studies techniques and collects information. This section is divided into three groups: Intelligence Group Technical Group Weaponry Group Third section: The Third section deals with the psychological aspects of the interventions. It is in charge of negotiations and crisis management. It also provides psychological support for the policemen in the unit and in the whole French Police. It is composed of forensic experts, a psychologist and physicians. The Negotiation group is on permanent alert. It deals with suicides, violent crises, mental disorders, hostage crises and other major troubles, independently from the rest of the RAID. It assesses the dangers of the situation, suggests possible solutions, and helps with the negotiations and the resolution of the crises. If the whole RAID has to intervene, the Negotiations section is used as a reconnaissance unit, and prepares the intervention of the other sections. To join the unit, an officer needs five years duty within the Police Nationale and after passing a thorough test he will serve in the RAID for five years. With a commendation he can expand it further five years. All members must leave the tactical unit after ten years. Candidates must be under forty to apply. Female officers are admitted in almost all positions. Helicopter support is provided by Sécurité Civile and the National Gendarmerie. Tactical deployment of large groups is handled by GIH () a joint army/air force special operations flight equipped with SA330 PUMA helicopters based in nearby Villacoublay air base. GIH was established in 2006, initially to support GIGN. Its role has been expanded to also support RAID in 2008. Coordination between GIGN and RAID is handled by a joint organization called Ucofi (). A "leader/follower" protocol has been established for use when both units need to be engaged jointly,