The Swiss Air Force will be on standby 24/7 from Thursday, when two F/A-18 fighter jets will be ready to take off, fully armed, within 15 minutes. The pilots spent nearly a month practising night-time aerial manoeuvres in Britain.
This content was published on
2 minutes
Keystone-SDA/ts
Português
pt
Força aérea suíça está finalmente de prontidão a qualquer hora
Calls for greater readiness on the part of the air force have existed for years, but they became front-page news in 2014 when a hijacked Ethiopian Airlines passenger plane landed in Geneva at about 6am.
While Italian and French military aircraft were scrambled to accompany the plane, Switzerland couldn’t deploy any jets and intervene because the air force only worked during office hours (8am-12pm and 1.30pm-5pm).
The drama ended without bloodshed but the Swiss became a laughing stock around the world.
More
More
Air Force working hours to be discussed
This content was published on
The upgrade would cost an additional CHF30 million ($34 million) a year, Maurer said on Wednesday. Swiss air traffic control company Skyguide would also have to make adjustments so that around-the-clock readiness is possible. This would be the case from 2018 at the earliest, he added. The issue arose on Monday when a hijacked Ethiopian…
The then defence minister, Ueli Maurer, blamed a lack of money for the inability to guarantee round-the-clock protection of Swiss airspace.
Since the beginning of 2019 the jets have been on standby from 6am to 10pm.
‘Hot missions’
The two armed aircraft will mainly be used for “hot missions” and “live missions”, the Swiss Army said in a statementExternal link on Tuesday. The former are triggered by aircraft that violate Switzerland’s air sovereignty or air traffic regulations. Live missions are random checks of foreign state aircraft, which are only allowed to fly over Switzerland with diplomatic clearance.
Fifteen hot missions and 290 live missions have been carried out so far in 2020, the army said.
In a separate statementExternal link, the army explained that “to be optimally prepared for round-the-clock operational readiness”, night-flying exercises had been carried out between November 24 and December 18 in Yorkshire, northern England, with 40 pilots, 70 ground crew and ten F/A-18 aircraft from the Swiss Air Force.
The Swiss pilots and their colleagues from the Royal Air Force (RAF) had practised flight manoeuvres over the North Sea during darkness, without night flight restrictions.
More
More
The sky’s the limit: Swiss aviation pioneers
This content was published on
On the centenary of the first non-stop transatlantic flight, we look at the groundbreaking achievements of some Swiss aviation pioneers.
The main location for the permanent air police service, which will be called “Quick Reaction Alert (QRA)”, is the Payerne military airbase in western Switzerland.
The move to 24/7 air coverage required about 100 additional positions and will cost some CHF30 million ($34 million) a year, the army said. This amount is mainly made up of personnel costs, air traffic control costs and operating costs.
More
More
Wafer-thin majority approves new fighter jets
This content was published on
By a margin of just 9,000 votes, Swiss citizens have given a cautious all-clear for a multi-billion purchase of new fighter jets for the air force.
In Switzerland more people are being referred to electrical therapies or psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy. Are there similar approaches where you live?
This content was published on
A Geneva-registered tourist plane grazed some ski mountaineers on Saturday on a glacier on the Swiss side of the Monte Rosa massif.
Sharp rise in reports of suspicious sports betting in Switzerland
This content was published on
Last year the Intercantonal Gambling Supervisory Authority received 184 reports of suspicious activities in connection with 166 sports competitions.
Swiss fencers apologise for diplomatic scandal with Israel
This content was published on
Two days after causing a diplomatic scandal at the U23 European Championships in Tallinn, the Swiss fencers responsible have published a jointly signed apology on Instagram.
Air in climbing gyms more polluted than on streets
This content was published on
The concentration of potentially harmful chemicals in climbing gyms is sometimes higher than on busy roads, say researchers from Switzerland and Austria.
This content was published on
Swiss International Air Lines (SWISS) achieved slightly higher sales at the start of the year. However, profits fell sharply, partly due to the late Easter.
Switzerland’s first padel court on water built in Arosa
This content was published on
Switzerland's first padel tennis court on water will open on the Obersee in Arosa, canton Graubünden, for the 2025 summer season.
This content was published on
Wine consumption in Switzerland fell by almost 8% in 2024 compared to the previous year. Swiss wines are particularly affected by the decline.
Jackie Chan to be honoured for life’s work at Locarno Film Festival
This content was published on
Martial artist Jackie Chan will receive an Honorary Leopard, a lifetime achievement award, from the Locarno Film Festival in southern Switzerland in August.
Novartis raises forecast again after strong Q1 results
This content was published on
Swiss pharmaceutical giant Novartis has continued the strong pace of growth of recent quarters in the first three months of 2025.
Swiss canton holds first general meeting on winegrowing
This content was published on
More than 250 professionals attended the first general meeting of the Valais wine industry on Monday in Conthey, western Switzerland.
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.
Read more
More
Should new jets or neighbours defend Swiss skies?
This content was published on
In the early hours of February 16 an Ethiopian Airlines passenger plane bound for Rome was hijacked. Seeking asylum in Switzerland, the co-pilot flew the plane further northwest. The airliner was intercepted by Italian Eurofighter jets, then handed over to the French Air Force before it landed at Geneva airport. The Swiss Air Force did…
This content was published on
On several occasions in the past when Swiss air space was breached, the Swiss air force was unable to act because its pilots were off duty. That was the case in February 2014 when an Ethiopian Airlines pilot took full control of his aircraft, while his co-pilot was in the toilet. The man diverted the…
This content was published on
Final results show 53.4% of voters came out against the acquisition of 22 JAS-39 Gripen fighter jets by the Swedish Saab company. Political analyst Claude Longchamp of the leading GfS Bern research and polling institute says opposition by both the political left and some centrist parties made the difference. “It gives the armed forces something…
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.