Swiss Air Force

Swiss Air Force
Swiss Air Force logo
Founded	31 July 1914
Country	Switzerland
Role	Air Defense
Size	1,600 active professional personnel
Part of	Swiss Armed Forces
Staff to the Chief of the Armed Forces	Bundeshaus Ost, Bern
Commanders
Head of the Air Force	Lieutenant General Aldo C. Schellenberg
Insignia
Badge
Roundel
Aircraft flown
Electronic warfare	F-5F Tiger, Pilatus PC-9
Fighter	F/A-18 Hornet, F-5 Tiger
Helicopter	Eurocopter Cougar/Super Puma, Eurocopter EC635
Interceptor	F/A-18 Hornet, F-5 Tiger
Patrol	F/A-18 Hornet, F-5 Tiger, Pilatus PC-7
Reconnaissance	ADS-95 Ranger
Trainer	Pilatus PC-7/PC-9/PC-21

The Swiss Air Force (German: Schweizer Luftwaffe; French: Forces aériennes suisses; Italian: Forze aeree svizzere; Romansh: Aviatica militara svizra) is the air component of the Swiss Armed Forces, established on 31 July 1914 as part of the army and in October 1936 an independent service.

In peacetime, Dübendorf is the operational air force headquarters. The Swiss Air Force operates from several fixed bases (see current status) but its personnel are also trained to carry out air operations from temporary highway airstrips. In case of crisis or war, several stretches of road are specially prepared for this option.

The first military aviation in Switzerland took the form of balloon transport, pioneered by Swiss balloonist Eduard Spelterini, but by 1914 there was still little official support for an air corps. The outbreak of World War I changed opinions drastically and cavalry officer Theodor Real was charged with forming a flying corps. He commandeered three civilian aircraft at Bern's airfield and set about training the initial nine pilots at a makeshift airfield close to Wankdorf Stadium, later moving to a permanent home at Dübendorf. Switzerland remained neutral and isolated during the conflict, and the air corps confined its activities to training and exercises, reconnaissance and patrol. It was only with the worsening international situation in the 1930s that an effective air force was established at great cost, with up-to-date Messerschmitt Bf 109, Macchi MC.202 and Morane-Saulnier D‐3800 fighters ordered from Germany, Italy and France respectively (the Moranes were license-built in Switzerland). The Swiss Air Force as an autonomous military service was created in October 1936.