Display schedule Hornet Display Team training week, August 2020

Changes are still possible due COVID'19, but it looks that Hornet Display too is preparing the training week. Due the actual situation, Nicolas 'Vincent' Rossier will take responsibility to fly 2020 and the new pilot will be trained in 2021 if the situation permits.

Moyenne Alt: Medium Altitude
Basse Alt: Low Altitude

Public Open Day / Airshow: PayAIR'n 21

With this lost year 2020 for Airshows, Payerne Air Base will hoist an interesting event next year, an Open Door event;

01st May 2021: PayAIR'n 21

other events of interest in Switzerland 2021:

11-13th June, 2021: Motor Classics, Lenzerheide https://www.lenzerheide-motorclassics.ch/
26/27th June, 2021: Seefest, Zug http://www.zugerseefest.ch/
28th July, 2021: different Air Displays, Samedan (Super Puma Display Team et al) due ProAero Youth Camp
20-22nd August, 2021: Flugtage Wittinsburg http://www.flugtage-wittinsburg.ch/
21st August, 2021: Hunterfest, St. Stephan http://www.hunterverein.ch/
28/29th August, 2021: Flugtage, Dittingen http://www.flugtage.ch/

COVID19: Display schedule Swiss Hornet Display Team - V4

Info via Swiss Hornet Display Team:

Schedule update: training course is now planned 10-14th of august. Of course this will also depend on the measures about the COVID-19 🦠 , but we still hope to fly a few times this year

Air to Ground Shooting Range Axalp (-Ebenfluh) - Power Demonstration 2018 - last time with our grey Tigers

Every year in October, the Swiss Air Force invites the world to the Power Demo showed up there. No more rockets and bombs since the end of Vampire and Hunter, but still impressive.
Unfortunally it was the last year with the grey Tiger F-5's - the're only used for the agressor role and Patrouille Suisse in the future, but not needed to shoot there bullets anymore.

WEF 2020 - Air Policy above Davos

In 2020, the armed forces will once again support the civilian authorities in the canton of Graubünden in carrying out security tasks in connection with the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF). Parliament approved the deployment of a maximum of 5,000 soldiers on these civil affairs support operations from 2019 until 2021. The 2020 WEF meeting will be held from 17 to 27 January.


Main base for the combat ready jets is Payerne LSMP (1st ALT is LSMM, 2nd ALT is LSMS) again and the 25 nautical miles flight restrictions above Davos are on the following dates:

January 17th, 2020 from 1300-1700h LT (training)
January 20th from 0800h LT continuosly 'till January 25th, 1700 LT (hot)

Some Pilatus (NC)PC-7 will be flying out of Samedan airport during training day and the hot mission.

More informations: https://www.vtg.admin.ch/de/aktuell/einsaetze-und-operationen/sse/wef.html

Some impressions of Air Policy from other years 

Evaluation NKF - Mission Rafale - Media- and Spotterday

Another successful event perfectly organised by armasuisse and Dassault Aviation - with a lot of information again and many interested visitors, Media and Spotter side. And of course a lot of people from France interested to see there new aircraft from near.

Evaluation NKF - Mission Eurofighter - Media- and Spotterday

The first visit on base due evaluation NKF is made and ended with a lot of informations and pictures. Highly secured (military police everywhere), highly visited (around 600 people only in the spotters zone) and highly appreciated event of Armasuisse, our Air Force and Airbus company - good job !

Some impressions from my side ;)

Evaluation NKF - Mission Eurofighter Typhoon

As first of the candidates for the new fighter aircraft in Switzerland, two RAF Typhoons landed in Payerne today. For the following days eight missions are scheduled, with a total of 17 takeoffs and landings (PAY/MEI). Flight days are in between11th 'till 17th of April, with a nightflight mission next monday.

Present aircrafts:
Eurofighter Typhoon FGR4
Registration: ZK356 (cn BS117)

and

Eurofighter Typhoon T3
Registration: ZK303 / AX (cn 207/BT017/ISPA5)

Spotter-/Mediaday of april 12th - no Eurofighter flights in the morning. Takeoff in the afternoon 1515, landing 1615h local time. Beware of the Hornet Display training at 1330h.


(photos out of my archive)

World Economic Forum Davos 2019 - restrictions and activity

In 2019, the armed forces will once again support the civilian authorities in the canton of Graubünden in carrying out security tasks in connection with the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF). Parliament approved the deployment of a maximum of 5,000 soldiers on these civil affairs support operations from 2019 until 2021. The 2019 WEF meeting will be held from 18 to 28 January.

Main base for our military fighter jets supporting the WEF with CAP's in Switzerland is PAYERNE (LSMP), second is Meiringen (LSMM) !

Air traffic in the Davos area is restricted during the 2019 World Economic Forum (GND to FL195).


Air traffic over Swiss, Austrian and Liechtenstein territory within a radius of 25 nautical miles (approx. 46 km) of the centre of Davos will be restricted from 21 to 26 January 2019. Special rules and procedures that have been worked out by the Swiss Air Force and the Federal Office for Civil Aviation must be observed for approaches to and departures from regional airfields and heliports. Only specified visual flight routes may be flown. All these flights will be subject to authorisation; accreditation of both pilots and aircraft is required for authorisation.

Flights outside the specified routes and flights to Davos also require authorisation, which will only be granted to pilots and aircraft that have been accredited beforehand. Even after accreditation, a request must be made to the air force for every flight. The air force will then decide whether to grant or refuse permission in accordance with requirements and security considerations. Detailed instructions can be found in official publications

The Swiss Air Force will support the civilian authorities with air transport and surveillance flights using helicopters, propeller planes and combat aircraft. Therefore, a considerable increase in military air movements even beyond the canton of Graubünden is to be expected.

As air traffic includes not only helicopters and aeroplanes, all other airspace users are also subject to restrictions that come into force on 21 January 2019. The regulations for model aircraft, UAVs, delta and paragliders are issued by the Graubünden cantonal police.


Restriction times: Monday, 21 January 2019, from 8am local time
until latest Saturday, 26 January 2019, 5pm local time

Swiss Air Force's QRA boost it's capacity in 2019

Today is a new big step in Swiss Air Forces Quick Reaction Alert system called Luftpolizeidienst24 (LPD24) - every day in between 0600-2200LT two armed F/A-18 Hornet aircrafts are ready for takeoff in less than 15 minutes. Full day capacity will be available end of 2020.
For us aviation geeks and photographs interesting is the additional night flights planned on wednesday evening, so two times a week now (normal night flight training monday or tuesday (meteo)).

First Night-mission of the Swiss Air Force QRA

Today very early morning, 0326h local time, two Hornets take off from our main base Payerne LSMP. Another test of the availability and procedures - normally our QRA is not yet ready at this time of the day but 2021:

Press bulletin

Erster Start bei Nacht ist gelungen

Die Einsatzbereitschaft im Luftpolizeidienst wird bis Ende 2020 kontinuierlich ausgebaut. Ab dann werden während 365 Tagen rund um die Uhr zwei bewaffnete Flugzeuge einsatzbereit sein. Im Januar 2017 ist die Bereitschaft auf 365 Tage – also auch an Wochenenden und Feiertagen – von 8.00 bis 18.00 Uhr erweitert worden. Vom 3. bis 4. September 2018 hat die Luftwaffe eine noch längere Bereitschaft im Luftpolizeidienst angeordnet.

Das Projekt Luftpolizeidienst 24 (LP24) hat zum Ziel, die permanente Bereitschaft an 365 Tagen während 24 Stunden bis Ende 2020 zu erreichen. In der aktuellen Phase der Umsetzung ist die normale Bereitschaft von 8.00 bis 18.00 Uhr an 365 Tagen vorgesehen. In der Nacht vom 3. auf den 4. September 2018 wurde jedoch Bereitschaft angeordnet. Zum ersten Mal starteten zwei F/A-18 um 3.30 Uhr.

Ziel dieser Übung ist es, wertvolle Erkenntnisse für die Umsetzung der nächsten Phasen erhöhter Bereitschaft zu gewinnen und so die ersten Lehren aus einem Flugdienst bei Nacht zu ziehen. Ab dem 1. Januar 2019 wird die Bereitschaft des Luftpolizeidienstes auf die Zeiten von 6.00 bis 22.00 Uhr an 365 Tagen erhöht.

Motion aus dem Jahr 2009

Das Projekt LP24 geht auf eine Motion von alt Ständerat Hans Hess (FDP/OW) aus dem Jahr 2009 zurück. Darin forderte er eine erhöhte Bereitschaft im Luftpolizeidienst auch ausserhalb der normalen Arbeitszeiten. Mit LP24 wird nun in vier Schritten eine permanente Einsatzbereitschaft von zwei bewaffneten Kampfjets innert höchstens 15 Minuten erreicht.

Swiss Air Force scrambled for British Airways July 5th

Last thursday, two Swiss Air Force F/A-18 Hornet on QRA duty had to scramble for flight BA610 due missing radio contact of the flight.

Source: http://avherald.com/h?article=4bac50fa&opt=0

Swiss QRA called Luftpolizeidienst24 (LPD24) is based in Emmen this month. The following picture shows the contrails of the 'EYEBALL' visiting the intercepted aircraft - in this case a Portuguese Air Force Falcon Businessjet - and the 'SHOOTER' a few miles behind for cover a few days ago:

Summer break in Payerne

A month earlier then other years, the Swiss Air Force is flying out of Emmen for a month. Meiringen and Payerne are closed down for Runway repairs and/or touristic reasons.

Some shots from Payerne I've taken the last few weeks ...

Also the new special colour of the Swiss Air Force Hornet Fleet, J-5017, has left Payerne for Emmen. Picture via  Julien Meister/VBS