Airshow Neuchâtel - July 05th, 2025

One of the interesting shows not only for the program, but also for the landscape at the biggest lake of Switzerland (completely in Switzerland) this summer

- Patrouille Suisse (remember, our F-5E/F Tiger Jets will be end of life in 2027)

- Classic Formation 

- PC-21 Display

stay tuned 

Flight schedule Payerne 2021

Finally - our main base published also the planned activity for 2021 👍

Most of Swiss Air Force's Air policing missions - called Luftpolizeidienst LPD24 / Service de police aérienne 24 (PA24) / Servizio di polizia aerea 24 (PA24) in german/french/italian - where flown out of Payerne. Since December 31st, 2020 those missions are 24/365 'round the clock possible, callsign on radio is HAMMER. 

-> note the info concerning rescheduled flight times for the week of January 18-21 at the end

Special events 2021

January

04 Begin of regular training activity 2021

February

22-05 Pilot School on PC-21 (normally based in Emmen)

March 

22-02 Swiss Hornet Display training weeks

April

05-16 Patrouille Suisse training weeks (mostly out of Emmen), trainings in Bellechasse and Payerne planned

30-01 100 years Payerne airfield - public day Mai 1st

Mai

10-28 Repetition course CR av 11

June

07-11 Flightweek with Mirage IIIDS of Clind'Ailes Museum

21-16 Instruction week / runway closed (aircrafts out of Emmen)

July

19-23 Flightweek with Mirage IIIDS of Clind'Ailes Museum

September

13-17 Flightweek with Mirage IIIDS of Clind'Ailes Museum

20-08 exercice Nighthawk (helicopter)

October

04-29 test weeks with the new ADS 15 drone system

11-29 Repetition course CR av 14 / TA 1

November

22-10 Helicopter exercise in Vidsel (SE) 15-26

29-10 Yorknite exercise (Night flight Training, UK), Meiringen crews the two weeks before

December

16 End of regular training activity 2021

-> info concerning rescheduled flight times for the week of January 18-21

There where some important changes to the regular combat jet flight times (0830-1200/1330-1700h LT) during this week: 1000-1200/1330-1930h LT ! This is a test for possible further use due night flight restrictions in Switzerland. So the normal night flight session on monday eventing 'till 22h LT is also cancelled, training missions of the Air Police on wednesday evening is still valid.

Emergency Airworthiness Directives (EAD) for Pilatus training aircrafts

It began a few weeks ago with an 1st Emergency Airworthiness Directive for the Harley-type buckle assemblies in the seat harness of the ejection seat on Pilatus PC-21 training aircraft. French Air Force recognised a problem and informed Martin Baker/Pilatus and the respective governments:

Pilatus PC-21 is the latest turboprop-powered advanced military training aircraft and in use by the Air Forces of Australia (49), France (17), Jordan (12), Qatar (24), Saudi Arabia (55), Singapore (19), Spain (24, 1st delivery end of 2020; will replace mainly the CASA C-101 Aviojet, but will also take over advanced training which is currently carried out on the T-35 Pillan), Switzerland (8), United Arab Ermirates (25) and the United Kingdom (2 for advanced training in ETPS).

At this moment (December 23rd), there are all modern military training aircraft systems of Pilatus Aircraft Ltd listed with the same problem of requiring a specific inspection.

Flight activity schedule for MEIRINGEN 2021

 After the strange year 2020, we will try it again in 2021 - Meiringen has published the new schedule already !

Planning includes weeks with activity on based F-5 Tiger II and PC-21.

Public Basevisits (inside !) on april 21st and october 27th, inscription at local tourism organisation.

Swiss Air Force Flight Schedule of Emmen and PC-7 Team, 2019

Just for information purposes - I've updated the flight schedule post with the chart of Emmen and the PC-7 Team today ;)

PC-7 Team 2019

21 - 24. Februar	FIS Ski Weltcup Crans-Montana	Crans-Montana
17 - 19. Mai	Fête des musiques Gruériennes	Les Moulins
24 - 25. Mai	Tag der Öffentlichkeit Emmen	Emmen
29. Mai - 01. Jun	Heliweekend Grenchen	Grenchen
29 - 31. Mai	Gewerbe- und Erlebnisausstellung Buochs	Buochs
21 - 22. Juni	Eidgenössisches Turnfest Aarau	Aarau
28 - 29. Juni	15. Flüügerchilbi Beromünster	Beromünster
05 - 07. Juli	Züri Fäscht	Seebecken Zürich
19 - 21. Juli	International Gijon Airshow	Gijon, ESP
26 - 28. Juli	Sunderland Airshow	Sunderland, UK
30 - 31. August	Huntertag St. Stephan	St. Stephan
06 - 07. September	Flüüger-Fäscht Schmerlat	Schmerlat, Schaffhausen
20 - 22. September	Czech Air Force Days	Ostrava, CZ
04 - 05. Oktober	40. Modellflugtag Hausen am Albis	Hausen am Albis
11 - 12. Oktober	Air & Space Days Luzern	Verkehrshaus, Luzern
11 - 12. Dezember	Brevetierung	Vitznau

Payerne Air Force Base Open Doors, 2018

More then 5000 people from all of Switzerland and abroad - dutch, french and german cars is what I saw - visited the main base due Open Door exposition and Airshow today.
With introduction of all the jobs you can learn and work on an Swiss Air Force Base, the exposition saw many interesting work places.
And there was an little airshow too - Swiss Air Force Hornet Demo Team, Super Puma Display Team and fire/SAR demo was sheduled - Patrouille Suisse visited for an flybye too. The most interesting new demo was an QRA / Air Policy Demonstration of two Hornets versus an (NC)PC-7. Let's hope such a demo is standard in the future ;)

Article in German with other pictures by me ;)

French pilot school visits Emmen

Armee de l'Air sent five (of there 99 remaining) AlphaJets to Switzerland, visiting our schooling 'till tomorrow. Unfortunally the weather ist not as nice today - but flights with Alphajets and PC-21 on mixed crews can be expected.

Flightline
E35 as FAF6441

E42 as FAF6442

E94 as FAF6443

E153 as FAF6444

E163 as FAF6445

Dassault/Dornier Alpha Jet (via wikipedia)

The Dassault/Dornier Alpha Jet is a light attack jet and advanced jet trainer co-manufactured by Dassault Aviation of France and Dornier Flugzeugwerke of Germany. It was developed specifically to perform the trainer and light attack missions, as well as to perform these duties more ideally than the first generation of jet trainers that preceded it. Following a competition, a design submitted by a team comprising Breguet Aviation, Dassault Aviation, and Dornier Flugzeugwerke, initially designated as the TA501, was selected and subsequently produced as the Alpha Jet.

Both the French Air Force and German Air Force procured the Alpha Jet in large numbers, the former principally as a trainer aircraft and the latter choosing to use it as a light attack platform. As a result of post-Cold War military cutbacks, Germany elected to retire its own fleet of Alpha Jets in the 1990s and has re-sold many of these aircraft to both military and civilian operators. The Alpha Jet has been adopted by a number of air forces across the world and has also seen active combat use by some of these operators.

Armée de l'Air is using this aircraft for the famous Patrouille de France display team.

Alpha Jet in Service by the Belgian Air Component, second largest mid-european user today.

SABCA Gosselies in Belgium finishes with the last overhauled Belgian Air Force Dassault-Breguet Alpha Jet these days. The history of the Alpha Jet and Sabca started in the late 1970s when the factory was responsible for the assembly of 32 (out of 33 ordered) aircraft that were ordered for the Belgian Air Force in late 1973.
In recent years the number of sightings of Belgian Air Force Alpha Jets was reduced considerably as in 2004 the first aircraft moved to Cazaux in France to be operated in the Belgo-French AJeTS (Advanced Jet Training School). In early 2017 the Belgian Air Force announced to end this collaboration and that future pilots would be trained in the United States instead. The future of the remaining Alpha Jets was uncertain, as the last flights of the aircraft were scheduled for mid 2019. At this moment 29 aircraft remain in service and as it appears now 25 of these aircraft will be offered for sale in small batches, the remaining four will be kept for preservation. Noteworthy is that the official authorization by the government still has to be given.
So far no possible interested candidates have made themselves known to the Belgian Air Force.

Belgo-French AJeTS, Casaux (F): AT01/02/03/05/06/08/09/10/11/12/13/14/15/17-33

Portugal has received 50 former German Luftwaffe Alpha Jets, withdrawn there fleet January 13th, 2018.