Swiss army, taking a break
BERN, SWITZERLAND – A team of four US military officers is carrying out a two-day inspection of Swiss military training courses and schools, 4-6 October. The inspection is the second of this type this year. The inspection was requested by the US, whose team is free to go where they like, accompanied by Swiss military personnel. They are visiting Ticino, western and central Switzerland.
The visit falls under Switzerland’s obligations as a member of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe. Member countries may request visits to other member countries’ military installations to obtain firsthand information about how well security and confidentiality are respected, as part of the 1999 Vienna Document. Sensitive military information is nevertheless protected during such visits, says Bern.
Swiss military jets leaving streams over the Alps during maneuvers for the World Economic Forum, January 2010
Sion, Switzerland (GenevaLunch.com) – An F-18 fighter jet 7,000 metres high and performing aerial combat maneuvers startled vacationers in the Swiss Alps and residents of the Sion region Monday 26 July when it passed the speed of sound. Military authorities at the Sion air base told ats wire service that although it is uncommon for pilots to do this in the region, there is nothing special or worrisome about it, and the pilot, concentrating on maneuvers, may not even have been aware of crossing that line.
The skies in Valais were noisy with military jets in training Monday but at around 10:20 a large boom that sounded like an explosion occurred, rattling windows.
Military jets above Swiss Alps, Valais, before World Economic Forum in January 2009.
Bern, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - More than 100,000 Swiss have signed a petition asking for a popular referendum to put a limit on the number of fighter jets owned by the Swiss military, a large enough number to now force a vote, the Swiss Chancellory announced Friday 26 June.
