AIR14 Payerne - Celebrating 100 Years of Swiss Air Force

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2014 is a big year for the Swiss Air Force – and aviation fans can draw the benefits from various events and displays across Switzerland. This year, Swiss military aviation is celebrating their 100 year anniversary, the Patrouille Suisse team their 50th, and the PC-7 team their 25th.

The Pilatus PC-7 Team

As the official ambassadors of the Swiss Air Force, the Pilatus PC-7 Team keeps taking my breath away every time. I have had several opportunities to experience their aerobatic formations with names such as Cuban Eight, Matterhorn, Tango, Tunnel or Melkstuhl (milking stool)...

On a hot day this June, the military airfield in Dübendorf near Zürich hosted an open day celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Swiss Air Force I stumbled across it on my way home from work and ended up spending three hours there!

A highlight of the event was the aerobatic performance and subsequent landing and taxiing of the Pilatus PC-7 Turbo Trainer airplanes. Their airshow was simply stunning, but greeting the seven airdevils up close was something else...

AIR14 Payerne Airshow

At AIR14 Payerne, the much coveted airshow in western Switzerland, the Pilatus PC-7 Team will be performing once again. Their striking formations have been described as "ballet in mid air", which I think is spot on!

On two consecutive weekends, no less than four individual programs await aviation fans (of all ages). A wide range of aircraft and aerobatic teams will take to the air, including cutting-edge military and civilian teams.

Apart from the PC-7 Team airshow, we are especially excited about the flypast of an A330 from Swiss International Air Lines on both Saturdays...

So, grab your cameras (and earplugs) and direct your attention to the skies above Switzerland!