Swiss fighter jets take off and land on the A1 highway
Published: Wednesday, Jun 5th 2024, 04:51
Volver a Live Feed
The Swiss Air Force is conducting a military exercise on the A1 highway between Payerne and Avenches in the canton of Vaud on Wednesday. For the exercise, called "Alpha Uno", the section of highway will be temporarily converted into a runway for fighter jets.
Eight F/A-18 fighter jets are expected to take off and land during the exercise, as announced by the Swiss Air Force. The aim of the exercise is to test and expand decentralization capabilities. Decentralization means the ability to distribute people and their material throughout the country within a very short space of time. One reason for this is the deteriorating security situation in Europe - the army wants to strengthen its defense capability.
The Swiss Air Force has three jet airfields in Payerne, Emmen LU and Meiringen in the Bernese Oberland. This concentration in just a few locations makes them vulnerable and susceptible. The Air Force therefore wants to check whether its fighter jets can also be used from improvised locations - such as highways - and can take off and land there.
After landing on the highway, the F/A-18 jets are prepared for take-off. This also includes refueling the aircraft, army spokesman Mathias Volken told the Keystone-SDA news agency. Among other things, the central crash barrier has to be dismantled. And for reasons of flight safety, special markings are required on the roadway. After the exercise, the crash barriers will be reinstalled and the road markings removed.
This work will be carried out by members of the army, civilian employees of the Federal Roads Office (Astra) and the cantonal police forces of the affected cantons of Vaud and Fribourg.
For the exercise with the fighter jets, the A1 in Vaud between Payerne and Avenches will be closed until 06:00 on June 6 at the latest. Traffic will be diverted via the cantonal road network. It will be difficult for spotters to follow the landings and take-offs on site, as the area will be cordoned off on a large scale.
©Keystone/SDA
Spanish 
English 
German 
French 
Arabic