Professional Aviation Corps

Headquarters of the professional aviation corps at the Dübendorf military airfield

The professional aviation corps (BFK, French corps des aviateurs professionnels , Italian Corpo degli aviatori di professione ) includes the professional pilots of the Swiss Air Force .

Swiss military pilots were basically militiamen in the 20th century . During the Second World War there was a need for a permanently available, professional association to maintain neutrality. On April 4, 1941, the Federal Council decided to create the surveillance squadron .

The surveillance squadron was dissolved at the end of 2005 and the personnel transferred to the professional aviation corps. The command of the BFK is located at the Dübendorf military airfield , but there are no more combat aircraft stationed there.

The part-time pilots of the aerobatic teams Patrouille Suisse and PC-7 Team are recruited from members of the corps in the various air squadrons .

literature

• Rudolf Wattinger: From the surveillance squadron to the professional aviation corps. In: ASMZ, 2006, issue 9, pages 14 f.

Web links

• Official website ( Memento of April 6, 2016 in the Internet Archive )