The Air Force wants to use the ‘Alpha Uno’ exercise to test whether its fighter jets can take off and land at improvised locations.
Keystone / Michael Buholzer
Swiss Air Force F/A-18 fighter jets will practice taking off and landing on the A1 motorway between Payerne and Avenches in canton Vaud on June 5.
The section of the motorway will be closed for up to 36 hours for the exercise, with the training area largely cordoned off, it was confirmed on Thursday. There are no longer any spots left for members of the public to observe.
The Air Force wants to use the ‘Alpha Uno’ exercise to test whether its fighter jets can take off and land at improvised locations. One reason for the exercise is the deteriorating security situation in Europe and the army’s goal to strengthen its capabilities.
For the exercise, the motorway will be converted into a runway for which, among other things, the central crash barrier will have to be dismantled.
This exercise is not a first for the Swiss Air Force. Similar tests were carried out ten times on national roads during the Cold War, an army spokesperson said.
Adapted from German by DeepL/kp
This news story has been written and carefully fact-checked by an external editorial team. At SWI swissinfo.ch we select the most relevant news for an international audience and use automatic translation tools such as DeepL to translate it into English. Providing you with automatically translated news gives us the time to write more in-depth articles.
If you want to know more about how we work, have a look here, and if you have feedback on this news story please write to english@swissinfo.ch.
External Content
Your subscription could not be saved. Please try again.
Almost finished… We need to confirm your email address. To complete the subscription process, please click the link in the email we just sent you.
Popular Stories
More
Multinational companies
Azeri fossil-fuel cash cow brings controversy to Switzerland
Swiss price watchdog slams excessive prices for generic medicines
This content was published on
The cheapest generic medicines available in Switzerland are more than twice as expensive as in other countries, according to a study by the Swiss price watchdog.
Nature should not figure in net zero calculations: academic study
This content was published on
The natural removal of CO2 from the atmosphere by forests or oceans should not be included in the net-zero balance of climate protection measures, argue researchers.
This content was published on
None of the 15 major Swiss retail banks is meeting international climate and biodiversity targets, according to a ranking by WWF Switzerland.
This content was published on
Nestlé's new CEO Laurent Freixe, has presented plans for the future of the world's largest food company, after his first few weeks in office.
Swiss foreign minister calls on Moscow to end Ukraine war
This content was published on
It's high time Moscow ended its war against Ukraine, Swiss foreign minister Ignazio Cassis tells the UN Security Council.
This content was published on
The only alternative to the UN Palestinian agency’s work in Gaza is to allow Israel to run services there, Philippe Lazzarini, UNRWA Commissioner-General, told reporters in Geneva on Monday.
Study reveals food culture differences between Switzerland and neighbours
This content was published on
Three-quarters of Swiss people consider eating to be a pleasurable, social activity, a new survey reveals. Healthy eating, however, plays a much less important role, it found.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.