List of aircraft of Switzerland in World War II

Last updated

This is a list of aircraft of the Swiss Air Force during World War II. During World War II, despite Switzerland being neutral throughout, Swiss pilots did engage with axis and allied aircraft to defend Swiss airspace.

Contents

Fighters

Ground attack

Bombers

Liaison or army cooperation

Trainers

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fieseler Fi 156 Storch</span> German liaison aircraft

The Fieseler Fi 156 Storch was a liaison aircraft designed and produced by the German aircraft manufacturer Fieseler. Its nickname of Storch was derived from the lengthy legs of its main landing gear, which gave the aircraft a similar appearance to that of the long-legged, big-winged bird.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Messerschmitt Bf 109</span> German WWII fighter aircraft family

The Messerschmitt Bf 109 is a German World War II fighter aircraft that was, along with the Focke-Wulf Fw 190, the backbone of the Luftwaffe's fighter force. The Bf 109 first saw operational service in 1937 during the Spanish Civil War and was still in service at the end of World War II in 1945. It was one of the most advanced fighters when it first appeared, with an all-metal monocoque construction, a closed canopy, and retractable landing gear. It was powered by a liquid-cooled, inverted-V12 aero engine. It was called the Me 109 by Allied aircrew and some German aces, even though this was not the official German designation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Messerschmitt Bf 108 Taifun</span> German sport and touring aircraftdeveloped in Germany in the 1930s

The Messerschmitt Bf 108 Taifun was a German single-engine sport and touring aircraft, developed by Bayerische Flugzeugwerke in the 1930s. The Bf 108 was of all-metal construction.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Morane-Saulnier</span> French aircraft manufacturer (1911–1966)

Aéroplanes Morane-Saulnier was a French aircraft manufacturing company formed in October 1911 by Raymond Saulnier and the Morane brothers, Léon and Robert. The company was taken over and diversified in the 1960s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Morane-Saulnier M.S.406</span> Type of aircraft

The Morane-Saulnier M.S.406 is a French fighter aircraft developed and manufactured by Morane-Saulnier starting in 1938. It was France's most numerous fighter during the Second World War and one of only two French designs to exceed 1,000 in number. At the beginning of the war, it was one of only two French-built aircraft capable of 400 km/h (250 mph) – the other being the Potez 630.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Royal Netherlands East Indies Army Air Force</span> Military unit

The Royal Netherlands East Indies Army Air Force was the air arm of the Royal Netherlands East Indies Army in the Dutch East Indies from 1939 until 1950. It was an entirely separate organisation from the Royal Netherlands Air Force.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Morane-Saulnier MS.230</span> Type of aircraft

The Morane-Saulnier MS.230 aircraft was the main elementary trainer for the French Armée de l'Air throughout the 1930s. Almost all French pilots flying for the Armée de l'Air at the outbreak of World War II had had their earliest flight training in this machine. It was the equivalent of the Stearman trainer in the United States air services and the de Havilland Tiger Moth in the British Royal Air Force.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Air Force of the Independent State of Croatia</span> WW2 military service branch

The Air Force of the Independent State of Croatia, was the air force of the Independent State of Croatia (NDH), a puppet state established with the support of the Axis Powers on the territory of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia during World War II. The ZNDH was founded under German authority in April 1941, following the German-led Axis invasion of Yugoslavia.

The history of the Swiss Air Force began in 1914 with the establishment of an ad hoc force consisting of a handful of men in outdated and largely civilian aircraft. It was only in the 1930s that an effective air force was established at great cost, capable of inflicting several embarrassing defeats on the Nazi Luftwaffe in the course of an initially vigorous defence of neutral Swiss airspace. The Swiss Air Force as an autonomous military service was created in October 1936. After World War II it was renamed the Swiss Air Force and Anti-Aircraft Command and in 1996 became a separate service independent from the Army, under its present name Schweizer Luftwaffe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Morane-Saulnier MS.130</span> Type of aircraft

The Morane-Saulnier MS.129 and its derivatives in the MS.130 series were a family of military trainer aircraft produced in France in the 1920s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Morane-Saulnier MS.180</span> Type of aircraft

The Morane-Saulnier MS.180 is a single engine, single parasol wing aerobatic trainer designed in France in 1929. About seventeen were produced and used in French flying clubs, some surviving World War II and one remaining in use at a club until the 1970s. Before World War II, some were used by Spanish Republican forces to train pilots in the Spanish Civil War. Two MS.181s are still flying.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flieger Flab Museum</span> Aviation museum in Dübendorf, Switzerland

The Flieger Flab Museum is located in the Canton of Zurich in Dübendorf on the grounds of Dübendorf Air Base. In the museum, 40 airplanes and helicopters are displayed, with the collection divided into distinct eras: pioneers and World War I, the 1930s, World War II and the postwar period, the beginning of the jet age, the development of jet fighters, the Cold War, and arms reduction.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Renault 6Q</span> 1930s French piston aircraft engine

The Renault 6Q, also called the Renault Bengali 6, is an air-cooled inverted in-line six-cylinder, aircraft piston engine, producing about 160 kW (220 hp) continuous power. It was designed and built in France and produced for more than ten years after its homologation in 1936, with large numbers built during World War II.

References

  1. ⚜ | Why did Switzerland have German Bf 109s? - Swiss Air Force in World War 2 (ft. BotR) , retrieved 2021-05-13
  2. "Luftwaffe Resource Center - Bombers - A Warbirds Resource Group Site". www.warbirdsresourcegroup.org. Retrieved 2021-05-13.
  3. "File:Swiss Air Force Messerschmitt Bf 108.jpg - Wikimedia Commons". commons.wikimedia.org. 27 January 2008. Retrieved 2021-05-15.
  4. "Morane-Saulnier MS.230 - Specifications - Technical Data / Description". www.flugzeuginfo.net. Retrieved 2021-05-15.
  5. "Bucker Bu-131 Jungmann – Germany Returns to the Sky". Pickled Wings. 2013-12-30. Retrieved 2021-05-15.