The Confederation's civilian fleet isn't flying enough

A little over two and a half hours per week. That's the average time spent in the air by the various aircraft of the Swiss civil aviation system in 2023. Meanwhile, in the same year, operating costs for the flight service of these four planes and three helicopters of the Department of the Environment, Transport, Energy and Communications (DETEC) rose to around 3.5 million francs. A cost-benefit ratio that the Swiss Federal Audit Office (SFAO) described as "unfavorable" in a study published Monday.

While 2023 was marked by engine damage to one of the aircraft and "significant maintenance and repair work on other aircraft, sometimes resulting in downtime of several months." But even taking these hazards into account, the frequency of use remained very low, at 2.6 hours per week, or an average of 137 hours per aircraft over the year. In its report, the CDF singled out a Swiss Safety Investigation Service (SESE) helicopter in particular, which flew 90 hours in 2023 and 124 hours in 2024.

To address the situation, the regulator has therefore proposed "reducing the size of the current fleet or abandoning it." In return, civil aviation could strengthen its collaboration with other institutions that use aircraft, such as the army or cantonal police. "This would allow for potential synergies and cost reductions estimated at several hundred thousand francs per year." The possibility of leasing aircraft rather than owning them is also being considered.