s in 1991 The Patrouille Suisse was founded on 22 August 1964 with four
Hawker Hunters. Two displays were also flown 1968 with the
Dassault Mirage III under the name "Patrouille de Suisse Mirage". Other than those shows the Patrouille Suisse retained the Hunter. In 1970, a fifth aircraft was added to the team, followed by the sixth shortly thereafter. In 1977 a smoke system was introduced. The Patrouille Suisse flew its Hawker Hunters for the last time in 1994 and transitioned to the faster and more maneuverable
Northrop F-5E Tiger II adding smoke systems in 1996. In April the following year, a
Pilatus PC-6 Porter single-engine
turboprop light aircraft was assigned as a support aircraft, painted in the team's colour scheme. In February 2013, the Swiss Minister of Defence,
Ueli Maurer, stated that the Patrouille Suisse would be disbanded by early 2016 due to the withdrawal of the F-5 from service. The Swiss parliament decided not to purchase 22
Gripen E replacement aircraft. In summer of 2014, the Swiss Air Force released plans to move from six F-5Es to four
F/A-18Cs by the end of 2016. To facilitate these reduced operations, fewer air displays would be flown and, as a result, the aircraft were unlikely to receive special paint. Swiss Air Force and the Swiss parliament planned to extend the service of eighteen F-5E and four F-5F until 2018. This would also include the continued operation of the Patrouille Suisse flying the F-5E until 2018. A unique Flight Demonstration was performed by the Patrouille Suisse on 7 September 2014 at the
Air14 Air Show at
Payerne Air Base as they flew a 15-plane display with the
PC-7 Team.
Accidents On 9 June 2016, two of the Northrop F-5E Tiger II's collided in mid-air, while training for the
Royal Netherlands Air Force Open Days airshow at
Leeuwarden Air Base. One aircraft crashed in a pond near
Beetgum after the pilot safely ejected, while the other was damaged, but landed safely. Following investigation, errors by Patrouille Suisse pilots were found to be the cause of the crash, with prosecutors citing overconfidence as a factor. On 15 June 2023, two Patrouille Suisse aircraft made contact during a training flight for a performance at the Federal
Yodeling Festival in
Baar, Zug. The
nose cone of one aircraft was severed by the collision and impacted a house, breaking windows and injuring one person on the ground. A
braking parachute was also deployed by the collision which also fell to the ground. The involved aircraft were able to land with no further incidents and without injuries to the pilots. in 2010 ==Aircraft==