AIR14 - 100th anniversary of the Swiss Air Force - Switzerland PART 4 - 7th of September 2014

Almost 400'000 people helped make the air show a great success, celebrating 100 years of Swiss military aviation, 50 years of Patrouille Suisse and 25 years of PC-7 TEAM.

In 184 displays, pilots from all over the world flew a grand total of 50 hours during the two AIR14 weekends and the much-visited training days in-between. "It was simply magical" says the director of AIR14, General Staff Colonel Ian Logan. "We wanted to pay tribute to our aviation history and I believe we've done so spectacularly."

At least 2'000 military personnel, mostly militia, were on duty on every flight day. Ian Logan especially thanked the many volunteers and civilian services: they helped ensure the success of AIR14 in numerous ways. The volunteers alone contributed over 4800 working days.

Most visitors arrived by car. The final count is 81'200 vehicles in AIR14 parking during the entire event. Traffic jams were inevitable with this many cars, especially in the morning.

Close to 75'000 people travelled by train. According to SBB spokesman Frédéric Revaz, public transportation worked well. The SBB used 138 chartered trains and added extra coaches in order to accommodate more passengers. The AIR14 organizers are very proud of the fact that 15'000 bicycles found their way to AIR14.

Medical teams helped more than 860 visitors with health issues. Ten cases were classified severe, necessitating five helicopter evacuations. According to officials this is a very low number regarding the size of the event.

General Staff Colonel Simone Rossi, Head of Security AIR14, says issues were mainly related to the high temperatures. "The security forces and their deployment worked well during AIR14 and had good response times" says Rossi. The collaboration with civilian services and the police departments of the cantons of Vaud and Fribourg worked very well. The AIR14 visitors were definitely on their best behaviour. (source: www.air14.ch)