Key facts
The Federal Office of Civil Aviation (FOCA) and the Swiss Transportation Safety Investigation Board (STSB) operate the flight service of the Federal Department of the Environment, Transport, Energy and Communications (DETEC) for service flights with an internal fleet of aircraft. These include work flights, proficiency check and acceptance flights, business trip flights, as well as instruction and training flights. The latter are used for maintaining or improving the level of training (so-called proficiency maintenance). There are four planes and three helicopters in the fleet. The costs for operating the flight service totalled around CHF 3.5 million in 2023.
The Swiss Federal Audit Office (SFAO) audited compliance with the Air Service Ordinance and the handling of possible synergies and cost-reduction potential. It found no significant deficiencies in compliance with the specifications. However, the utilisation of the existing aircraft fleet is very low. The economic efficiency of the aircraft used could be increased by reducing the size of the fleet, finding a leasing solution for individual aircraft and improving cooperation within the Confederation.