Mirage III will fly for the very last time in May

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She was considered the pride of the Swiss Air Force. Reached top speeds in excess of Mach 2. Pilots hailed it as the most elegant fighter jet of all time. We are talking about the Dassault Mirage III. The aircraft were used in Switzerland as interceptors and reconnaissance aircraft.

Now the jet should stay on the ground forever. The last flight of a Mirage III in Europe will take place on May 25 from Payerne VD. The Federal Bureau of Civil Aviation (Bazl) is retiring the fighter jet a little earlier than planned, the “Neue Zürcher Zeitung” (NZZ) writes on Friday. The last passenger flights would have taken place at the end of this year anyway.

Original engine aged

The reason: several parts had reached their expiration date, said Peter Egger, president of the association Espace Passion, the “NZZ”. Especially the original SNECMA Atar 09 C-3 engine. Unfortunately, there is no company in Europe that overhauls this jet propulsion, Egger tells the newspaper.

Until last year, the Mirage III departed about 24 times a year. Those who wanted to fly the two-seater exclusively could – but had to dig deep into their pockets. A ticket costs CHF 15,000 per person!

Scandalous story

The Mirage III had a checkered history in Switzerland. The tender led to political unrest almost 60 years ago and later to the resignation of the then Minister of Defense, Paul Chaudet (1904-1977). Because: when purchasing the jets, there was an unprecedented cost overrun.

A Parliamentary Commission of Inquiry (PUK) was set up for the first time in this country. Her conclusion was devastating. The commander of the air force and the chief of the general staff were then forced to resign.

Despite the purchase scandal, the Mirage III fleet of 61 fighter jets was the pride of the Swiss Air Force from the 1970s to the late 1990s. Ten machines crashed over time and had to be written off. In 2003, the military took the last 16 jets off the tarmac. (Okay)

Source:Blick