The law on neutrality prohibits Switzerland from allowing parties involved in a conflict to fly over its territory for military purposes connected to that conflict.
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The Federal Council approved three flyover requests from the United States in connection with the war being led by Israel and the US against Iran. Two other requests were rejected.
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Three requests in the context of the war in Iran were approved: one maintenance flight and two for transport aircraft. The government, however, rejected two additional requests, it revealed in a statement on Saturday evening.
The law on neutrality prohibits Switzerland from allowing parties involved in a conflict to fly over its territory for military purposes connected to that conflict. Humanitarian and medical transits, including the transport of the wounded, and flights unrelated to the conflict are permitted, the government explained.
Future requests that are “clearly not related to the conflict” can be authorised. However, applications for flyovers should be rejected “if they exceed normal averages and it cannot be determined what the purpose of these flights is”, the government said.
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The US continues to have an annual authorisation “for clearly designated state aircraft”. However, this authorisation excludes “in particular state flights that would constitute military support in the war between the US, Israel and Iran”. According to the Federal Council, aircraft outside of this list require individual licences from the Federal Office of Civil Aviation (FOCA).
Since February 28, 2026, there have been serious hostilities in the Middle East, the Federal Council said. War is raging between the US and Israel on one side and Iran on the other. The law on neutrality applies in relation to these states.
In this context, Switzerland has received several requests for US military and state aircraft to enter its airspace. The FOCA examines such requests, known as diplomatic clearances, on the basis of the Ordinance on the Preservation of Air Sovereignty in consultation with the foreign, defence and economics ministries. The Federal Council takes decisions on requests related to cases of considerable political significance while maintaining neutrality in the balance.
Translated from German with AI/gw
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