⚜ | Why did Switzerland have German Bf 109s? - Swiss Air Force in World War 2 (ft. BotR)
Why did the Swiss Air Force have German Messerschmitt Bf 109s and how did its neutrality during World War 2 play out in the sky? -
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⚜ Sources ⚜
Anthony Williams, Flying Guns of World War 2
Georg Hoch, Messerschmitt Me 109 in Swiss Air Force Service
Edgar Bonjour, Geschichte der schweizerischen Neutralitaet,
Gesellschaft der Offiziere der Flieger-Truppe, 60 Jahre AVIA-Flieger Sektion Bern 1926 - 1986
Jan J. Šafařík, Switzerland World War Two Aerial Victory Credits
Jean-Francois Bergier, et al, Final Report of the Independent Commission of Experts Switzerland - Second World War
Jonathan Helmreich, The Bombing of Zurich
Eric Golson, The Economics of Neutrality: Spain, Sweden and Switzerland in the Second World War
Friedrich E. Friedli, Stabsadj., Die Chronik der leichten Fliegerabwehr der Schweizer Armee,
Forschungsstelle Dodis, E 2809/1/2, Le Ministre des Etats-Unis d’Amerique a Berne, L. Harrison au Chef du Departement politique, M. Pilet-Golaz, 4 avril 1944
Forschungsstelle Dodis, /7162, Wiedergutmachung der von den Vereinigten Statten von Nordamerika verursachten Neutralitaetsverletzungs-Schaeden, 24. Oktober 1949
G. Ruegg/ ASMZ Sicherheit Schweiz, Flabwaffen und -Geräte
Karl Ries, Deutsche Luftwaffe ueber der Schweiz 1939-1945
Mark Kendall Wells, Lt. Col; Aviators and Air Combat: A Study of U.S. Eight Air force and R.A.F. Bomber Command, AD-A265 349
Markus Oehrli et al., Deutsche Heereskarte Schweiz 1:25000 - ein geheimes Kartenwerk aus dem Zweiten Weltkrieg
OSS, Memorandum for General Arnold by William J. Donovan, 10 November 1944
W. Koch/ ASMZ Sicherheit Schweiz, Entwicklungstendenzen bei der Fliegerabwehr (Schluss),
Swiss Mechanics Pictures: www.matthiashaenni.com/en/spe...
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Music and Sfx from Epidemic Sound
#MilitaryAviationHistory #SwissAirForce #WW2
Hey look, it's an ambulance 109!
Hellbender lol
It brings medicine in the form of bullets and tracers
It heals planes in the sky
I thought that if you put a red cross on everything...it means please don't shoot me, i'm a medic.
@@undeterminedchannel nope... It just dellivers 2*700-900bandages/mins and 300medkits/mins at a sizeable vellocity
Brilliant research work ! Best Regards from a former Swiss Air Force captain
Thanks very much! Happy to hear you enjoyed it.
@@MilitaryAviationHistory hey i love your mig 29 review excellent man
Resex
@@MilitaryAviationHistory could you do a video on the different routes allied bombers would take, the targets along with the resistances encountered whether they be AA guns, interceptors etc...and also germans reinforcing different routes etc...
You gotta admit, the Swiss camo for their Bf-109s is pretty sexy.
I wish it was made into a mod for War Thunder... Or at least a skin...
@@lupus67remus7 There's many you can download from WT live. Plus there's at least one on the market
I also love that nose-art that looks like a happily rabid chipmunk.
Especially that Shark/Wolf nose on the front.
Let's just call it a colour scheme, it's hardly a camouflage...
That poor soviet pilot. Considering the purges Stalin did and all the dead i can only assume that he got tortured and then either executed or sent to work until he died...
@LUNAR BLOODDROP Asking for Asylum doesn't mean asking to be put in a literal Asylum. It's a request for a country to take you in and protect you.
@LUNAR BLOODDROP bruh
@LUNAR BLOODDROP do you not know what that word means in that context
Maybe he was executed and then worked to death - just to make a point.
The swiss were very un-manly for doing that. Later they depend on the west to keep soviets at bay.
Luftwaffe air crew must be fuming mad, "why are our own fighters shooting us?!?"
And then they see the big swiss emblem and start swearing up a storm about the Swiss...
@@Conjeron are you german
You sold them to the Swiss.
So, when did that ever happen ?
@@sophiaestella5611 Quite a few times, most likely. You have to get pretty close to read the identifying markings, which is why captured aircraft were often completely repainted, so they were probably quite confused when the same fighters as their escorts suddenly started firing on them
I have prided myself on my WWII history, but am pleasantly surprised by your channel. You continue to teach me things I did not know, that I did not know, LOL! Thank you for all the work you put into your videos. Best regards from the US, Auf Wiedersehen!
Thanks David, glad you liked it!
Bis knows airplanes too well
The gentleman is indeed a master of extensive & insightful information.
Swiss neutrality is kind of like being at war with everything.
@Tom Garbo Plenty Americans did the same, including the family of a past US President
Winston Churchill wrote in 1944: "Of all the neutrals Switzerland has the greatest right to distinction...She has been a democratic State, standing for freedom in self-defense among her mountains, and in thought, in spite of race, largely on our side." That is why the Nazis despised Switzerland. Joseph Goebbels called Switzerland "this stinking little state" where "sentiment has turned very much against us." Adolf Hitler said that "all the rubbish of small nations still existing in Europe must be liquidated".
As a Jew I hate the Swiss. They close their borders to fleeing Jews condemning them to death and then facilitated the Nazis safekeeping of Jewish property.
@@Zwia. as a jew you are an ignorant too... Switzerland sheltered more jews compared to the size of its population than the USA or GB.. and did so when these countries close their borders prior to the war...
@@islandlife6591 Ridiculous, who hates Swiss?
The Swiss flew German BF 109s because they only had limited use for submarines.
*sees submarine in the sky* what the fuck?
U just killed me .... by laughing like a hell :o))
i think they had a coast guard, but only motor boats, not deep enough for submarines.
@@alfredloomis5051 the so called "Bodensee" would be deep enough for submarines but it also would be totally pointless, so, yes, they only have some boats for coast guard stuff.
Funny Dude.
Dude, 1k likes with no dislikes? Legend status: Bf-109.
5 Australians liked video 👍
Seems a dozen people disliked this just to try to soil that legend status
@@9skyman945 They always try. Never shall those salty bitches disgrace our beloved 109!
B Bader nah those are Australians liking it m8
Well your wrong
The Swiss doesn't need the biggest flak guns available since the shells are halfway to the plane as soon as it leaves the barrel; compared to a sea level shot.
Jerry Overfelt Low cloud and mountains, the best AA around.
Look at a map: the big mountains are in the south and east of Switzerland, the main population centres are in the north and west. If you want to defend the cities from the air you need to locate your ack-ack near the cities, where the hills are much lower.
@@jerry2357 But the swiss never intended to defend their large cities. The Swiss strategy was called "The National Redoubt". A very strongly defended area in the centre of the alps. There are/were about 28000 bunkers in Switzerland (although many of them are just fortified warehouses and storage bunkers) and about 70% of them are inside this National Redoubt. In case of an attack, the bulk of the Swiss Army would have retreated to the Redoubt and hunkered down (effectively abandoning the civilian population), preparing for a fight to the last man. Only about 10000 men would have remained on the borders, a kind of suicide mission to keep the enemy from invading the country as long as possible. Granted, it is a very ruthless strategy, but it worked in preventing anyone from attacking Switzerland since Napoleon.
Caringan Coystopitum: There’s a difference between defending the borders against occasional incursions from the aircraft of the belligerent nations and defending against an all-out attack. The video is largely about the former, not the latter, and that’s what I was referring to in my comment.
It doesn't work that way
A simple question, with a simple answer. The Swiss have, and still do seek out the best equipment for their defense forces. And the Bf 109 was the best fighter in "Continental Europe" at the time of its purchase.
Like I said, they probably couldn't buy P51's at the time.
Things probably didn't end well for that Yak Pilot the Swiss sent back to Soviet Russia.
If the Swiss told the Soviets about his attempt at defection, it most certainly did not. Stalin's orders were quite clear when it came to "traitors".
Imagine the pilot in one minute eagerly landing into freedom, then another waking up to a bright light held by the KGB....
@@terraflow__bryanburdo4547 then another waking up to a bright light̶ h̶e̶l̶d̶ ̶b̶y̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶ ̶K̶G̶B̶ on Skyrim World
TO: @@terraflow__bryanburdo4547
@Max Pain That would have been far more merciful. I expect his family would have been sent to the gulag or tortured and executed too.
My father was one of those interned pilots, though he did not land there, but rather escaped over the border in a '"borrowed" Adler instead. He was repatriated fast enough to go fly in Africa again and in Burma, after his burns from being shot down had healed. The Austrian hospital he was recovering in is now a hotel, and in the 1980's he went there just to see it. He was thankful to the Austrian people for helping him survive, and for the doctors and nurses who put him back together, after being found under a tree in a snowbank apparently dead. Helped that he spoke fluent German, just was in Glasgow in 1939, instead of Hamburg, looking to study, plus had a British Colonial passport. he found out in the 1990's just how the one German Ace had shot him down as well, watching Discovery.
So he was German born but went to study in Britain when the war started, or he was born elsewhere and had naturalized in Hamburg before going to Britain?
I absolutely love that you are probing the more obscure corners of WWII. Please keep it up and fill in the gaps. Instead of merely rehashing a massive body of work that has already been presented you really have the opportunity to add to our understanding of the conflict! Even though it has been touched on could you perhaps turn your gaze to Romania?
Romania or Sweden. Sweden was never invaded by anyone during WW2 just like Switzerland. It would be interesting to know why, given the Nederlands, Luxemburg, Belgium, Denmark and Norway were neutral too at the beginning of the war but ended up invaded regardless.
@@julosx Yes, aircraft around the periphery of the the conflict contemporary with the aircraft we are so familiar with. You can touch on obscure aircraft if you post a video encompassing a country or region and get enough views to make it worth it. .. well, I would watch it.
@@julosx The Germans invaded those country's because they essentially had no army and had no natural defenses. Any country can declare neutrality, but not every country will acknowledge it. In WW I the Germans invaded Belgium despite their proclamation of neutrality, the German foreign minster flippantly and clinically dismissed it "as a scrap of paper that got lost". I think the reason that the Nazi's respected Swiss neutrality was they had no real natural resources they wanted and that they did not want to get bogged down in mountain warfare. But perhaps the most important reason was the Nazi's used the Swiss banking system to exchange all the money, art and jewels they had captured to finance their war effort.
@@davidmarquardt2445 Your last sentence is reasonably the closest to the point. That also explains why Monaco was not *actually* invaded. I'm not so sure about Sweden though.
you have to feel bad for the American Ambassador Laughlan Currie, while laying a wreath for he victims of the Schaffhausen raid the USAAF dropped bombs on a town not ten miles away.
I know a story of a friend of my Granddad that lived in Schaffhausen that day. He forgot his wallet as he went to the train station, as he walked out to get back home to pick it up, just few seconds later the raid hit the station... thats mad luck
@@jotalopez3460 ....either mad luck or his guardian angel.
Something similar to what you described at 18:35 also happened in October 1944 in Germany. A B-17 was damaged during a raid on Merseburg and the crew bailed out there The aircraft flew another ~120 km with only one running engine before performing an almost perfect emergency landing.
do you have a source? that would be interesting to read a bit more on.
@@blackdeath4eternity Sadly I haven't found anything on the internet. This happened not far from where I live, so it's local history and the only sources I have are two books based on reports from witnesses and documents in local archives, obviously all in german. There's even a photo of the aircraft on the crash site, but I also haven't found that one anywhere on the internet. The plane was B-17G 42-102441"TNT Katie II" from 711th BS, 447th BG, marked K-IR, under 1./Lt Robert Harwood, yet the MACR report (number 9764) states that the aircraft crashed near Merseburg and contains nothing about the actual landing site near Barchfeld, Thuringia.
@@Oliver6163 ah... well that's to bad, thanks anyways for the interesting story & for looking for possible sources.
Look up KG200 (Kampfgeschwader 200) as that unit operated captured Allied aircraft, mostly for offensive training purposes.
A fascinating view of a little know part of history, in my case at least - thanks. Still loving the T shirt as well, it has survived the ravages of 'HM the Wife' and the washing machine, twice ;)
Awesome, thanks for buying. Glad you like it and the video :)
Absolutely fascinating. I would also like to compliment you on the production quality of this video. If this quality is maintained, I'm sure a television network would be interested.
Really interesting, and something I didn't know. Thanks Bismarck!
10:55 is that why Germans are now known for rucksacks and hiking boots? So they don't get recognised by Swiss train drivers next time? :o) Oh, and 'ello Bloke, fancy seeing you here *waves*
@@Reichsritter The Swiss are a confusing mess of a country as to confuse anyone who tries to invade it.
@@Reichsritter ye
Top notch work Bismarck! Vielen Dank!
Brilliantly detailed research. Thank you.
Fascinating stuff - keep it coming Bismarck!
A most informative look into a rather obscure topic of the Second World War. Learned a lot, the video quality is fantastic as always.
Thank you for this video Bismarck. It filled up a niche part of history that I hardly knew anything about. Especially Switzerland's Air force. Could you make a video about the Swedish Air Force during the war period or make a video about the Italian aircraft carrier Aquila's proposed air wing?
WoW !!!! What an excellent topic, about Swiss Luftwaffe, and their policies and performance during the WW ||. Quite interesting, I mean it !!!! Thank you so much, for that interesting historical material. Looking forward for much more. Yo !!!!
Awesome! Very detailed info! Thank u 4 share it!
Your video quality skyrocketed lately. And seeing how you use money of patrons to deliver the better day by day content is absolutely satisfying. Rock on, and know we appreciate it
I just can't understand why you only have 122K Sub'ed to you. You have such a great show, the hard work and editing you put in is astounding. Well done and I look forward to your show. I know it's the German way to make sure it's perfect, I get that but you go overboard every time. Please never stop doing what you're doing. We need more people like you producing shows as you do.
Nice documentary. Was nice to meet you in Lausanne last summer. The T6 driver.
Hey Eric, thanks very much! Was good to meet you too
Great video! Thanks a bunch!
Really enjoyed this guys, good job to all 3 of you!
Damn, i didnt know that Also, i like what youre doing with the different camera angles
I knew that since a long time, but im swiss, and i like to know about my countrys history :) Ok i mean in the end we made deals with everybody, we even helped via delivering a device that was used in the "bomb" to decypher the enigma. I need to re read what it was but i know it was a night flight in a very stripped down mosquito , yes over german territory. That was triple dearing at least... Ok also we forced down us bombers over our country too so... take that with a grain of salt :)
"Not everything comes down to oil" - LOL shots fired for some of the armchair historians who hang around KZhead!
If one thinks oil will replace quality weaponry and equipment available in great numbers, one is going to have a hard time.
@@Briselance but a complete lack of oil will make a great part of it almost completly useless
@Dalle Smalhals , heck, being Malaysian, I always thought it was rubber that was the most important factor that determined who won. :D
@@RajeshRavindranathan Synthetic rubber was one of the major technical achievements of the war --- made of petroleum.
@@rickvanveluw981 And lets not get started about his political science knowledge...
Excellent work, Bismarck
Very interesting video. Thanks for upload! :)
23:35 I never knew there were old planes like these within 1 minute drive from my home. I really have to go see all this. Very interesting and impeccable video.
I have read that when the various 109's were sold to Switzerland, they were supplied without their reflector gun-sights. This (allegedly) hampered the Swiss 109's in their air-to-air capability. They seem to have managed pretty well, if you ask me.
Yes, but actually the swiss military fits the majority of extra equipment to whatever they purchase since ww2 themselves - even the F/A-18 was bought 'half-empty' and filled with home-made electronics (after requesting a re-strengthened frame to begin with for higher g-force).
Vickzq the strengthened frame for the 18 doesn’t make sense, as American ones fly off carriers which is the biggest stressor on the jets. Also the hornet can sustain higher Gs than the pilot can so you aren’t gaining any capability, you are probably losing capability due to the increased weight. If they did modify the frames then it was most likely because the Swiss expect a significantly longer lifecycle on their jets compared to the US.
@@tl5606 nah, it was to sustain higher Gs with a centerline drop tank attached.
@@dunbar555 so they have different hardpoints? I’m not seeing anything anywhere that says that Swiss C/Ds are any different from other C/Ds. A reinforced structure and frame is a big deal and would lead to a different designation. The Swiss also list performance weights that are identical to American listed performance weights. I’m not saying that it didn’t happen, I’m just saying that the reasons given make literary no sense. It makes even less sense when it follows a completely incorrect statement about the electronics on the aircraft.
Awesome video, very interesting topic. Thank you!
Been watching you for awhile and your content is really improving, I really enjoy this format. I'd contribute on patreon but I'm dirt poor at the moment
Great Video! Very captivating despite knowing pretty much all of it already. The Me 109 Book by Georg Hoch is really great. I have the german version myself. Maybe you could do a video about Operation Tannenbaum (Proposed german Invasion of Switzerland) and maybe, if it isn't already in the Storch Video, make a video about the Rescue of the Gauli Glacier (Rescue of passengers from an American Dakota with the interned Storch)
JAJAJAJAJAJAJAJA :D
*YT has demonetized this video after only 30min. Please consider supporting the channel:* Patreon: www.patreon.com/Bismarck Now also on SubscribeStar: www.subscribestar.com/mah
Military Aviation History good idea to get out ahead of Patreon banning everybody for reasons they don’t even know.
You could compile a bunch of your videos into 1/2 hour episodes for Amazon Prime.
great video, by far your best yet
Interesting and fun good work my man. Looking forward to seeing more from you 😉
At that time it was difficult to buy Spitfires
Swiss are neutral and the Me109 is a good fighter. The British weren’t selling the Spitfire and Hurricane
Fascinating presentation. Thank you for your in depth research.
Your videos are always very well made and very interesting! Keep it up!
Thanks Ryan
Hochinteressant. Vielen Dank dafür!
Danke sehr!
@@MilitaryAviationHistory Ooh erm...Snitchnel..Nazi..Fuhur?
What is that? A Messerschmidt for ANTS?!
Matthew Carberry Messerschmitt, no DT at final...
Half as Interesting,right?
Even ants know a good aircraft when they see one.
Matthew Carberry : Right! Is has to be at least... THREE times bigger than this!
So the ants can defend themselves against anteaters.
most enjoyable Bis....Keep em coming!
Thank you for a great and interesting video!
American Zero, Japanese Spit everyone had each other's #$%*!
hahaha true dat
And German T-34 ::::::: captured of course, repainted with the German black cross, and sent to the Russian front to fight against the commies :o))
@@dasboot5903 exactly
And war thunder will happily make a premium of them
@@horuslupercal3872 "we will pay"
I'm curious, in the course of all these "air space violations" were any Swiss planes lost? Either by tangling with an uncooperative fighter or by return fire from the bombers they intercepted?
Yes - one was mentioned in the June 1940 events. But a small number were also shot down by US planes later in the war.
Listen again and pay attention !
@@welshpete12 Apologies I usually have these videos on in the background. I must have missed that bit :-p
Understandable, a 109 is a 109, adverse weather, speed or simply distance makes markings hard to see until the damage has already been done.
@@donfelipe7510 ...I GUESS THE AMERICAN PILOTS WERE COLOR BLIND!!!
My grandfather told me about allied bombing raids on Frierdichshafen that he could remember when he was a kid. One night there was an allied bomber (presumably British, unknown type though) that went down near his hometown. The next day, a few men were tracking down the crashsite and a few hours later they found the crew (don't know how many of them survived), hiding out in a cabin in the mountains because they didn't know they'd landed in Switzerland. This video was very intriguing because that is a part of history I've never really been able to hear anything on except from my granfather. It was really pleasant to see precise explanations on the rather interesting situation of Switzerland. Absolutely enjoyable video like always! Keep it up! ;)
Well researched and interesting. Good job.
More images and planes less you. 😂🤣😂🤣 still great video.
Extremely interesting history. Considering where Switzerland was it was amazing they could remain neutral, being smack dab in the middle of a continent at war. It could be said despite being neutral they were taking part in the war even if they were only defending their national sovereignty; shooting down planes with other fighters shows that they had experienced fighter pilots.
I really like the information here and the way it is told a great presentation !
@Military Aviation History *3D photo recon in WWII* I once saw a documentary on this topic 5 or 6 years ago but cant find it since. It featured a Spitfire and a V2 launch site photographed in 3D (using 2 cameras) and some viewing equipment which allowed 3D viewing of the target area. Never saw that doc again nor any mention of it. Would be nice to see something on that topic as it's very informative and rather unknown to most of us. Thanks for your excellent work, I really enjoy what you do. _Keep it up_
Can we get a tally of how many planes that Switzerland gain from people landing in their territory? Like they must have gotten a decent amount of free planes from all of this.
Probably enough to build less then five squadrons of mixed bag aircraft for the military assuming that their happy; with the lack of uniformed standardization. The fact that their flying aircraft that they don't have the schematics to reproduce themselves.
We didn't do anything with the aircrafts we forced down really. The US bombers that were forced down just stood there on fields for most of the war until the US came and picked them up afterwards.
The aircraft that could be repaired were flown out by the USAAF and most of the others were sold as scrap. The Swiss Air Force would buy 130 P-51D as replacements for the Me-109 for 4000 US$ each. Take a bargain when you see one.
I can't speak for Switzerland, but during the bombing raids of '44 and '45, so many American and British bombers, damaged by AA guns decided to crash land in neutral Sweden that the Swedish Air Force had to set up a commission just to deal with the massive amount of B-17s that littered the farmlands. During one particularly bad episode, three dozen B-17s and B-24s landed in Sweden during a 24 hour period. After the war, the Swedes offered to give them back to the Americans, but the Americans didn't really want to have to pay the cost for transporting massive bomber planes over the Atlantic if they were badly damaged anyways. So, the Swedish Airforce basically asked all museums "Hey, if you want any bombers, we got a ridiculous amount lying around" - Some museums said yes, but most ended up being scrapped eventually.
34mm anti-aircraft cannons? Now you're just being contrarian, Switzerland!
Toggle-locked too. Because Herr Furrer of W+F Bern was rather an obsessive with them! :D
That guy again! The only video on Forgotten weapons that made me literally angry was the video on his toggle-locked submachine gun, the MP-41/44. I can like a neat technical solution, and the toggle-lock has its place, but complicating a straight-forward weapon like an SMG, is just annoying.
@@Zajuts149 toggle-locked bayonets
@@bensutcliffe1975 I swear he would've made one
That's a great video, thanks!
Haha I love your videos; in no other channel have I seen visually interesting and educated content about this topic. Could you consider making a video on Heavy Fighters like the BF-110 or Night Fighter/bombers. Thanks so much for reading, big fan :)
That the tiny Swiss were shooting his mighty Luftwaffe aircrafts down! XD
jeej, bloke on the range!
Thank you for this extremely interesting and well researched video: this is a fascinating story that is too little known.
Fantastic. Only just seen this channel, subbed straight away.
Is that trainer the same kind we see on "The Great Escape" when James Gardner and Donald Pleasence try to fly out of Germany?
or the one in "Von Ryan's Express" (Frank Sinatra)
My favourite scenes are those ones and the ones with the Mcqueen stunts with that bike (I know it was a stuntman...) Cheers
Interesting watch. Much apreciated. I for one am not surprised the germans sold their "good stuff" - and in the early war, the BF-109 definitely was 'the good stuff' - to switzerland. The swiss were neutral and selling arms has allways ben a good way to bankroll arms development. There is a reason why germany was forbiden to sell arms after WW1. Interesting comment on the fuel situation. I knew oil and coal were a big concern for switzerland in both wars, but I wasn't aware that the situation was so dire that the air force only had fuel reserves for 20 days. fun facts: The dependency on energy imports from germany was on of the main reasons (or even THE main reason) why switzerland invested heavily into electryfying their railway net after WW1. And during WW2 they even converted two steam powerd locomotives to electric.
Yes, the air force fuel reserves were a big surprise to me as well. The Swiss also created stand in fuels but their corrosive effects were horrid.
New format is really nice 👍
Always interesting, thank you.
Doesn’t bother to put airfields near Italy...
Well, the south of the country is taken up by the Alps, so no place or need for an airfield there.
because... it's Italy... no need to worry. :D
TO: @@aaronseet2738 >> Yo :o)) You are so right !!!!
I thought Italian planes where actually pretty good
Actually there is the Air Base of Locarno, it opened during WW2, nowadays is used only by trainers and helis tho.
I'm not sure how I feel about all your sexy poses on the couch there Bismark. Awesome video, I really want to make a RC Swiss 109 now!
Danke für das tolle Video :D Beste Grüsse aus dem kleinen Kanton und weiter so mit deinem tollen Kanal !
I love the style of your animations! Sometimes i recognize the original picture, which makes it even cooler^^
Stats... mhmm... more stats... mmmmhmmm... 7.5mm.... of course they did... *sigh* Swiss
For some reason I had it in my head that the Swiss where one of the country's that built planes for the Germans prior to them openly admitting the Luftwaffe had been established in 1935. Probably a mistake in a book I read in High School. Thank you for correcting my history.
The Soviets definitely helped the Wehrmacht in the 20s
I think you could be quite right, but it is possible that the Swiss only had a vague idea. It probably was the same in the Netherlands.
Some German armament companies did set up in Switzerland to make the sorts of firearms that Germany was prohibited from having under Versailles. But not aircraft
i'm pretty sure there was no aircraft factory in switzerland before the second world war, at least none for real military planes. but what could have been happened that they produced parts which were used for airplanes in switzerland.
@@ReaperCH90 EKW in Thun was manufacturing military aircraft starting during World War I. And actually I was wrong, Dornier did set up a factory to make aircraft in Switzerland after Versailles. During WW2, the Dornier Altenrhein factory was taken over by the Swiss. Ironically, rather than any of Dornier's own designs, it was then used to make a Swiss-modified version of the French Morane-Saulnier M.S.406 fighter.
Interesting article I enjoyed the video. Thanks
exceptionally interesting video!
"it's interesting to see how quickliy ita- err i mean Switzerland has to reoriant itself" i see what you did there...
Hey it’s one of those blokes you’d see on the range
What an interesting topic. Thanks Bismarck, I really enjoyed this video and was more than surprised by the number of incursions. Especially that guy that was supposed to bomb Paris!
Great work!!!
No mention of the role Switzerland played in streaming the flow of aircraft fuel additive that Standard Oil supplied Germany all during the war. In the spring of 1942, after the United States entered the war, Standard oil had been selling aircraft fuel additive to Germany. Standard oil, who had the formula to turn coal into petrol, contrary to the myth of Germany having the formula, kept that knowledge from the American public until the 2000's but shared it with Germany prior to the war. The Federal Government told Standard Oil, today Exxon Mobile, they could no longer sell the fuel additive to Germany. Unlike Ford, GM, IBM and others who had factories and businesses in Germany before and during the war, Standard oil needed a way to keep the cash and the additive flowing to Germany. Standard oil did not stop as directed by the U.S. government, they simply imported it to Switzerland. Even though it is most likely that shipments were received in German occupied areas and were transported directly to the required facilities, someone somewhere in Switzerland was acknowledging or even receiving the shipments. The so called neutral country companies during the war, and several United States companies, made a lot of profit from the German war machine. Even the recently late 'Poppy' Bush's father, Prescott Bush, had started a business in Germany well into the war with a German partner near a large concentration camp where IBM kept track of most or all Axis business's payments to the SS for the slave labor. The freedom of information act here in the United States is a real eye opener on how this world really works.
@LX Forde -You are absolutely correct. GM also sues and had the US congress pay them for their damaged tank factory.
Wow....I mean did the bush family ever do anything for reasons of right...or was it always about power and/or profit. Just saw a doc where GHWB is said to have been in Dallas Tx the day Kennedy was killed. It shows more up to date bits where he makes contrary claims of where he was that day. And even where he references the assassination of Kennedy....and snickers about it (for real, he laughs about it smiling) ....but I came first for this doc, good job MAH
Don't forget the cargo ship from Hamburg full of Jewish Germans fleeing. America turned them away as did most countries did also. And what they did to Japanese Americas ! Shame on America and Roosevelt.
@@jamebrooke894 - Those were terrible things the U.S. government did. The U.S. has done lots of terrible things. Most countries have. The U.S. also interned, Italians and Germans at the start of WWII. As for the boat full of Jews being turned away by the U.S., they did not want to move to Israel like the majority of European Jews. The Zionist were trying to get as many Jews to move to Palestine as possible after WWI. In an agreement with Britain, they were to take control of Palestine. There was a statement by the Zionists in 1934 about the holocaust and European Jews, how they (Jews) would be willing to move to Israel after the upcoming holocaust. What did they know, who did they know and how were they involved?
@@ufxpnv Ford's plant the Opel blitz and coca cola!
7:57 - 1949...? Are you sure about that? You mean 1939 Also, it should be "His Majesty's government" as we had a King back then
love your channel mate
Dang this video is so detailed, I definitely want to watch more of this
It is NOT “remarkable” the Swiss obtained any Bf 109’s. The Swiss were the economic wizard of WWII Germany. Surprisingly, even the USA participated, but we don’t talk about it AND there are good reasons.
It is common knowledge that before and during the early stages American industrialists supported the reich against the world with war materiel. The reason - money. They are America's shame - swept under the carpet.
@@davidstokes8441 Yep, I heard that too, the Americans were selling arms to both sides until 1941 when post Pearl Harbour Adolf declared war on the US. I heard a warped version of that when working in West Germany (as it was at the time in the 1970s) when older Germans couldn't understand why the US declared war on them - they used to get very muddled about things like that.
@@alstokesveteranfilmmaker913 THOSE OLD GERMANS HAD IT EXACTLY BACKWARDS- IT WAS HITLER WHO DECLARED WAR ON THE U.S.!!!
@@daleburrell6273 Erm, I think that's what I wrote. I give up, New Years Resolution - never post replies on You Tube.
Did those saboteurs spend their rest of their life at Swiss jails?
No, if you mean the diplomatic Delegation. A Mosquito r also landed in Switzerland and was surprisingly blown up after Landing ;-)
BISMARK YOU MAKE IT INTERESTING AND FUN AT THE SAME THANK YOU.
Fantastic channel 👏🏻
Would have enjoyed real pictures of the stranger planes rather than profiles
Few people know that Swiss Bf 109s were actually made of chocolate.
...ISN'T THAT SWEET?!!
LOL !
G'Day BOR, we should catch with you and comrades later this year keep up the good work.
Really nice video :D
vive la suisse!
Molly was reReadmitted
Français!
If you think that's strange, look at the israeli ones
Israeli 109s, shooting down Egyptian Spitfires....
Israeli 109s, strafing Syrian Panzer IV tanks
They were Me 109 H and everybody agrees they were worthless and dangerous compared to some of their predecessors.
This was veeeerryyyy interesting. Thank you
That video is great! Thanks! :)
Thanks!