Swiss Balloon Forces
Swiss military aviation began in 1900 with the creation of an observation balloon force. Swiss balloonists were first engaged in combat on 7 October 1918, near the end of World War I, when a German airplane attacked a Swiss observation balloon stationed close to the German border and killed the observer, Lieutenant Werner Flury. The balloon force was eventually disestablished in 1938 when developments in aviation made it obsolete.
Read more about this topic: History Of The Swiss Air Force
Famous quotes containing the words swiss, balloon and/or forces:
“You know there’s only two things more beautiful than a good gun—a Swiss watch or a woman from anywhere.”
—Borden Chase [Frank Fowler] (1900–1971)
“When I am on a stage, I am the focus of thousands of eyes and it gives me strength. I feel that something, some energy, is flowing from the audience into me. I actually feel stronger because of these waves. Now when the play’s done, the eyes taken away, I feel just as if a circuit’s been broken. The power is switched off. I feel all gone and empty inside of me—like a balloon that’s been pricked and the air’s let out.”
—Lynn Fontanne (1887–1983)
“The poorest man may in his cottage bid defiance to all the forces of the Crown. It may be frail—its roof may shake—the wind may blow through it—the storm may enter—the rain may enter—but the King of England cannot enter!—all his forces dare not cross the threshold of the ruined tenement!”
—William Pitt, The Elder, Lord Chatham (1708–1778)