Swiss authorities investigate alleged underreporting of Gsteigwiler helicopter flights
Monday 12th October 2026 on 20:30 in
Switzerland
Swiss authorities have opened administrative criminal proceedings against the manager of the Gsteigwiler heliport over flight figures that were allegedly underreported for years, SRF reported. The heliport, in the Bernese Oberland near Interlaken, is operated by Swiss Helicopter.
The heliport is authorised for up to 3,000 flight movements a year. Each take-off and landing counts as one movement. A residents’ group estimates that there were about 8,100 movements in 2025.
Residents complained to the Federal Office of Civil Aviation about helicopter noise and formed an interest group. After suspecting that the number of flights exceeded the authorised limit, members analysed data from the Flightradar online portal over two months. The group says skydiving flights are a particular concern, with helicopters taking off from Gsteigwiler, climbing quickly to 4,000 metres and landing again a few minutes later.
The aviation office says it regularly checks whether reported figures comply with the quotas, but does not collect its own flight data and therefore relies on the figures it receives.
Swiss Helicopter says the reported figures were lower than the actual number of movements and that it had given authorities and the public an inaccurate picture of the scale of operations and the resulting noise. The company says it cannot verify the group’s estimate of about 8,000 movements because it has no records of its own, and considers the figure significantly too high.
Since April, helicopters have also been taking off and landing in fields outside the official heliport to keep within the quota. Swiss Helicopter says this is permitted under aviation law and that it uses these locations only when operationally necessary. The residents’ group says the flights still create noise over residential and recreational areas. The aviation office says the use of these locations is legal, while a possible increase to Gsteigwiler’s flight quota is under discussion.