Landscapes in high mountains, a discreet and very framed alpine tradition – rts.ch

The plane filmed last Saturday landed and then taking off on a Mont Rose glacier made authorized maneuvers, but provided that they were practiced in one of the 40 mountain landing places officially recognized by the Confederation. If there is one in the Mount Rose massif, where the plane was, an investigation will have to determine whether or not the device was in the area in question.

These 40 sites, mainly located on glaciers, appear in the sectoral plan of aeronautical infrastructure. However, they have neither ground markings nor infrastructure.

Twenty-four of them can accommodate light aircraft like the Pipercub Pipercub who landed at Mont Rose. In French -speaking Switzerland, the Glaciers de Tsanfleuron, Trient or Petit Combin are concerned. However, the pilot has the obligation to ensure that the land is free before landing.

>> Also review the subject of 7:30 p.m. on the drama avoided at Mont Rose:

>> Read also: A plane narrowly avoids a group of hikers on a glacier at Mont Rose

A very supervised discipline

The Federal Office of Civil Aviation has no idea of ​​the number of private aircraft landing on the country’s glaciers. With his own admission, his statistics have not been aware of it for several years. But if it remains a niche discipline, it is still a discipline practiced regularly.

Access to these areas is limited to specially trained pilots. To get this authorization, you must accumulate 200 hours of flight, perform 250 mountain landings on at least ten different sites and pass a final exam with an expert.

In Switzerland, 277 pilots currently hold this authorization, according to the figures from the Confederation. Their plane must be equipped with retractable skis, essential for this type of land.

A discreet alpine tradition

Although undoubtedly less practiced today, landing in the mountains has a long history. Air rescue in the mountains was first carried out with planes with skis. They were then more efficient than the helicopters of the time. In 1946, a famous rescue by the air also made it possible to bring 12 passengers from an American military plane which had crashed on the Bernese glacier de Gauli.

>> On the Gauli crash, see the archive subject of “It was yesterday” in 1970:

>> To find out more about the Gauli crash: Crash in the Alps

The Valaisan Hermann Geiger was a pioneer worldwide in the high mountains in the early 1950s, developing techniques to achieve it. It was also the first to put an airplane on Mount Rose in 1953. Its objective was to develop mountain rescue but also to facilitate the supply of altitude huts.

>> See the subject of recomposed past devoted to Hermann Geiger:

Replacement with helicopters

Later, it was the more versatile helicopter, which has established itself for mountain rescue but also for tourist activities such as Heliski. A contested practice because helicopters who take skiers must land, such as planes, on these 40 official places.

However, the number of helicopter landings has doubled in the past 25 years. But it was mainly the flight flights that increased while the Heliski remained stable during this period. In 2023, just over 17,000 helicopter landing was announced by commercial companies at the Federal Civil Aviation Office. Half of them are used for the training of pilots. And this is the main argument put forward by the Confederation: these mountain landing places are necessary for the training of pilots, on which rescue and work in the mountains depend.

The other half represents tourist flights and these are these that environmental defense associations want to ban, because they are noisy and emitters of greenhouse gases. A petition was also given Tuesday by the Montain Wilderness Foundation to the Swiss Guides association so that they will give up this practice.

>> See the development subject dedicated to HELISKI:

Radio subject: Stéphane Deleury

Texte web: ther/boi