Review of the presentation of the Armed Forces Dispatch 2025
The presentation for the Armed Forces Dispatch took place on the military training area in Thun from 24 to 27 March 2025. The purpose of the event was to present the systems and real estate applied for in the Armaments and Real Estate Programme 2025. Representatives from politics, industry, active and former decision-makers of the Armed Forces, representatives from the media as well as the administration were able to engage with the systems and real estate at numerous interactive information booths, in addition to the presentations.
Julia Krummenacher, Specialist area Communication, Strategic Staff
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Presentations
Strengthening the skills of the ground troops
In view of the current security political situation, many European countries are investing more heavily in their defence. This was emphasised by the Chief of the Armed Forces, Lieutenant General Thomas Süssli, in his paper, which opened the presentation of the Armed Forces Dispatch. He explained that the world was currently in a phase of geopolitical upheaval, in which the distance for hybrid conflict management barely plays a role. The latest conflicts make it clear why it is essential for Switzerland to invest in its defence, even if an armed attack continues to remain improbable. The forewarning signals for attacks are decreasing and it is becoming more difficult to forecast them. The 2025 armaments programme and the contingent credit it involves aims to close gaps in capability. The focus here is on improving equipment and networking the troops as well as on combating targets on the ground, in order to ensure trustworthy defence of the Swiss Armed Forces.
Challenges and price trend in procurement
National Armaments Director Dr Urs Loher highlighted the market dynamics of Swiss armaments policy in the second presentation. The Ukraine war has shown that conflicts do not, as assumed, only take place in cyberspace, but that heavy weapons systems and vehicles continue to be relevant. Modern systems and a great deal of ammunition are thus necessary for a Swiss Army with defence capability. However, procurement is difficult, as the armaments industry is developing very quickly and the prices are rising. Due to the fact that the Swiss armaments industry is small, cooperation with other countries is unavoidable, which, however, conflicts with Swiss neutrality. The lack of EU and NATO membership additionally complicates international cooperation, which means that Switzerland is often excluded by the international market. A robust political discourse is necessary to strengthen the Swiss armaments industry and to establish Switzerland as a trustworthy partner on an international basis.
Development tendencies of threat in Switzerland
Brigadier Daniel Krauer, Chief of the Military Intelligence Service, emphasised that many countries who found themselves in a military conflict characterised by technological innovations and rapidly overcome distances would not be able to survive for a long time. Even Switzerland is not yet up to coping against the new attack techniques, which is why adjustments in the defence industry are essential.
Defence against threats from the air
Colonel in the General Staff Manuel Meister, Commander of Development GBAD, explained that the threats are multilayered and various defence systems have both advantages and disadvantages. An effective defence therefore requires an overall system – an integrated Air Defence. Parts of these, such as the renewal of air situation sensors, the system for operational control (C2Air) and the long-range GBAD defence system BODLUV, have already been procured under Air2030. Further capabilities, such as medium- and short-range GBAD as well as partially mobile air situation sensors are to be expanded in the current armaments programme.
Inspecting the projects
After the presentations, there followed a tour of the exhibition, which demonstrated the planned procurements of the Armed Forces Dispatch 2025 on an interactive basis. At the booth «ICT in operation – secure, robust and resiliently digitalised» the IT infrastructure of the troops was replicated in order to visualise the planned expansion. Various displays and an interactive map showed the complex innovations and standardisations of the ICT platforms through cross-sectional services within the network. It was also explained how the new planned test and integration environment for mission-critical ICT on the military training area in Frauenfeld checks the interaction of the systems and applications before commissioning and how the replacement of the existing encryption solutions will contribute to new cipher procedures for information security.
One highlight of the exhibition was also the wheeled tube artillery system AGM Artillery Gun Module, which is to replace the 15.5 cm self-propelled howitzer M109. Together with its carrier platform Piranha IV, it could also be inspected from the inside. This system, compatible with the future Integrated Planning and Situation Monitoring Information System (IPLIS) is used for indirect fire support at medium range.
The use of drones is playing an ever increasing role in defence, as they can be used for exchanging information as well as for surveillance and reconnaissance purposes. As part of the planned additional procurement of minidrones, the Taskforce Drones, which was founded in 2024 to accelerate skill building in the Armed Forces in the field of drones, was therefore also presented in addition to the display of various drone types.
Another highlight was the booth on the DDPS Real Estate programme 2025, at which the various real estate projects were presented, including the new construction of modular accommodation on the Chamblon military training area. By means of virtual reality, interested parties could explore the new construction of the Medical Centre of the Region (MZR) on the military training area Monteceneri. Through the use of BIM data (Building Information Modelling), the life cycle of the building project could be digitally simulated and interactively changed.
Altogether, ten booths which provided information on the planned procurements were available to visit.