The first flights of the helicopters done in Switzerland in 1947 and 1948 with the Bell 47B and the Sikorsky S-51 clearly demostrated their great versatility. Their potential as mean of transport and search and rescue (at that time considerable reduced if compared with the actual models) was immediately understood. Despite the limited performances of the first models, but especially despite the high purchase and operational costs, there were people that take the decision to invest money and hopes in this new type of activity still wrapped of uncertainty. Read the following stories and discover which were the first Swiss helicopter companies.
