Liardon Francis
Francis Liardon was born on April 18, 1912, in Montherod, a former municipality in the Canton Vaud, which in 2021 was incorporated into the municipality of Aubonne.
After attending primary school in Montherod, he studied at the boarding school in Aubonne. From a young age he developed an interest in mechanics and aviation. In 1928 he joined the Vaud Section of the Swiss Aero Club.
After completing his initial studies he moved to Lausanne where he attended the engineering school. Later he continued his education at the Cantonal Technicum in Biel/Bienne where in 1933 he earned a diploma as electronic engineer. That same year he began his compulsory military service at the aviation recruit school in Dübendorf and earned his military pilot’s license the following year attaining the rank of lieutenant.
In civilian life he worked for a few years in Lausanne in a workshop repairing radios and electronic organs.
During the war, with the rank of captain, he commanded Fightersquadron 6 and flew with the Messerschmitt Me-109E. He engaged several times with airplanes that violated the Swiss neutral airspace.
In June 1940, during an aerial battle over the skies of Delémont, a bullet fired by one of the four German Me-110s he attacked pierced the cockpit of his Me-109E, grazing his head. On that same occasion, he forced one of the enemy aircraft he had hit to make an emergency landing near Laufen (BL).
Having achieved the rank of major, he served as a military pilot until 1952.
In 1947, he became one of the first Swiss pilots to fly the new jets acquired by the Swiss army.
Later promoted to lieutenant colonel, he served as head of territorial air defense from 1962 to 1967.
Between 1935 and 1946, he served as deputy director of La Blécherette Airport in Lausanne, where he also worked as a glider and aeroplane instructor.
As a glider pilot in July 1942 he set an unofficial record: he took-off from the Les Pléiades region (a mountain in the Swiss Prealps overlooking Lake Geneva), and remained in flight for 10 hours and 28 minutes!
In 1946, he was appointed civil aviation inspector at the Federal Office of Civil Aviation (FOCA) in Bern. His responsibilities included supervising pilot training for aircraft and gliders, instructor training, monitoring exams for professional pilots, IFR flight tests, exams for Swissair and Balair pilots, mountain flight supervision, and helicopter pilot exams.
He was himself an instructor and examiner for gliders, airplanes, and helicopters, an IFR instructor, mountain flying instructor, and seaplane instructor.
In the postwar years, together with his friend Willy Eichenberger from Neuchâtel — who for 25 years was head of aircrew at FOCA — Liardon distinguished himself for his vision and dedication. These qualities were recognized by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), which particularly appreciated their training methods, effectively adapted to the rapid technical advancements of the time.
Thanks to this innovative instruction, Switzerland became the first European country in the 1950s to authorize private IFR flights.
Aerobatic pilot
Francis Liardon was a highly popular pilot. He was several times Swiss aerobatic flying champion. On July 15, 1959, in Coventry, England, he earned the title of World champion at the controls of his Bücker Bü 133C Jungmeister registered HB-MIC.
In addition to this title, he won many other national and international accolades. In March 1978, he became honorary member of the Swiss Aero Club.
Helicopter Pilot
As a FOCA inspector on May 4, 1954 he began private helicopter pilot training in Belp/BE. He was trained by Leonard Kunz at the controls of the Bell 47G HB-XAE of Heliswiss. On September 27, 1954 he received his Private Pilot Helicopter license No. 12, followed by a Commercial Pilot Helicopter license.
While at FOCA he occasionally carried out VIP transports, including members of the Swiss Federal Council, as well as search and photographic flights.
On October 1, 1963 during a training flight at Belp airport, he suffered an accident which fortunately resulted in only material damage. During an autorotation exercise, he failed to level in time the Agusta-Bell 47G HB-XAV he was piloting. The aircraft touched down with the rear of the skids and then pitched forward causing the rotor blades to strike the tail boom. At that time he had logged just over 220 flight hours, mainly on Bell 47G/J helicopters.
Francis Liardon held the position of FOCA inspector until his retirement in 1977.
In 1984, at the age of 72, he accepted an invitation to participate in the Colombier airshow, the last of his long flying career.
In total, he participated in 130 airshows across Europe and the United States.
In 1987 a truly memorable event occurred: together with his son Jean (director of the “Les Ailes” aviation school in Geneva and a military pilot), and his grandson Serge, he performed a formation flight.
During his long aviation career, he flew over 100 types of aircraft — including airplanes, gliders, and helicopters — and accumulated over 7,000 flight hours.
Francis Liardon continued flying until shortly before his death on February 10, 1990, at Bern Hospital.
Those who knew him describe him as a strong personality, a direct person, with a very ironic sense of humor, and, of course, a men with a deep knowledge of the aviation world.
10/2025