The FDFA has to save money Swiss ambassadors will only fly economy in future

Swiss federal employees are actually entitled to business class on long flights. This has now been canceled for the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA). The Foreign Minister himself is also cutting back on flying.

Switzerland must save: Regardless of the duration of the flight, all Foreign Ministry employees will in future have to fly economy class instead of business class. This also applies to ambassadors and state secretaries, according to a spokesperson.

For very long flights to conferences, it is advisable to arrive a day earlier in order to be able to recover from any stresses and strains of the flight. Exceptions are only granted in rare cases and on request. The Foreign Ministry puts the potential savings at CHF 1.5 million per year.

Other ministries do not go along

Federal employees are actually entitled to business class for flights of more than nine hours or for connecting flights of more than eleven hours in total. This still applies to other ministries. Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis had proposed switching to economy for everyone, but was unable to get his way.

Cassis is also making savings when flying, said the spokesperson. However, at a different level: on scheduled flights, he does without the first class he is entitled to and flies business. He has to work on the plane and is usually ready for action immediately after arrival, which is why economy class is out of the question for him, said the spokesperson. When traveling to several destinations or to destinations that cannot be reached directly, Cassis and the other members of the government usually use the government's own aircraft.

dpa