The pilots would fly lower, in larger units and do increasingly advanced exercises.
Although Sweden did not take part in any war, tensions were high during the Cold War period 1946-1991.
- They would be the spearhead in the defense against the attack from the Soviet Union, which was expected to come more or less at any time, says Mikael Nilsson, associate professor of history, in the documentary Dad and the Cold War.
“Must be prepared for breakdowns”
During the Cold War, 550 fighter pilots in the Swedish Air Force died during ordered flights, according to the documentary.
- A human life is irreplaceable.
But if you are going to do exercises that are reasonably realistic, you must be prepared for accidents to occur, says Sven-Olof Olsson, who was Air Force Chief during the years 1982–1988.
Survived the crash
The fighter pilot Ola Gynäs survived when his plane crashed due to a broken wing in 1974.
- All of a sudden, the world stopped at about 3,500 meters.
There it suddenly became black, he says in the documentary Dad and the Cold War.
In the clip above, Ola Gynäs tells about how he survived the crash.
“Unthinkable with similar situation today”
The historian Mikael Nilsson believes that the real idea of flight safety came only after the end of the Cold War and the introduction of Jas.
- Now air safety is something that dominates the thinking within the air force.
It is more or less unthinkable with a similar situation today.
Do you want to know more about the accidents in the Swedish Air Force that cost many lives during the Cold War? Watch the documentary Dad and the Cold War, Wednesday 9 June at 20.00 on SVT1, or already now on SVT Play.