Defending Baltic Skies : A Swedish Air Force Pilot's Cold War (386)

Cold War Conversations

Ian Sanders

Society & Culture, Documentary, History

4.8 • 758 Ratings

🗓️ 1 February 2025

⏱️ 90 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

During the Cold War Sweden outwardly maintained its neutrality, however from the 1960s the U.S. secretly promised to provide military force in aid of Sweden in case of Soviet aggression. As part of the military cooperation, the U.S. provided much help in the development of the Saab 37 Viggen aircraft. I spoke with Benke, a former Swedish Air Force pilot who flew the Viggen. He shares his path to becoming a pilot in the Air Force, the intricacies of flight training, encounters with Soviet aircraft during the Cold War, and the unique challenges faced by the Swedish Air Force. Join me for an insightful discussion that highlights the passion for flying and the realities of Cold War military aviation! Episode extras here https://coldwarconversations.com/episode386/ The fight to preserve Cold War history continues and via a simple monthly donation, you will give me the ammunition to continue to preserve Cold War history. You’ll become part of our community, get ad-free episodes, and get a sought-after CWC coaster as a thank you and you’ll bask in the warm glow of knowing you are helping to preserve Cold War history. Just go to https://coldwarconversations.com/donate/ If a monthly contribution is not your cup of tea, we welcome one-off donations via the same link. Find the ideal gift for the Cold War enthusiast in your life! Just go to https://coldwarconversations.com/store/ Follow us on BlueSky https://bsky.app/profile/coldwarpod.bsky.social Follow us on Threads https://www.threads.net/@coldwarconversations Follow us on Twitter https://twitter.com/ColdWarPod Facebook https://www.facebook.com/groups/coldwarpod/ Instagram https://www.instagram.com/coldwarconversations/ Youtube https://youtube.com/@ColdWarConversations Love history? Join Intohistory https://intohistory.com/coldwarpod Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Welcome to Cold War Conversations, the home of real stories of the Cold War.
0:06.2	This episode is brought to you by Sun Express Airlines.
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0:36.4	One thing they always said was that if you have a spitznals that comes to your home,
0:41.7	if you hesitate, then you're dead.
0:46.5	So what they said was should first ask questions later.
0:52.5	This is Cold War Conversations.
0:55.7	If you're new here, you've come to the right place to listen to first-hand Cold War
1:00.6	History accounts.
1:02.8	Do make sure you follow us in your podcast app so that you don't miss out on future episodes.
1:08.5	During the Cold War, Sweden outwardly maintained its neutrality. However, from the
1:13.1	1960s, the US secretly promised to provide military aid. As part of the military cooperation,
1:20.0	the US provided much help in the development of the Saab 37 Vigin. I speak with Benker, a former
1:26.7	Swedish Air Force pilot who flew the Viggen. He shares his
1:30.5	path to becoming a pilot in the Air Force, the intricacies of flight training, encounters with
1:35.8	Soviet aircraft and the unique challenges faced by the Swedish Air Force. I'm delighted to welcome
1:41.9	Benka to our Cold War conversation.
1:45.0	My father, he was a dentist, my mother was a dentist nurse.
	...

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