Finland's Air Force to Retire the Swastika

Finland's Air Force, now part of NATO, still flies swastikas on a handful of unit flags—but is preparing to phase them out, largely to avoid awkwardness with its Western allies. The history of the Finnish air force's use of the swastika, which since the 20th century has largely been associated with Nazi tyranny and hate groups, is more complex than at first appearance. It is an ancient symbol, and Finland's air force began using it many years before the birth of Nazi Germany, per the AP. Change has been underway for years. A swastika logo was quietly pulled off the Air Force Command's unit emblem a few years ago. But swastikas have remained on some Finnish air force flags, raising eyebrows among NATO allies, tourists and other foreigners who spot them at military events.

"We could have continued with this flag, but sometimes awkward situations can arise with foreign visitors. It may be wise to live with the times," Col. Tomi Böhm, the new head of Karelia Air Wing air defense force, was quoted as saying in a report Thursday by the public broadcaster YLE. The Defense Forces, in a Friday email to the AP, said a plan to renew the air force unit flags was launched in 2023, the year Finland joined NATO and two years after German air force units reportedly took offense during military exercises in Finland, but said it was not linked to joining the alliance. The aim, it said, was "to update the symbolism and emblems of the flags to better reflect the current identity of the Air Force."

Finland's air force adopted the swastika emblem in 1918 soon after country gained its independence after more than a century of Imperial Russian rule. Count Eric von Rosen of neighboring Sweden donated Finland's first military plane in 1918, which bore his personal symbol, the swastika. The Finnish air force soon after adopted a blue swastika on a white background as the national insignia on all its planes from 1918 to 1945, a period including a reluctant alliance with the Third Reich. After World War II, the imagery remained for decades on some Air Force unit flags and decorations as well as on the insignia of the Air Force Academy. The new flags will feature an eagle, the Defense Forces said, without saying when the change would happen.