SWITZERLAND is to auction off its old and unusable Mirage III fighter jets, for a starting price of 3,000 Swiss francs ($3268 [AU, ~= $2,400 US]) each, the Defence ministry said. The 13 French-made combat aircraft will be sold to the highest bidder at an auction on November 26 in the central Swiss canton of Nidwald, the ministry said. Twenty-three of the army's Mirage IIIs were put out to pasture at the end of last year, after 35 years of loyal service, because they were no longer airworthy. Ten of the needle-nosed jets were snapped up by museums and the army has decided to auction off the rest following a surge of interest in the vintage aircraft, the ministry said. Next month's auction will provide a a second chance for would-be owners of ageing 15m bombers, who missed the boat when the Swiss army pensioned off another 29 Mirage IIIs in 1999. | It would be a cheap shot to ask if the Indian air force is interested, wouldn't it? |
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