46°10'46"N 006°09'51"E
Runway: grass airfield
Vessy airfield (Aérodrome de Vessy) was an airfield 130 kilometer southwest of Bern.
It was built in 1918, when at the end of the First World War, the city of Geneva, lacking an aerodrome, began looking for a large enough cleared land to establish an airfield. Vessy was proposed as the place for its generous open meadows.
In 1918 the first landing took place by Marcel Weber, a flight instructor at the Lausanne Aero Club). The war had only just ended and Weber was very eager to fly again to native soil after Swiss airspace had been closed since 1914.
A few months later, on Saturday 15 March 1919, Weber returned again to Vessy, this time to demonstrate the authorities possibilities of implementing of airfield there. Taking off at noon from the airfield of Lausanne Blécherette aboard an Aero-11 Biplane, Weber had to brave the wind, snow and fog, sometimes flying just 50m above sea level to reach Vessy.
Weber's insistence on the Vessy site proved decisive in the choice for the location and discussions between the Swiss state and the town of Veyrier began immediately. After engineer Adrien Piccioni released a favorable report in April 1919, the City Council announced at the end of May they would endorse the project.
On Sunday, October 26, 1919, the Association for Interest in Geneva (the current Geneva tourism organisation) organised one of the first (and few) demonstrations of public airways in the post World War environment. Former RAF captain and new chief pilot at the Aero Lausanne school, Eric Bradley, would pilot the Avro 504K two-seater to perform the first flights.
Having flown his own aircraft from England Bradley would train pilots until 1921. His Avro received registration CH-10, corresponding to the 10th aircraft registered in the Swiss civil register.
1919: Marcel Weber in a DH-3, during the time of the airmail line Zurich-Geneva. (Jean Plançon Pionnair-GE)
Marcel Weber (right, photo via Jean Plançon Pionnair-GE)
Ultimately, the Aerodrome Vessy project was abandoned. It involved the construction of a connecting bridge which never saw the day. Also, the mist and fog layers, formed largely by the proximity of the Arve, made the approach to this rather difficult terrain at certain times of the year very treacherous. The Vessy plan was abandoned in favour of a temporary ground at St. George, which would serve as an aerodrome until November 1920, when the definite decision for Cointrin was made. Did did not mean the end of Vessy's aviation history, however.
Although it was no longer destined to become an aerodrome, the small airfield Vessy was not totally abandoned. It continued to occasionally receive some airplanes passing through. In October 1927, the Swiss Aviation Club and TCS choose to use it during their fall automobile and aeronautical rally, which started at Cointrin. After a stopover in Malval (Dardagny), the field of Vessy was the second stage of a circuit which further comprised a step in Anières before competitors would return to Cointrin.
A Sopwith with a rotary engine, piloted by Captain Marcel Weber, would lead 25 motorcycles and cars chasing him, joining him at each stop.
1934: aerial view of the place used for landing looks like a runway (geoportail.fr).
Following the creation of the Group Aérostatique Genevois (GAG) in 1981 and after testing various locations, Vessy was designated to receive the first balloonists event in Geneva since 1922, to mark the bicentenary of 'lighter than air' aviation on 23 and 24 April 1983. The success of this event and the good adaptation to the local aerology redesignated Vessy for another great event in September 1985, the 29th Coupe Gordon Bennett gas balloon.
At annual celebrations of Geneva and during the recent "Montgolfiades" (2004-2005), several hot air balloons, helped by a favorable weather, rose from different places of the township, including Vessy. This place was chosen again for the start of the 53rd Gordon Bennett Cup Saturday on 5 September 2009, in connection with the 100th anniversary of the Aero Club of Geneva.
Vessy airfield does not seem ready to give up its aviation heritage!
Vessy on 5 september 2009. (Jean Plançon Pionnair-GE)
Thank you to Mr. Jean Plançon for his permission to publish this article.
Original article from the website (in french): La Mémoire de Veyrier
(research by Olivier)
Vessy 
Vessy