A close-up of a swastika on the tail of an old Finnish fighter aeroplane. Source: Wikimedia Commons, JIP, CC BY-SA 3.0
Despite the fact there is no direct connection to Nazi symbolism, Finland feels awkward about the remaining swastikas on its Air Force flags. It is believed the primary reason is that Finland wishes to avoid misunderstandings with its NATO allies.
“The traditional von Rosen swastika emblem, in use since 1918, has already been removed from most other Air Force emblems during earlier reforms, so its removal from the unit flags is a logical continuation of this work,” says the Finnish Air Force statement.
New Symbols
The process of symbolic renewal was started in 2023, but, according to Finnish officials, it was not connected to the process of joining the North Atlantic Treaty; rather, it was an attempt to “better reflect the current identity of the Air Force.” Finnish media, on the other hand, portrayed the issue as the remaining swastikas being an “embarrassing symbol in international contexts.”
Instead of the swastikas, the Finnish Air Force began to introduce new symbolism in 2017. The chosen symbol is a golden eagle, which is also being introduced. Back then, however, the replacement was commenced discreetly and with an apparent avoidance of public discussion.
New symbol of the Finnish Air Force
The Controversy Behind Finnish Swastikas
Despite the fact that there is no direct link to Nazism and the swastika in Finland, the Finnish community seems to be divided on whether the old symbolism should be affiliated with it. The difference between the German and Finnish swastikas is that the Finnish symbol is positioned straight, not tilted by 45 degrees. Furthermore, its original meaning is that of a good luck symbol.
The cornerstone of this debate is that Count Eric von Rosen, who introduced the symbol for the first time before the Nazis in Germany, was, after all, connected to prominent figures in German history. Von Rosen was a brother-in-law to Hermann Göring and used the swastika as a personal symbol. See, for example, the 1935 poster where the count was the main speaker.
Therefore, a certain association with Nazism and swastikas exists, which makes it possible to utilise the symbol with ill intent. This makes the issue rather pressing and continues to introduce it into public discussion, especially in an international context.