<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">The Swiss authorities have announced they will hire an extra 60 aviation specialists to improve safety in Switzerland’s skies.

The move comes amid a shake-up of the Federal Office for Civil Aviation (FOCA) and follows calls for an overhaul of air safety mechanisms in Switzerland.

Transport minister Moritz Leuenberger said on Wednesday that the government was responding to serious criticisms of the civil aviation office in the wake of a series of accidents.

The new appointments are just one of a number of recommendations made by a Dutch institute, which was commissioned by the Swiss government to review air safety.

This followed the Überlingen air disaster in July 2002 when two jets collided in Swiss-controlled airspace over southern Germany, killing 71 people.

On Tuesday an air traffic controller on duty at the time of the crash was stabbed to death at his Zurich home. Police are investigating a possible link between the two incidents.</font>