On 25 May 2012, Saudi Arabia ordered a total of 55 Pilatus PC-21s for military pilot training. Support for the training operation later became part of the Pilatus proceedings in connection with Saudi Arabia’s involvement in the war in Yemen. SECO authorised the deal; the aircraft were delivered and supported on site by Pilatus employees. In May 2009, the Federal Council approved a preliminary enquiry concerning the export of armed PC-21s to the United Arab Emirates. In November, the Emirates ordered 25 PC-21s; Pilatus records the handover of the last three aircraft on 30 January 2012. The order was worth more than 500 million Swiss francs. SECO issued an export licence. After RUAG hand grenades were found in Syria, Pilatus also had to temporarily suspend spare-parts and software deliveries, maintenance and warranty services for the aircraft already delivered in July 2012. On 20 April 2011, the Federal Council authorised the export of twelve Pilatus PC-21s to Qatar and the temporary export of two PC-21s that Saudi Arabia wanted to borrow for test flights. The decisions coincided with protests across the Arab world and Saudi Arabia’s intervention in Bahrain. On 23 July 2012, Qatar ordered 24 PC-21s and a training system from Pilatus. The delivery followed the controversial 2011 approvals for Gulf states. In 2017, Pilatus signed a five-year contract with the Saudi air force to support the PC-21s stationed in Riyadh. In June 2019, the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA) prohibited Pilatus from providing support services to the air forces of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, citing their participation in the Yemen war. In January 2021, the Federal Administrative Court overturned the decision and remitted the case: the Federal Council should have been involved in considering a possible exception on grounds of national interests. Because of suspensive effect, the ban had not been enforced during the proceedings. The 2019 decision had required around twenty Pilatus employees to be withdrawn within ninety days. The FDFA had already opened a notification procedure concerning the Saudi support services in October 2018. Pilatus said at the time that the activities were covered by a four-year general export licence issued in 2014 and had been explained to the FDFA and SECO in 2015. The FDFA, by contrast, said it had only recently become aware of the deal. The review concerned the notification requirement for private security services provided abroad. In judgment B-3427/2019 of 7 January 2021, the Federal Administrative Court distinguished the on-site logistical support prohibited by the FDFA from services provided from Switzerland. Warranty work, product improvements, service bulletins and certain technical support services from Switzerland were expressly excluded from the decision of 25 June 2019.