Finland's air force is moving to remove swastikas from its flags, partly due to the awkwardness it creates with Western allies.

HELSINKI – Finland's Air Force Command has discreetly dropped a swastika logo from its unit emblem — after a century — and replaced it with a neutral insignia featuring a golden eagle. Gen. Jari Mikkonen at Air Force Command Finland acknowledged Thursday to The Associated Press that the historical swastika emblem had caused confusion among international colleagues over the years. “Undeniably, we’ve had to explain from time to time the history of the (Finnish Air Force) swastika that dates back to 1918,” Mikkonen said. The Finnish Air Command swastika emblem dated back to March 1918, when the Finnish Air Force was created. The Finnish air force soon after adopted the symbol — a blue swastika on a white background — and used it as the national insignia on all its planes from 1918 until 1945.