Airmail Braunschweig
The airmail was early on a popular philatelic specialty. The following article describes the eventful history of air traffic in Braunschweig .
Balloon rides
The first manned flight in the Braunschweig area took place on August 10, 1788 in front of the ramparts of Braunschweig by the French balloonist Jean-Pierre Blanchard (1753-1809). The start took place between the Wendentor and the Fallersleber Tor . Today there are buildings of the Technical University of Braunschweig on this site in the Braunschweig Nordstadt . The writer Adolph Knigge (1752–1796) processed the event into his novel Die Reise nach Braunschweig (1792).
As early as 1784, an unmanned balloon ascent by the Brunswick citizen Professor Zimmermann and pharmacist Heyer took place. In 1818, Wilhelmine Reichard from Brunswick rose in a gas-filled balloon .
The Braunschweigische Landeszeitung reported on March 2, 1913 about the launch of two balloons, the "Braunschweig II" and the "Continental II", from the gas works on Taubenstrasse. Two hours were allotted for filling the balloons. The same issue emphasized the central position that Braunschweig could have in German airship traffic if the airport were to have an airship hangar. It was the heyday of airship travel. A lot was still expected from the balloon and the zeppelin.
Airmail in Braunschweig 1910 to 1945
"Salzdahlumer Straße" airport
The large parade ground on Salzdahlumer Strasse (now the golf course) served as the first Braunschweig airfield. An airplane was seen here for the first time in September 1910. As a precaution, the plane had been brought in by train and was only set up for operation on site. Then it made a few laps around the square. “The Braunschweiger streamed up en masse held their breath. Partly anyway, partly to avoid violent air movements ”.
The first German mail transport by air was carried out on June 11, 1912 at 7:04 pm by Lieutenant von Hiddelsen with his Euler aircraft "Yellow Dog". In a bag sealed by the Reichspost he carried 20,000 letters and postcards from Frankfurt am Main to Darmstadt; It reached an altitude of 900 to 1500 meters. The flight took 13 minutes and 20 seconds. After a short stay he flew on to Worms. Post offices had been set up on the airfield in both Frankfurt and Darmstadt. It was a charity event. It was under the patronage of the Grand Duchess of Hesse.
At the same time, the flight race Berlin - Vienna was held, in which the pilots Hirth, Blaschke, Bergmann and Krieger delivered an exciting competition. Only Hirth reached the prescribed airfield and was the winner. Prince Heinrich congratulated him on his (second) great success.
The parade ground in Braunschweig soon became an approach point for a wide variety of overland flights. Initially, the audience noticed a lot, but the arrival of the participants in the “Northwest German Round Flight ” and the “ Prince Heinrich Flight ” made planes a familiar sight.
On August 29, 1912, the Zeppelin LZ 13 “Hansa” landed (mail dropped) (Hamburg - Braunschweig - Hamburg). The regent of the Duchy of Braunschweig, Duke Johann Albrecht, and his wife, Duchess Elisabeth, were on board . A real landing with delivery of the mail by the "Hansa" took place on October 13, 1912 (Hamburg - Braunschweig - Gotha).
"Aerkeröder Feld" airfield
The Braunschweiger soon realized how important a connection to the flight network could be for the city. As early as 1912, an application was made to the War Ministry in Berlin for “construction of an airship hangar in Braunschweig”. An "Airship Association" had been founded in the city. He had suggested the "Aerkeröder field" belonging to the chamber property as a suitable site. The 48 hectare area was located south of the Dowesees between the Bienroder Weg and the Mittelweg.
The state parliament approved the facility on April 17, 1913. The city, itself the owner of part of the site, bought the missing site on October 3, 1913 for 200,000 marks from the monastery and study fund. Three weeks beforehand, a “GmbH. Braunschweig Airport ”.
In July 1914 the newspaper announced: “ The airship hangar is to be opened on April 15, 1915; the construction has now been commissioned ... The airport will also serve as a flight base. It is also intended to use a company that is involved in the construction of aircraft ”.
The shots in Sarajevo had already been fired , however, and the war that followed, which they sparked, caused these plans to be forgotten.
"Broitzem" airfield
On June 2, 1916, the city approved a contract with the Reich Military Treasury on the establishment of a "flying station in Braunschweig". The “Aerkeröder Feld” ( Siegfriedviertel ) was no longer considered for this. The airport area in front of Broitzem was made available to the military. A large military airfield was established and was to receive a permanent air garrison even after the war. The airport company dissolved on May 7, 1917. The new airfield at Broitzem was incorporated into the city of Braunschweig on September 14, 1917. An air yard and the barracks for the aviation replacement division 7 were built. In the city, the aviators had a good reputation with the "lovely femininity", much to the chagrin of the civic association. However, because of military censorship, not much was talked about or written about. At the end of the war, all you could see there was a huge rubble dump. After the rubble had been cleared, settlement houses were built on the edge of the square, the shipyard was used by a factory owner and the site was partly leased as allotment gardens.
Airmail chronicle 1919
After the war, on January 8, 1919, the "DLR", the "Deutsche Luftreederei GmbH Berlin", was the first German airline to receive approval to start civil air traffic. On February 6, 1919, the first airmail to Weimar for the express connection between the government in Berlin and the National Assembly, which was in session in Weimar, started at the Berlin-Joachimsthal airfield. This route was later extended to Leipzig. This was followed by an airmail route from Berlin to Hamburg and the third to the airline "Berlin - Hanover - Gelsenkirchen", with a stopover in Braunschweig.
The first mail plane landed in Broitzem on May 25, 1919 at 8:40 a.m. It did not fly further west, but was available for sightseeing flights over the city that day. Advertising was a must. A small machine had come from Hanover and took the 100 kg mail load destined for Hanover and Gelsenkirchen with it. The mailbag for Braunschweig contained 50 kg of letters and newspapers. Since April 7, 1919, all post offices have accepted air mail for transport, but the volume of air mail was still very low. Flights without a single shipment were not uncommon.
A letter posted at the Braunschweig post office with destination z. B. Berlin-Joachimsthal, took about 2 hours and 10 minutes with a flight time of 1 hour and 40 minutes. A speed that could not be reached by any express train at the time.
In April 1919, 57 kg of mail were carried on the lines. From Braunschweig there were 333 programs, 118 of them in May, 133 in June and 82 in July. The items were to be posted at counter 24 at the main post office. When it was closed there, you could use the mail service next to the gate entrance. The mail was transported between the main post office and the airport by electric vehicle. The following destinations were allowed: Rotthausen -Gelsenkirchen, Wattenscheid, Bochum1 Langendreer, Dortmund, or Rotthausen - Essen - Mülheim an der Ruhr - Oberhausen and Duisburg and of course Greater Berlin. Rail or feeder lines were used for onward transport.
On June 1, 1919, an official postage stamp sales point was set up on the airfield, which was also given responsibility for accepting air mail. On June 15, 1919, the stamp "Braunschweig Luftpost" (Fig. 2) was used at the post office for outgoing mail to Dortmund Gelsenkirchen or Berlin. The person delivering the mail from the post office to the airport carried this stamp with him to stamp the items delivered to the point of sale.
The airport management had procured a rubber stamp with the inscription "Transported by airmail". It was used to stamp the newspapers arriving by airmail. Occasionally, this stamp has also been used by the flight controller or his representative to stamp letters that have been delivered to the airport. These devaluations were "officially tolerated", but they did not comply with the regulations.
Due to the general lack of fuel, traffic had to be limited to just one flight per day. On July 31, 1919, it was completely discontinued. The state aviation authority was no longer employed. In order not to be dissolved, the authority acted as the organizer of show and flight days. Sightseeing flights around Braunschweig and flights to the Brocken and even over the summit of the Brocken were offered.
1920
By order 794 of November 13, 1920, the Berlin – Gelsenkirchen airline was resumed. Order 832 of November 27th includes Braunschweig again, and Order 872 of December 11th changes the destination of the route from Gelsenkirchen (until December 7th) - the Allied occupation forces in Germany forbade German planes to approach Gelsenkirchen airport to Dortmund (13th December). This flight service ended on October 31, 1921.
In December 1920, a "Landesflugverband Braunschweig" was founded in Braunschweig, which was mainly supported by the Aviation Institute of the Technical University .
From Braunschweig in 1920 there were 22 consignments to Berlin and 9 to Dortmund in April; in May 12 consignments to Berlin and 9 consignments to Dortmund; in June 23 consignments to Berlin and 17 consignments to Dortmund; in July 43 consignments to Berlin and 15 consignments to Dortmund.
1921
In the months of June / July 1921, surcharge-free transport also takes place on the Berlin - Braunschweig - Dortmund route. Since August 10, 1921, it has been mandatory to affix a flight confirmation stamp, for Braunschweig the frame stamp (Fig. 3) “Carried by air mail / Air Post Office Braunschweig”. As a trade fair flight, there was a flight to Magdeburg on the Berlin - Braunschweig - Dortmund route from August 28 to September 3, 1921. From here you had a direct connection to Leipzig.
1922 to 1924
On January 3, 1922, an emergency airmail service was started from Berlin. One also led to Braunschweig. The aim was to absorb the effects of the railway strike from February 3rd to 10th. After that it became very quiet at the Braunschweig airport. The programs were not given any special identification. Shipments delivered as airmail letters were, however, provided with the flight confirmation stamp.
From newspaper reports we learn about the cessation of air traffic at Braunschweig Airport, about air battles and sightseeing flights and about the stationing of a machine for "all cases". Again the "State Braunschweigische Luftverkehrsstelle" became active. Incidentally, the airport lay fallow. After the sale of the former shipyard and the termination of the allotment garden leases, the airfield was still 400 acres in size. He waited for the things that were to come.
1925
The inflation was over. The economic situation had further improved, and German aviation was able to set up new air routes in 1925, which also reconnected Braunschweig to the air network. The German Aero Lloyd (DAL), an association of German air shipping company, Lloyd-air service, Lloyd aviation Sablamig, Lloyd Ostflug, Junkers air traffic and the Danziger air-shipping company, set up on 20 April 1925, the route Bremen - Hannover - Leipzig a.
In the spring of 1925, the “Braunschweigische Flughafengesellschaft” was founded with the aim of reconnecting the city to the German air network. An annual grant of 60,000 marks, which the city paid, led to success.
On August 4, 1925, Braunschweig was included in the route mentioned. Air traffic ended again on October 31, 1925. A changed airmail confirmation stamp was used in Braunschweig. Reductions in red, more rarely in purple (Fig. 4), are known.
Difficulties threatened by the Reichsbahnverwaltung, which announced in January 1925 that it wanted to move the railway line to Hanover across the airfield. The airport would just have been good enough for an emergency landing.
1926
On January 6, 1926, the "Deutsche Luft Hansa AG" (from January 1, 1934 spelling "Lufthansa") was founded. The symbol, the crane, was adopted by German Aero Lloyd, while the colors (blue and yellow) remained from Junkers Luftverkehr.
On June 10, 1926, a post office was set up at the airport on Broitzemer Strasse. The flight manager August Jühe received the stamp “Posthilfsstelle / Braunschweig Airport” (Fig. 5) The stamp was delivered with a hyphen between Braunschweig and the airport, which was removed by Mr. Jühe on the same day. He had canceled only a few letters before. The ink pad was blue. The date was stamped in black or handwritten in purple. The stamp was in use at the post office until July 17, 1928. The flight confirmation stamp (Fig. 6) (25 × 58 mm) was knocked off in red. A stamp with the inscription "Braunschweig / Flughafen" (Fig. 7) was used at the post office from July 19, 1926. Airmail mailboxes were installed next to counter 24 at the main post office for posting mail in Dankwardstraße and at the Bäckerklint.
On April 6, 1926, Lufthansa began its first scheduled scheduled services. The route Berlin - Braunschweig - Dortmund - Essen / Mülheim - Düsseldorf was flown from April 12, 1926. The service ended on October 12, 1926. It was difficult to maintain flight service in winter. The Chemnitz - Leipzig - Braunschweig - Hanover - Bremen line was served from May 11, 1926 to October 16, 1926. Only Bremen - Hanover was flown in winter traffic. In Leipzig there were connections to Dresden, Görlitz and Breslau.
1927
The city of Braunschweig became a member of the newly founded "Nilu", the "Niedersächsischen Luftverkehrs AG". The city paid 50,000 marks to maintain air traffic. The result was four connections to the international air network.
From April 19, 1927 Lufthansa flew the Magdeburg - Braunschweig - Hanover route. Traffic was stopped on September 30, 1927. The route Braunschweig - Goslar - Wernigerode - Quedlinburg - Halle / Leipzig (Schkeuditz), which was in operation from June 16, 1927 to September 10, 1927, opened up further flight options. The routes Berlin - Braunschweig - Dortmund - Essen / Mülheim from April 19 to October 10, 1927 and Braunschweig - Hanover from April 19 to October 3, 1927 were also available. From June 10, Hildesheim was also served. Usually eight-seat Dornier Merkur aircraft with 450 hp engines were used for the flight. A shuttle service has been set up for passengers from Friedrich-Wilhelm-Platz. The responsible airport manager was Mr. Berr.
The postal flight to the Brocken on October 10, 1917 is to be understood as air mail with a private character . The pilot Gerick in a Funkers F 13 flew at 11 o'clock in a Junkers F-1 3 D 870 of the Deutsche Verkehrsfliegerschule , which was stationed in Berlin-Staaken. At 12 o'clock he dropped six mailbags with a total of 9,976 letters with special stamps (Fig. 8) over the Brocken. There were also 32 consignments from Austria which, in addition to the flight confirmation stamp “Postagentur Brocken” (Fig. 9), received the transit stamp “Postamt Berlin C 2, dated 7. X. 1927”. A special card issued for this flight could be purchased for 60 pfennigs. From the Brocken, the mail was sent to the usual mail run.
The "Braunschweigische Landeszeitung" of April 14, 1927 lists the following flight connections: From Braunschweig to London via Hanover and Amsterdam (fare 220 RM); Paris via Hanover, Essen and Cologne (245, - RM); Moscow via Berlin, Danzig, Koenigsberg, Kovno (340, - RM); Munich via Hanover and Erfurt (75 RM); Prague via Halle and Leipzig (95, - RM); Norderney-Borkum via Bremen (90, - RM); Westerland-Wyk via Hamburg (85 RM); Breslau via Goslar etc. (75, - RM); Vienna via Berlin, Dresden and Prague (160 RM); Zurich via Hanover, Frankfurt and Stuttgart (135 RM).
1928 to 1935
In 1928 the city of Braunschweig was no longer able to pay a grant. This year there was therefore only the Braunschweig - Hanover feeder line from April 23 to September 29, 1928. This feeder service enabled good connections to the 55 most important German and European economic centers.
Crossing of the Zeppelin LZ 127 "Graf Zeppelin", which during the first part of its Germany voyage in 1929 (September 11th to 12th) from Hanover dropped off via Braunschweig Post (see Zeppelinpost ) (22 letters known) and then drove on towards Magdeburg.
The city strongly advocated the relocation of the commercial aviation school from Berlin-Staaken to Braunschweig. By contract of March 23, 1928, the resettlement was decided for the beginning of 1929. In 1934 the Reich Aviation Office acquired the Broitzem airfield. The Braunschweiger Flughafengesellschaft mbH was dissolved. The German commercial aviation school found a new domicile in Munich at the beginning of 1935. It was not possible to include it in the air transport network until a new airport was built. Braunschweig was therefore without this connection until 1936.
1936 to 1938 Waggum Airport
The "Flughafen-Gesellschaft Braunschweig-Waggum mbH" was founded in 1934. In 1938 it was renamed "Flughafen-Gesellschaft Braunschweig mbH". The planned large transport and sports airport was built in 1934/35 and expanded in 1938/39. A military flight readiness, an aircraft pilot school1, the technical university with its teaching and flight operations and the motor and glider groups of the local sports clubs ensured life on the field.
On August 22, 1934, a post office was set up to take care of the people stationed and working there. Flight operations began on June 15, 1936 at the " Waggum Airport via Braunschweig". On April 5, 1937, Braunschweig had been connected to the Lufthansa network again. The airline Berlin - Braunschweig - Hanover - Münster was flown until October 2nd. When the airmail service began, the post office set up a post office in a small residential building on the west side of the reception building. This post office later moved to the reception building. The air traffic was subject to some interruptions. From October 3, 1937 to April 26, 1938, Braunschweig and Hanover were skipped and the line flown from Münster on to Düsseldorf; In the winter months only the Berlin - Hanover route was flown.
1939
The Reich Minister of Aviation , in a letter to the Reich Minister of Post dated December 20, 1939, approved that the " Post office Waggum Airport / via Braunschweig" be renamed "Braunschweig Airport". The new station building was inaugurated on May 5, 1939. From March 1, 1939 to April 15, 1939, flight operations were gradually expanded to cover the entire route. From April 16, 1939, full traffic on the Berlin -Braunschweig - Hanover - Münster line was carried out as before. A new airline route Hanover - Braunschweig - Magdeburg - Halle - Leipzig - Nuremberg to Vienna has been flown since May 1st, 1939, with Hamburg as the departure airport since June 1st. The airmail service on both routes ceased on August 26, 1939. Braunschweig had no airmail connection until the end of the war.
literature
- Under the title Die Luftpost in Braunschweig 1919–1945 , the documents of the post office in Braunschweig contained a file with newspaper articles and a few still existing documents on this subject.
- To: Ms. Wilhelmine Reichardt: 50 years of the Braunschweig Airport Company. Flughafengesellschaft Braunschweig mbH, Braunschweig 1984, OCLC 833901680 .
- History and stories of the Braunschweig airfield. Braunschweigische Landeszeitung, April 14, 1927.
- Braunschweiger New News. June 12, 1912.
- Catalog and manual of the German airmail. Philatelist Association of the GDR, Günter Otto, DDR-1633 Mahlow, Drosselweg 11, 1972.
- These documents, together with an article by the Brunswick Otto Krenge from the collector's service from August 1952, form the basis for this work.
- Günter KP Starke: Fly with us over Braunschweig. History of aviation, aviation and research, Elm Verlag, 1993, ISBN 3-927060-08-9 .
- Hermann Sieger: Zeppelin Post Catalog. Sieger Verlag (22nd edition), Lorch / Württemberg.
Web links
- First flight events in Braunschweig on chr-meier.de
- Airship harry on the history of German airship travel
Individual evidence
- ↑ Paul Raabe : ... returned to my fatherland: Adolph Freiherr Knigge in Hanover 1787-1790 . Wallstein Verlag, Göttingen 2002, pp. 69-71, ISBN 3-89244-639-3
- ↑ Michael Schlott (Ed.): Effects and evaluations: Adolph Freiherr Knigge in the judgment of posterity (1796-1994) . Wallstein Verlag, Göttingen 1998, pp. 301-311, ISBN 3-89244-287-8