F
First airport[
On 16 November 1909, the
world's first airline was
founded in Frankfurt am Main:
The Deutsche Luftschiffahrts-
Aktiengesellschaft (DELAG).
DELAG then built the first airport in
Frankfurt, called Airship Base at Rebstock,
which was located in Bockenheim in the
western part of the city and was primarily
used for airships in the beginning. It opened
in 1912 and was extended after World War I,
but in 1924 an expert's report already
questioned the possibility of further
expansions at this location.
old photo Frankfurt Airport
With the foundation of Deutsche Luft Hansa in 1926 a rapid boom of civilian air travel
started and soon the airship base became too small to handle the demand. Plans for a
new and larger airport located in the Frankfurt City Forest south-west of Schwanheim
were approved in 1930, but were not realised due to the Great Depression. After the
Machtergreifung in 1933 the government revived the plans and started the construction
of the new airport.
Second airport
On the northern part of the airport ori