W
World War II
After the beginning of World
War II in 1939 all foreign
airlines left the airport and
control of air traffic was
transferred to the Luftwaffe.
On 9 May 1940, the first bombers took off to
attack France. From August to November
1944 a concentration camp was established
in Walldorf, close to the airport site, where
Jewish female prisoners were forced to
work for the airport.-
Rhein-Main Air Base during the Berlin Airlift
The Allies of World War II destroyed the runway system with airstrikes in 1944 and the
Wehrmacht blew up buildings and fuel depots in 1945, shortly before the US Army took
control of the airport on 25 March 1945. After the German Instrument of Surrender the
war in Europe ended and the US Army started to build a new temporary runway at
Frankfurt Airport. The southern part of the airport ground was occupied to build the
Rhein-Main Air Base as an Air Force Base for the United States Air Forces in Europe.
Berlin Airlift
In 1948 the Soviet Union blocked the Western Allies' rail and road access to the sectors
of West Berlin under Allied control. Their aim was to force the western powers to allow
the Soviet zone to start supplying Berlin with food and fuel, thereby giving the Soviets
practical control over the entire city. In response, the Western Allies organised the Berlin
Airlift to carry supplies via air to the people in West Berlin. The airports in Frankfurt,
Hamburg and Hannover were the primary bases for Allied aircraft. The heavy use of
these so-called "Raisin Bombers" caused damage to the runway in Frankfurt and forced
the US Army to build a second parallel runway. The airlift ended in September 1949
after the Soviet Union ended their blockade.
EDDFFrankfurt
May 2017
www.alliance-airways.net
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