Friday, July 23, 2010

Hitler's Airport Update-- Part 1

July 22nd Chicago Tribune "From Nazi icon to tranquil oasis" by Borzou Daraghal.


Tempelhof Airport shut down two years ago as more and more air traffic went to the more modern Tegel and Schoenfield airports. There were lots of plans for it, but today it is just essentially open park land.

This airport represents German history since the 1930s after being designed on a monumental scale to glorify Hitler's Third Reich by his top architect, Albert Speer. It was massive to say the least, at 950 acres, larger than New York City's Central Park and twice the size of Berlin's biggest park, the 19th century Tiergarten.

Nothing has essentially been done, other than city workers painting huge Xs on the runways so no planes will land there.

Hitler had Speer create "an ominous and imposing edifice, decorated with eagles that grasped swastikas which have long been scraped off."

The 4,000 foot long airport building is being left as is for now. Parts are sometimes rented out for events and the grounds are essentially left as they were.

Cold War Edifice Next, --Cooter

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