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 jjbigups
  
Location: Boston, MA
Gender: Male
 |  | Flughafen Berlin-Tempelhof
< on 1/9/2010 8:50 AM >
|  | | | Here's the story:
When the current terminal building was built in 1934, Berlin Tempelhof Airport became one of the largest buildings in the world. It was built as the main airport of Germania, the Nazis' hypothesized future "world capital". Read about it; it's mindblowingly egomaniacal stuff.
The whole Germania thing was cut short by the war, after which Flughafen Tempelhof fell into the American zone of occupation. It regained its triumphal status in a very different way a few years later, in 1948, during the Berlin Blockade. That's another amazing story which you should read about. Or just go to Berlin; the city is basically made of fascinating and ridiculous history.
Tempelhof gradually lost most of its traffic to the more modern Tegel and Schönefeld airports. But the airport operated for another 60 years until it was shut down in 2008. The future of the site is uncertain.
(Explorers in the area should be interested to hear that Tegel is also set to be closed down, in 2012.)
(Photo: TSGT Jose Lopez Jr., US Air Force: http://defenseimag...9de3c0b789387b138a)
Tempelhof is a pretty fantastic site. I got in with a rock festival, and only managed to sneak away a few times, for less than an hour each, but I still managed to find a lot of interesting things. In the order I shot them, with captions below each picture:
I wasn't able to get onto the roof. This door (like most in Germany, regrettably) was dead-bolted.
But I probably could have convinced you that I did. Which brings up the question of why I'm being so god-damned honest...
I can't track down what this means. Context suggests it may have something to do with joint US/German radar maintenance?
You don't have to go very far off the beaten path to find yourself in a Military Security-Zone. Close-up of the sign: http://i1017.photo.../Tempelhof/04b.jpg. ("Unauthorized access prohibited! Caution use of firearms! -- The Barracks-Commander.") Note also the interesting security paraphernalia on the wall.
I am the sort of person who really likes finding the words "ENTRY CONTROL" written on embossing tape.
More bad-ass looking entry control stuff.
But here is one case where knowledge makes the world less exciting: "Lüftungsanlagen Bedienfeld" = "Ventilation Control-Panel".
This fortuitously-placed hole in the wall got me into a hallway where I found...
...This! The angle is strange because I am actually taking the photo through a small hole above the room's locked door. Anyway, strange stuff, huh?
"My work is so secret... I don't even know what I'm doing." Tempelhof was used by the U.S. military until 1994, so this may be a relic of that occupation.
This weirdly unfinished stairwell was weirdly beautiful.
Large interior stairwell. Gives you a feel for the place, I suppose.
A cart, from Tempelhof's long years as a commercial airport.
A utility shaft. You're looking up. I was tempted to climb, but not quite tempted enough.
A final look at Tempelhof's fantastic features, once again through a window.
This was definitely small-time exploration. Flughafen Tempelhof deserves a lot more. The place is enormous. It has tunnels. And for God's sake, it's Hitler's old airport. The only UE set I can find online is at http://www.flickr....72157618074715288/; some guy wandered off during an open house. Good-looking stuff, for sure, but there must be so much left to explore.
(Hmm, I just found a bunch of fantastic photos starting at http://www.flickr....apas86/4069818618/. I highly recommend them, but I suspect they were shot during an official tour. Whether or not you find that wholly satisfying is your business.)
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ErkzO
Location: Canberra, Australia
Gender: Male
Australian
| | Re: Flughafen Berlin-Tempelhof
<Reply # 1 on 1/9/2010 10:28 AM >
| | | | Thanks for the pics. I liked reading about German history, as my background is Austrian.
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WEKurtz
   
Location: Western MA
Gender: Male
| | Re: Flughafen Berlin-Tempelhof
<Reply # 2 on 1/9/2010 12:03 PM >
| | | | Very interesting set! Too bad you couldn't UE at your leisure.
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Planar
Location: Ireland
Gender: Male
Kemuri
| | Re: Flughafen Berlin-Tempelhof
<Reply # 3 on 1/12/2010 8:07 PM >
|  | | | Tempelhof was used by the western powers to airdrop supplies into Berlin during the Berlin Blockade. At one point, planes were landing as often as three times a minute.
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hatsumi
 
| |  | Re: Flughafen Berlin-Tempelhof
<Reply # 4 on 1/13/2010 1:38 AM >
| | | | i like the quote on the stairwell, indicative of peoples view of the work they did....hope you finally get the time to see the 'good' stuff that is locked away
drainasaurus maximus |
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