Seaplane base - Seefliegerhorst Aalborg
Encyclopedia
Seefliegerhorst Aalborg was a German seaplane base at Aalborg
during the occupation of Denmark 1940 to 1945
At the 12th of April 1940, that means three days after the German occupation of Denmark, the first German seaplanes landed on the Limfjord
on the western outskirts of Aalborg
. The Germans immediately requisitioned a large area around Skydebanevej, and mid August the same year a seaplane base had been established, however without many af the fixed facilities needed at a fully operational base in wartime. Construction works continued throughout the war building bunkers, field fortifications, barbed wire fences and air defense sites.
Spread out over the large area were the many facilities that are part of a wartime air base: Quartering barracks, office buildings, infirmery, workshops and ammunition depots. One air defence battery was set up to protect the base, including three 20 mm AA machine cannon
commandeered by the Germans from the Danish army in April 1940 after the first British air raids against one of the other two German air bases in the Aalborg area the night between 20. and 21. of April 1940.
The hangar at the seaplane base has a very special history. After the German occupation of Holland in Mai 1940 the Germans decided to tear down a hangar located at the air field at Waal Haven near Rotterdam. It was loaded on trains and brought to Aalborg to be rebuilt at the Seaplane base in Aalborg.
Thus Seefliegerhorst Aalborg was a well equipped major air base for seaplanes with the task to secure the northern waters around Denmark and southern Norway against allied ships through sea reconnaissance and Anti-submarine warfare
. On the 5th of May 1940 two Arado Ar 196
A-3 seaplanes from Seefliegerhorst Aalborg managed to force the British minelayer submarine "Seal" to surrender in Kattegat
. The submarine had successfully completed laying a 50-mine mine barrier west of the Swedish island Vinga, but was subsequently damaged by a German sea mine. The crew managed to surface the damaged submarine. The submarine was initially tugged to Frederikshavn and later to Kiel, where it was used to train German submariners and in the German propaganda. Furthermore the seaplanes from Aalborg conducted minelaying operations in harbors in northern Britain and raids against convoys at Scotland. Concurrently with these operations the seaplanes were used in sea rescue operations in Danish waters. It all contributed to maintaining connection to the German forces in Norway
.
In addition to the ordinary crew of 1500 persons at Seefliegerhorst Aalborg several training formations were stationed there for shorter or longer periods during the war. In 1943 a school for training seaplane pilots was established in Aalborg. On the 27th of May 1944 the so-called Bordkommando for the German battleship Tirpitz
was established. That was a training unit for the air crews to be stationed onboard the Tirpitz, and launched by catapult to conduct reconnaissance flights for the battleship. When the unit was committed to battle onboard the Tirpitz the crews had only flown a few operational flights from Aalborg.
From the beginning of 1945 German refugees started to pour into Denmark during the Evacuation of East Prussia
, when the Soviet forces conquered that part of Germany. Refugee camps were established in many places in Denmark to house these refugees. At the end of the war a refugee camp was established in the facilities of Seefliegerhorst Aalborg, where additional barracks were erected. The hangar was used as a rendezvous for the refugees. The refugee camp was closed in 1947.
From 1950 until 2001 the hangar was used as a depot for the Danish Civil Defence forces. In 2001 a group of volunteers took over the hangar to establish the Aalborg Defence and Garrison Museum
to be opened on the 22nd of June 2002 as a private foundation.
Aalborg
-Transport:On the north side of the Limfjord is Nørresundby, which is connected to Aalborg by a road bridge Limfjordsbroen, an iron railway bridge Jernbanebroen over Limfjorden, as well as a motorway tunnel running under the Limfjord Limfjordstunnelen....
during the occupation of Denmark 1940 to 1945
At the 12th of April 1940, that means three days after the German occupation of Denmark, the first German seaplanes landed on the Limfjord
Limfjord
The Limfjord is a shallow sound in Denmark that separates the island of Vendsyssel-Thy from the rest of the Jutland Peninsula. It extends from Thyborøn Channel on the North Sea to Hals on the Kattegat. It is approximately 180 kilometres long and of an irregular shape with several bays, narrowings,...
on the western outskirts of Aalborg
Aalborg
-Transport:On the north side of the Limfjord is Nørresundby, which is connected to Aalborg by a road bridge Limfjordsbroen, an iron railway bridge Jernbanebroen over Limfjorden, as well as a motorway tunnel running under the Limfjord Limfjordstunnelen....
. The Germans immediately requisitioned a large area around Skydebanevej, and mid August the same year a seaplane base had been established, however without many af the fixed facilities needed at a fully operational base in wartime. Construction works continued throughout the war building bunkers, field fortifications, barbed wire fences and air defense sites.
Spread out over the large area were the many facilities that are part of a wartime air base: Quartering barracks, office buildings, infirmery, workshops and ammunition depots. One air defence battery was set up to protect the base, including three 20 mm AA machine cannon
20 mm AA machine cannon
20 mm AA Machine Cannon M/38 was produced by the Danish company Dansk Industri Syndikat - maybe better known under the abbreviation DISA - in Herlev near Copenhagen and was used by the military of Denmark in different types of mounting. This cannon was originally constructed by Colonel V. H. O...
commandeered by the Germans from the Danish army in April 1940 after the first British air raids against one of the other two German air bases in the Aalborg area the night between 20. and 21. of April 1940.
The hangar at the seaplane base has a very special history. After the German occupation of Holland in Mai 1940 the Germans decided to tear down a hangar located at the air field at Waal Haven near Rotterdam. It was loaded on trains and brought to Aalborg to be rebuilt at the Seaplane base in Aalborg.
Thus Seefliegerhorst Aalborg was a well equipped major air base for seaplanes with the task to secure the northern waters around Denmark and southern Norway against allied ships through sea reconnaissance and Anti-submarine warfare
Anti-submarine warfare
Anti-submarine warfare is a branch of naval warfare that uses surface warships, aircraft, or other submarines to find, track and deter, damage or destroy enemy submarines....
. On the 5th of May 1940 two Arado Ar 196
Arado Ar 196
-See also:-Bibliography:* Dabrowski, Hans-Peter and Koos, Volker. Arado Ar 196, Germany's Multi-Purpose Seaplane. Atglen, PA: Schiffer Military History, 1993. ISBN 0-88740-481-2....
A-3 seaplanes from Seefliegerhorst Aalborg managed to force the British minelayer submarine "Seal" to surrender in Kattegat
Kattegat
The Kattegat , or Kattegatt is a sea area bounded by the Jutland peninsula and the Straits islands of Denmark on the west and south, and the provinces of Västergötland, Scania, Halland and Bohuslän in Sweden on the east. The Baltic Sea drains into the Kattegat through the Øresund and the Danish...
. The submarine had successfully completed laying a 50-mine mine barrier west of the Swedish island Vinga, but was subsequently damaged by a German sea mine. The crew managed to surface the damaged submarine. The submarine was initially tugged to Frederikshavn and later to Kiel, where it was used to train German submariners and in the German propaganda. Furthermore the seaplanes from Aalborg conducted minelaying operations in harbors in northern Britain and raids against convoys at Scotland. Concurrently with these operations the seaplanes were used in sea rescue operations in Danish waters. It all contributed to maintaining connection to the German forces in Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
.
In addition to the ordinary crew of 1500 persons at Seefliegerhorst Aalborg several training formations were stationed there for shorter or longer periods during the war. In 1943 a school for training seaplane pilots was established in Aalborg. On the 27th of May 1944 the so-called Bordkommando for the German battleship Tirpitz
German battleship Tirpitz
Tirpitz was the second of two s built for the German Kriegsmarine during World War II. Named after Grand Admiral Alfred von Tirpitz, the architect of the Imperial Navy, the ship was laid down at the Kriegsmarinewerft in Wilhelmshaven in November 1936 and launched two and a half years later in April...
was established. That was a training unit for the air crews to be stationed onboard the Tirpitz, and launched by catapult to conduct reconnaissance flights for the battleship. When the unit was committed to battle onboard the Tirpitz the crews had only flown a few operational flights from Aalborg.
From the beginning of 1945 German refugees started to pour into Denmark during the Evacuation of East Prussia
Evacuation of East Prussia
The evacuation of East Prussia refers to the evacuation of the German civilian population and military personnel in East Prussia and the Klaipėda region between 20 January, and March 1945, as part of the evacuation of German civilians towards the end of World War II...
, when the Soviet forces conquered that part of Germany. Refugee camps were established in many places in Denmark to house these refugees. At the end of the war a refugee camp was established in the facilities of Seefliegerhorst Aalborg, where additional barracks were erected. The hangar was used as a rendezvous for the refugees. The refugee camp was closed in 1947.
From 1950 until 2001 the hangar was used as a depot for the Danish Civil Defence forces. In 2001 a group of volunteers took over the hangar to establish the Aalborg Defence and Garrison Museum
Defence and Garrison Museum
A huge hangar from the Second World War contains the story on the Danish Total DefenceThe Defence- and Garrison Museum in Aalborg, Denmark, covers all components of the Danish Total Defence organization...
to be opened on the 22nd of June 2002 as a private foundation.