Altenstadt Air Base

Altenstadt Air Base (German: Heeresflugplatz Altenstadt, ICAO: ETHA) is an air base approximately 1.3 kilometres (0.81 mi) northeast of the Upper Bavarian municipality of Altenstadt, Bavaria, Germany. It is operated by the German Army Aviation Corps.

Altenstadt Air Base

Heeresflugplatz Altenstadt
Summary
Airport typeMilitary
OwnerFederal Ministry of Defence
OperatorGerman Army
LocationAltenstadt
CommanderColonel Ferdinand Baur
Elevation AMSL2,424 ft / 739 m
Coordinates47°50′6″N 10°52′16″E
Runways
Direction Length Surface
m ft
09/27 700 2,296 Grass

History

During World War II the airfield was used as a training centre for Anti-aircraft warfare.

Following the foundation of the German Armed Forces (Bundeswehr) in 1955 a training school for airborne troops was established at Altenstadt Air Base in 1956. In June 1993, the base was officially named Franz Josef Strauss Barracks after the former prime minister of Bavaria, who had served on the air base during World War II as an "officer for military spiritual guidance" (Offizier für wehrgeistige Führung).[1] Since 1997 the school has been twinned with the French Army's École des troupes aéroportées (ETAP) in Pau.[2]

Current use

Altenstadt Air Base is home of the German Army's School for Airborne Troops as well as a Bundeswehr Sports Promotion Section. Also stationed at the air base are parts of the Central Medical Services. Approximately 720 military personnel are employed at the air base.

In October 2011 the German Federal Ministry of Defence announced a reorganisation/reduction of the German Armed Forces. As a consequence, the School for Airborne Troops will be disbanded and the Bundeswehr Sports Promotion Section will be relocated to Oldenburg. The Central Medical Services will be expanded into a regional medical centre. Additionally, a battalion of aspirant non-commissioned officers will be based at Altenstadt Air Base. However, after the implementation of these cuts and relocations, the number of military personnel based at Altenstadt Air Base will be reduced by almost 75 per cent to 190.[3]

In 2012 the Bavarian Office for Cultural Heritage Management announced that several buildings within the air base, by now in the possession of the Institute for Federal Real Estate,[4] are to be listed. This includes amongst others the mess, the guardhouse and barracks.[5]

See also

References
  1. Strauß, Franz-Josef (4 September 1989), "Ich bekenne mich: Die Erinnerungen des Franz Josef Strauß (II): Der Weg zum Politiker", Der Spiegel (in German), retrieved 27 June 2012
  2. "Geschichte", Luftlande- und Lufttransportschule (in German), Bundesministerium der Verteigung, retrieved 7 November 2011
  3. Quoted from Bundesministerium der Verteidigung (26 October 2011), Neues Stationierungskonzept der Bundeswehr (in German), retrieved 7 November 2011, PDF-file "Die Stationierung der Bundeswehr in Deutschland", p. 50
  4. "Hadersbeck fürchtet Rückzug des Bundes bei der Kaserne", merkur-online.de (in German), 7 November 2012, retrieved 23 November 2012
  5. "Kaserne in Altenstadt - Geplanter Denkmalschutz wirft Fragen auf", Kreisbote (in German), 11 November 2012, retrieved 23 November 2012

Further reading
  • Garben, Fritz (2006), Fünf Jahrzehnte Heeresflieger: Typen, Taktik und Geschichte (in German), Lemwerder: Stedinger-Verlag, ISBN 3-927697-45-1
  • Ries, Karl; Dierich, Wolfgang (1993), Fliegerhorste und Einsatzhäfen der Luftwaffe. Planskizzen 1935 - 1945 (in German), Stuttgart: Motorbuch-Verlag, ISBN 978-3-613-01486-2
  • Vetter, Bernd; Vetter, Frank (2001), Die deutschen Heeresflieger: Geschichte, Typen und Verbände (in German), Stuttgart: Motorbuch-Verlag, ISBN 3-613-02146-3
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