Abandoned RAF airfields in Germany

[ricardian]

RAF Bruggen, RAF Wildenrath, RAF Laarbruch, RAF Gutersloh, RAF Lubeck (http://www.urbanghostsmedia.com/2015/07/abandoned-british-airfields-bases-raf-germany-rafg/)

[MPN11]

Oh, cheer us up for the weekend! Why not?

<sniffle>

[NRU74]

Anyone know what happened to the British Military Train - the train which went from Helmstedt to W Berlin ?
I kept in touch with three German families whom I'd befriended whilst at Brüggen and after the Army had taken over the PMC allowed me to stay in the Mess on two of my visits to Elmpt On one of those occasions the train was actually parked at Brüggen. I wondered if any of it had been preserved.

[Linedog]

I wouldn't like to go back there. Was at Laarbruch '76 -'79. DM5.5 to the £1 meant a half litre of Heini or Amstel was around 18p. Even my homebrew costs me double that these days. :{

[MPN11]

Funny how we all judge the past by the price of booze :)

[Linedog]

Funny how we all judge the past by the price of booze :)
Just happy memories...............

[Army Mover]

Anyone know what happened to the British Military Train - the train which went from Helmstedt to W Berlin ?

Not much is left of the train itself; the only part I know of, is one of the old dining cars, parked up at Fort Paul (just outside Hull).

[ColinB]

I recall there may have been three trains, Red, Blue and Green (maybe) which took different routes from the Hook to Berlin each docking of the military ferry

[langleybaston]

The fact that they are "abandoned" is a tribute to the many thousands who served in RAFG [and indeed BAOR] through difficult times and won the Cold War.

[MPN11]

The fact that they are "abandoned" is a tribute to the many thousands who served in RAFG [and indeed BAOR] through difficult times and won the Cold War.
I don't think one can argue that!

Indeed, some of us in UK also contributed to that, albeit without cheap booze and LOA. ;)

Still a shame to see once-pristine front-line bases a shadow of their former selves. Following that link by ricardian led to to many of other works by "Urban Ghost" ... that consumed an hour or two this morning! Worth a browse - his links are at the bottom of the page [of which there may be several].

[Jayand]

Skol or Harp? Wasn't there any paint thinners to drink instead? Lol

[langleybaston]

Vodka was the screen wash of choice in winter in BFG ............... it was cheaper than gin and didn't stink like a brothel.
And cheaper than screen wash.

Good down to minus 25C.

Thoze were the daze.

[NutLoose]

Ahhhh when it cost more to put the coke in your Bacardi than it did the Bacardi, so you would drink it by the pint, with 8 shots in it.... Happy days I think :)

Always thought the Bruggen HAS would make different houses, glaze the end, put a mezzanine in it and cut huge Windows through the sides.

airpolice, it sounds like Becks, which we only drank that when there was no Grolsh or Wobbly. A crate of Grolsh always used to reside under ones bed.

https://plus.google.com/u/0/+becks/videos

Becks was introduced to the uk as an expensive premium beer later on, much to my disgust.

RheinD 72 hour discos for charity with a 72 hour bar, one would go for the weekend enmasse arriving back ready for work Monday morning.


..


..

[Whenurhappy]

One carriage of the British Military Train is at the Museum of Allied Occupation (or what ever it is called) at the old US Support Site in Berlin. Along with a Hastings. Great museum to visit, but last time I went there there was talk of it closing...

[Army Mover]

One carriage of the British Military Train is at the Museum of Occupation (or what ever it is called) at the old US Support Site in Berlin. Along with a Hastings. Great museum to visit, but last time I went there there was talk of it closing...

That's a piece of the French Military Train; photo here (https://www.flickr.com/photos/64778664@N04/6181597830).

[Danny42C]

ricardian

Never mind - Geilenkirchen still up and running (or was when I last looked).
Was there '60-'62. Dm 11.90 to £ for first couple of weeks. Staple was "DAB" (Dortmunder Aktien Bier - well named !) Only a few pfennig for a "point two" (of a litre).

Lived in a "flat" in Heerlen, then in Cologne 'Volkspark'.

Happy Days ! Danny.

[Octane]

Hi Danny,
What an astonishing memory you have....
What's your secret?!

Cheers
Octane

[BEagle]

For real paint stripper, there was Sam Smiths' 'Alpine Lager' - a bit like I imagine a blend of Harp and pine lavatory cleaner might taste? Although I think the real problem was that it simply didn't keep; when the brewery rep turned up with a keg at one OM Happy Hour (I think it was either Leeming or Scampton?), it tasted much better than the noxious brew we had on tap.

There was even an 'Alpine Lodge' on the old A1 near Wetherby (once the Old Fox Inn) dedicated to the stuff - but rather a daft location. When the new A1 was constructed in the '90s, it closed as it was now on the A168 and even less likely to attract passing trade. It finally burned down in 2005.

I'm sure a lot of people remember seeing the artificial blue and white decorated German pub seemingly in the middle of nowhere whilst driving to/from Leeming for a Refresher Flying Squadron course?

[NickB]

ISTR a shot of vodka in the mess bar at Laarparts cost about 5 pfg in about 1997... my brother came out to stay and almost fell over himself when his round came to the equivalent of about £1.20!
Happy days indeed :-)

I also seem to remember the S. Met. O ETUR also took full advantage of the BFG bar prices... regularly... ;-)

[Dougie M]

I was at Laarbruch 72 -75 and I recall the Stauder man going door to door in quarters. His product certainly kept the vigilant front line forces regular.
The airfield there isn't totally abandoned because Mr O'Leary's aircraft fly there as a destination known as "Dusseldorf Weeze". As we all know, it's a good hour on the autobahn to reach Dusseldorf but then Mr. O'Leary's command of geography has always been rather whimsical.

[langleybaston]

And Amstel ............. yurrggggh!

When I saw what was floating in the River Amstel I recognised the smell of the beer.

And becks was vaguely reminiscent of a mans' changing room aroma.

Wobbly for choice.

Regularly.

[MPN11]

Meanwhile, those of us perspiring in the heat and humidity of Singapore were limited to just 36 cans of Duty Free Tiger per month ... whilst those living across the Causeway in Johore Baru had no limit :(

[Shackman]

MPN11:
36 cans of Duty Free Tiger per month

One whiff of the Singapore River (from where it was said the water for Tiger was drawn) put you off Tiger forever - until about midnight in Bugis Street!!

[Danny42C]

Octane (#19),

I suppose my memory has stayed with me as everything else has left !

On the subject of Geilenkirchen, do you (or does anyone) know the derivation of the name ? "Geilen" has a "lewd" or "salacious" meaning in German; tacked onto a Church, is there a story here ? Could it be that we have here something like "the old monk of great renown - who made free with the wenches of Nottingham Town ?", celebrated in song (but no story).

Danny.

Should have asked while I was there.

[MPN11]

Shackman ... I switched to Anchor, especially in Bugis Street. But when the Tengah Mess was plumbed for ice-cold Tiger, to all 3 bars, it was too easy to succumb to the convenience!

[Dougie M]

Danny.
The town was built by a Frank called Geilo so it's Geilo's church not like Hornchurch in Essex.

[Danny42C]

Dougie M,

Thanks, Dougie ! Never knew that. Just goes to show that you're never to old to learn.

And what a shining example of the value of the "Military Aviation" Forum - there is nearly always somebody who knows.

Danny.

[5aday]

My recollections was the Herforder Pils in the Gutersloh area was quite a pleasant
brew as well. I wonder what has become of the Gashof zum Flughafen?

[Danny42C]

Saday,
...where the Zeppelins went to be inflated...?

[622]

What became of RAF Gatow....?


Only there for a week as an Air Cadet on camp (around 1987 I think)....but what a week! http://cdn.pprune.org/images/smilies/cool.gif

[ExAscoteer]

Ah Berliner Kindl proper falling down lotion!

After being handed back, Gatow closed in 1995. The western end of the R/W and parallel taxyway was grubbed up and the area built upon.

The domestic site is now the General Steinhof Kaserne barracks, the remains of the airfield site is now the 'Luftwaffenmuseum der Bundeswehr.

[Old Bricks]

There were really only two beers available at Gatow - Berliner Kindl and Schultheiss. Real drinkers (ie the rugby club) only drank Kindl, because it was rumoured that Schultheiss was deficient in Vitamin D. Since most of the population of Gatow were in 26SU and worked shifts in windowless areas, the normal source of Vitamin D (sunlight) was in short supply. The logic therefore was that if you drank too much Schultheiss you would exacerbate the Vitamin D shortage which would lead you into developing rickets and you would fall over a lot. Besides which...... Schultheiss tasted terrible!
If you drank Kindl, on the other hand, falling over was medically attributable to the long working hours and the worry. I feel lucky to have survived two tours in Berlin under such an appalling threat to my health.

[Dougie M]

Ascot
It's a shame they built on Gatow. I went to the Christmas Market in Berlin last year and they flew us into Schoneberg which was the East German airfield 15 miles east of town. I had been there before on a Stockholm agreement visit and Interflug put us up in a crappy airport hotel. I was amazed to see that the facilities were still as basic and the Ubahn into the city centre still takes half an hour.
Oh for Gatow and the umsteiger ticket into the Kudamm. Many a visit to the Hofbrauhaus (now gone) and strange bath nights near the Sophie Charlotte platz.

[JW411]

Slight navigational error; I think you mean Schonefeld.

[MPN11]

Sadly I never did a GE tour, but I did once have MoD/NATS Staff responsibility for the Berlin Air Safety Centre (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berlin_Air_Safety_Center), a wonderfully anachronistic relic of 1945/46.

Sadly I only managed to do/justify one staff visit.

[Dougie M]

JW. Just so. Schonefeld. Equally as forgettable

[langleybaston]

Other than not being herded by cattle-prods, I have not a good word for the place.

We always use a taxi to/from the centre, rather than the train.

"Because you're worth it"

[the_flying_cop]

Wobbly - that brings back memories, plus a good fry up in Snoopy's

Happy days.

[Onceapilot]

Had the great good fortune to fly and work in Germany, so many times! Gatow Offiziersheim- the largest bathtubs ever! At least 7ft long and 3ft deep with 2" bore taps! I wondered (as I floated), who else might have luxuriated in their superior generosity of scale before me?:)

OAP

[kaitakbowler]

"just 36 cans of Duty Free Tiger per month "

Not at Changi, duty free all month, draught in the Mally and NAAFI.

Bit of a shock to find Seletar rationed.

PM

[k3k3]

Geilenkirchen hinter Puffendorf, or the randy churches behind the village of brothels. :-)

[handsfree]

From post no.3
Anyone know what happened to the British Military TrainAccording to this link there is only one carriage left and that's
the one near Hull. There's a photo of it in the article.

British Military Train (http://baor-locations.org/BMT.aspx.html)

[MPN11]

Not at Changi, duty free all month, draught in the Mally and NAAFI.

Bit of a shock to find Seletar rationed.

How strange that different rules applied at Changi to the other 2 main stations - benefits for HQ FEAF? :)

Are we sure we're taking about the same thing ... Duty Free cans for home consumption?

I've no idea what the 'rules' were in respect of the Tengah "plumbed for Tiger" Officers Mess - our draught consumption was unlimited, as I knew to my cost [fiscal and health!].

[glad rag]

And Amstel ............. yurrggggh!

When I saw what was floating in the River Amstel I recognised the smell of the beer.

And becks was vaguely reminiscent of a mans' changing room aroma.

Wobbly for choice.

Regularly.
Warsteiner Pils | Warsteiner (http://www.beersofeurope.co.uk/warsteiner-pils)

Still as nice as ever..

[BEagle]

Then there is the light beer named after an Austrian village in the municipality of Tarsdorf, in the Innviertel region of western Upper Austria.

The village is 33 kilometres north of Salzburg and 4 kilometres east of the German border.

Its name is 'F*ck*ng' and the beer is sold as 'F*ck*ng Hell'....:\

"Ve do haff ein sense of humour, nicht wahr?"

[NutLoose]

They other ale that was nice was Jever Pils, though it had the curious after effect of turning your poo black.

[Danny42C]

Nutloose,

Well known effect of iron supplements. Must have been some ferrous input into the brew.

[Bladdered]

No, no, no - only Bitburger. Had a brewery trip in 1982 when detached to a well known US base. The brewery wouldn't let us leave until we could barely walk - with heavy fog for the whole weeks detachment none of the aircrew mates had to worry about getting up. So clean this beer that you don't get a hangover (unlike wobbly!!).

[Akrotiri bad boy]

Dortmunder Union Anyone?

Memories of the 1st & 2nd Posts in Wildenrath village. Victor's Balkan restaurant for an eeeeeenormous Balkan platter.
Over the fence to the rear of 92's dispersal was the Ponyhof. If night shift finished too late for the regular bars the ladies of the Hof would always oblige until the Mess opened for breakfast.:E

[MPN11]

I think I should start a new Thread about "When I Was In FEAF*" :)

* WIWAF?

Bloddy RAFG, you jammy sods. :)

[Onceapilot]

RAFG, Bloody hard working and playing IMO! On the booze side, local brews were the norm, like Dortmunder at Bruggen and, Jever Pils at,...Jever!

OAP

[langleybaston]

There was jammy and there was jammy!

consider the desperate hardship of 3 years in the sun at RAF Nicosia, then 3 at Leeming, Topcliffe,

3 years at EDUO with the Hunters and Lightnings

5 years at Finningley

3 teaching in Met Office College

3 years in JHQ as senior forecaster

HQ 1 Gp in time for the Falklands

a few years in the wilderness of Civil

6 years in JHQ as C Met O BFG

Pass GO, collect pension .............



Somebody had to do the hard yards, wish I could have been lucky.

Seriously, the great times we had alongside the RAF remain as highlights in our lives. The great times that we remember through the haze, that is.

[NutLoose]

Ahhh, but did you correctly forecast that haze?

[langleybaston]

when I'm right, no-one remembers, when I'm wrong, no-one forgets.

What haze was that?