Pam Am German Operation
BEA Airtours/BA Airtours also ran Comets on holiday flights from Tempelhof to the Mediterranean. I would have thought the runway there was too short for such performance, but there are photographs around of them there. It must have been a bit of a marginal operation. Pan Am also ran 707s to the USA during the Tempelhof era, stopping at Hamburg, but even fuelled for only this initial short hop they were outside the parameters of Tempelhof, so used Tegel instead, the only Pan Am flights to do so. In fact the only other flight into Tegel at the time was the daily Air France Caravelle to Paris - Tegel was in the French sector, so this last may have been more due to politics than performance.
Tempelhof was in the US sector. The airfield in the British sector (there was one in each) was Gatow, which I understand was used by Britannia Airways 737s on military charter flights. The field in the Soviet sector was in Johannisthal, but not used commercially - contrary to Wikipedia and other sources Schonefeld was actually just outside the Berlin border, in mainstream GDR, which gave its own bureaucratic issues over access.
The photo of the Trident reminds me that Channel Airways also ran their Trident 1E on holiday flights from Tempelhof to the Mediterranean for the Berliner Flugring holiday group - in fact, it was their principal use of the aircraft. Channel bizarrely ordered five new Tridents in the late 1960s, but only took delivery of two of them, and never got any mainstream contracts for them in the UK. By 1971 they were impoverished enough that they were on cash-with-order for spares with Hawker Siddeley, One of the two was running the Berlin flights, the other, only a couple of years old, was grounded at Stansted, slowly being robbed for spares to keep the Berlin operation going. Channel went under the following winter.
Tempelhof was in the US sector. The airfield in the British sector (there was one in each) was Gatow, which I understand was used by Britannia Airways 737s on military charter flights. The field in the Soviet sector was in Johannisthal, but not used commercially - contrary to Wikipedia and other sources Schonefeld was actually just outside the Berlin border, in mainstream GDR, which gave its own bureaucratic issues over access.
The photo of the Trident reminds me that Channel Airways also ran their Trident 1E on holiday flights from Tempelhof to the Mediterranean for the Berliner Flugring holiday group - in fact, it was their principal use of the aircraft. Channel bizarrely ordered five new Tridents in the late 1960s, but only took delivery of two of them, and never got any mainstream contracts for them in the UK. By 1971 they were impoverished enough that they were on cash-with-order for spares with Hawker Siddeley, One of the two was running the Berlin flights, the other, only a couple of years old, was grounded at Stansted, slowly being robbed for spares to keep the Berlin operation going. Channel went under the following winter.
Last edited by WHBM; 30th Jul 2022 at 20:35.
I imagine the Comets would have good performance out of Templehof , being well over powered with 4 Avons . 'Tho even the '' jet noise , the sound of freedom '' thinkers would not have liked the noise .
like scotbill , managed a couple of S111 substitutions with Trident 2s in to THF , sadly we lacked the 'boost engine , thus t/o performance was interesting , even only back to LHR .
I'd heard on a visit to BASC [ Berlin Air Safety Centre , all 4 powers signed a cert. of no objection for each Berlin dep. ] . That the terminal building at THF was built in the shape of an 'Adler , [ styalised German Eagle ] .
On a lighweight , early turn from Easterly Rwy. at TGL , was able to confirm it . Photo somewhere in attic .
rgds condor .
like scotbill , managed a couple of S111 substitutions with Trident 2s in to THF , sadly we lacked the 'boost engine , thus t/o performance was interesting , even only back to LHR .
I'd heard on a visit to BASC [ Berlin Air Safety Centre , all 4 powers signed a cert. of no objection for each Berlin dep. ] . That the terminal building at THF was built in the shape of an 'Adler , [ styalised German Eagle ] .
On a lighweight , early turn from Easterly Rwy. at TGL , was able to confirm it . Photo somewhere in attic .
rgds condor .
I seem to remember (Dan Air?) Comet IVs flying from the tiny Tegel North terminal back then like Air France did with their Caravelles and Pan Am with quads.
On the northern side. Used until today.
https://www.mil-airfields.de/germany...el-airport.htm
However it is only used by and limited to three Luftwaffe Cougar VIP helicopters of the final squadron left there.
https://www.tagesspiegel.de/mediacen...l/9579104.html
https://www.mil-airfields.de/germany...el-airport.htm
However it is only used by and limited to three Luftwaffe Cougar VIP helicopters of the final squadron left there.
https://www.tagesspiegel.de/mediacen...l/9579104.html
