The Deutsche Verkehrsfliegerschule (DVS), German Air Transport School, was a covert military-training organization operating as a

flying school Flight training is a course of study used when learning to pilot an aircraft. The overall purpose of primary and intermediate flight training is the acquisition and honing of basic airmanship skills. Flight training can be conducted under a st ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. It began during the

Weimar Republic The Weimar Republic (german: link=no, Weimarer Republik ), officially named the German Reich, was the government of Germany from 1918 to 1933, during which it was a constitutional federal republic for the first time in history; hence it is al ...

Staaken Staaken () is a locality at the western rim of Berlin within the borough of Spandau. Geography Staaken borders on the localities of Spandau proper, Falkenhagener Feld and Wilhelmstadt. In the west it shares border with the Brandenburg municipalit ...

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

in 1925 and its head office was transferred in 1929 to

Broitzem Broitzem is a '' Stadtbezirk'' (borough) in the south-western part of Braunschweig, Germany. History The village of Broitzem was first mentioned in documents during the 12th century. Originally mostly a farming village, Broitzem became connected ...

airfield near

Braunschweig Braunschweig () or Brunswick ( , from Low German ''Brunswiek'' , Braunschweig dialect: ''Bronswiek'') is a city in Lower Saxony, Germany, north of the Harz Mountains at the farthest navigable point of the river Oker, which connects it to the Nor ...

. The DVS was outwardly a flying school for commercial pilots, but in fact became a secret military arm training military aviators for the future

Luftwaffe The ''Luftwaffe'' () was the aerial-warfare branch of the German ''Wehrmacht'' before and during World War II. Germany's military air arms during World War I, the ''Luftstreitkräfte'' of the Imperial Army and the '' Marine-Fliegerabtei ...

. This training facility grew in importance in the initial stages of

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

, while

camouflaging Camouflage is the use of any combination of materials, coloration, or illumination for concealment, either by making animals or objects hard to see, or by disguising them as something else. Examples include the leopard's spotted coat, the ...

as a harmless civilian organization (''Tarnorganisation''), at the time of Germany's rearmament in violation of the

Versailles Treaty The Treaty of Versailles (french: Traité de Versailles; german: Versailler Vertrag, ) was the most important of the peace treaties of World War I. It ended the state of war between Germany and the Allied Powers. It was signed on 28 June ...

. On May 31, 1945, after Nazi Germany's defeat in World War II, the American Military Government issued a special law outlawing the Nazi Party and all of its branches. Known as "Law number five", this

Denazification Denazification (german: link=yes, Entnazifizierung) was an Allied initiative to rid German and Austrian society, culture, press, economy, judiciary, and politics of the Nazi ideology following the Second World War. It was carried out by remov ...

decree disbanded the ''Deutsche Verkehrsfliegschule'' and its facilities were taken over by the occupying forces. Some flying schools in Germany operate under the same name in different locations in the country. All of them were established after the war.

Notes and references

History of Aviation, Udet / BFW U 12 Flamingo
{{Authority control Flight training Nazi Party organizations Covert organizations History of Brunswick Transport in Braunschweig Organisations based in Braunschweig Education in Braunschweig 1925 establishments in Germany Aviation schools in Germany Educational institutions established in 1925

See also

Notes and references