Royal Air Force Ahlhorn or more simply RAF Ahlhorn, is a former

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

station located south east of the centre of Ahlhorn,

Lower Saxony Lower Saxony (german: Niedersachsen ; nds, Neddersassen; stq, Läichsaksen) is a German state (') in northwestern Germany. It is the second-largest state by land area, with , and fourth-largest in population (8 million in 2021) among the 16 ...

and north of

Vechta Vechta (; Northern Low Saxon: ''Vechte'') is the capital and largest city of the Vechta (district), Vechta district in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is home to the University of Vechta. It is known for the 'Stoppelmarkt' fair, which takes place every ...

, Lower Saxony,

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 ...

Originally, it was a German airbase for

Zeppelin A Zeppelin is a type of rigid airship named after the German inventor Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin () who pioneered rigid airship development at the beginning of the 20th century. Zeppelin's notions were first formulated in 1874Eckener 1938, pp ...

s. The Royal Air Force (RAF) disestablished the station and it was closed down in the autumn of 1958 and was transferred to the

Bundeswehr The ''Bundeswehr'' (, meaning literally: ''Federal Defence'') is the armed forces of the Federal Republic of Germany. The ''Bundeswehr'' is divided into a military part (armed forces or ''Streitkräfte'') and a civil part, the military part con ...

. It was a private airport before being converted to a solar park in 2011.

History

First World War

Built during the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

in the summer of 1915 for Zeppelins four large hangars were built. In two pairs, the hangers measured in length, in width and in height. The hangers were name "Albrecht" and "Aladin" (northern pair), and "Alrun" and "Alix" (southern pair). On 5 January 1918 Ahlhorn hangars explosion that destroyed the ''LZ 87'' (L 47), ''LZ 94'' (L 46), ''LZ 97'' (L 51), ''LZ 105'' (L 58), and SL 20. Fifteen killed, 134 injured.

Ahlhorn Hanger explosion

Second World War and beyond

During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

the airfield was used as an

Advanced Landing Ground Advanced Landing Grounds (ALGs) were temporary advance airfields constructed by the Allies during World War II during the liberation of Europe. They were built in the UK prior to the invasion and thereafter in northwest Europe from 6 June 19 ...

before becoming a permanent RAF station.

Current use

Jagdgeschwader 73 ''Taktisches Luftwaffengeschwader'' (Tactical Air Force Wing) 73 " Steinhoff", formerly known as ''Jagdgeschwader 73'' (Fighter Wing 73), is a fighter wing of the German Air Force. The wing is based in north-eastern Germany at Rostock-Laage Airp ...

was formed at Ahlhorn and

Oldenburg Oldenburg may also refer to: Places *Mount Oldenburg, Ellsworth Land, Antarctica *Oldenburg (city), an independent city in Lower Saxony, Germany **Oldenburg (district), a district historically in Oldenburg Free State and now in Lower Saxony *Olde ...

on 1 April 1959. Jagdgeschwader 71 of the

German Air Force The German Air Force (german: Luftwaffe, lit=air weapon or air arm, ) is the aerial warfare branch of the , the armed forces of Germany. The German Air Force (as part of the ''Bundeswehr'') was founded in 1956 during the era of the Cold War a ...

were to take residence from June 1959 with 50

Canadair Sabre The Canadair Sabre is a jet fighter aircraft built by Canadair under licence from North American Aviation. A variant of the North American F-86 Sabre, it was produced until 1958 and used primarily by the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) until ...

s, Germany's first operational jet fighter unit. They remained at Ahlhorn until 1961.

Solarpark Ahlhorn

From 2005 the Aircraft Maintenance Service GmbH provided services on widebody aircraft but the company went bankrupt in 2009. A number of solar panels were installed on most of the airfield converting it into Solarpark Ahlhorn. Opening in 2011 the solar panels provide, 17.5 MW. There is only one airstrip in use.

References

Citations

Bibliography

* * * - Total pages: 48

External links

Ray Powells' memories of Ahlhorn
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ahlhorn Royal Air Force stations in Germany Airports in Lower Saxony