75 years of the Berlin Airlift

To commemorate the Berlin Airlift, the US Army and the State of Hesse are holding an anniversary celebration at the Clay Caserne airfield in Erbenheim on Saturday and Sunday, June 15 and 16, from 9:30 am to 8 pm.

Erbenheim Airport in 1949 at the time of the airlift to Berlin © wiesbaden.de / Photo: Stadtarchiv

To mark the 75th anniversary of the end of the airlift, the Wiesbaden garrison of the US Army and the state of Hesse are hosting a commemorative event. Visitors can look forward to historic aircraft from the time of the Berlin Airlift, current models, live music and culinary delights.

About the Berlin Airlift

The Berlin Airlift served to supply the city of Berlin with airplanes of the Western Allies after the Soviet occupying power had blocked the land and water routes of the “Trizone” to West Berlin from June 24, 1948 to May 12, 1949 through the Berlin Blockade. On September 30, 1949, the airlift was officially declared over.

On June 26, 1948, the first US Air Force planes flew from Frankfurt (Rhein-Main Airbase) and Wiesbaden (Wiesbaden-Erbenheim Airfield) to Tempelhof Airport in Berlin, thus launching “Operation Vittles – Operation Provisions”.

The heroes of this unprecedented humanitarian aid and solidarity operation were the pilots and ground crews of the “Raisins Bombers”. Only a few of the aircraft involved at the time still exist worldwide. These are kept airworthy at great expense by private enthusiasts, foundations, museums and clubs.