Berlin Airlift - Supply Bases in Germany

Department of Defense Photo Essay

  • Fueled by doughnuts, hamburgers and coffee, these pilots stationed at Rhein-Main Air Base, Germany, flew four on daily round trips during the Berlin Airlift from June 27, 1948 to May 12, 1949. Rhein-Main is located outside Frankfurt. American C-54s and their crews also were stationed at Wiesbaden, Celle and Fassberg in the British sector of Berlin. Photo courtesy of The Harry S. Truman Library and Museum
  • C-54 transport aircraft, which could carry 10 tons of cargo, were already beginning to crowd out the smaller, twin-engine C-47s, which carried 3.5 tons, when this photo was taken at Rhein-Main Air Base on July 26, 1948. Photo courtesy of The Harry S. Truman Library and Museum
  • Map of the Berlin Airlift Air Bases -Winter, 1948-1949 Photo courtesy of The Harry S. Truman Library and Museum
  • A new R-2000 engine, collectively known as "wasps" among the maintenance crews, is being swung into position on a waiting C-54 at Rhein-Main Air Base, Germany. Photo courtesy of The Harry S. Truman Library and Museum
  • Thousands of tires, each checked frequently for signs of deterioration, were kept in a state of readiness at Rhein-Main Air Base for use on the C-54 "Skymasters" that were flying around-the-clock into blockaded West Berlin. Photo courtesy of The Harry S. Truman Library and Museum
  • British and American personnel at Fassberg's traffic control center. Photo courtesy of The Harry S. Truman Library and Museum
  • A British enlisted soldier directs the parking of a coal truck as German laborers prepare to load a shipment of coal aboard a C-54 at Fassberg. Photo courtesy of The Harry S. Truman Library and Museum
  • C-54s at Wiesbaden stand out against a background of snow, March, 2, 1949. Photo courtesy of The Harry S. Truman Library and Museum
  • While waiting for their "block," pilots relax in the pilots' lounge at Wiesbaden. Photo courtesy of The Harry S. Truman Library and Museum
  • A synthetic trainer, once used to train bombardiers during World War II, was adapted to instruct pilots in navigating to Berlin in all kinds of weather. Photo courtesy of The Harry S. Truman Library and Museum
  • During another monotonous flight to Berlin, the radio operator aboard a C-54 describes interference he's receiving as the engineer, seated behind the pilots, wonders aloud about a light outside the right window. Photo courtesy of The Harry S. Truman Library and Museum
  • U.S. Air Force personnel, assigned to Fassberg Royal Air Force Station, are shown aboard the "Rotation Special" which will take them to the Bremerhaven Port of Embarkation. This was the first group to return to the United States under the six-month Berlin Airlift rotation plan. Photo courtesy of The Harry S. Truman Library and Museum