Losing History
There is a referendum today in Berlin. People are being given a chance to vote in a non-binding referendum on whether the city should close Tempelhof airport. The city planners have refused to be bound by the results, despite the public outcry that has forced the issue onto the ballot in the first place.
"Tempelhof is the pearl of the German capital," says Klaus Eisermann.
Many Berliners feel strong nostalgia for Tempelhof airportHe has been working at Tempelhof airport for the last 44 years, and he knows every nook and cranny.
As he drives me around the vast airfield, the monolithic terminal building stretches out in front of us.
It is claimed that there are only two other buildings in the world bigger than Tempelhof - the Pentagon, and Ceausescu's palace in Bucharest.
"I'm really sad that they're going to shut down Tempelhof," says Mr Eisermann.
"It's such an easy airport to use and you can reach the city centre in 20 minutes - it's so simple and it's a beautiful historic building."
"Tempelhof survived World War II, it kept Berliners fed during the Soviet blockade of the city, but the authorities want to get rid of it. I can't understand it. It's a political decision which doesn't make any sense," he says.
On Sunday, Berliners will be able to give their verdict on the planned closure of Tempelhof airport. The referendum has become such a divisive issue that a big turnout is expected.
The city government is intent on shutting down the iconic airport, regardless of what the people want and are already publicly dismissing the voter's wishes. It's funny how soon they forget, isn't it? Tempelhof helped make sure that citizens of Berlin kept their right to choose for themselves during the Cold War.
Post war Germany was divided into three sections–the Allied part was controlled by the United States, Great Britain and France and other part by the Soviet Union. The city of Berlin, although located in the eastern Soviet half, was also divided into four sectors –West Berlin occupied by Allied interests and East Berlin occupied by Soviets. In June 1948, the Soviet Union attempted to control all of Berlin by cutting surface traffic to and from the city of West Berlin. Starving out the population and cutting off their business was their method of gaining control. The Truman administration reacted with a continual daily airlift which brought much needed food and supplies into the city of West Berlin. This Airbridge to Berlin lasted until the end of September of 1949—although on May 12, 1949, the Soviet government yielded and lifted the blockade.
When asked whether an airlift was even possible, General Curtis LeMay replied, "We can haul anything." And they did. Pilot Gail Halvorsen even made sure that candy and chewing gum for the children of Berlin were part of the effort.
By MikeO, Sunday, 27 April , 2008 @ 12:12 pm
Thanks for this, Gaius. I read Leon Uris’ Armageddon early in my high school years, and it hasn’t occurred to me until now how much that novel has informed my political beliefs. It is on my re-reading list.