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History: Naval airship port Nordholz - Wursterheide

Last update of the page: 06.01.2024

Today's naval air base 'Nordholz' has a long tradition and, in some ways, a turbulent history. In 1912, the site, which ultimately covered around 1,000 hectares, was purchased by local farmers in order to build a naval airship port with an initial capacity for 10 airships. By the end of the war in 1918, several huge Zeppelin hangars had been built here, including the unique double revolving hangar 'Nobel'. The site also had its own gasworks for producing the lifting gas for the Zeppelins and an underground bomb-proof gas tank. When work began on building the Nordholz air base, the old gasworks was finally demolished in August 1939. During the war, Zeppelins took off from Nordholz on several occasions for bombing raids on England or for missions at sea. This is how the English soon launched a counterattack here, which went down in history as the Christmas attack on December 25, 1914. This was also the first carrier-based air raid ever, which, despite a few close hits, caused no significant damage to the air base's infrastructure. The majority of the attacking English air force was shot down during the operation by the various anti-aircraft positions of the air defense. Apparently all of the crashed aircraft crews were killed. As a result of the attack, around 10-12 fighter planes were stationed to protect the airfield. The naval airships had two unbeatable advantages at the start of the war. Firstly, they could initially carry out their attacks on London safely, as no aircraft reached their altitude to become dangerous. Secondly, as reconnaissance aircraft over the North Sea, they had an enormous overview in clear weather. The leader of the German airships was frigate captain Peter Strasser (FdL), stationed in Nordholz. He was primarily responsible for the planning and deployment of the naval airships, and he regularly took part in attack missions himself. This was also the case on August 5, 1918, when he took off with the newest airship, the L 70 (LZ 112), and five other ships for a squadron attack on England. Strasser and the rest of the crew of the L 70 died that same day when the ship was shot down by a British DH4 fighter plane at an altitude of over 5,000 m while flying over Norfolk. The British later recovered the wreckage and buried Strasser over the sea. Almost a year earlier, on August 20, 1917, the respected captain had been awarded the Pour le Mérite for his services. As the war progressed, the Zeppelins became increasingly insignificant due to high loss rates; aircraft had already proven to be the better means of transport. At the end of the war in 1918, the last remaining airships were destroyed by their own crews. As part of the demilitarization of Germany, the halls and hangars were blown up and dismantled, and from 1921 the area was used for agricultural purposes again. A total of 42 Zeppelins were stationed at the naval airship port during this time, but they were never all there at the same time. Source: Thanks to the website www.cuxhaven-seiten.de and its operator for the support

Reports on missions of German airships from the naval airship port of Nordholz. (Click!)

Nordholz Air Base of the German Air Force between 1937 and 1945

With Germany's political change to National Socialism in 1933, the country began to be remilitarized, and this also affected the Nordholz site. In 1935, the German Wehrmacht took back the area of the former naval airship port and built an air base for its air force under the code name 'Neckar'. The farmers and settlers had to vacate the area by 1937 at the latest so that the base could be built. In 1939, the airfield was officially used again, but had seen little flight activity up to that point. However, this changed as soon as the war began; on August 27, 1939, the air base was reported to be fully operational.

Three concrete runways in the shape of a triangle of around 1280 meters (1400 yards) were built on the grassy area of the site. The runways were WNW/ESO, 1210 meters (1320 yards), NE/SW and 1170 meters (1280 meters) N/S. There were 28 ladder-like parking spaces along the southern border, 10 further along the southeastern border and 7 along the northwestern border. The site was already equipped for night landings with appropriate runway lighting, perimeter and obstacle lighting and a Lorenz beacon. A landing radio beacon developed by C.Lorenz AG/Berlin. From mid-1940 to 1943, the military airfield was expanded again and increasingly extended. The area was approximately 1465 x 1650 meters (1600 x 1800 yards). There was a large hangar on the edge of the southeast corner and another medium-sized hangar near the northeast corner. There were also 16 large open aircraft shelters, 9 large covered ones, 5 small covered ones, and 53 bays in the woods. At all maintenance stations there were small ammunition bunkers and fuel stations for quickly equipping the aircraft.

On the north, south and southwest side of the airfield, there were around 40 to 50 barracks buildings in several groups. A local ammunition depot for ongoing flight operations was located outside the southern boundary of the facility. The much larger ammunition depot for bombs, aerial mines and all types of ammunition was located in an area 3.25 km NNW of the airfield. This was the naval interdiction weapons arsenal in Oxstedt, which obviously also provided capacity for the air force in Nordholz. In the north-east area of the site was the naval underground tank depot, which was supplied via a steam-heated pipeline from the Groden minesweeper port. Another small pipeline also ran to the fuel depot on the south side of the airfield.

Northern area

Aerial photo on the left: Accommodation camp north 1. State road 135 (former B6) 2. presumably air raid shelter 3. Main building 4. Trenches, 5. and 6. ?Marked in yellow: Allied aerial photo evaluators' reference to a Junkers - Ju 88 fighter bomber in one of the parking boxes to the south, of no significance here. Photo 1945-02-21 No.3160-GW

Presumed machine gun position at the Karkweg - Köstersweg intersection / 03.05.1945, even today the trenches are still there.Source: Gerd Wildfang

Aircraft parking boxes in the northern areaSource: Gerd Wildfang/detail from photo 1944-06-12 No.3152

Photo left: "Below the U-camp, the air force facility began at the edge of the forest with the parking spaces for the fighter planes. From master carpenter Wilksen's garden, one could see the planes in their parking spaces. A large part of the boxes could be seen clearly from the B 6 / L135 between the Wilhelm Stegemann family's house and the V-camp. The parking spaces were also popularly called boxes. Some of them still exist today. The northern entrance to the airfield was at the level of the barracks and the other about 50 m north of the current entrance. (263)" "The fighter planes, of which there were more in the southeast, rolled from their positions in the north through the forest and usually took off and landed on the large open grass area between the concrete runways. The boxes, as well as the taxiways, were covered with camouflage nets. The fighters rarely used the three paved runways, which were later used primarily by jet-powered aircraft. Reserved for Me 163 and Me 262. The Me 163 was towed diagonally across the grass runway and started this way.

Zentralbereich

Ost- Weststraße von der Einfahrt heutige L135 (links)
Quelle: Gerd Wildfang/Ausschnitt aus Foto 1944-06-12 Nr3152

Photo left: Along the two roads that ran east from the entrance, past the V-camp to the oil bunkers and the other access road began at the radio building and continued straight east. Pine seedlings were planted between these two roads shortly before the First World War. From 1933 onwards, wide concrete roads were laid between these pine forests. The taxiways for the aircraft to and from the runways are still there today. Buildings stood here that served as management, administration and repair workshops. To the north of this, in the middle of the forest, the officers' casino, which was built during the First World War, still stands today.

During World War I, the Zeppelin Hall Norman was located just west of the southern oil tanks.

The central area with the warehouse (it still exists today), to the north of it the railway workshops, loading ramps and the connection of the normal track (coming from Nordholz) with the marine railway (to Cuxhaven).

Um auch die Ostseite erreichen zu können, erforderte es zuerst nach Norden und von dort über eine Abzweigung zurück weiter nach Osten zu fahren.

The southern tanks are already covered with light growth, but the connecting pipes are still visible.

Machine gun range for aircraft, surrounded by an earthen wall. Another machine gun range was under construction in the southern part, north of the cemetery, towards the end of the war, probably for the Messerschmidt 262 "Schwalbe".

Southeastern area

Source: Gerd Wildfang/excerpt from photo 1944-06-12 No.3160

Foto links: Wartungs- und Hangarbereich Südost, zu diesem Zeitpunkt am 02.06.1944 ist noch alles intakt.

Photo right: The same area in an aerial photograph from March 3, 1945. Due to several air raids on the air base, the infrastructure in the maintenance area was also hit in places. Numerous bomb craters prove that some of the large halls, which were still visible in 1944, were destroyed.

Source: Gerd Wildfang/excerpt from photo 1945-03-02 No.3150

Source: Gerd Wildfang/1945-04-18 southeast Flugpl_Südost.jpg

Photo left: "The parking boxes for the fighter planes in the south and southwest were each equipped with a fuel pump. The fuel tanks for refueling the planes were located in the ground parallel to the B6. These tanks were dug up in 1948 and transported away by rail (UK). The ammunition depot in the southeast was also not far away and so the planes could be quickly refueled and supplied with ammunition after landing. In this photo, the Allied image evaluator has sketched in pencil the extension of the southern runway that was under construction. Zapf (317) refers here to a document from OKL Gen.Qu. dated December 20, 1944, "Silver Program," according to which the Nordholz takeoff plan extension to 1700 m was "under construction or ordered."

Photo right: Enlargement of the southeast parking area (Wanhöden).

Source: Gerd Wildfang/excerpt from photo 1945-04-18 No.3136

Parking area southeast 2021

Area South

Quelle: Gerd Wildfang/Ausschnitt aus Foto 1945-05-03 Nr3008

Photo left: The Me 163s were stationed in Nordholz briefly before the end of the war. They were housed in the barns of the neighboring Picker farmers. Separate hangars were built for the Me 262 fighters on the southern edge of the airfield, between Pickerstrasse and the airfield and between Dietrich Carstens' carpentry business and the Wursterheide cemetery. There were two large storage hangars and a maintenance hangar here. During test runs, residents could see the jets of fire from the jet engines spraying out of the exhaust pipes. In addition, there was a tank depot for rocket fuel in this area, as well as a separate firing and adjustment system for the machine guns of these aircraft. (263)". However, an air raid at the end of the war did not succeed in completely destroying this area. Only the fighter aircraft parking and maintenance areas and the airfield road, which were less than 200 m north of it, were hit. After the attack, the damage to the road and the parking boxes was quickly repaired and the fresh concrete was given a camouflage coat. (263) Source: Gerd Wildfang

Foto rechts: Zur Verteidigung des Flugplatzes gegen vorrückende alliierte Truppen, wurden entsprechende Schanzarbeiten durchgeführt. Zur Herstellung eines Panzergrabens, der von Scharnstedt über die Wanhödener Straße, Pickerstraße, Kniller Feuerweg in Richtung Wanhöden verlief, sollen rund 2000 Mann für einige Wochen eingesetzt gewesen sein. Dieser 3 m tiefe und 3-4 m breite Graben, der ziemlich steile Wände hatte, sollte anrollende Panzer aufhalten. (263)" Gegen Ende des Krieges kam jeden Morgen ein Zug mit Landsturmmännern aus Bremerhaven. Dieser Zug fuhr bis in den südöstlichsten Zipfel des Areals. Die Männer wurden mit Schaufeln versorgt und mussten einen Panzer- graben, der im Süden und im Osten den Flugplatz umgeben sollte, mit der Hand ausgraben. Am Abend wurden die Männer dann wieder mit dem Zug nach Bremerhaven gefahren. Nach dem Kriege lag der Panzergraben zunächst noch mehrere Jahre offen da, dann diente er über eine Reihe von Jahren als Müll-abladeplatz. Die gefüllten Grabenabschnitte wurden mit Erde überschoben. Im Wanhödener Bereich wurde der Graben mit Baumstubben aus der Flurbereinigung zugeworfen. Auch heute sind einzelne Abschnitte des Panzergrabens noch zuerkennen.(263)"
"In Verlängerung des Panzergrabens wurden von Scharnstedt aus in Richtung Spieka auf Anweisung der Festungskommandantur Cuxhaven von Marineangehörigen Feldstellungen gebaut. Auch in Nordholz und Deichsende wurden auf Anordnung der gleichen Dienststellevor allem in der Senke vor dem Geestrand einfache Schützen- und MG-Stellungen und Schützengräben angelegt, so im "Hühnerloch" zwischen Beckmann (Hoheluft) und Sibberns und weiter an dem Geestrand entlang. Der dafür erforderliche Sand soll zum Teil mit Loren aus den "Nordholzer Dornen" herangeschafft worden sein. (263)
Weiterhin wurden Panzersperren vorbereitet, so an der Straße zwischen Lankenau und Knippenberg, bei der Grundschule und bei der Gastwirtschaft Klee. Die Bäume für diese Straßensperren wurden von verpflichteten Einwohnern im Walde geschlagen und mit Gespannen an Ort und Stelle geschafft. Die Stämme wurden zu großen Walzen mit einem Durchmesser von 3 m zusammengefügt und der Innenraum mit Sand ausgefüllt. Bei einem Panzerangriff sollten diese Sperren quer über die Straße gerollt werden. Nach dem Krieg mussten . Nationalsozialisten die Stellungen wieder einebnen. (263)
Quelle: Gerd Wildfang

The anti-tank ditch between the Holzapfel company on B6 and the south-easternmost point of the airfield

Source: Gerd Wildfang/excerpt from photo 1945-04-18 No.3136

Flak protection of the Nordholz air base

Unfortunately, it is difficult to find out anything about the ground-based air defenses of the airfield these days. According to information, airfields of this type were normally covered by at least three heavy batteries and a number of light guns of the Luftwaffe. However, in this case little can be found out about the type, exact positions, unit and time of the corresponding positions. In contrast to the naval anti-aircraft guns, the Luftwaffe rotated its units at certain intervals. A presumably heavy anti-aircraft battery was located between the towns of Wanhöden and Wanna, called Sanddamm. A second location of an unknown unit was apparently located on the southern border of the airfield, called Midlum. At both locations, remains of the facilities from that time suggest the existence of the batteries. One of the last remaining objects of this kind is an anti-aircraft high stand that belonged to the battery of the 6th/Marine Flak Division 214 - Cuxhaven. It was equipped with a 20 mm gun and was located south of today's Spieka-Knill roundabout. The second anti-aircraft high position belonging to the 6th/Cuxhaven Marine Flak was on the "Hohen Lieth" near Altenwalde-Gudendorf. It was also equipped with a 20 mm gun, and there was also a listening device right next to it. Another Luftwaffe high position was located directly opposite the entrance to the airfield on Bahnhofstrasse. On the "Hinter dem Heidedeich" sports field there was also a small, light anti-aircraft position that obviously also belonged to the Luftwaffe. According to American sources, there were also a number of light anti-aircraft positions on high positions along the north and south borders. It is very likely that anti-aircraft searchlights and listening devices were also installed on and around the air base. But there is little information about this either.

    Light anti-aircraft position "Drei Berge" - Berensch - Luftwaffe6./ Res.Fla.A. 333 of the Luftwaffe - Oxstedt 1939 - 1940Flak high position "Scharnstedt" Midlum - 6./ Marineflakabteilung 214 Cuxhaven / 20 mm anti-aircraft gunFlak battery "Midlum" - presumably heavy battery of the LuftwaffeFlak battery "Sanddamm" - presumably heavy battery of the LuftwaffeFlak high position "Hohe Lieth" - 6./ Marineflakabteilung 214 Cuxhaven / 20 mm anti-aircraft gun listening deviceFlak high position BahnhofstraßeLight anti-aircraft at today's sports field Nordholz-Wursterheide


Spotlight position at the hard stone plantSource: Gerd Wildfang

Photo left: On the eastern edge of the sand pit "Bahnhofstrasse (Nordholz)" there were 3 buildings/bunkers (marked yellow), surrounded by an earthen wall: to the north a barrack, in the middle an anti-aircraft gun, to the south the generator. A little to the east of this were the searchlight and trenches/holes (marked red).

Photo right: The 6th battery, which was led by Nebelsiek until 1942, also belonged to MAA 214. He reported on his visits to the "guns" in Nordholz, but without giving a specific location. On the right is the anti-aircraft high stand at the "Hohe Lieth" sand pit.

Flak high stand sand pit "Hohe Lieth"Source: Gerd Wildfang/detail from photo 1945-03-02 No.4004

Flak high stand Bahnhofstrasse, at the intersection L 135 Source: Gerd Wildfang

Source: Gerd Wildfang

Light anti-aircraft gun, today's sports field Nordholz-Wursterheide at the Kiebitzhörner Bach Source: Gerd Wildfang/detail from photo 1945-02-21 No.3162

Source: Gerd Wildfang/excerpt from photo 1945-02-21 No.3162

Flak high stand south of today's Spieka-Knill roundaboutSource: Gerd Wildfang/detail from photo 1945-03-02 Nordholz-3.JPG

Source: Gerd Wildfang/excerpt from photo 1945-03-02 No.3147

Source: Gerd Wildfang/Nordholz/dcp_1288_ji.jpg

The high stand seen from the main road, condition in 2004. According to the documents of the MAA 6./214 - Cuxhaven, a 2 cm anti-aircraft gun was set up on the tower in 1942 (source: Kurt Meinert (Q148, No. 632) leader Nikolaus Elvers (Q148, No. 282)). Rebuilt after the war and still inhabited today. According to an older list before the war from the Munich Pioneer Archives, a "Nordholz anti-aircraft subgroup" with the "Nettelbeck" and "Nordmann" anti-aircraft batteries was planned. Both were designated for the 3rd A-Day (attack day) with 2 8.8 cm guns each. Source: Gerd Wildfang

Transport railway of the Marine Construction Office Nordholz (Marinebahn Nordholz)

The entire airfield and the naval tank depot were connected to a 20-kilometer-long standard gauge rail network that extended to Nordholz station. Another track also ran along what is now the 'Marinebahn' road to Franzenburg station. The locomotive type A3M 420 in the 1941 photo was manufactured by the Klöckner - Humbold - Deutz company, of which around 35 of this model were produced. It is powered by a three-cylinder four-stroke diesel engine that put 75 hp onto the rails. The vehicle was handed over to the Naval Construction Office in Wilhelmshaven in January 1940 and put into operation at Nordholz Air Base in April 1940. It was used by the Marinebahn - Nordholz at the Luftwaffe air base until the end of the war. After the end of the war, the Allies continued to use the vehicle. It was then sold to a private company, and other subsequent users followed. In 2008, the Aeronauticum's support association took over the locomotive and brought it back to Nordholz. It is now renovated and stands in the museum's own locomotive shed and can be viewed during a visit.Source: Aeronauticum Nordholz

The 2nd connecting line north (303-b)

"The Nordholz airfield area was connected to the Bremerhaven-Cuxhaven line during the Second World War via a second railway line. However, the history of this connection is largely unknown. According to current knowledge, the line was built by the Todt Organisation. It was not yet finished in 1945, but the tracks were there; however, the railway was no longer in operation. According to Affeldt /2/, at the end of the war, large quantities of unused building materials were stored in the area of the railway, which the Nordholz population soon took away for their own use. It is not known when the tracks were dismantled again. The route branched off in the district of Franzenburg at the Robert-Koch-Straße / Wohlsenstraße level crossing in a south-westerly direction to the airfield, and after about 4 kilometres reached the existing tracks on the site. The route of the second connecting railway is clearly visible as a railway wasteland east of the state road 135 (formerly B6) in individual sections, but has also been partially removed or At the former branch off from the Bremerhaven-Cuxhaven railway line at the Robert-Koch-Straße / Wohlsenstraße level crossing (item 1), there is a fenced-in area (item 2) between the state railway line and the route of the connecting railway line with a gate for an access track, sleeper and foundation remains, paving and concrete surfaces. It is possible that a filling or transfer station existed here. [later this was the construction yard of the Rösner company, Cuxhaven]. Source: Gerd Wildfang

Picture above middle: If, as previously described by Harden, a transfer station with several parallel tracks was built between the current access to the landfill and Oxter Weg, it is all the more surprising that in the area further south around Köstersweg, in another area with several tracks, a lot of material was stored, as the following photos show. Not only boxes are said to have been stored here, but also rebar, cement and concrete production for the oil tanks. South of the current access to the landfill and Köstersweg, there is said to have been a "bridge torso", although no evidence of this was found in the aerial photographs.Source: Gerd Wildfang

Units stationed at Nordholz Air Base (found so far)

Unit

Art

Zeitraum

Fl.H.Kdtr. (E) Nordholz

Station command

08.1939 - 02.1940

Fl.H.Kdtr. E 9/XI

Station command

03.1940 - 04.1940

Marine Railway Nordholz

- - -

April 1940 - August 1946

Fl.Pl.Who. And 10/XI

Station command

12.1942 - 03.1944

Fl.H.Kdtr. A(o) 14/XI Stade

Station command

04-1944 - 1945

Weather advisory center Nordholz

- - -

? ? ?

Werft-Abt.d.Lw.(o) 10/XI

- - -

Spring 1944 – May 1945

Unbek.Gruppe von Ln.-Abt. 63

- - -

1941 - 1942

Training and testing command V-1

Training site for the manned flying bomb V1 (Reichenberg device)

1944 - 1945

16.(Flum.)/Luftgau-Nachr.Rgt. 3

- - -

11.1939 - ? ? ?

1./the.Flak-Abt. 762

- - -

1944 - 1945

Guard Command Nordholz

- - -

? ? ?

Sources: AFHRA A5257A p.619 (1944/45)

Air raids on the air base

During the course of the war, Nordholz airfield was occasionally attacked by individual low-flying aircraft, but also by targeted heavy bombers of the US Air Force. Known air raids were on August 6, 1944 (4 Boeing B17s) and November 7, 1944 by bombers of the 8th US bomber fleet. In addition, nine B-17s attacked Nordholz airfield on December 30, 1944 with 22 tons of bombs (source: X). On May 13, 1944, a single American Mustang flying low with on-board weapons made a surprise attack on Nordholz airbase, but the damage was limited. In addition, British jet fighters of the 616 Squadron/RAF, type Gloster Meteor, attacked the airfield on April 24, 1945 and damaged an Arado 234 Blitz that had previously made an intermediate landing due to bad weather. It was the first use of the new British aircraft model in the war (source: IWM). Report of the 616 Squadron on the attack on Nordholz (click)

Scheinflugplatz Midlum - Kransburg

To distract from Allied bombing raids on the Nordholz air base, there was a dummy airfield in the immediate vicinity at Midlum-Kransburg. The dummy airport comprised 3 painted runways, 2 dummy hangars, a maintenance stand, 7 dummy fuel storage tanks, 7 small to medium-sized buildings and perimeter lighting. It was one of the most advanced dummy airfields and looked exactly like an active airfield from the air. Two attacks on the facility are known to have taken place, once on May 30, 1944 at 11:03 a.m. Thirteen heavy bombs on the Nordholz dummy airfield, and three more on the road near Knill (15 km south of Cuxhaven). On June 18, 1944, another 17 explosive bombs were dropped on the Nordholz dummy airfield. 40 explosive bombs were scattered around the section area. Livestock and crop damage. After the war, the site was blown up by the Allied troops. In the course of time, around 1,700 tons of bombs were defused at this location. In most cases, this was done by blasting.Sources: AFHRA A5257A p.619 (1944/45), WF - cuxhaven-seiten.de

Image left: In order to show the location precisely, the aerial photograph from 1944 was placed over one from today. At that time, the dummy airfield was located centrally between the two current motorway rest areas Nordholz North and South.

Als der Krieg zu Ende ging ...

At the end of the war, the German Wehrmacht in the Elbe-Weser region surrendered to the British army command on May 7, 1945. Large formations and many scattered units gathered in the area of today's Cuxhaven district. One of these assembly points was the Nordholz air base, where the remnants of the 7th Parachute Division withdrew, among others. More at: Click

Remaining tanks at the Nordholz air base after the surrender of the German Wehrmacht. In the photo on the top left is an assault gun III, then a Jagdpanzer 38 "Hetzer" across it, then two assault guns III, on the far right a Jagdpanzer "Marder III", and in the bottom left corner another STUG III. The aircraft is believed to be a Junkers W 34. When the Americans withdrew, they are said to have been placed in several large holes in the vicinity of the air base and covered with sand. Source: Thorsten Perl

A destroyed Heinkel HE 111 on the airfield. According to contemporary witnesses, all German aircraft were also disposed of in the ground of the airfield.Source: Gerd Wildfang

A destroyed Ju 88. Unfortunately, it is no longer possible to find out what caused this severe damage or whether it was rendered unusable before disposal. Source: Gerd Wildfang

The American P 47 'Thunderbold' fighters and the German equipment at the air base were disposed of in such a trench.Source: Gerd Wildfang

Amerikaner und Briten nach 1945

Source Thorsten Perl

Even before British troops reached Nordholz, World War II ended for this region with the armistice on May 5, 1945. Since the Wesermünde district was initially part of the US exclave in northern Germany, the US Army took over the area in June 1945 and occupied the Nordholz airfield. After it was repaired, they stationed fighter units here: on June 5, 1945, the 406th Fighter Group with the 512th, 513th and 514th Fighter Squadrons on the airfield now designated R-56. The aircraft were to protect the American seaport of Bremerhaven and the entire exclave. However, in November 1946, the US Air Force abandoned "Nordholz at the Sea" and blew up the facility. In 1947, the airfield was handed over to the British occupying forces. They dismantled all movable equipment, and the rest, including the runways, was blown up. The final demilitarisation of the area took until 1950, and around 1,700 tonnes of munitions were removed. The British set up a blasting site on the former dummy airfield near Midlum-Kransburg to destroy the munitions. After the Americans had initially used the fuel line with the airfield for a while, it was also blown up. The work began at the airfield with daily stages of around 600 to 900 m. The access shafts were also brought down in the process (209).The pumping systems in the minesweeper port, which pumped the fuel between the tanks at the port and at Nordholz, were dismantled in the minesweeper port in Cuxhaven after 1948. Packed in boxes and dismantled into numbered individual parts, the pumps went to Poland together with design drawings as reparations. Under the supervision of an English officer, this work was carried out by a construction crew from the Voss company, which later moved to Hoppe & Krooß. Source: Gerd Wildfang

Naval Air Station Nordholz after the war, used by the German Army (Navy) - Nordholz Sea Airport

Am 26.04.1963 stellte die Bundeswehr den Marinefliegerhorst Nordholz offiziell in Dienst, 1964 bezog dann das Marinefliegergeschwader 3 (Graf Zeppelin) mit den Flächenfliegern den Standort. 2011 verlegte das Marinegeschwader 5 im Rahmen der Umstrukturierung der Bundeswehr nach Nordholz. Ihm unterstehen seitdem sämtliche Hubschraubertypen der Marinestreitkräfte. Beide Geschwader unterstehen dem Marinefliegerkommando, das hier ebenfalls Standort hat.

Since 2002, the civilian area of the Nordholz/Cuxhaven sea airport has been located in the southeastern part of the Nordholz air base on the Wurster North Sea coast, which is connected to the runway via a special taxiway. There is a contract between the German Armed Forces and the airport operating company for the use of the necessary infrastructure of the airfield.

Sources:

(263): Heinz-Günther Reinhardt, Chronicle of the municipality of Nordholz, Part 1 and Part 2, 2012; additions (Rolf Matthes, Friedrich Paul, UweSchicke) are inserted in italics(242) Hein Carstens, Ships in the sky - the former airship port of Nordholz through the ages; published by the men from Morgenstern, Bremerhaven 1989, , from p. 105).(298) Luftwaffe Airfields 1935-45 Germany (1937 Borders), by Henry L. deZeng IV, Edition: June 2014(303-a) 100 years of the Bremerhaven-Cuxhaven railway with a branch to Bederkesa; Hans Wolfgang Harden and Wolfgang Rawiel vonRönn, Landesstube Alten Landes Wursten-Museumsbahn Bremerhaven-Bederkesa eV (303b) Hans Wolfgang Harden: Searching for traces - connection and supply of the Nordholz airfield by rail; probably in the newsletter of the Museumsbahn Bederkesa (309) Holger Piening a) North Sea coast in the war 1939-42 - places-events-stories, Boyens 2010; b) North Sea coast in the "total war" 1943-45 - dates, names, backgrounds, Verlag Boyens 2015 (317) Jürgen Zapf, Luftwaffe airfields 1934-1945 - and what was left of it, Volume 7 - Lower Saxony and Bremen; Zweibrücken 2011, ISBN 978-3-86619-064-1

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