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Airbridge to Berlin
Photos from
"Pilots"
Fueled by doughnuts, hamburgers and coffee, these pilots at Rhein-Main flew four round trips per day.
Parachutes in hand, Berlin-bound pilots take a quick look at the morning paper before heading for their plane.
Jewish Passover food arriving in Berlin.
Berlin-bound cargo arrives on a Danish ship at the port of Bremerhaven.
Fresh milk being loaded on a C-47. Shipments of whole milk soon were dropped in favor of more weight efficient condensed milk.
C-47 transport aircraft, containing 190 sacks of flour each, arrive at Tempelhof, 2 July 1948. A pair of B-17 weather aircraft can be seen at the far side of the airfield along with a lone C-54 at extreme right.
Survivors of a crash in the Soviet Zone, March 1949.
While brake failure almost led the C-54 to smash into apartment buildings at the end of the runway in August.
Remains of a Navy C-54 after a crash landing on the night of November 15, 1948.
Thousands of tires, checked constantly for deterioration, were kept in a state of readiness at Rhein-Main Air Base for use on the Skymaster flying round-the-clock into blockaded Berlin.
The line of maintenance docks during night crew operations at the Oberpfaffenhofen Air Force Depot.
The Wash Dock installation at Oberpfaffenhofen Air Force Depot, 7 September 1949. The wash Docks were used in the first stages of 200 hour inspection of C-54s engaged in the airlift.
Hundreds of miles from the nearest western airlift terminal, aviation fuel for Air Force planes flows through tubes from a Navy tanker at the Army-run port of Bremerhaven.
A new R-200 engine, called wasps by the maintenance crews, being swung into position on a waiting C-54 at Rhein-Main Air Base.
Readying an R-2000 engine for its exit at Rhein-Main Air Base.
A giant C-74 unloading at Gatow Airfield becomes an attraction for sightseers.
Aircraft of the Gatow-Fassberg coal run. Note the spilled coal at left which will eventually be rebagged.
Much of the coal flown into Berlin was unloaded into barges on the Havel River. When filled, the barges carried coal to Kladow or Westhafen area for distribution to industries and homes in the blockaded city. The barges carried an average of 500 to 700 tons of vittles coal daily.
A resident of the Neukoeln District receiving her weekly coal ration.
A student pilot receiving radar instructions for his simulated flight down an airlift corridor.
A synthetic trainer, once used to train bombardiers during World War II, was adapted to instruct pilots in navigation to Berlin in all kinds of weather.
A controlled Approach unit at Tempelhof designed in sections to facilitate movement.
Air traffic controllers at Tempelhof
One of forth lights placed in two, 20-lights, parallel rows lighting a 3000 foot approach to the main runway at Tempelhof. The towers used as platforms for the lights were manufactured from runway matting. The reason for its great height is so the approach lights are not blocked from sight by the tall buildings around the airport.
The Tempelhof Flight Operation Desk
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