Flughafen Tempelhof - Chronik des Berliner Werkes der "Weser" Flugzeugbau GmbH, Bremen

[Full title: Flughafen Tempelhof - Chronik des Berliner Werkes der "Weser" Flugzeugbau GmbH, Bremen - Einrichtung eines Flugzeugwerkes - Umbau von Flugzeugen und Produktion der Kriegsflugzeuge Ju 87-Stuka und Focke-Wulf Fw 190, 1939-1945] F.-Herbert Wenz, Stedinger Verlag, Lemwerder, Germany, 2000, ISBN 3-927697-24-9. Illustrated, hardcover, published in German.

Cover image © by Stedinger Verlag, 2000.

Although destined to perpetually remain in the shadows of other, more widely recognized companies such as Messerschmitt, Junkers, or Focke-Wulf, Weser Flugzeugbau GmbH was one of the largest aircraft manufacturers in Germany during the Second World War. While Weser’s own aircraft designs remained obscure or unbuilt, the company was contracted to convert, repair, and mass-produce aircraft of other manufacturers, such as the Junkers Ju 86 and Ju 87, Focke-Wulf Fw 190, Junkers Ju 388, or Focke Achgelis Fa 223. At its plant at Tempelhof airport in Berlin, for example, Weser eventually conducted two thirds of the entire Ju 87 production.

Weser Flugzeugbau GmbH’s Tempelhof facilities are the focus of F.-Herbert Wenz’ somewhat cumbersomely titled Flughafen Tempelhof - Chronik des Berliner Werkes der "Weser" Flugzeugbau GmbH, Bremen - Einrichtung eines Flugzeugwerkes - Umbau von Flugzeugen und Produktion der Kriegsflugzeuge Ju 87-Stuka und Focke-Wulf Fw 190, 1939-1945 [Tempelhof Airport - History Of The Berlin Plant Of The "Weser" Aircraft Manufacturing Corporation, Bremen - Establishment Of An Aircraft Manufacturing Plant - Aircraft Conversion And Production Of Ju 87 Stuka And Focke-Wulf Fw 190 Warplanes, 1939-1945]. The book is something of a companion volume to the same author’s indispensable Chronik des Lemwerder Flugzeugwerkes 1935-1963: Band 1 - "Weser" Flugzeugbau GmbH [History Of The Lemwerder Aircraft Manufacturing Plant 1935-1963: Volume 1 - "Weser" Flugzeugbau GmbH], released by the same publishing house in 1995.

Though only slightly more than half as extensive at 160 printed pages (versus the earlier publication's 256 pages), Flughafen Tempelhof is designed in a similar layout and style, and it serves to further complete the examination of Weser Flugzeugbau GmbH's various undertakings. It is actually rather unfortunate that Wenz' follow-up is a thinner book, as one might be drawn to imagine that the past existence of the massive manufacturing facilities at Tempelhof airport, including all related issues, would have warranted the inclusion of far more material and images (the book features 130 photos). Moreover, the book's design could be a bit more modern.

In spite of such desires, Wenz' Flughafen Tempelhof truly is a captivating compendium of information on the operations of a wartime German aircraft factory and the various special interests affecting it. Following brief descriptions of the establishment of Weser Flugzeugbau GmbH and the construction of the completely redesigned Tempelhof airport (see also Der Flughafen Tempelhof in Entwurfszeichnungen und Modellen), Wenz describes the actual repair, conversion, and production of aircraft at the airport. The switch to this new location was implemented because Weser Flugzeugbau GmbH's earlier facility at Lemwerder was utterly overwhelmed by the sheer volume of work it was allocated. This is evidenced, for example, by two striking photos on pages 25 and 26 of the book, one of them showing an aerial view of the access road to Lemwerder. The road itself is barely visible due to the fact that it was used as an improvised parking area for numerous Junkers Ju 86 aircraft.

Flughafen Tempelhof contains countless interesting photos depicting the activities at the Tempelhof facility, from conversion work on Heinkel He 111s and Ju 86s to the series production of the Ju 87 and the repair of the Fw 190. Some of the photos show the damage caused by bombing attacks as well as the measures taken to limit such damage in the future. In addition to the narrative, floor plans and images depicting aircraft components and various manufacturing and assembly areas help the reader to gain a visual understanding of operations in a fairly typical German aircraft plant of the period. Unfortunately, the text is at times a bit generic. An example is the description of the intention to commence production of the Fa 223 helicopter; this is basically a brief summary on the aircraft and provides hardly any details regarding the intended production.

Wenz further portrays the individuals managing operations at the Tempelhof manufacturing facility and then, on nine pages, touches upon the omnipresent topic of forced labour. It is this latter point which has led certain circles to express criticism regarding the book. Wenz' account was blamed for being too cursory and too apologetic on behalf of the plant. The issue of forced labour at Weser Flugzeugbau GmbH is indeed of tremendous significance. To say that Wenz is trivializing this subject matter would be too strong, but it is certainly true that the brevity of the chapter in question means that many thoroughly drastic aspects of the topic are merely hinted at or even outright excluded. The utter arrogance and ignorance exhibited by the German leadership (from the highest to the lowest level) with regard to employing forced labour defies description, and this is exactly why attempts must be made to describe it.

Flughafen Tempelhof concludes with an account of the collapse of plant operations at the end of the war, and the occupation by American troops. Perhaps it is futile to expect a book with such a limited page count to provide a highly detailed study, regardless of whether this concerns aircraft manufacturing or forced labour issues. This is why it is somewhat frustrating that this book isn't a more extensive work and why the text actually included is at times slightly sketchy.

Der Flughafen Tempelhof in Entwurfszeichnungen und Modellen, 1939-1944

Elke Dittrich, Lukas Verlag, Berlin, Germany, 2005, ISBN 3-936872-52-X. Illustrated, softcover, published in German.

Cover image © by Lukas Verlag, 2005.

There are numerous books dealing with Berlin's now closed Tempelhof airport and its changeful and often uneasy history. The airport's location within the city of Berlin, combined with its very distinctive architecture and the fact that it played an important role in the Third Reich (both as an airfield and aircraft manufacturing centre), have long made it a unique research project for historians and authors.

Built on what originally were military drill grounds then still outside of Berlin, Tempelhof airfield first became operational in 1923. By 1933, it had become a more substantial facility. It was only in the course of the architectural planning for Adolf Hitler's vision for a rebuilt Berlin, however, that Tempelhof airfield was earmarked to be expanded and developed into a massive airport, clearly designed to radiate power and progress. The new Tempelhof airport was to be an integral part of Berlin's projected north-south axis, itself an utterly revealing expression of the megalomania which had infected the ruling political class.

As it happened, the rebuilt Tempelhof airport was among the very few components of the plan for a new Berlin that were actually completed and, perhaps even more astonishingly, survived the war relatively intact. To this day, the airport's city-facing, curved buildings indicate the once intended circular shape of the large open space in front of the facility. As it proved to be impossible to finish the circular plaza before the end of the war, however, the airport buildings now lack context and thus appear somewhat like lone pieces of a long-lost puzzle.

Tempelhof is probably the most extensively documented German airport of the period before 1945, by means of both magazine articles and books. Its history and operations as an airport have been covered, for example, in the lavishly illustrated Tempelhof - Der Flughafen im Herzen Berlins (Helmut Trunz, GeraMond Verlag, Germany, 2008) or in Flughafen Tempelhof - Berlins Tor zur Welt (Frank Schmitz, be.bra verlag GmbH, Germany, 1997), to name but two of many. The truly excellent Flughafen Tempelhof: Chronik des Berliner Werkes der "Weser" Flugzeugbau GmbH, Bremen - Bau der Kriegsflugzeuge Ju 87 Stuka und FW 190, 1939 - 1945 (F.-Herbert Wenz, Stedinger Verlag, Germany, 2000), on the other hand, is an exhaustive look at wartime aircraft production at the site.

Notwithstanding the large number of publications on Tempelhof airport, Elke Dittrich's Der Flughafen Tempelhof in Entwurfszeichnungen und Modellen, 1939-1944 [Tempelhof Airport in Design Drafts And Models, 1939-1944] is a fascinating little booklet. In spite of containing a mere 36 pages, it's crammed full of information, drawings, and photos. Following a brief introduction and a look at the plans for the rebuilding of Berlin, Dittrich chronicles the evolution of the designs for the new airport in the capital of the Third Reich. An abundance of drawings and photos illustrates the text (some of them previously unpublished), further enhanced by beautifully detailed captions.

Dittrich's text is partially based on her earlier extensive research on Tempelhof airport's architect Ernst Sagebiel, and it also investigates the impact of the involvement of the German air ministry (RLM) and the General Building Inspector for the Capital of the Reich, Albert Speer. While highlighting the correlation between the desires for functionality and political representation, she thankfully refrains from delving into the usual stereotypes. Instead, the reader is provided with facts and information.

Elke Dittrich's Der Flughafen Tempelhof in Entwurfszeichnungen und Modellen, 1939-1944 focuses almost exclusively on the planning and design of Tempelhof airport during the Third Reich, leaving the exploration of its subsequent operations and history to works by other authors. As such, however, it is simply magnificent.

Zwischen Leipzig und der Mulde - Flugplatz Brandis 1935-1945

Stephen Ransom, Stedinger Verlag, Lemwerder, Germany, 1996, ISBN 3-927697-09-5. Illustrated, softcover, published in German.

Cover image © by Stedinger Verlag, 1996.

This remarkable little book (112 pages, format 240 x 170mm, 90 illustrations) managed to turn quite a few heads in the Luftwaffe research community upon its release in the second half of the 1990s. There are quite a number of publications dealing with the airfields used by the Luftwaffe in World War II, most of them released in Germany. This is a very specialized field of interest, and most of these publications thus see only very small print-runs and are generally overlooked by the larger World War II aviation enthusiast audience, in favor of books on far more popular topics, such as Focke-Wulf Fw 190s, Messerschmitt Bf 109s, et al.

Many of these airfield publications are compiled by local historians in an effort to preserve parts of their town's history. They are typically created on a shoe-string budget (and sometimes without a professional design staff), they are frequently hampered by a lack of available/surviving photographic material, and they are often either published by small local publishing houses or even self-published. And yet they are a crucial part of Luftwaffe research, and they sometimes contain surprising new bits of information or unexpected photographic treasures. Typical examples of the above are, perhaps, Uwe-Rolf Hinze's Start und Ziel Neuruppin (Edition Rieger, Germany, 1996), Tony Haderer's Der Militärflugplatz Zerbst (Extrapost Verlag für Heimatliteratur, Germany, 2002), or Heiner Wittrock's Fliegerhorst Wunstorf - Teil 1: Der Fliegerhorst des Dritten Reichs: 1934 - 1945 (Libri Books/Heiner Wittrock, Germany, 1995). There are literally uncounted more.

One could thus be forgiven for assuming that Stephen Ransom's Zwischen Leipzig und der Mulde is simply another interesting yet unspectacular such release. But it isn't; the book's contents were simply breathtaking at the time of its publication, and, to some extent, they still are today. To begin with, not only is Zwischen Leipzig und der Mulde a very professionally made book, released by a well-known publishing house specialized in works of outstanding quality, but Brandis ranks among the Luftwaffe's most fascinating airfields. This is not least due to its use as a location of aircraft trials and test flights by Junkers and others.

In his introduction, Ransom writes that this book basically came into existence as a byproduct of information uncovered during his extensive studies of the Junkers Ju 287 forward-swept wing jet bomber. Zwischen Leipzig und der Mulde is thus filled with well-researched, solid information, augmented by often spectacular pictures. This begins already with the book's very cover which depicts the wrecks of Messerschmitt Me 163 B V45 rocket fighter prototype and a Henschel Hs 130 A high altitude reconnaissance aircraft.

Focusing on the final events of the war at Brandis, Ransom details the Allied reconnaissance over and the subsequent advances towards the airfield. Many of the most poignant photos reproduced in the book were taken by the US troops occupying Brandis in 1945. Interspersed for historical context are photos and illustrations depicting the earlier history of the airfield, such as Luftwaffe staff and aircraft in the second half of the 1930s und during the initial years of the war. While many of these photos are superb and fascinatingly detailed (such as the two hangar shots on pages 42 and 43, for example), it is probably the picture content from the final phase of the war which is most captivating. This includes German anti-aircraft guns, Jumo 004 jet engines on rail cars, as well as advanced and/or unusual aircraft such as the Me 262, Me 163, Ho 229 V1, or AS 6.

Most interesting, however, is the series of photos depicting the Ju 287. To the best of my knowledge, this was the first time an author was able to publish a number of remarkable and conclusive images (as well as the associated analysis) of both initial Ju 287 prototypes, the V1 and V2. Stephen Ransom has in the meantime of course expanded on that topic, by writing, together with Peter Korrell and Peter D. Evans, his milestone study Junkers Ju 287 - Germany's Forward Swept Wing Bomber (Classic Publications/Ian Allan Publishing Ltd., England, 2008).

Zwischen Leipzig und der Mulde is thus a truly noteworthy and important book, even if it has since become slightly outclassed by its author's own subsequent work. There are only a few nitpicks to note. In my humble opinion, for example, the photo on page 23 does not depict the wreckage of a Junkers Ju 88 in the foreground but rather that of a Heinkel He 177. Also, my copy of the book, purchased in March 1997, now shows signs of pages coming loose where they were glued to the spine. This in spite of explicitly careful handling over the years.

Focke-Wulf Fw 191 Kampfflugzeug und das Bomber B-Programm

[Full title: "Focke-Wulf Fw 191 Kampfflugzeug und das Bomber B-Programm - Focke-Wulf im Wettbewerb mit den Entwicklungen der Arado Ar 340, Dornier Do 317 und Junkers Ju 288"] Hans-Peter Dabrowski & Peter Achs, Stedinger Verlag, Lemwerder, Germany, 2011, ISBN 978-3-927697-61-4. Illustrated, hardcover, published in German.

Cover image © by Stedinger Verlag, 2011.

The existence of the Luftwaffe's "Bomber B" program is common knowledge for anyone seriously interested in German military aviation of World War II. It has been referred to in uncounted books on the Luftwaffe, and it is perceived as a major and very costly (and ultimately failed) weapons program. Nonetheless, no comprehensive history of the "Bomber B" program had so far been published. We were left with brief glimpses and fragments at best and unsubstantiated assertions at worst, many of them perpetually repeated.

Passably competent but, by necessity, fragmentary information about the Bomber B program can be found, for example, in Thomas H. Hitchcock's Close-Up 2: Junkers 288 (Monogram Aviation Publications, USA, 1974), or in Manfred Griehl's Dornier Do 217-317-417 (Airlife Publishing Ltd., England, 1991). Moreover, political, technical, and industrial implications of the Bomber B program are illuminated in greater detail as part of Lutz Budrass' phenomenal 976-page study Flugzeugindustrie und Luftrüstung in Deutschland 1918 - 1945 (Droste Verlag, Germany, 1998). Updated information was also published in recent years in specialist magazines, namely in Germany's Flugzeug Classic.

But now we are presented for the first time with a publication entirely dedicated to the Bomber B program and the resulting aircraft designs. And what an absolutely spectacular book it is, packed with information and rare and detailed photos. At 344 pages, a format of 205 x 285mm, and some 420 illustrations, it is a sizeable publication by any means. Moreover, it's perhaps most surprising that it is still possible to publish such an astonishingly comprehensive study in this day and age of economic-commercial challenges and massive competition by means of countless multi-media platforms.

Still, Germany's Stedinger Verlag has a long history of publishing well-researched, landmark-type books on Luftwaffe-related topics. Publications such as Hans-Peter Dabrowski's own Focke-Wulf Nahaufklärer Fw 189 A Uhu (2008), Stephen Ransom's astounding Zwischen Leipzig und der Mulde - Flugplatz Brandis 1935 - 1945 (1996), or F.-Herbert Wenz' Chronik des Lemwerder Flugzeugwerkes 1935 - 1963 (1995) and Flughafen Tempelhof 1939 - 1945: Chronik des Berliner Werkes der Weser Flugzeugbau GmbH (2000) are but a few examples of this publishing house's commitment to provide ground-breaking, quality releases.

Focke-Wulf Fw 191 Kampfflugzeug und das Bomber B-Programm is no exception. If anything, it represents a new pinnacle in both Stedinger Verlag's catalog of titles and the work of Hans-Peter Dabrowski and Peter Achs. The book's sheer opulence and attention to detail, along with its careful, fact-based approach, render it a magnificent one-stop source for the program in question and the aircraft involved.

On the back cover of the book, and at various points in the text, Dabrowski and Achs are at pains to explain that there exist significant gaps with regard to surviving original documents relating to diverse aspects the Bomber B program. It will thus probably remain impossible to ever compile a truly definite history of the program. And yet, taking into consideration such insurmountable obstacles, Dabrowski and Achs have achieved exactly that - the most complete history of this topic ever released. In doing so, they are able to address and correct many assumptions and much erroneous information previously published.

Starting with a background on the situation which gave rise to the Bomber B idea, the book then details the early designs for Focke-Wulf's response to the call for proposals, leading to the actual Fw 191. The text is supported by numerous drawings, tables, and original documents, along with photos of contemporary display and windtunnel models, mock-ups, static tests, technical and powerplant details, and prototype aircraft. The political and industrial context is continuously highlighted in the narrative, as are changes to design and engines, as well as problems during design, construction, and test flights. Also covered are the individual prototypes, and planned further developments (such as the Fw 491, or the Ta 400, and many more).

A nice and very helpful touch are loosely interspersed brief biographies of significant personalities involved, such as engineers, political brass, Luftwaffe staff, or test pilots. The wealth of photos uncovered (many of them previously unpublished) is simply astounding, particularly if one takes into account the loss of much such material due to the ravages of the war.

A significant component of the story of the Bomber B program is of course the question of the powerplant. The associated problems and changes, seemingly perpetual, played a major part in eventually dooming this entire weapons program, and they are well documented here by the authors.

One of the most stunning (and, to me, most unexpected) aspects of the book is that it doesn't just stop at the aircraft which is the subject of its title. Focke-Wulf Fw 191 Kampfflugzeug und das Bomber B-Programm also contains what is probably the most comprehensive history yet written on Junkers' Bomber B entry, the utterly fascinating Ju 288. At 75 pages, and again heavily illustrated, the section on the Ju 288 is basically a book within the book. A further section of 18 pages details the usually elusive Dornier Do 317 entry, another 11 pages are dedicated to the even more obscure Arado Ar 340 entry. A final page discusses what potentially also was a Bomber B contender, the Henschel Hs 130 C.

The book's appendix contains four color profiles of the Fw 191, Ju 288, Do 317, and Ar 340, along with two color facsimiles of original Fw 191 documents, and a listing of sources and materials used in the completion of the book

A minor point of contention could perhaps be that a number of photos have been printed at a relatively small size. This is undoubtedly the result of the sheer number of photos contained in the book as well as the eventual limitations of page-count and associated (and entirely understandable) commercial confines. While this is sometimes a bit of a shame, I wouldn't want to trade the existing book for one with fewer but larger photos. In addition to the massive amount of information presented, it is not least the aforementioned wealth of illustrations which serves to make this publication such a treasure.