Building Tegel Airfield

Tegel Airfield: Built in record time

At the beginning of August 1948, work started on the urgently needed third airfield in addition to Tempelhof and Gatow. Tegel Airport was built in Berlin’s French sector in a record time of 3 months. This was only possible with the help of around 19,000 German workers –40% of whom were women – working around the clock in a three-shift system. Tegel Airport was officially inaugurated on 5 November 1948, and was in full operation for the airlift from mid-December onwards.