After too many messages from the UK about wartime airfields under threat from property developers, I just came across a announcement that the municipality of Venlo and several neighbouring German minicipalitiues are going to preserve what is left of Fliegerhorst Venlo. As some of you will know this was the largest German night fighter base, some 12 square km's and with 50 kilometers of run- and taxiways, etc. the site is now actually part of an nature "reserve" and they want to start exploit it as it is already being visited buy so many people. The idea behind it from the municipality POV is that it was also an Allied airfield (!) that helped defeat the Nazi's. There will be monuments erected to comemorate both Allied and German casualties....

See also: http://www.fliegerhorst-venlo.net/

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That really is very interesting - I'd been wondering if there were any such initiatives in Continental Europe.

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That's superb news, Stevin.

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Gordon
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Two nights ago the people who want to preserve the air field had exposure on nationwide TV in Holland. Marcel H. was well in focus. The item in the newsshow started off a bit omnius, like ; "Fliegerhorst Venlo was the biggest air base of the Luftwaffe. Planes from this field shot down and killed around 2,500 Allied soldiers. Now they want to preserbe the site...."

But the rest of the item, and especially the arguments and interview of Marcel and the German Venlo enthousiast turned out very positive in my view. Apparently both the municipality and the province have both allocated money for the restoration of the site!!!

It seems they are in full swing for preservation and rstoration now. [img]graemlins/salute.gif[/img]

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Brilliant!

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Regards,

Gordon
http://www.freewebs.com/thehistoryvault/
http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y20/Historian/

Speaking of historical places. I was watching the History Channel and they were viewing the Atlantic Wall. Now they were talking about how its starting to fall apart and such. this worries me because i hate to see such historic places like that to vanish. I really think there should be something done to preserve the history of such a time changing war.

As Ex Army (Royal Engineers) stationed in Germany for 6 years.I did numerous Excercises on SOLTAU and i often wondered if the long stretch of tarmac that was in the camp at Rheinsalen was a old Runway.
Neil [img]graemlins/stugg.gif[/img]