Soviet Aircraft in Minsk and Kiev

June 17, 2018May 9, 2020 CarloRLeave a comment

Since during WWII, and even more during the early Cold War period, the Soviet Union invested much in the creation of a world-class aviation industry, capable of competing against those in the US and Britain. The confrontation between the two sides of the Iron Curtain, lasting until the early Nineties, resulted in an unprecedented boost in aviation technology, which grew very quickly to a level of sophistication which could be hardly imagined just a few years earlier.

Both military and civil transportation benefited from this development, with a tangible result – a wide multiplicity of aircraft models, with different shapes, missions and performance. A such diversity is not any more typical to these days, when new aircraft designs are very rare and, at least at a glance, extremely similar in shape.

The Soviet Union based much of its propaganda actions on the show of technological achievements and military might. As aviation has been for long – and maybe still is – an immediate expression of a Nation’s technology and power, large aviation-themed exhibits flourished over the territory of the USSR (see also this and this post).

This post provides an insight into two such collections, found in the capital cities of two former Socialist Republics within the borders of the Soviet Union – Minsk, Belarus and Kiev, Ukraine. Photographs were taken in April 2018.

Navigate this post – click on links to scroll

Museum of Aviation Technology, main branch, Minsk, Belarus
Museum of Aviation Technology, airport branch, Minsk, Belarus
Ukraine State Aviation Museum, Kiev, Ukraine

Museum of Aviation Technology – Main Branch – Minsk, Belarus

This classic Soviet collection showcases all the major models in service with the Air Force of the Soviet Red Army. Today Belarus, albeit enjoying a strong economical relationship with Russia, is an independent country, with a size and a geographical location making an immense air power not necessary, nor economically viable. Hence the non negligible size of this museum can be explained with the past (Soviet) history of Belarus, which used to be a key territory between Communist Russia and the European satellites of the USSR.

The first aircraft you are likely to meet are the earliest of the collection – a propeller-driven Yakovlev Yak-18 and Yak-52. Close by a small building is devoted to space explorations, and hosts memorabilia and a Soyuz reentry capsule.

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum Yak

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum Space Hall

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum Let L-29

The MiG design bureau, traditionally associated to high-performance fighter and attack aircraft, is well represented in this collection. Close to one another are a MiG-15, MiG-17, MiG-19, MiG-21, MiG-23, MiG-27 and MiG-29, basically covering the major production items of this firm over the full span of the Cold War.

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum MiG-17

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum MiG-15

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum MiG-27

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum MiG-29

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum MiG-27

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum MiG-29

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum MiG-23

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum MiG-27

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum MiG-21

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum MiG-17

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum MiG-19

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum MiG-21

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum MiG-17

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum MiG-23

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum MiG-21

The MiG family is completed by a MiG-25 twin jet interceptor, capable of a Mach 2.8 speed. This is present in the collection in two exemplars, including a pretty rare training version – MiG-25PU -, with a distinctive ‘double cockpit’ similar to those of the training version of the Lockheed U-2.

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum MiG-25 Trainer

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Belarus Air Museum MiG-25

Another well-represented manufacturer in the collection is the Sukhoi bureau, with a Su-7, Su-17, Su-24 and Su-25. The Su-24 is sitting besides the MiG-25, making for a fair size comparison – search for the cover of my wide lens in the pic of the main wheel of the MiG-25! These two aircraft are really massive compared to the earlier Su-7 and Su-17, and of course to the nearby Su-25 – an insidious and heavily armed aircraft, despite the clumsy appearance, as the many underwing pylons suggest!

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Belarus Air Museum Sukhoi Su-7

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Belarus Air Museum Sukhoi Su-17

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Belarus Air Museum Sukhoi Su-24

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Belarus Air Museum Sukhoi Su-25

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Belarus Air Museum Sukhoi Su-17

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Belarus Air Museum Sukhoi Su-25

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Belarus Air Museum Sukhoi Su-24

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Belarus Air Museum Sukhoi Su-25

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Belarus Air Museum Sukhoi Su-17

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Belarus Air Museum Sukhoi Su-24

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Belarus Air Museum Sukhoi Su-17

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Belarus Air Museum Sukhoi Su-24

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Belarus Air Museum Sukhoi Su-7

A more recent Sukhoi design on site is the Su-27, put close to the MiG-29 and clearly outsizing it.

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum Sukhoi Su-27

Yakovlev products, besides the already cited oldtimers, include a Yak-28 and a rare Yak-25, a pretty old-looking twin jet.

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum Yakovlev Yak-28

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Belarus Air Museum Yakovlev Yak-25

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum Yakovlev Yak-28

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Belarus Air Museum Yakovlev Yak-25

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum Yakovlev Yak-28

Among the few Soviet design in use today, the helicopters of the Mil and Kamov design bureaus are represented in the collection by a Mi-1, Mi-2, Mi-8, Mi-24 and Ka-26 placed side by side. Furthermore, there was some Mil helicopter activity over the airfield nearby when I visited.

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum Mil

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum Mil Mi-24

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum Mil Mi-1

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum Mil Mi-4

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum Mil Mi-6

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum Mil

The impressive Mi-24, a very aggressive-looking and highly successful attack helicopter with a peculiar rear compartments, was totally accessible when I visited. The mainly analog cockpit with a number of levers, gauges, switches and controls, suggests a conspicuous workload by the pilot! An interesting item on the cockpit is what appears to be an analog navigation system or tactical display, composed of a a paper map and a cruciform sight surfing over it, showing the current position of the helicopter.

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum Mil Mi-24

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum Mil Mi-24 Cockpit

The fat-looking rubber ventilation fan and the bulbous windscreen remember you this is a Soviet product – in case the labels in Cyrillic were not enough!

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum Mil Mi-24 Cockpit

The back compartment may accommodate several troops, albeit not in a stand up position, or cargo/additional fuel. It is not totally separated from the cockpit.

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum Mil Mi-24

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum Mil Mi-24 Cabin

Besides military aircraft, there is also a group of military/civil transports. These include an older yet still widespread Antonov An-2 single prop. A similarly old Ilyushin Il-14 twin props is on display nearby.

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum Antonov An-2

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum Ilyushin Il-14

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum Ilyushin Il-14

More recent aircraft include and Antonov An-26, not a rare sight in the former Communist countries of the world, and Il-18 and a larger An-12 four-props, and some jets – two Yak-40 including one formerly operated for state flights, and an ubiquitous Tupolev Tu-134 formerly of Aeroflot. A true icon of the Cold War, the equivalent of the MD-80 for the USSR, this fuel thirsty aircraft is likely to be retired by its last operator in Russia later this year.

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Belarus Air Museum Antonov An-26

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Belarus Air Museum Ilyushin Il-18

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Belarus Air Museum Ejection seat

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Belarus Air Museum Yakovlev Yak-40

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Belarus Air Museum Tupolev Tu-134

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Belarus Air Museum Yakovlev Yak-40

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Belarus Air Museum Tupolev Tu-134

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Belarus Air Museum Antonov An-12

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Belarus Air Museum Yakovlev Yak-40

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Belarus Air Museum Tupolev Tu-134

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Belarus Air Museum Yakovlev Yak-40

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Belarus Air Museum Tupolev Tu-134

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum Antonov An-24

Properly put among other transport aircraft, a huge Mi-26 transport helicopter is sitting between the An-12 and Tu-134. This is the heaviest single helicopter of traditional configuration ever built. By a rough comparison, the length of the fuselage is greater than that of the two transport aircraft! It is really hard to think this machine can be pushed into the sky… yet the immense, eight-bladed main rotor apparently can carry out the task! The Mi-26 is still today in service with several Countries, mostly in private hands.

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Belarus Air Museum Mil Mi.26

Finally, an unusual circular box-wing experimental aircraft completes the collection. Not easy to design well, nor very nice to see in this case, the box-wing concept has surfaced more than once in history as an advantageous alternative to increase lift while reducing drag.

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum Prototype

Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum

All in all, a very nice collection worth a quick detour from downtown Minsk.

Getting there

The place is open as a regular museum. The official website, all in the local idiom, is here. There is a nice resource site covering the history of all aircraft in the museum in detail – and much more about aircraft displays in Belarus – here. Some Google-translating will be necessary, but basic info like opening times and how to reach can be easily found this way.

The location is by the small local Borovaya Airfield, which is still active today with light GA traffic. Less than one mile from the junction between Minsk Beltway and the M3 going north. I would recommend a car for getting there, parking is available right in front of the ticket booth.

Visiting may take from 1.5 to 3 hours depending on your level of interest in Soviet aviation, and the number of pictures you want to take!

Museum of Aviation Technology – Airport Branch – Minsk Airport, Belarus

This open-air and unfenced collection is located right besides the passenger terminal of Minsk Airport. Here you can find a series of transport aircraft of Soviet make, conveniently parked side by side and easy to capture with a camera.

Minsk Airport Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum Tupolev Tu-154

The two largest are a Tupolev Tu-154 three-engined commercial airliner, still in service in some countries of the world, and an Ilyushin Il-76 four-engined cargo. This is likely one of the most successful designs from the Soviet era, and is still a rather widespread aircraft today.

Minsk Airport Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum Ilyushin Il-76

Smaller aircraft on display are a Tupolev Tu-134, an Antonov An-26, a Yakovlev Yak-40 and a colorful Antonov An-2.

Minsk Airport Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum Tupolev Tu-134

Minsk Airport Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum Antonov An-24

Minsk Airport Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum Tupolev Tu-134

Minsk Airport Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum Yakovlev Yak-40

Minsk Airport Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum Tupolev Tu-134

Minsk Airport Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum Antonov An-2

Minsk Airport Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum Yakovlev Yak-40

Minsk Airport Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum Antonov An-24

Minsk Airport Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum Antonov An-2

Minsk Airport Museum of Aviation Technology Minsk Air Museum Tupolev Tu-134

Getting there

The display is located to the north of the passenger terminal of the airport of Minsk. Missing it is basically impossible when leaving or accessing the terminal from the front. There is a small parking area to the back of the aircraft, accessible from a road taking north from the main access road going to the terminal, immediately out of the airport toll booths.

Visiting is free and always possible, for the area is unfenced. You can’t board the aircraft, which are in a relatively good shape and lighted at night. A nice stop before leaving the country by air, the sight may be visited in 45 minutes, including time for all pictures.

Ukraine State Aviation Museum – Kiev, Ukraine

Among the air museum of former Soviet countries this is probably one of the richest and most interesting. The collection boasts some pretty rare aircraft from the military and commercial fields as well, all purely and distinctively Soviet. Plus there is a local depot carrying out some preservation projects, acquiring aircraft and restoring them to a good, non-flying condition.

With an immense territory, a numerous population and a strategically relevant position – including an access to the Black Sea – Ukraine enjoyed a primary role in the realm of the USSR. It was also the home base of many aircraft – especially heavy bombers – in the strategic Air Force of the Red Army. Many of them were actually ‘trapped’ in Ukraine when this nation left the Union, in the years of turmoil leading to its final collapse. Many Tupolev Tu-160s, still today forming the backbone of the Russian strategic air force, were purchased back from Russia in a later time. Since then, the national interest to maintain an air force comparable in size to that of the Soviet era has dropped, and most Cold War era assets have been retired from active duty, eventually feeding air collections like the one in Kiev.

Furthermore, besides more recent military designs the collection features some transport aircraft otherwise hard to see these days.

[Note: on the day of my visit the museum grounds hosted a fancy classic-car-themed festival. I discovered this when on site. As you will easily notice, the pictures below are often very far from optimal, due to the need to exclude some unwanted item, like hot-dog booths, dinner tables and historical buses from the composition. However, I hope the pics give an idea of the size and quality of the exhibition.]

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Ilyushin Il-14

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Ilyushin Il-18

Transport aircraft from early Soviet times include an Ilyushin Il-14 twin prop, an Il-18 four-props, and a very rare and nicely restored Tupolev Tu-104 twin jet. This particular design was later used as a starting point for the highly successful Tu-134, which features a very similar fuselage and cabin layout. The engines partially engulfed in the wing are really elegant – a typical feature of the 1950s, they witness the age of the design.

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Tupolev Tu-104

The Tupolev bureau is represented also by the Tu-154 three-engined jet, and multiple exemplars of the ubiquitous Tu-134.

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Tupolev Tu-134

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Tupolev Tu-154

Even bigger aircraft from the commercial field include an Ilyushin Il-62, with a distinctive four-tail-engines configuration, similar to the Vickers VC-10 – this time, a typical 1960s feature! You can walk under the bigger aircraft of the collection, and to the back of the Il-62 you can notice the unusual support wheel added for increased stability during loading/unloading operations to avoid tipping. This was retracted before taxiing. Ukraine makes use of Il-62s to this day for state flights.

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Ilyushin Il-62

A rare Soviet four-engined long-hauler from the Eighties is the Ilyushin Il-86. This is still flying in scant numbers in the Russian Air Force and with a few commercial operators. Looking mostly like an early Airbus from the 1970s, the cockpit arrangement, the multi-purpose big access door and some details in the aerodynamic design add a Soviet twist.

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Ilyushin Il-86

Transport aircraft include a heavy Ilyushin Il-76 and plenty of lighter Antonovs, including An-24s, An-26s and an An-30 twin props, plus two single-engined An-2s.

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Ilyushin Il-76

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Antonov An-30

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Ilyushin Il-76

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Antonov An-30

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Antonov An-26

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Antonov An-24

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Antonov An-26

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Antonov An-2

A pretty unique sight you get in this museum is the An-71. This AWACS from the 1980s never entered production, and the one on display is the third and last prototype. The interesting solution with a radome on top of the tail promised to reduce overall drag, saving on a dedicated radome pylon. On the other hand the radome placed so far from the centerline clearly created some controllability issues and raised stress on the vertical tail. Antonov was an Ukrainian firm active till recently, so the only other An-71 still in existence is also in Ukraine.

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Antonov An-71

Smaller transports include two executive Yakovlev Yak-40.

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Yakovlev Yak-40

Going to the military part of the exhibition, lighter aircraft include a number from the MiG family, including MiG-15, MiG-17, MiG-19, MiG-21, MiG-23, MiG-25, MiG-27 and MiG-29.

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev MiG-17

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev MiG-15

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev MiG-17

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev MiG-25

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev MiG-29

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev MiG-27

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev MiG-23

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev MiG-21

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev MiG-19

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev MiG-21

Two Let trainers are on display, close by a rich array of Sukhois, which include Su-7, Su-15, Su-17, Su-20, Su-24 and Su-25.

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Sukhoi Su-7

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Sukhoi Su-15

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Sukhoi Su-17

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Sukhoi Su-20

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Sukhoi Su-25

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Sukhoi Su-20

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Sukhoi Su-25

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Sukhoi Su-24

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Yakovlev Yak-28

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Let L-29

Two very rare examples of Beriev seaplanes are on display, namely the Be-6 and Be-12.

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Beriev Be-12

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Beriev Be-6

Close by, there is a rich collection of Mil and Kamov helicopters. These include an older version of Mi-24, featured in the third chapter of the John Rambo series, and lacking the bulbous canopy typical to more recent upgrades. The monster size Mi-6 and Mi-26 are also on display.

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Mil Mi-24

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Mil Mi-8

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Mil Mi-24

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Mil Mi-8

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Mil Mi-6

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Mil Mi-26

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Mil Mi-24

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Mil Mi-6

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Kamov Ka-27

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Mil Mi-6

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Mil Mi-26

Finally, there is a row of really rare and unmissable Tupolev bombers. These include a Tu-142, possibly one of the most iconic aircraft of the Cold War, and a real workhorse flying from the early 1970s well into this millennium – still firmly in service in Russia and until 2017 also in India. A very big bird, with a menacing and evoking appearance – really a Soviet ghost!

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Tupolev Tu-142

Then follow three different versions of the Tupolev Tu-22M, a supersonic strategic bomber still active today in Russia, India and even purchased in post-Soviet times by China. The three exemplars are different, the oldest belongs to the pre-series evaluation batch, whereas the other two are from two production batches resulting from substantial improvements. In particular, the final version from the 1980s features different – F-15-like – engine inlets, more powerful engines, and correspondingly a much better performance.

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Tupolev Tu-22M2

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Tupolev Tu-22M0

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Tupolev Tu-22M2

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Tupolev Tu-22M3

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Tupolev Tu-22M2

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Tupolev Tu-22M3

Also of great interest is the rare Tu-134UBL, a modified version of the airliner with a cone similar to that of the Tu-22M, manufactured for training the crews of the Tu-22M.

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Tupolev Tu-134UBL

The museum is complemented by an aircraft shelter, some experimental aircraft and older propeller-driven trainers.

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Shelter

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Yak

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Antonov Izdelie 181 Prototype

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Yakovlev Yak-18

State Aviation Museum Ukraine Kiev Antonov Izdelie 181 Prototype

Getting there

The museum is located in Kiev, on the premises of the city airport ‘Igor Sikorsky’ – one of the founders of US helicopter industry was from Ukraine! Kiev is a very large town for European standards, with a population of 5.5 millions and a totally crazy and chaotic traffic. I would not advise driving on your own in this town even if you – like me – enjoy driving, so reaching the museum is definitely easier (and wiser) with a taxi. Taxi cabs are very cheap and easy to find anywhere in town.

Reaching from downtown Kiev by taxi may easily take 30 minutes, mainly due to the nightmarish traffic jams affecting the town.

Please note that the museum is not by the airport terminal, but from there it is about 0.8 miles along an unpleasant road. So you’d better instruct your driver to go to the museum and not to the terminal when going there. If you can’t see a taxi when leaving, you may walk to the terminal where you have chance to find one. That was my plan, but a taxi finally showed up in front of the museum after a five minutes hopeful wait also when I was leaving.

The museum has a very complete and modern website with a full English translation, making organization much easier.

Due to the size and features of the collection, visiting may easily take 2 to 3 hours or more for an interested person, especially when taking pictures.

Special feature – Kiev Boryspil Airport

The main commercial airport in Kiev – Boryspil – is likely where you will enter or leave the Country. The traffic there is almost monopolized by the local Ukrainian Airlines, with international flights also by other majors from western Europe and neighbor Countries. At the moment there is just one busy terminal between two parallel runways. From inside the terminal looking east over the eastern runway it is possible to spot a military area, with a fleet of former Soviet transports and helicopters in various colors, including ‘UN’ markings, Ukrainian Air Force and Aeroflot – which acted also a military transport service in the Soviet era.

Among these aircraft are An-24s, An-26s and An-30s, plus Il-76s, Tu-134s and An-12s. Most aircraft look derelict and some partly cannibalized.

Kiev Boryspil Airport Military Apron Ilyushin Il-76

Kiev Boryspil Airport Military Apron Antonov An-12

Kiev Boryspil Airport Military Apron Yakovlev Yak-40

Kiev Boryspil Airport Military Apron Ilyushin Il-76

Kiev Boryspil Airport Military Apron Boeing 737

Kiev Boryspil Airport Military Apron Antonov An-24

Kiev Boryspil Airport Military Apron Antonov An-30

Kiev Boryspil Airport Military Apron Antonov An-24

Kiev Boryspil Airport Military Apron Tupolev Tu-134

Kiev Boryspil Airport Military Apron Yakovlev Yak-40

Kiev Boryspil Airport Military Apron Antonov An-24

Kiev Boryspil Airport Military Apron Ilyushin Il-76

To the northern end of that area, it is possible to spot two Ilyushin Il-62s in very good condition. The Ukrainian government was using this aircraft at least until 2014 for state flights.

Kiev Boryspil Airport Military Apron Ilyushin Il-62

Kiev Boryspil Airport Military Apron US Air Force C-17

When I left I noticed a pretty unusual cargo for this region – a USAF C-17 from the 452nd AMW, March AFB, Riverside, CA. An impossible sight during the Cold War, still pretty unexpected these days!

Secret Soviet Missile Bases in the GDR

January 14, 2018February 16, 2021 CarloRLeave a comment

	The BEST pictures from Soviet bases in the GDR ALL in ONE BOOK!
	Soviet Ghosts in Germany
	GRAB IT in PAPERBACK or KINDLE from your national Amazon store!
	amazon.com \| amazon.de \| amazon.co.uk amazon.it \| amazon.fr \| amazon.co.jp

Driving less than one hour north from Berlin, Germany to the beautiful region of the Oberhavel, you can find some largely forgotten relics of an untold chapter of the Cold War, when Khrushchev secretly deployed nuclear missiles to hit European targets, for the first time outside of the Soviet Union – years before the Cuban missile crisis.

History – in brief

Germany held an undisputed lead on missile technology at the end of WWII. Similarly to the US, the missile program of the USSR started soon after Hitler’s army was defeated, and benefited from the capture and transfer of hundreds of German rocket scientists. These German engineers started by reproducing the German A-4 – also known as the in-famous V-2 -, the worlds first surface-to-surface missile to reach mass production. The corresponding Soviet design was named R-1, and similarly to the original A-4 it had a very short-range – less than 200 miles – and a payload too low for carrying a nuclear warhead, hence it could not be used to pose a strategic threat to the western enemies even in Europe from within the borders of the Communist bloc.

After long and intensive research efforts towards the increase in range, payload and accuracy of rockets, and aimed at improving yield, mass efficiency and miniaturization on the side of nuclear weapons, the Soviets finally could deploy the first intermediate range strategic missile, in the form of the R-5M – or SS-3 Shyster in the western databases – by mid-1956. With a range of 800 miles and a payload of 2800 lbs, this 60 ft-long missile could carry a single 300 kilotons nuclear warhead with basically autonomous inertial guidance, and radio correction to increase accuracy. Similarly to the A-4, propulsion was based on alcohol as fuel and highly volatile liquid-oxygen as oxidizer. Operation and maintenance of this high-technology surface-launched system was a very complicated task, requiring well-trained, specialized staff in large numbers. Several Engineering Brigades were established during the Fifties for this purpose, and their numbers and relevance went on increasing with time, as the range, yield and number of strategic missiles was rising with no pause in the following years.

For the USSR, already led by Khrushchev at that time, the commissioning of the R-5M platform meant that for the first time targets in the enemy Countries of Western Europe could be placed under the menace of a nuclear attack, carried out by means of missiles traveling at a speed so high that made them virtually undetectable and unstoppable. The Soviet Union now owned a strategic missile force, but the problem of range was still hard to tackle.

It was at this point that, after years of cogitation and secret papers, the deployment of the R-5M to the ‘border Countries’ of the communist empire started to take a tangible form. The reason was simple – while the range of the Shyster was not enough to reach any target from within the USSR, it could hit at least Britain, Northern France, Belgium and the US bases in the western half of Germany from some ‘satellite Country’, namely from the territory of the German Democratic Republic.

After inspection, the area between the small towns of Fürstenberg and Vogelsang – isolated in a pretty large, wild and unpopulated area, deep in the countryside about 35 miles north of Berlin and 12 miles from each other, but linked to the railway system – were selected by the higher ranks of the Soviet Army in 1957 for the deployment of missile launch facilities for the R-5M.

Construction works were started in total secrecy, enlarging and modifying Soviet military installations where some tank divisions were quartered. Even the top levels of the government and military staff of the GDR were unaware of the operation – codenamed ‘Atom’ by the Soviet high command. The Soviets carried out much of the work themselves, but they could not avoid to involve local civil workers for ‘unclassified tasks’, and they eventually came to suspect that something unusual was going on. Agents of – at least, but probably not only – the secret service of Federal Germany transmitted the news to their headquarters beyond the Iron Curtain. Yet documents become available decades after, following the end of the Cold War, show that not much detailed information existed in the archives of the intelligence of Western Countries about this deployment – further highlighting the ‘top secret’ level of the operation. This was actually the first deployment of Soviet strategic weapons outside the USSR ever, years before the more famous operation ‘Anadyr’ causing the Cuban missile crisis in 1962 – a scenario very similar to operation ‘Atom’, but with the US instead of western Europe directly within range of Soviet missiles.

Barracks, recreation and service buildings, concrete launch ramps, connection roads, bunkers for atomic warheads, and everything that was needed both for storing all subsystems and for supporting launch operations was built during 1958 both in Vogelsang and Fürstenberg. Two artillery units and two specialized accompanying technical units arrived in January 1959, together with 12 missiles transported by train, as reported again by secret agents. At the same time, upon reaching completion of the construction works all civil workers were dismissed, and today we know that the nuclear warheads arrived under heavy escort in May 1959 by train.

As typical in the chess game between the two superpowers in the years of Khrushchev, Eisenhower and Kennedy, after years of preparation operation ‘Atom’ was suddenly interrupted only three months after the Shyster had become operative in the GDR, in August 1959. An order to withdraw immediately was issued, and all missiles and related units were temporarily relocated in Kaliningrad, Russia, from where they were short of range and not any more a threat for the West.

But this is not the end of the story. In March 1959 the new R-12 missile, also known as SS-4 Sandal and later deployed to Cuba, became operative with a range of 1300 miles and a single high-yield, 2.3 megaton nuclear warhead. In September 1961 the Khrushchev administration issued an order to deploy a missile regiment constituted anew for the purpose with R-12 missiles to the GDR – an operation codenamed ‘Tuman’ (‘fog’ in English).

The high-ranking staff responsible for the operation inspected the bases of Vogelsang and Fürstenberg the same month, and issued orders for some preparation work to be carried out for making these facilities suitable for the new R-12 missile. As a result, two launch pads were set up in the trees between the two military bases. Each of them comprised light service buildings, concrete platforms for the launch gantries and support vehicles, fuel storages, guard bunkers. Gravel roads were prepared to connect the launch platforms with the two main bases, where Sandal missiles could be hidden and sheltered in the bunkers already manufactured for the Shyster.

The staff of the new regiment was engaged in intensive training activities and launch simulations in the USSR until the end of 1961, and all material and troops were kept ready for moving by train at the railway station of Zhitovichi, Belarus, at that time inside the Soviet Union, to the now ready bases in the GDR.

Again, after all preparations the order to deploy was never issued, and by mid 1962 ‘Tuman’ was halted and the special regiment disbanded. This second attempt to place Soviet missiles out of the USSR was canceled just months before the deployment to Cuba, and soon after the R-14 missile had become operative in April 1961. This missile, known as SS-5 Skean, had the same warhead but roughly twice the range of the SS-4 Sandal, mainly thanks to a different propellant. With this system all western Europe could now be targeted from behind the border of the USSR, making deployment to satellite Countries in Europe unnecessary.

Similarly to operation ‘Atom’, even though preparation works probably did not go unnoticed by the few people in the area, this story remained basically undisclosed until at least the mid 1990s, after the – by then – Russian armed forces left the territory of the former GDR, and both Vogelsang and Fürstenberg, which after the early Sixties had continued to work as military bases for some Soviet tank divisions, were finally shut down and abandoned.

Sights

As argued in other chapters on this website dealing with former Soviet installations over the territory of the former GDR, todays Germany – comprehensibly – does not seem interested in preserving any legacy of this inconvenient past. For the case of Vogelsang and Fürstenberg, the remoteness and amenity of the area has facilitated a new birth of these two as well as other nearby centers, which are today lovely destinations for local tourism especially from Berlin, with nice lakes, cycleways, many canals and hiking trails in the trees. As these two military bases with their weird stories have been a well kept secret since their inception, there is probably no reason for the local communities to publicize them now.

As a result, both bases are being strongly reclaimed by nature, and little remains today of these once prominent – albeit secret – installations.

Yet from a historical perspective the missile installations in Vogelsang and Fürstenberg make for a proof of the seriously dangerous and determined attitude of Khrushchev and the Soviet Union towards increasing the power of the USSR on the international scene by means of military actions. Especially in 1959 with the deployment of the Shyster, the stage for a crisis with an unpredictable outcome was prepared in Europe, but for some reason luckily this was not exploited. Furthermore, this happened some years before the Cuban missile crisis, incorrectly accepted as the first such experiment in Soviet history.

Both bases in Vogelsang and Fürstenberg present some traces of the activity of the missile units. While most of the buildings connected with the missile operations have been demolished, including unreinforced hangars for storing the missiles, bunkers for nuclear warheads can be found on both sites – these are much stronger, and demolition work would be very difficult, so these hangars have been simply closed and left there. Vogelsang is covered in a dedicated chapter, while the scant remains of the Fürstenberg barracks and the nuclear storage there will be shown in this post.

Possibly more intriguing – for more dedicated explorers – and difficult to find are the rocket launch pads. Two launch pads for the R-5M exist, on the premises of Vogelsang and Fürstenberg bases. Eight further pads are placed in two groups of four, in the large territory extending between the two military bases. These are totally abandoned, forgotten deep in the trees, possibly the only tangible testimony of the planned deployment of the SS-4 Sandal in the GDR. These are also covered in this post.

Photographs were taken in August 2017.

Map

Due to the wild vegetation and to the shape of the launching pads – which are concrete slabs today mostly covered by a thin layer of mud, moss and lichens – spotting these ‘archeological findings’ is getting more and more challenging. To ease the search I created a Google map of the launch pads. No coverage of what remains of the nearby bases of Vogelsang and Fürstenberg is provided on the map, as whether those places are interdicted to the public or free to visit is a matter of discussion.

Besides the position of the pads themselves, you can find what are car-accessible roads to get near to pinpointed POIs and suggested trail/trail-heads.

Navigate this post – Click on links to scroll

R-5M/SS-3 Shyster Missile Launch Pad and Nuclear Bunker, Fürstenberg
Housing at Fürstenberg Military Base
R-5M/SS-3 Shyster Missile Launch Pad, Vogelsang
R-12/SS-4 Sandal Missile Launch Pads, South-East of Fürstenberg
R-12/SS-4 Sandal Missile Launch Pads, North of Vogelsang
Templin Soviet Airbase – Totally Gone

R-5M/SS-3 Shyster Missile Launch Pad and Nuclear Bunker, Fürstenberg

There is one missile launch pad in Fürstenberg, built for the Shyster missile. The local road along the western border of the military base divides its premises from the launch pad, which today can be neared with walking on an easy trail which was probably a Soviet gravel road in its origin, wide enough to allow moving the missile on a trolley.

Like all other launch pads in the area, the central piece is a narrow rectangular concrete slab about 30 ft long, with a prominent metal crown set in it, with a diameter of about 5-6 ft. The crown is a piece of technology, even though today it is covered in rust and with an unattractive brownish color. It was used to anchor the small gantry put under the missile to keep it in the launch position. The missile was transported on a trolley in a horizontal position, and lifted to a vertical attitude before launch.

Furstenberg Lychen Nuclear Missile Launch Pad

The most visible difference between the launch pads for the SS-3 Shyster and for the SS-4 Sandal – the latter being a couple of years younger, as shown above – lies in the metal crown. The crown of the Shyster is smaller and more like a polygon, where that for the Sandal – see later – is more round shaped, mostly resembling a watch bezel.

The concrete slabs had to withstand the intense thrust and heat of the missile without breaking into pieces. I guess – but I am not sure – some of the piping leading to these slabs – not visible here but next to other launch pads – may have been installed for a water cooling system.

The launch pad is the most visible item of a more complex system, comprising fuel and oxidizer storages, an electric generator, a control cabin and other gear. All this was placed in partly interred dugouts, which in Fürstenberg are today basically all gone.

On the premises of the Fürstenberg base and very close to the launch site there are two bunkers, possibly for the missile and nuclear warheads. The size and construction of the larger bunker, which has two doors on the two faces, suggests a use as a missile storage bunker, possibly suitable both for the Shyster and the Sandal, which despite the totally different performance were not so different in shape and size.

Furstenberg Lychen Nuclear Missile Base

Today both bunkers are totally closed and inaccessible, the smaller one – possibly for warheads – has been turned into a shelter for bats. You can see the inside of the batbunker through the batslot!

Furstenberg Lychen Nuclear Missile Base

Conspicuous traces of the barbed wire fences and prefabricated concrete wall marking the perimeter of the area are still in place.

Furstenberg Lychen Nuclear Missile Base

Housing at Fürstenberg Military Base

Similarly to Vogelsang (see here), in Fürstenberg there are traces of what was once a large Soviet base, with housing for many people and service buildings. There are buildings in at least two styles, suggesting construction works were carried out in different stages. Multi-storey buildings are more recent, and similar to those you can find in the former airbase of Brand (see here) – among others.

Furstenberg Lychen Nuclear Missile Base

A large part of the buildings has been demolished, and there is comparatively less to see here than in Vogelsang. Yet the place looks haunted also in clear air and bright sunlight, so the area may be worth a visit for the enthusiasts of Soviet ghosts!

R-5M/SS-3 Shyster Missile Launch Pad, Vogelsang

A portrait of the launch pad in Vogelsang from another visit is provided also in a dedicated chapter of this website. For completeness, here are some new photos.

While similar to the that of Fürstenberg, this launch pad is far better conserved, but not easy to spot from the access road of the base. The system of trenches and dugouts for all technical gear needed to prepare and control the launch can be spotted very easily all around. Note the polygonal shape of the metal crown typical of the Shyster system.

Vogelsang Nuclear Missile Launch Pad

There are also traces of military material, possibly unearthed due to some more recent demolition work, like old ‘CCCP-made’ batteries, metal boxes, protective metal panels and more.

Vogelsang Nuclear Missile Launch Pad

Some of the trenches have been flooded, and you would better go prepared to face thousands of biting midges and mosquitoes – take it seriously, otherwise you are not going to withstand their attacks for more than 5 seconds!

Vogelsang Nuclear Missile Launch Pad

Visible traces of the barbed wire fence from Soviet times can be found along the access road.

Vogelsang Nuclear Missile Launch Pad

In Vogelsang the location of the launch pad is much farther away from the nuclear warhead storage and missile deposit area than in Fürstenberg, and from the housing and service buildings of the military base. Everything is more scattered, and much more walking is needed to find this launch site, due to its distance from the local road.

R-12/SS-4 Sandal Missile Launch Pads, South-East of Fürstenberg

A first set of four launch pads for the Sandal missile can be found in a small area deep in a forest, on a flat terrain. This was associated to Fürstenberg for supply. The pads are placed at a walking distance from each other. Differently from the Shyster sites, the Sandal sites are not close to any building, and the gravel connection roads are in many cases not visible, or they have been more recently modified by the forest service. Plus they are not maintained in any way, and are today barely visible.

Searching for these findings is very funny if you like this kind of activities. You will definitely feel like Indiana Jones – or Lara Croft – while searching for the missile launch pads, but you have no chance to find them unless you have a GPS. You won’t need more than an iPhone with a decent free GPS app and good deal of patience, but without both ingredients you’d better give up from the start. Look at the pictures where I have my iPhone in one hand to see the ‘exact’ coordinates – some tolerance is needed, since my free app was not professional, and the trees above are very effective in jamming the satellite signal.

Of the four pads in this first site – possibly identified as BSP-1 by Soviet staff – I explored only three due to unfortunate time constraints. Proceeding from the west to the east, on site number 3 on the map I could not find even the concrete slab of the launch pad! Only a small unreadable metal sign has been left for posterity.

R-12 SS-4 Sandal Nuclear Missile Launch Pad Vogelsang Furstenberg

Launch pad number 2 on the map can be spotted once you are close. The concrete platform is partly unearthed and the corners can be seen. A gap in the trees on the area also help to find the perimeter of the rectangular concrete slab, which is otherwise shrouded by low vegetation.

R-12 SS-4 Sandal Nuclear Missile Launch Pad Vogelsang Furstenberg

The metal crown of the SS-4 Sandal is bigger and different in shape from those of the SS-3 Shyster, as anticipated – it is almost circular, not polygonal. I found exactly the same type of metal rig in some much bigger launch bases for SS-4 missiles in Latvia (see here).

R-12 SS-4 Sandal Nuclear Missile Launch Pad Vogelsang Furstenberg

The trenches and shallow dugouts for all components of the missile system can be spotted all around, albeit made mimetic and very difficult to capture with a camera, due to the underbrush hiding them and smoothing their profile. The trenches and the concrete pad are connected by a system of concrete pipelines. Metal frames with hinges, once made for doors giving access to the pipelines, can be spotted very close to the concrete platform. Maybe these were used also for a water cooling system to avoid the explosion of the launch pad, subject to the exhaust of the rocket engine at launch.

R-12 SS-4 Sandal Nuclear Missile Launch Pad Vogelsang Furstenberg

Walking to the the launch pad number 1 on the map you may come across what remains of a concrete booth, possibly a control cabin.

R-12 SS-4 Sandal Nuclear Missile Launch Pad Vogelsang Furstenberg

Launch pad number 1 is very similar to number 2, but here part of the side of the platform is unearthed and clearly visible.

R-12 SS-4 Sandal Nuclear Missile Launch Pad Vogelsang Furstenberg

It is noteworthy that no trace exists of any serious fence around the Sandal launch sites, differently from all other Soviet installations of various kinds I have visited all over the former GDR. Recalling the SS-4 launch sites were never operative, perhaps the Soviets did not really complete the construction works, and the cordoned area was marked only with some ‘soft barrier’ which could be removed leaving no trace.

Please note that the access road to get near to this site is car-accessible, but it is narrow, unpaved, with muddy spots, covered with fallen leaves and in some sections with sand. I could reach my destination with a station wagon without particular difficulty on a dry day in summer, but I would say the best vehicle type for this roads in any weather would be a smaller, possibly AWD car. Needless to say, you will need some form of protection for your feet and legs to approach the launch pads, but there are no bad insects in the area.

R-12/SS-4 Sandal Missile Launch Pads, North of Vogelsang

The second Sandal launch site – possibly named BSP-2 by the Soviets, but historical sources are not very clear – is associated to Vogelsang, which is roughly 4 miles south, from which it should have been supplied. Despite the similar role, this installation is very different from the previous one.

The launch pads are almost square, not rectangular. The missile facilities are built on top of a steep small hill, not on flat terrain, with the four launch pads much closer to each other than in the previous site. They have been put along a circular pattern, not straight as for the previous installation. It looks like this site was developed further than the previous one, for much more conspicuous remains of dugouts, and even what seems to be a guard post with a firing loophole, can be spotted here.

Starting from the easternmost pad number 1, the concrete platform is pretty well conserved and the metal crown for the SS-4 is easy to find. There are traces of metal wiring, and concrete pipelines all around.

R-12 SS-4 Sandal Nuclear Missile Launch Pad Vogelsang Furstenberg

Approaching the northernmost launch pad – number 2 on the map – it is possible to see remains of large dugouts, possibly for fuel deposits or other technical stuff.

R-12 SS-4 Sandal Nuclear Missile Launch Pad Vogelsang Furstenberg

Number 2 is poorly conserved and difficult to get access to. The terrain around is muddy and covered by a thick forest of 3-feet high nettles. The metal crown has almost disappeared under a nice layer of moss.

R-12 SS-4 Sandal Nuclear Missile Launch Pad Vogelsang Furstenberg

Launch pad number 3 to the west is connected to what looks like a nearby pool by a concrete pipeline, suggesting a cooling system, but maybe this was a dugout for a generator or something electric, with wiring connecting this gear to the missile through the concrete pipe. Also here the metal crown is today barely visible.

R-12 SS-4 Sandal Nuclear Missile Launch Pad Vogelsang Furstenberg

The last launch pad – number 4 on the map – is located to the south of the site, and poorly conserved. It was partly covered by a pile of cut branches when I visited. A strange item nearby the platform, where part of the metal crown can be spotted pretty easily, is an angle-shaped iron bar with a big bolt in it, emerging from the ground – and almost killing me, making me stumble!

R-12 SS-4 Sandal Nuclear Missile Launch Pad Vogelsang Furstenberg

Except for the obvious need for proper walking gear, this place is easy to reach by foot along a nice, prepared nature trail – see map.

R-12 SS-4 Sandal Nuclear Missile Launch Pad Vogelsang Furstenberg

The SS-4 launch pads are not publicized nor maintained, perhaps even somewhat voluntarily hidden, but the trail passes very close to them, so getting near is easy. There is a small lovely pond at the base of the hill, and the area is pretty wet. As a result, also here there are thousands of biting insects around – don’t forget your insect repellent!

Templin Soviet Airbase – Totally Gone

As a Cold War historian, aviation enthusiast, archaeologist, dark tourist or Soviet fan (?), you may be tempted to go to the nearby super-base of Templin, once one of the largest and more advanced Soviet airbases over the territory of the GDR.

Well, don’t waste your time. Sadly, the area of the base – in all its extension – has been converted into a gigantic solar power plant, owned and run by Siemens. It is totally fenced and full of obstacles, prohibition signs and CC-cameras. The scant remains of some housing are not accessible. There is also a small circuit track on the old apron, where some companies offer extreme driving experiences. Nothing interesting here, not any more.

Templin Former Soviet Base

The Salpa Line – Finland’s Anti-Soviet Barrier

January 2, 2018May 9, 2020 CarloRLeave a comment

Possibly one of the world’s best preserved military installations from WWII, Finland’s Salpa Line – the name ‘salpa’ meaning ‘latch’ – is a defense line composed of about 700 reinforced concrete bunkers with anti-tank cannons and machine-guns, more than 200 miles of anti-tank obstacles, roughly another 200 miles of trenches pointed with over 1200 machine gun nests, 500 artillery positions and more than 700 quartering dugouts. All this, and everything necessary to operate this enormous war machine, including hundreds of miles of new roads, electric cables, dams, telephone lines, etc., was built to defend the border between Finland and the Soviet Union.

History – in brief

The Winter War

Finland enjoyed the rigors of WWII since 1939, when following the Ribbentrov-Molotov pact between Nazi Germany and the USSR, it was agreed off the records that this Country should enter the sphere of influence of Stalin’s communist dictatorship. Finding no other way to submit the Finns, Soviet troops attacked Finland from the East all along their common border, from the Gulf of Finland up north to the Barents Sea, at the end of November, 1939.

This rarely told chapter of WWII is known in Finland as the Winter War. Finland, which on a September 1939 map looked somewhat larger to the east than it looks today, fought fiercely against a numerically much superior enemy, which at the time was not engaged on any other major front. Despite the very difficult situation, with no help – except limited arm supply – from the outside, the motivated Finnish Army led by General Mannerheim recorded some marked victories especially in the central sector of the border, and managed to avoid a complete defeat. This unexpected military resistance, and the promise of Britain and France to support Finland had the war continued further, led the USSR to agree upon a peace treaty as soon as mid March 1940, basically crystallizing the military situation reached at the time. As a result, the border moved west by about 60 miles in southern Finland, with the loss of the Karelian Isthmus and the city of Vyborg, the access to lake Ladoga, Finland’s Eastern Karelia – simply known as Karelia in Russia – and a large territory in Lapland, mostly uninhabited. Finally, the peninsula and port town of Hanko, 70 miles west of Helsinki, was ceded to the USSR for 30 years.

Building the Salpa Line

It was at the end of the Winter War that Finland’s government, following the suggestion of General Mannerheim, took the decision to built the Salpa Line, to defend the new border against any possible attack of the Soviets.

Construction work on this impressive system, made not only of a chain of forts, dugouts and barracks, but also of an extensive network of communication and transport infrastructures, was carried out mainly between spring 1940 and summer 1941, Finland’s so-called Inter-War Period. Up to 35’000 workers – mainly civilians from private companies – were involved, roughly bringing the defense line to completion by mid 1941. The line was designed primarily to protect the most populated and easily accessible part of the Country in the south, and a major concentration of strong points was erected along todays border line with Russia, between the Gulf of Finland and the town of Joensuu.

At the same time, a smaller branch of the Salpa Line was erected on a much smaller scale on the new border with the USSR, along a 3 miles line cutting through the Hanko peninsula.

The Continuation War

In the period between the end of the Winter War and the surprise offensive of Germany against the USSR in June 1941, the Nazi Wehrmacht had successfully annexed Denmark and Norway to the Third Reich, thus becoming a neighbor state for Finland, just like the Soviet Union. In the process, Finland allowed Germany to transport troops and material to northern Norway moving on national land, and receiving arms in return. In the same period Hitler refused to endorse further Soviet attacks against Finland, thus further narrowing the diplomatic distance between Germany and Finland, which nonetheless managed to remain independent throughout WWII.

When the war broke out between the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany, Finland took the initiative and attacked the USSR, soon regaining control of basically all territories lost in the Winter War, including the port of Hanko, by the end of 1941. The German Wehrmacht attacked the Soviet port town of Murmansk and the nearby area, rich of natural resources, from the northernmost Finnish region of Lapland.

Due to the quick movement of the front line back east, the Salpa Line saw basically no fight, and was maintained until the end of the war with the Soviets in 1944 as a rear defense line.

This phase is known as Continuation War, and quickly turned into a war of attrition along a stable border line. This equilibrium was cracked when the military situation started to get worse for Germany after the defeat of Stalingrad in early 1943. After months of negotiations with the USSR to put an end to the conflict, following a massive Soviet attack on the Karelian Isthmus in August 1944 and the second loss of Vyborg, an armistice was signed in September between Finland and the Soviet Union, in favor of the latter. It restored the border line as it was at the end of the Winter War and imposed a long-term lease of Porkkala – a peninsula on the Gulf of Finland 30 miles west of Helsinki – instead of Hanko. Also included were heavy war reparations and the neutrality of Finland with respect to further Soviet campaigns. Plus the immediate expulsion of all German forces from Finnish territory.

Nonetheless, differently from almost any other Country touched by the Red Army in the events of WWII, Finland managed to retain its complete independence from Stalin’s communist empire, and part of the credit goes to the existence of the Salpa Line, a major deterrent against any further Soviet military aggression.

The request to severe any contact with Germany led to the final chapter of WWII for Finland, the Lapland War, when the Armies of Finland and the USSR attacked the Wehrmacht in the north of the Country, starting a campaign lasting months until the final defeat of Germany, causing the total destruction of many villages and of the town of Rovaniemi.

Sights

As a result of the course of events, Finland’s fortified line of defense did not see any direct military action. This spared it for posterity as a notable example of military technology of the Forties. Of course, as war technology evolved rapidly soon after WWII, the Salpa Line rapidly became obsolete and was largely abandoned. Most dugouts, soft construction works as well as most wooden, unreinforced positions have been reclaimed by nature. Only traces of the trench lines exist today, except in those spots where they have been explicitly preserved for the public.

Heavy positions are a totally different matter. Except for a few mainly in the northern part of the Country, blown up by the Soviets in the months of the Lapland War to help expelling Nazi troops from the Finnish territory, most bunkers and strong points are still there, basically intact. The majority has been abandoned, but due to a demolition work being an economy nonsense, they can still be seen today.

At least two small groups of bunkers in the very south of the Country have been turned into top-level museums on local military history, with a modern visitor center, guided tours and so on. Some bunkers, like in Joensuu, can be visited as little local museums. A good number of the reinforced concrete installations have been left open for interested visitors, stripped of any dangerous military hardware, sometimes even partly refurbished, and in most cases they can be freely accessed – provided you find them. Some are included as checkpoints along official multi-miles hiking trails, which are among Finland’s top tourist attractions. More often, either you know where they are in advance or you will hardly find them in the wilderness.

For reaching most of the non-advertised bunkers of the Salpa Line, you need to drive to very secluded locations along unprepared roads. If you like this kind of archeology, this adds much to the fun!

The good news is that Finland considers the Salpa Line a historical landmark as a whole, thus any damage or alteration is strictly prohibited and severely prosecuted. So you are not to see your search frustrated by finding a bunker covered in graffiti or used as a shelter by ravers or drug addicts – as it is often the case with the much similar Atlantic Wall in France. This is also because except for a few cases the superstite installations are located far from any urban center. By the way, Finland boasts one of the Europe’s lowest crime rates, so exploration is made potentially dangerous only because of intrinsic – rusty barbed wire, mimetic manholes, narrow passages, total darkness … – or natural causes – badgers, boars and bears!

In the following a description of a few notable points of interest along the Salpa Line is presented. The list is extremely far from complete, as it would take at least several months of dedicated work to explore the Line in its entirety! Yet this selection provides a good specimen of all basic types of sight you can find along the line. Photographs were taken during a visit in summer 2017.

Map

The following Google map was created based on the very useful information provided on this website, which is an excellent starting point for any exploration of the line. Basic info on the corresponding Salpa Line sites are provided on it almost one by one, and pinpointed on a map, but apparently there is no comprehensive map on that website. The website is also Flash-based and totally ‘iPhone unfriendly’ – it simply doesn’t load on my iPhone 6S. So I can’t take any credit except for having put together all points and having made them smartphone accessible. The red signals refer to points pictorially described in this article. The area of Hanko and the museums of Mikkeli are not covered in the map, whereas some sites will be described in another chapter.

The list below is ordered roughly from the south to the north.

Virolahti Bunker Museum, Virolahti

This site – Virolahden Bunkkerimuseum in Finnish – is among the southernmost of the Salpa Line, conveniently located on the busy E18 connecting Helsinki to St.Petersburg. The museum is a good starting point for getting an idea of the features of the line. There is a visitor center with a modern setup, where you can see a collection of light weapons from both the Finnish and Soviet sides – actually many Soviet weapons left behind by the retreating Red Army at the beginning of the Continuation War were later reused by Finland’s Army. Much information is provided in a synthetic and readable way – both in Finnish and English – on the construction of the line and about the war history of Finland, with a focus of what happened along the sector of the front closer to the Gulf of Finland.

Salpa Line Virolahti Bunker Museum

The outside part is organized along a short trail in the trees. The first main stop is a reconstructed trench, with an example of a spherical soft concrete bunker type, conceived to cover dugouts. Nearby you can see two small heavy metal turrets. These were designed to be partly interred, to form an armored machine gun nest. The thickness of the metal construction is stunning! There is also a line of stones put in the terrain, a typical anti-tank obstacle to be found in many sites of the Salpa Line.

Salpa Line Virolahti Bunker Museum

A German-made Pak-40, 7.5 cm anti-tank cannon in perfect condition is presented in a reconstructed open-top field fortification.

Salpa Line Virolahti Bunker Museum

Nearby, you can access a perfect example of an anti-tank bunker. Three main areas are featured in this type of bunker. First, a relatively large living and sleeping area, with bunk beds for troops, a big stove, a water sink, and an air pump. Second, a firing room with a 45 mm anti-tank gun permanently installed, with the barrel leaning out of a suitably designed blind window. Third, a firing room with a machine gun, with the barrel leaning out of an open slot cut through the thick concrete wall of the bunker. Both the cannon and machine gun fire basically in the same direction, from the front facade of the bunker, whereas the only way in is through a sealed door to the back.

Salpa Line Virolahti Bunker Museum

The bunker is provided with a metal observation turret on top, accessible through a ladder mounted in a very narrow vertical tunnel with a sealed door.

Salpa Line Virolahti Bunker Museum

Another original bunker you can visit in Virolahti is a quartering bunker, capable of sleeping 40 people. The construction is similar to the large living area of the previous bunker, but this is larger.

Salpa Line Virolahti Bunker Museum

Examples of original trenches which have not been refurbished can be spotted as smooth grooves in the ground between the reinforced bunkers. Finally, there is also a collection of cannons – some of them very old – and machine guns, from the USSR, Finland, Sweden, France and Italy. Heavy cannons from various ages were provided by France at the time of the Winter War, and put in place along the Salpa Line in more points, so they can be spotted pretty often in Finnish museums.

Salpa Line Virolahti Bunker Museum

Not a part of the museum, it may be interesting to check out what the frontier with Russia looks like today. You can come pretty close to the border zone driving south of E18, along the unpaved Kurkelantie road going to the small villages of Reinikkala and Kurkela. There is a well signed respect zone instituted along the border line, which cannot be accessed without all necessary papers and permits.

Kurkela Finland Russia USSR Border Zone

Nonetheless, the striped posts marking the border can be spotted with a zoom lens from the distance. I can’t guess whether in Soviet times the border did look like this, or instead it used to appear less penetrable. Of course it may be just a matter of appearance – when I was there, I personally didn’t even think to try coming close to Russia without an explicit permission, so I don’t know what may happen should you try to get near the border by entering the respect zone by foot!

Kurkela Finland Russia USSR Border Zone

The Virolahti site can be visited in something less or something more than 1h, depending on your level of interest. It is flat and easy to tour, with a large free parking nearby. Website here.

Salpa Line Museum, Miehikkälä

This is probably the biggest exhibition on the Salpa Line, and the most visited also. The visitor center proposes a series of itineraries for touring the site on a self-guided base. The highlights are anti-tank and machine gun bunkers, a plane spotting wooden turret, trenches of various types, cannons and more. Together with Virolahti (above), it is surely a place to be if you want to capture at a glance what the Salpe Line is all about.

The Miehikkälä site is unique in its own respect due to the morphology of the territory, with a rocky cliff prospecting on an area of wavy land. The two main armored positions with an anti-tank gun and a machine gun are atypical, dug deeply in the rock, accessible from the top of the cliff, with the barrels leaning out at the level of the surrounding terrain. The bunker with the anti-tank gun features an observation/firing turret directly accessible from the firing room through a very long vertical passage. In the living quarters there is a collection of rifles.

Miehikkälä Salpa Line Museum

The bunker with the machine firing chamber presents preserved sleeping and living quarters, and an observation turret.

Miehikkälä Salpa Line Museum

Ahead of the rocky cliff you can find two armored turrets like in Virolahti, and an example of the most typical anti-tank barrier of the Salpa Line, made of aligned big rocks put in the ground. This is a distinctive feature of the Salpa Line, and following the rocks may help to find the location of more secluded bunkers in other sites.

Miehikkälä Salpa Line Museum

Another interesting item is an old Soviet T-34 tank with the corresponding shelter.

Miehikkälä Salpa Line Museum

To the back of the cliff you can find a German-made Pak-40 anti-tank cannon in an open-top field fortification. Looking in the direction of the barrel, you can see a long grove aligned with it. This is a tank trap, where the tank was forced to slow down trying to cross the grove right on the line of fire of the anti-tank gun.

Miehikkälä Salpa Line Museum

In a second part of the site it is possible to find a group of rare concrete trenches, mostly similar to WWI constructions you can find in northern France (see this post), a housing bunker with a water reservoir on top and a standard anti-tank/machine gun bunker. These could be seen only from the outside when I visited.

Miehikkälä Salpa Line Museum

The museum is not difficult to find, and there is a large free parking on site. The visit may take from less than 1 hour to more than 2 hours, based on your interest. While not difficult to tour for an average physical condition, you’d better go prepared to climb many stairs, move along narrow passages and walk short trails going steeply uphill. Website here.

Hostikka Site

The Hostikka site, deep in the countryside north of Miehikkälä, is composed of a handful of bunkers scattered a few miles apart along the roads in the municipality bearing this name. On each site there is a complete description in Finnish and English, and a map. Most sites can be freely accessed, a few are normally closed and can be opened on request, usually visiting with a ranger. A comprehensive map in Finnish can be found here.

From the south, item B186 is a massive anti-tank/machine gun bunker which is normally closed. The guns can cover a flat field ahead of the facade of the bunker.

Salpa Line Bunker Hostikka Area Finland

A bare 300 ft north along the unpaved main road you meet B182, a machine gun bunker which can be toured freely. You can recognize the sleeping quarters and the observation tower. Climbing on top, you can appreciate the mimetic installation of the bulbous top of the armored tower. There is also what appears to be a firing hole close to the main sealed entrance.

Salpa Line Bunker Hostikka Area Finland

All armored doors are still there, together with an extensive piping system.

Salpa Line Bunker Hostikka Area Finland

Driving north for about 0.3 miles crossing the small village of Hostikka, you can find another site, with a preserved trench system, a machine gun and quartering bunker, open but unfortunately severely flooded, and item B166, a huge cave. This is not the only cave excavated in the rock along the Salpa Line. This multi-entry cave was intended for sheltering 80 people and providing access to open-top cannon/machine-gun dugouts. It was never finished, it is uninsulated and very wet.

Salpa Line Bunker Hostikka Area Finland

The road going to Kirppu passes by items B150 and B132, standard anti-tank/machine gun bunkers. They are usually closed, but can be climbed and walked around.

Salpa Line Bunker Hostikka Area Finland

All these bunkers unwind along a north-south direction, and are easily accessible parking nearby each site. Visiting may take 15 to 30 minutes for each open site, especially if you want to take pictures inside, less for closed bunkers where you may want to have a walk round. For inside pictures a tripod is mandatory, and a torchlight highly recommended.

Lusikkovuoren Cave

This cave can be reached driving for less than a mile on a secondary road departing eastwards from 3842 in Suo-Anttila. The cave is usually closed and sometimes used for public exhibitions or performances – a very suggestive location! -, yet the place deserves to be seen also from the outside. There are actually two neighbor entrances to the cave, which has been carved deep into the rock at the base of a cliff. The cave, intended to be used as a logistic interchange point, a headquarter and a weapons storage, was never completed. There are draining holes and a concrete pavement inside.

Salpa Line Lusikkovuori Cave

Hidden in the trees, far from any village, from the outside the cave really looks like a location from ‘The Lord of the Rings’!

Askola Site

The Askola site can be spotted while driving roughly halfway between Luumäki and Lappeenranta, along a busy road called Lappeenrannantie, next to the shore of lake Kivijärvi. There is a parking area just ahead of it. Heading straight to the big bunker you see from the road, you can find a map of the site. There is an uncommon concentration of armored positions in a small area between this trail head and the newly built highway N.6 to the south.

Salpa Line Bunker Site Toikkala Lappeenranta

Despite the majority of the bunkers being normally unaccessible, there are some interesting uncommon sights here. The first is a reinforced dugout, where one of the bulky armored metal turrets you can see in the museums of Virolahti and Miehikkälä is interred in its intended working position. The turret can be accessed from behind and below, and a machine gun is mounted inside.

Salpa Line Bunker Site Toikkala Lappeenranta

Furthermore, there are at least two original tank turrets recycled as reinforced firing positions. These turrets are apparently from BT-7 Soviet tanks, probably lost to the Finnish Army during the Winter War or the Continuation War.

Salpa Line Bunker Site Toikkala Lappeenranta

More standard bunkers and dugouts can be found, but in some cases they can be barely neared due to wild vegetation.

Salpa Line Bunker Site Toikkala Lappeenranta

About 0.8 miles to the west along the Lappeenrannantie road, you can find a small concrete dam – actually it lies in the courtyard of a private house… This is part of a system made to control the water level in the lake for military purposes.

Salpa Line Lake Kivijärvi Dam

Moving eastwards towards Lappeenranta, in the small village of Rutola it is possible to find another machine gun/housing concrete bunker, with an anti-tank barrier on the shore of the lake. This also lies on private land.

Salpa Line Bunker Rutola

A visit to this site may take a 1-2 hours or more, depending on the level of detail and your ability to move around.

Syysphoja and Puumala Site

Along the beautiful scenic road 62 going from Imatra to Mikkeli it is possible to find two easily accessible forts of the Salpa Line. The first is located on Salpalinjantie road, departing north from the main road east of the village of Syyspohja. The facade of this well deceived anti-tank/machine gun fort, dug in a pile of land and hardly visible from the distance, is partly covered with stones. There are also partly refurbished dugouts and wooden obstacles, plus a long line of anti-tank stones.

Salpa Line Bunker Syyspohja

West of the village along Töntintie road – very narrow and unprepared – it is possible to find a small Soviet monument to war prisoners interned in a local prison camp.

Salpa Line Prison Camp Memorial Soviet Syyspohja

Another preserved bunker can be found right in the center of the nice village of Puumala, along road Pappilantie. The bunker is basically unaccessible, but very easy to walk around. In a receptacle besides the main entrance there is also a Soviet anti-tank gun, probably captured by the Finnish army.

Salpa Line Puumala Machine Gun Bunker

General Mannerheim Headquarters and Communication Bunker

Among the highlights of the lively town of Mikkeli, you can visit here the preserved headquarters of the Finnish Army. The office of General Mannerheim and other top-ranking military staff, plus a fully equipped ‘op-center’, were installed in a local children school. Today a few rooms, including one with many original maps and Mannerheim’s personal office, are the ‘main course’ of the museum, and can be visited.

General Mannerheim Finland Army Headquarters Mikkeli

There are also informative panels, many pictures and some memorabilia belonging to General Mannerheim.

General Mannerheim Finland Army Headquarters Mikkeli

Almost cross the the road from the entrance of the headquarters, you can find another strictly related museum. It is a cave were the communication central of the headquarters used to be and work during WWII. This ensured an uninterrupted communication link not only with the Salpa Line but also with all positions on the line of the front. A part of the cave has been carefully refurbished to resemble what it looked like in the years of operation, including much communication hardware from the time, whereas another part has been left empty.

General Mannerheim Finland Army Communication Bunker Mikkeli

Both museums can be visited according to the respective timetables (website here for the headquarters, here for the cave). Total visiting time for both attractions is about 1.5 hours.

Raikuu Site

Two Salpa Line sites are located close to the small village of Raikuu, both easily reachable driving on reasonably prepared, unpaved roads.

The first is a massive and pretty rare heavy artillery position. There used to be four such positions scattered in the nearby area, two equipped with 299 mm mortars, two with 152 mm naval cannons. This is the only partly refurbished position. The base for the central revolving pinion where the cannon was anchored can be clearly seen, as well as rooms for the cartridges and for artillery troops.

Salpa Line Kerimäki Cannon Position

The second is a group of three reinforced concrete bunkers, maintained to a very good condition and different from one another. The first two are a machine gun and an anti-tank cannon bunker respectively. The military equipment has been taken away, but the different shape of the barrel hole and the supporting structure for the machine gun or for the anti-tank cannon make them easily distinguishable. The machine gun bunkers bears traces of camouflage on the front facade.

Salpa Line Kerimäki Bunker

Some of the original ventilation pipelines are still there, and clear traces of the wooden structures can be seen on the walls.

Salpa Line Kerimäki Bunker

The last bunker is partly accessible from behind descending along a steep staircase. This bunker is leaning on the side of a rock, and is well deceived in the bushes.

Salpa Line Kerimäki Bunker

The site is completed by an anti-tank wall of unusual construction, made of smaller stones put together to a very big overall thickness.

Salpa Line Kerimäki Anti Tank Wall

This site is very nice to visit, it is pretty remote so probably you will stay alone and undisturbed. Total time for visiting both including transfer by car may be 1.5 hours if you want to take pictures, or much less if you just want to have a look around.

Joensuu Bunker Museum, Joensuu

The museum in Joensuu is somewhat smaller than those in Virolahti and Miehikkälä (above), and when I visited it was already closed for the season – in mid-August! The good news is that in case you find it closed, you will miss only a visit to the inside of the bunker, pretty standard and similar to those you can see also elsewhere, whereas the outside can be toured for free at any time.

The first sights are two Model 1877, 90 mm French field cannons provided in a number during the Winter War and extensively used in the following years. Close by there are some steel turrets for protecting dugouts to form armored machine gun nests. These turrets, similar to those you may see also in some other Salpa Line sites, were supplied in very limited numbers and were produced in two shapes – you find both here – and three different weights. Those presented here are all intermediate-weight exemplars, weighing more than 5 and almost 8 tonnes respectively for the round shaped and the two-lobed model. The thickness is incredible, and these turrets could withstand a direct hit of a 45 mm anti-tank gun!

Salpa Line Joensuu Bunker Museum

On the perimeter there is a Soviet 45 mm anti-tank cannon in a wooden open-top field fortification.

Salpa Line Joensuu Bunker Museum

There are two concrete bunkers, put side by side on a promontory. One is equipped with both an anti-tank and a machine gun, the other only with a machine gun.

Salpa Line Joensuu Bunker Museum

There are also well preserved dugouts and a line of rocky anti-tank obstacles.

Salpa Line Joensuu Bunker Museum

The site is easy to access, with free parking, and compact in size, so less than 1 hour is needed for a visit if the inside is not accessible. Some opening info here.

Huhmarisvaara Artillery Position

Many cannons of French design can be found scattered over the Finnish territory. Except relatively few offered by the French at the beginning of WWII before France was conquered by the German Wehrmacht, the majority are actually Russian cannons from before the the Revolution. When turmoil started to spread in Russia in 1917 leading to the anticipate end of WWI, Finland took the initiative and declared independence from the agonizing empire. As a result, many weapons and military stuff stationed over the territory of the newly constituted Nation were recycled by the Finnish Army.

Salpa Line Huhmarisvaara Cannons

Many such cannons were later to be placed in the fortifications of the Salpa Line. In Huhmarisvaara, roughly 13 miles north of Joensuu, a concrete fortification for a number of cannons was prepared on a vantage position overlooking a local lake. One of the three Russian-made Model 1892, 152 mm cannons remaining in Finland can still be found in this location.

Vanntajankannas Site

The northern part of the front saw an active participation of the German Wehrmacht in the years of the Continuation War. Possibly one of the northernmost heavy installations of the Salpa Line was located about 5 miles southeast of the town of Kuusamo, close to the administrative border with the Lapland district. The Germans – with the forces of the Organization Todt – built also a railway line about 85 miles long in a north-south direction, with the northern terminal in Kuusamo. The railway helped to supply the army groups operating locally.

The history of this installation, today preserved as an open-air museum with a well maintained walking trail about 3 miles long, is a bit different from others. Soon after the armistice which drove Finland out of the war with the USSR, the German forces, which had to be expelled from the Country, started retreating north towards occupied Norway. They found shelter in the fortifications of the Vanntajankannas site for a few weeks, before loosing them to the Red Army. Soviet soldiers were forced to leave by the end of 1944 in accordance with the armistice agreement, but they blew up every hardware in the Vanntajankannas area before retreating to the USSR.

What can be seen here is what remains of some big concrete bunkers, of the types you can find elsewhere along the Salpa Line. The remains of the bunkers are scattered along the trail. Close to the trailhead there are also scant remains of the local railway station along the German-built line going to Kuusamo.

Salpa Line Lahtela-Vanttaja Trail

The anti-tank line of stones is still clearly visible. In many points the trenches, open-top passages and soft machine gun nests have been refurbished to look like the early Forties when they were built.

Salpa Line Lahtela-Vanttaja Trail

In the most remote part of the site it is possible to spot remains of the original concrete preparation station, used to supply the construction works, and a small concrete sauna for workers and troops – not really welcoming in these days!

Salpa Line Lahtela-Vanttaja Trail

This site is very nice not only for war history but also for the beautiful landscape, with incredible colors. You can also experience a walk over the marshes typical of this region of Finland. The trail is easy, there is a small free parking nearby the trailhead. I would recommend about 1-1.5 hours to enjoy the hiking trail and taking pictures of both the landscape, the destroyed forts and preserved trenches.

Harparskog Line, Hanko Peninsula

The southern branch of the Salpa Line, also known as Harparskog Line, is composed of a group of bunkers concentrated in the small area around the village of Harparskog – on the Hanko peninsula -, which found itself on the border with the USSR for the first time following the peace treaty ending the Winter War. The annexation of Estonia to the USSR and the control of the Hanko peninsula gave the Soviets the control of the Gulf of Finland, which culminated in Leningrad to the east.

Hanko was evacuated by the Soviets in late 1941 during the victorious phase of the Continuation War.

Similarly to the rest of the Salpa Line, the smaller line in Harparskog featured all types of heavy concrete bunkers, plus dugouts, field fortifications and trenches. Today you can find at least one of the bunkers preserved as a local small museum, plus plenty of barely maintained but mainly accessible bunkers, stripped of most military hardware but still in a very good condition.

The bunker museum was closed when I visited, so here you have a view of the outside only.

Salpa Line Bunker Harparskog Hanko Finland

Some of the accessible bunkers are aligned along an unpaved road towards the northern shore of the peninsula, north of the village. A commemoration stone with an explanatory panel clearly marks the trailhead.

Salpa Line Bunker Harparskog Hanko Finland

Besides some more standard bunkers, it is possible to find here a big assembly composed by at least two large bunkers excavated in the stone. The passages leading to the entrances are carved deep in a local cliff, resulting in a very suggestive fort, a mix of natural and artificial defensive positions. Inside this fort it is possible to see also an original stove, ventilation ducts and an air pump.

Salpa Line Bunker Harparskog Hanko Finland

Further on you can find an anti-tank line, and also a larger deposit and a cave – unfortunately closed.

Salpa Line Bunker Harparskog Hanko Finland

Exploring this area can be very rewarding, due to the tranquil location and the beautiful, wild natural landscape.

Salpa Line Bunker Harparskog Hanko Finland

There is much more to see in the area, and for a complete exploration I would suggest about 5-6 hours. The sector to cover is not large and for some parts you can move with a car, but the concentration of material is unusually high and well preserved. If you elect to concentrate only on a part of the line, the necessary time may drop to 1-2 hours for getting a good idea of the main features of this site and taking some good pictures inside. Don’t forget a tripod and a torchlight, for it’s totally dark inside most bunkers, and you should wear a pair of appropriate shoes, for there are mud deposits on the floor and the terrain around the bunkers is totally uneven.

Hanko Front Museum, Hanko

A museum on the vicissitudes of the Hanko peninsula in the years 1940-41 has been established and recently refurbished. It will show up along the main road connecting Harparskog and Hanko, around 2 miles from Harparskog.

The inside part presents an interesting descriptions of the timeline and facts of the Soviet occupation. There are many interesting artifacts from the time, including everyday hardware, light weapons, propaganda leaflets in Russian, maps and many historic photographs. It is interesting to note that the weapons put in place by the Soviets included huge railway cannons, definitely easier to move compared to fixed installations of similar size.

Hango War Museum Salpa Line Finland USSR

There is also a room with a collection of heavier weapons.

Hango War Museum Salpa Line Finland USSR

On the outside there are some reconstructed trenches, a Soviet 45 mm anti-tank gun in a reconstructed field fortification, and some other weapons, especially water mines. Active archeology work is going on in the area, and some recent findings, like pieces of artillery and parts of tanks, could be seen when I visited. A short trail in the trees reveals some dugouts and allows to explore the area nearby the former border. Finally there is a 152 mm coastal gun, reportedly the world’s last of the type with this field mounting.

Hango War Museum Salpa Line Finland USSR

The museum is not large but very rich, so I would suggest 30 minutes to 1.5 hours for a visit depending on your level of interest. Website here.

Soviet Leftovers in Latvia

October 15, 2017May 9, 2020 CarloR3 Comments

Similar to the neighbor republics of Estonia and Lithuania, Latvia was occupied by the Soviets a first time in 1939 and again in 1944, when after some years of occupation by Hitler’s forces the Red Army started to successfully repel the German Wehrmacht from within Russia back towards Poland and central Europe. Differently from other European Countries later to become satellites of Moscow’s central communist power, the three ‘Baltic States’ were directly annexed to the Soviet Union.

History – in brief

As a matter of fact, the process of annexation was not a very peaceful one. Having had already a short but intense experience of the Stalinist dictatorship as a consequence of the Ribbentrop-Molotov pact before the German invasion in 1941, as soon as it became clear that Stalin’s forces would regain power hundreds of thousands from the Baltics left the Country for abroad, while the communist regime rapidly started to put in practice its deadly ideas, with the collectivization of all private activities, abolition of free elections and non-communist associations, and the imprisonment and deportation of all who disagreed with this plan.

The reason for the different fate of these Countries – annexed – with respect to those of central Europe – which became satellites of the USSR – may be understood on one side looking further back in history – the territories of the three republics had been for long under the direct influence of the Russian Empire. On the other hand, as testified by the relevant military presence in these areas since immediately after the beginning of the Cold War, the government of the USSR considered the Baltic region of high strategic value. Taking control of the coast of the Baltic States, and also thanks to the annexation of the region of Hanko in Finland, the USSR could protect the access to the Gulf of Finland and Leningrad, profit from military and commercial ports which do not freeze in winter and deploy strategic military resources – especially aircraft and missiles – within range of most European capitals.

Bases for all branches of the military flourished in all three new Soviet Socialist Republics. Soon after the fall of the Wall in Berlin, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania were the first of the USSR states to declare independence from the Union in 1990 – almost two years before the actual collapse of the USSR – following massive protests which unveiled the high level of intolerance for the Soviet rule. As a result of the withdrawal of Soviet/Russian forces, these three small republics found themselves in control of many military installations, totally disproportioned to the new size and needs of the new states, and making for a not-so-welcomed memento of many decades of hardship – as a matter of fact, some measures to limit the spread of Russian influence in culture and politics have been implemented in all three states, which also joined NATO and the European Union as soon as possible.

Sights

The attitude assumed towards the huge military assets left from the Cold War has been slightly different in the three republics. All three are basically getting rid of them, Estonia being the quickest – not much remains there of the many missile bases, and the once prominent strategic air base in Raadi has been totally closed down and partially converted into a museum on national history. Until some years ago many missile sites remained in quite a good shape in Latvia, but most of them have been actively demolished in recent years, including the most iconic Dvina silo sites – as of 2017 the job was completed and no Dvina complex remains in Latvia. Yet visible remains of surface bases and many ghost towns and bunkers are reportedly still there, and while some can be visited ‘officially’ as museums, many are left to urban explorers and archaeologists, while some hardware like warehouses and service buildings has been reused by local companies for storing logs, gravel and other raw materials. Lithuania bolsters possibly the last surviving Dvina missile complex in Europe, which has been turned recently into a museum on the Cold War, totaling 20’000 visitors per year. The demolition process is perhaps slower there.

Prisons constitute non-military but possibly more disturbing leftovers from the communist era. There are some in the Baltics – as basically everywhere in the former eastern bloc including Eastern Germany – all opened as museum, and in one instance also partially turned into a curious and evoking ‘jail hotel’.

This post presents some highlights and examples of remains from the Cold War era from both military and non-military sites in Latvia. Photographs were taken in 2017, during a visit to this lively and nice country in Northern Europe.

Navigate this post – Click on links to scroll

Zeltini Nuclear Missile Base
Dvina Missile Site, Tirza – Completely Destroyed
Skrunda Military Ghost Town
Karosta Military Prison & Liepaja Port Town
Klavi Nuclear Missile Base
The Corner House – KGB Prison in Riga

Zeltini Nuclear Missile Base

This missile base is one of the best conserved in the three republics. The storage and launch complex was originally built for the R12 liquid fueled, 2.3 Megaton single-warhead nuclear missile, known in the West as SS-4 Sandal. This missile system – the same deployed to Cuba in 1962 – was pretty modern for the end of the Fifties, yet it lacked the extra range required to reach strategic targets in Europe from deep within Russia. This made the Baltic region very interesting for the military, and a place of election for installing missile complexes in that age.

The base of Zeltini is one of three missile launch sites around the town of Aluksne, in northeastern Latvia. This base was updated and kept in an active state until the end of the Soviet Union and the withdrawal of the Red Army towards Russia, who obviously carried away all the weapons and technical rigs. Soon after, the locals started to take away anything of any value, including extensive piping, cables, any metal and so on, leaving basically the empty buildings and bunkers. More recently, as typical also to other such places in Latvia, private businesses were allowed on the premises of the former installation. A timber storage and processing facility today occupies the area where the nuclear warheads used to be stored, separate from the missiles.

The complex in Zeltini could accommodate four missiles in two couples of neighbor storage bunkers, built about .3 miles apart, and launch them from two twin surface launch pads. At least two launch pads can be seen today. They are large flat area with a pavement made of concrete slabs, recognizable by a steel crown on the ground with an approximate diameter of 5-6 feet. This was used to anchor the low gantry holding the 72 ft long missile in vertical position when being readied for launch.

One of the pads is in the center of the best preserved part of the site – the southeastern one -, but the position of the missile gantry is today occupied by a pretty big head of Lenin, reportedly moved here from Aluksne after the end of communism, sparing it from being blown up.

Zeltini Soviet Nuclear Missile Base Latvia

The grounds around this launch pad are rich with interesting bunkers, which once hosted support machinery and control gears, including anything necessary for missile servicing, launch preparation and control.

Zeltini Soviet Nuclear Missile Base Latvia

There are bunkers of basically two types – smaller ones with a single entrance on one side of a cusp-roofed tunnel and a lower height, and bigger ones, much roomier, longer, and with doors on both sides of the barrel-vaulted tunnel.

Zeltini Soviet Nuclear Missile Base Latvia

AZeltini Soviet Nuclear Missile Base Latvia

Zeltini Soviet Nuclear Missile Base Latvia

A ubiquitous feature of these missile complexes are concrete T-shaped frames planted in the ground. These were used to carry miles of pipings at the time when the base was active.

Aligned with the main axis of the launch area it is possible to spot the corresponding missile bunker ‘N.3’, which is unfortunately locked. The construction and size are like those of the bigger support bunkers, the only visible difference being the slightly wider doors on the front façade, and the absence of a back door on the other end of the bunker.

Zeltini Soviet Nuclear Missile Base Latvia

Many traces of plaques with mottos and citations in Russian from Lenin & Co. can be found on the exterior of the bunkers, whereas tons of ‘Warning!’ signs and other technical information are painted in the inside.

Zeltini Soviet Nuclear Missile Base Latvia

A second launch pad can be seen in the in the northwestern part of the military grounds – with no Lenin’s head. Here traces of stripes on the ground for easing maneuvers or indicating the place to park ancillary rigs – like generators, gas tanks,… – can still be seen. Also here the corresponding ‘N.2’ missile bunker is locked.

Zeltini Soviet Nuclear Missile Base Latvia

In a land strip where nature is growing wild between the two main launch areas, it is possible to spot a little bunker with a kind of concrete sentry-box. This was presumably a storage bunker for light weapons, a small reinforced shelter for watchmen, or something similar. Wooden shelves can still be found inside.

Zeltini Soviet Nuclear Missile Base Latvia

Another interesting sight is what appears to be a ‘living bunker’. This is half interred, with small doors on both ends and a sequence of rooms aligned on a long corridor. The center room is the biggest, and may be a canteen or something alike. There are traces of a decorated white and blue linoleum pavement, but there are also very unique frescoes on the walls. These include an artist impression of the SS-4 Sandal missile and also of the typical mushroom-cloud produced by a nuclear explosion!

Zeltini Soviet Nuclear Missile Base Latvia

A conspicuous part of the Zeltini base is the command area with living quarters for the troops. This is the part you see first when entering the base. The buildings here are totally abandoned and possibly dangerous to access.

Zeltini Soviet Nuclear Missile Base Latvia

There is not much left inside, but relevant remains of plaques with inscriptions and artistic drawings can be found on the walls outside. A highlight of the area is a former small park with a typical communist monument – a distinctive feature of all Soviet bases. The small park is a bit creepy, there are still benches around a former flowerbed, and a rain shelter, all now emerging from a field of nettles! The monument is basically a long wall with the silhouette of a stylized head. The inscription is fading, but the face painted on the red head can still be seen.

Zeltini Soviet Nuclear Missile Base Latvia

Getting there and moving around

The former missile base of Zeltini can be easily found driving on the P34, about 1.2 miles west of the town, exactly where P44 leaves from P34 to the north. There is also an official sign on the P34 pointing the way in. The area is preserved to some extent, and some of the former connection roads inside can be seen on Google Street View, yet the grounds are unfenced and there are no opening times. You can go in and move with your car, the only risk is that of getting a flat due to the road not being very clean.

Close to the head of Lenin there is also an explanatory panel with some quick notes and a basic map. A museum can be found in Zeltini, which was not opened when I visited, and they reportedly offer also guided tours of the place. This might be interesting especially for those less used to exploration activities, and possibly also to get access to the missile bunkers, which are usually closed. I couldn’t arrange a guided visit though, so I don’t know what they are offering on guided tours.

Some timber companies work in the former base, and you should not interfere with their operations, nor intrude in those parts of the base which are now used by them. Apart from this, this installation is rich of interesting sights and not much risky nor too big or difficult to explore, and it will make for a good 2 hours (minimum) exploration even visiting on your own, without accessing the locked or forbidden parts.

Note: Nearby Dvina Missile Site, Tirza – Completely Destroyed

There used to be other two ‘sister sites’ of the Zeltini complex in the area around Aluksne. One was in Strautini, a design very similar to the one in Zeltini. To my information this has ceased operations but is still today part of a military installation, so it cannot be approached. The second one was built in Tirza, and it was a Dvina site, i.e. a complex of four interred silos built for a suitably modified version of the R12 missile, called R12U. This kind of missile site started to be installed in 1964. Standing to the Google map of early 2017 the Tirza site should have been still in relative good shape. Unfortunately, in very recent times the local government hit very hard, having the site totally destroyed, flooded and buried under a monumental pile of land. The photographs below show what remains of this site – literally nothing.

Tirza Dvina Soviet Nuclear Missile Base Latvia

Even though the silo may have represented an uncomfortable reminder of the relatively recent occupation by the Soviets, as the only remaining site of the kind in the country it should have deserved possibly a different treatment – similar to the site in Siauliai, Lithuania, recently turned into a museum on the Cold War. Another option – probably the most obvious – would have been to leave the site to nature, as it happened in most cases to former Soviet installations scattered around Europe, at no cost and without any relevant risk for the local population – the site in Tirza was extremely remote, hidden deep in the trees, far from the main road and from any village of appreciable size, in a part of the country of limited touristic interest. Only those interested, like explorers and historians, would have looked for it. The choice of the government, which judging from the proportions of the demolition work must have implied the use of a very relevant amount of money for the job, appears really hard to justify – especially in face of an infrastructure system still well below the European standard.

Anyway, as a practical suggestion, don’t waste your time trying to reach the Tirza site – Dvina missile complexes are not to be found in Latvia.

Skrunda Military Ghost Town

Located in the hilly countryside of southwest Latvia, about 50 miles from the port town of Liepaja, the area around the village of Skrunda has been for long a primary strategic site for the USSR. Due to the geographical position on the northwestern border of the Union, this place was selected for the construction of an early warning radar device – a system capable of detecting incoming enemy ballistic missiles, leaving enough time for deploying countermeasures and for retaliatory actions. The type built in Skrunda was called Dnestr-M, and was the first early warning system type deployed by the USSR. Actually, the Skrunda radar site, codenamed RO-2, was the first to become operative in 1971, marking the foundation of the entire Soviet ABM (anti-ballistic missile) system. This was just a component of a series of similar sites intended to cover the entire border, constituting a ‘invisible fence’ against missile attacks from the US and their Allies.

Early warning radar systems are not just small radar antennas like those you can see in airports. Instead they are very (very) big and powerful systems, digesting a huge flow of electric energy to stay alive, and where all the required hardware – including the antennas – is often stored in suitably designed, tall and imposing buildings. The RO-2 system was made of two Dnestr-M fixed antennas, each assembled in a special construction 650 ft long and 250 ft tall!

The staff required for running the facility and all connected businesses was numerous, so a military village was built anew in Skrunda deep in the years of the Cold War just a few miles north of the old town. The village was intended for troops, technicians and their families. The relevance of the Skrunda site is testified also by the selection of that area for the installation of another antenna of the type Daryal-UM, with a range of almost 4’000 miles, 1’000 more than the Dnestr-M system. The decision was taken in the late Eighties, and the Daryal-UM system in Skrunda was never operative.

Following the collapse of the USSR an agreement was made between the governments of Latvia and Russia to gradually phase out the early warning systems in Skrunda, which had to be kept under Russian administration for some more years. As a result, the village of Skrunda was inhabited until 1998 by Russian troops.

After the demolition of all early warning hardware formerly agreed upon and the withdrawal of the Russian army, the military town of Skrunda was left in a state of disrepair. The Latvian government tried to sell the property in more instances, while some of the worst conserved buildings have been demolished. More recently the local municipality took control of the area, and there are plans to find a new function for the remaining part of the ghost town. Also the Latvian army is active on it. In the meanwhile you can tour this ‘domesticated’ ghost town – which can be accessed officially paying a small fee at the entrance – you are even given a map of the site!

Skrunda Ghost Town Latvia

The fact that you pay for a visit takes away much of the ghost-town-aura typical to other similar places in the former Eastern Bloc – here you know you are not alone. Nonetheless, what makes this place impressive is the size of the buildings, now totally empty, and the imposing ensemble they form together.

Skrunda Ghost Town Latvia

Besides the residential buildings, the bulkiest and more numerous, there are a hotel, a school – which cannot be accessed due to the collapsing roof -, a market and many other services you may expect to find in a typical modern neighborhood.

Skrunda Ghost Town Latvia

Also impressive are the club with a big gym and the frescoes in it. An obelisk monument can be found in the square ahead of the gym.

Skrunda Ghost Town Latvia

On the tiles on the blind side of one of the residential buildings it is possible to spot a giant, now fading portrait of a Soviet soldier.

Skrunda Ghost Town Latvia

The residential and service complex with its distinctive tall buildings occupies the northern part of the ghost town of Skrunda, while the southern part is composed of lower buildings formerly for barracks and military services, including a canteen, a command building and a small military prison.

Skrunda Ghost Town Latvia

The face of the command building bears inscriptions in Cyrillic, which are now barely visible. From historical pictures it is possible to see that at some point the Red Banner was changed into the Russian flag you can spot today.

Skrunda Ghost Town Latvia

Most of the buildings in this area are in a really bad shape, and many are inaccessible due to piles of waste material packed inside. Among the most unusual sights here, stickers of ‘Western propaganda symbols’ – including an iconic Arnold Schwarzenegger in James Cameron’s ‘Terminator’! – inside the door of a small cabinet, likely from the Eighties.

Skrunda Ghost Town Latvia

At the time of my visit there were some Latvian troops busy moving light material between some of these buildings.

Getting there and moving around

Getting to the Soviet ghost town of Skrunda is easy with a car. You can reach the old town of Skrunda along the A9, connecting Liepaja and Riga. Once there, take the P116 going north to Kuldiga. The entrance to the site will be on your left about 3 miles north of the center of old Skrunda.

I have to admit I had prepared my visit as a ‘usual’ wild exploration, and I discovered the place is actually a tourist attraction only when I was there. My first approach was from the side of the village opposite to the P116, to reduce the chance to be spotted by locals. To my great surprise I was soon met by a young lady walking along the main street of the ghost town. I thought she was there for picking mushrooms or something in the wilderness, instead she came closer and politely told me there was a ticket to pay! Then I spotted other visitors around in the distance. I moved my car to the P116 and accessed the place as a normal visitor. An old lady at the former control booth of the military village asked for a few Euros – no credit cards, obviously – and gave me a ticket and a map.

The reason for my error was the lack of information available online, also due to the very limited penetration of English in that part of Europe, even on websites. For the same reason, unfortunately I can’t provide an official source site nor opening times.

Due to a very tight timetable, I could only dedicate about an hour to the visit of the ghost town – I also wasted some time moving my car from the back to the official gate of the base. The site may deserve 1.5-2.5 hours depending on your level of interest, especially if you want to take pictures.

As written above, Skrunda is in the center of a renovation program, and the place may not remain visible for long.

Karosta Military Prison & Liepaja Port Town

The port town of Liepaja is the third most populated center in Latvia. It bolsters an ancient tradition as a commercial port, built along trade routes very active since the early years of the Hanseatic League. More recently, in the second half of the 19th century the port was greatly developed also for military purposes under the power of the Tzars. This time saw the construction of conspicuous fortifications in the northern area of the town, and the development of an extensive military district named Karosta.

The military port was destined to play an important role in WWI, when the agonizing Russian Empire was fighting against the forces of the Kaiser, and again in WWII, when the Soviets, who had just annexed the Latvian territory in 1939-40, started fighting against Hitler in 1941. The German Wehrmacht actually occupied Liepaja until 1945.

Back in the hands of the Soviets, the port was developed step by step into a major base of the Soviet fleet, headquartering the Baltic branch tasked with tactical dominance of the Baltic Sea. Since the 1960s until the collapse of the USSR Liepaja was turned into a closed town for military personnel only, and all commercial activities were interdicted.

Nowadays the commercial port is again very active, and the town, even boasting a university, is trying to reestablish its original status as a center for commerce and tourism.

Most notably, the former military district of Karosta can be toured along a well designed historical trail, showing the old quarters of the military town from the years of the Tzars. A distinctive feature of Karosta is the breakwater pier, protruding into the Baltic for about 1 mile, which can be walked in its entirety. Another very suggestive sight is the dome of the Orthodox church, recently refurbished after having being closed for years in the Soviet era.

Karosta Liepaja Latvia

Karosta Liepaja Port Pier Latvia

Karosta Liepaja Latvia

Karosta Liepaja Pier Military Port

Karosta Liepaja Latvia Soviet Monument

Another unusual sight in the Karosta district is the coastal fortification built by the Tzars in the late 19th century. The cannons are gone, but the mighty fortifications look still impressive.

Karosta Liepaja Latvia Coastal Cannon Battery

The additions by the Soviets in terms of housing are clearly recognizable by the depressing style and poor building technique, making these buildings look worse than their older predecessors.

Karosta Liepaja Latvia

The military district of the Tzars included a military prison, today known as Karosta Prison (or ‘Karosta Cietums’, in Latvian). This prison has been turned into a museum only recently, and is now advertised as a local attraction.

Karosta Liepaja Prison Hotel Soviet Nazi

This prison is unique in many senses. From a historical perspective, for instance, it was managed by six different military powers in its history – the Russian Empire, the newly constituted Latvian government soon after WWI, the Soviets between 1940 and 1941, the Nazis until 1945, then the Soviets again and finally the Latvian government of our days after the independence from the Soviet Union!

The place is rich of sad memories, especially from the years of Nazi occupation, when the prison was not intended to reeducate – whatever this might have meant in Soviet times -, but acted more as an antechamber for captured spies or subversive elements to be shot – something that reportedly happened in the courtyard in several occasions – or deported to Nazi lagers. Of course, the beginning of the Soviet period was a very harsh one too for Liepaja and all Latvia, thanks to Stalin’s unscrupulous deportation plans which hit hard in the region, but that was a business the small military prison of Karosta was not much involved in.

The brick building of the prison is composed of two floors. The museum offers guided visits to the small complex. The first sight is the office of the director on the ground floor, preserved from the Soviet era, and enriched with tons of collectible items. Really an impressive sight.

Karosta Liepaja Prison Hotel Soviet Nazi

Another very unique room is packed with weapons, uniforms and other military gear from the years of WWII. This collection, albeit small, is extremely valuable especially for what remains of the Nazi period – somewhat paradoxically, in Germany similar collections are basically impossible to find.

Karosta Liepaja Prison Hotel Soviet Nazi

I explicitly asked more than once about the originality of the pieces on show, and was punctually reassured. The prison and what is in it, with the exception of the arrangement of the ticket office and the rooms nearby, is 95% original, and what was not originally there when the prison was finally closed – like a portrait of Stalin and a wooden silhouette of Lenin’s face – is still original, relocated for exhibition purposes. No fakes.

Karosta Liepaja Prison Hotel Soviet Nazi

Next, the guided tour will drive you to the cells on the top floor, which were intended for soldiers, where the ground floor was for officers. The only difference is in the color of the walls – black on the top floor, brownish on the lower floor.

Karosta is the only military prison you can visit in the Baltics… and probably the only one in the world where you can sleep, if you dare to! The standard treatment is not so rude as you may expect, and spending the night in provides also the advantage of a dedicated evening visit of the prison after the closing time, along with the other ‘inmates’.

The rooms where you sleep are the cells of the ground floor – originally intended for officers. There are two possible configurations, i.e. rooms with iron beds, or empty cells, where you assemble your ‘bed’ taking a wooden board and a mattress from piles in a deposit. Then you are given a pillow, sheets and a blanket. The sheets are marked in Cyrillic, and probably belong to the original supply of the Soviet prison.

Karosta Liepaja Prison Hotel Soviet Nazi

The door of the cell is left open, so you are totally free to move around all night, and even go out in the courtyard if you need. Toilets are in common, placed in the original toilet room. They are clean, even though basic, and there are no showers. There is a guard – who is also the guide on the evening tour – on the top floor, and the external perimeter of the prison is locked, so you feel reasonably safe. You can also park your car inside the perimeter. That said, spending the night in the cell is surely unusual and provokes strange feelings and thoughts… but that’s what you were probably looking for when you decided to sleep in a prison!

Karosta Liepaja Prison Hotel Soviet Nazi

The prison offers more intense experiences where you are ‘disturbed’ during the night and treated more harshly by the guards, but these are only for groups. These packages are advertised also for companies, for team-building purposes.

The small restaurant has been put in the original canteen for the guards, and they offer a full Soviet-themed menu for dinner and for breakfast. The ‘hotel’ manager speaks English, and she can help you out with the menu, written in Latvian only.

Karosta Liepaja Prison Hotel Soviet Nazi

All in all, a unmissable pick for those interested in authentic Soviet experiences.

Karosta Liepaja Prison Hotel Soviet Nazi

Getting there and moving around

The museum in the prison of Karosta is an official tourist attraction in Karosta, which is part of Liepaja. The website provides much practical information about the museum and the many special activities they promote, plus you can find the contacts for arranging a stay in case you want to. You may inquire with your intended arrival date. In my case the answer was quick and punctual, and I was asked about usual details. The only ‘stressful’ thing was the check-in limit – 5 pm – but this turned out to be more flexible than initially expected. I had the deadline extended to 6 pm by e-mailing the staff earlier on the day of arrival, and a group of six arrived well after 8 pm, by prior arrangement.

On check-in you are shown the two cell types mentioned above – this happens before payment, in case you realize this is not for you and decide to leave! The fare for my 1-night stay was very low, 15 Euros or so, plus coins for dinner and breakfast.

After check-in I was invited to have dinner before taking possession of the cell-room, and then go downtown and come back well after the closing time of the museum. I was given the number of the guard, who opened the gate letting me in with my car when I came back.

The hotel office acts also as a tourist information point for the military district of Karosta and for the town of Liepaja. They provide maps, schedules of cultural activities and general information for the whole area.

As pointed out, if you are interested in spending the night in the prison you will have the chance to park inside a locked external fence. The rooms will not be locked, nor the prison building, so you should not experience any discomfort in that sense. You should not expect the room service, and be ready to make your bed, but the staff will treat you kindly and professionally. I was so tired for the trip I fell asleep with no difficulty – average light, average temperature, low humidity, no noise, unidentified ‘background smell’, but not excessively annoying…

Klavi Nuclear Missile Base

Similar to the base of Zeltini (see above), the base of Klavi was a surface missile base. Differently from Zeltini, Klavi is totally abandoned.

What remains there makes for a quick interesting visit. The characteristics of the complex are very similar to those of Zeltini, perhaps a bit more regular, for in Klavi all four launch pads are placed side-by-side in a single array. The most notable feature of the installation is the many bunkers, which include missile bunkers and smaller support ones. Some of the bunkers bear visible traces of the original Cyrillic writing.

Klavi Soviet Nuclear Missile Base Latvia

The launch pads with the metal crown on the ground can be found also here – but the crowns are gone, probably the metal was resold. The exploration is somewhat complicated by some ditches and flooded areas, obstructing the access to part of the grounds. Nature is growing wild in the area, but garbage and waste material can also be found in significant amounts.

Klavi Soviet Nuclear Missile Base Latvia

Similar to Zeltini, besides the storage and launch area there are a series of support and living bunkers, plus a technical area which is today occupied by some form of business, including a soft-air training ground.

Klavi Soviet Nuclear Missile Base Latvia

The base testifies the double attitude towards these former missile sites adopted in Latvia, which on one side are left in a state of disrepair, but are not totally abandoned, and are often being used in our days for various kinds of business.

Getting there and moving around

The place can be found with a nav using the following coordinates, 56.661370, 24.128137, pointing to the access road of the launch complex. All roads around the site and reaching to it are unpaved – but this is the standard in Latvia. The point can be reached with a car. Going further may be easier by foot, for the road is not maintained and turns pretty narrow.

The former technical part with the soft-air facility is located 0.3 miles from that point moving northeast, and can be clearly spotted on a satellite photograph. Approaching the launch part from the south you will not pass through it, and you will more likely go unnoticed – the launch area is abandoned with no prohibition signs, so this is just if you don’t like to attract any attention.

I would say this place should be of interest for more committed urban explorers, as you should go with at least a basic consciousness of the general plan of a missile base to understand where you are and for moving around, due to wild nature obstructing the view in many instances.

Note: there is a sister site, almost a clone of this base, located south of the village of Zalite, about 5 miles south of the Klavi complex. Apparently not in a bad shape, the area has been taken over by small private businesses and marked with clear signs of prohibition. Strangely enough, there are apparently some people living in the rotting buildings of the former technical area. I went to the Zalite site also, but I was greeted by angry watchdogs moving around freely as soon as I approached the former launch area, and I could not even step off my car. Soon after I was spotted by a small group of people, like a family with elders and children with a ragged, disturbing appearance, including a woman with only one leg and a prominent metal prosthesis – the whole scene looked like some low-budget horror movie. They were clearly not happy to see me. I had a very bad feeling and decided to leave immediately.

The Corner House – KGB Prison in Riga

As soon as they landed in the territory of Latvia in the early Forties, the Soviets started to implement their regime in all its features. These included forced collectivization of private businesses, de-facto abolition of all political parties and free elections, and prosecution of non-communist elements of the society. The state security office monitoring the life of all citizens and assuring their adherence to the communist ideology and way of life was the local section of the NKVD, later to evolve into the famous KGB. This was tasked with the collection of information, arrest, interrogation, sentencing, detention and often times also deportation and execution of anybody suspected of ‘counter-revolutionary acts’ or ‘anti-Soviet crimes’ – the meaning of which was very generic and often used to prosecute people on the basis of scant or absent evidence of any type, and basically for political opinions.

It is still not clear for what particular reason this secret political police found a suitable home base in a nice apartment building in central Riga, which until the time of the Soviet occupation had been a normal residential building. Behind the elegant façade, the Soviets moved in an impressive quantity of offices and archives, plus a complete prison, located on the ground floor and in the basement, with cells and rooms for interrogation, with separate branches for women and men. The prison ceased function during the Nazi occupation, when it was opened to the public for propaganda reasons. Not discouraged nor impressed, the Soviet secret police reopened it as soon as it regained control of the region in 1945. After the secession of Latvia from the USSR, the building, which over the decades had become a symbol of communist terror, was closed up and left there, nobody reclaiming that haunted property, associated with fear, sad memories and negative feelings of hardship and oppression. Only a few years ago an association aimed at preserving the memory of the deadly function of the building, and of those who were touched by the violent ideological repression carried out by the Soviets in Riga and Latvia, started to offer regular tours of the prison.

The place is preserved as it was when it was shut down, much of the original furniture, lighting and paint being still there.

Corner House KGB Prison Riga Latvia

The entrance is by the door on the corner, as it used to be in the past for the ‘general public’ – typically relatives of people mysteriously disappeared, going there to check whether they had been arrested by the KGB. What strikes most in these first rooms is the incredibly shabby, ragged, purely Soviet appearance of these public offices. A nice introductory exhibition with much info and data on the history of the place and of political repression in Latvia can be toured for free in this part of the building.

Corner House KGB Prison Riga Latvia

Here it is also where the guided tour of the prison will start. You will be driven through the corridor reserved to KGB employees and arrested people. From there you soon reach the prison – particularly disturbing even for Soviet standards, very dark and narrow.

Corner House KGB Prison Riga Latvia

Close to the entrance there is a control room for the whole prison, with original furniture from the KGB inventory – still tagged. A mix of terror and sadness, a really depressive ‘something wrong’ feeling can be clearly perceived there still today.

Corner House KGB Prison Riga Latvia

Interrogation rooms with a fake mirror glass and preliminary detention rooms as large as a phone box, with no windows nor ventilation, are among the first sights of the tour.

Corner House KGB Prison Riga Latvia

Along the walk the guide gives you a description of the life condition of inmates and an idea of the function of some special places in the prison.

Corner House KGB Prison Riga Latvia

Part of the tour is the caged courtyard intended for the few minutes of walk inmates were allowed per day.

Corner House KGB Prison Riga Latvia

During the visit you will see also the basement, where the kitchen for the inmates can still be found, together with service rooms and further cells.

Corner House KGB Prison Riga Latvia

Finally you will have a look at the inner courtyard, reportedly where many inmates had their last walk, soon before entering a dark room nearby where they were shot in the head, as mostly typical in the years of Stalin. The shabby room where this happened can be observed from the door, and is preserved with respect.

Corner House KGB Prison Riga Latvia

All in all, a true must see not only for the committed Cold War historian, but for everybody interested in the recent history of Latvia.

Getting there and moving around

The building of the KGB prison is located in Brīvības iela 61 in central Riga, and can be conveniently reached with a pleasant 10 minutes walk from the central historical district.

The Corner House is professionally managed as an international-level museum. It is possible to visit the informative exhibition for free, where for touring the prison you can either go there and reserve a visit, or buy an electronic ticket online in advance. Access to the prison is by guided tours only, but tours are offered in English, German as well as Latvian and other languages – website here.

The guided tour lasts just less than 1 hour, and I strongly recommend it as a very suggestive experience which will not leave you indifferent, also thanks to the lively approach of the very knowledgeable local guides.

Soviet Airbases in the GDR – Third Chapter

June 17, 2017February 16, 2021 CarloR2 Comments

	The BEST pictures from Soviet bases in the GDR ALL in ONE BOOK!
	Soviet Ghosts in Germany
	GRAB IT in PAPERBACK or KINDLE from your national Amazon store!
	amazon.com \| amazon.de \| amazon.co.uk amazon.it \| amazon.fr \| amazon.co.jp

As mentioned in previous chapters on the same topic – you can find the first and second here – the territory of the GDR was cluttered with an uncommonly high number of military bases, run either by the local Armed Forces of the GDR (‘German Democratic Republic’) or by the Soviet Union. This was also due to the great strategic relevance of the area, placed right in the center of Europe and on the border with ‘the West’.

Soon after the reunification of the two halves of Germany and the withdrawal of the Red Army after the collapse of the USSR, most Soviet/Russian bases in Germany were deemed unnecessary by the new federal government, hence they were converted into something else. Airbases have been turned most typically into solar powerplants or, more rarely, into general aviation airports. Armored cavalry training areas have been largely cleaned up, and allocated as land for reforestation.

Despite large parts of these installations having been recycled to some other function, substantial traces – and sometimes even more – of these once prominent and populated bases can be found still today. These include many technical buildings, like aircraft shelters, hangars for maintenance, weapon storages, bunkers, … as well as housing and buildings for the families of Soviet troopers. Needless to say, this kind of stuff is of primary interest for urban explorers and war historians as well, for these places – besides being really creepy and often preserving a ‘Soviet ghost aura’ which may appeal to a part of the public… – are usually full of lively traces of the Soviet occupation, like signs in Cyrillic alphabet, murals, monuments and Lenin’s heads, which make for an interesting memento of the recent past, when the map of Europe looked pretty much different from now.

In this post you can find a pictorial description of a visit to the two airbases of Sperenberg and Finsterwalde, south of Berlin, the airbase of Grossenhain, close to Dresden, plus a quick chapter on the former tank regiment base of Zeithain, close to the sport town of Riesa – not an airbase, but convenient to visit and well worth a quick stop when going to Grossenhain. Photographs have been taken in spring 2017.

As for the second chapter, some historical photos from the collectible book Rote Plätze – Russische Miltärfluglplätze Deutschland 1945-1994 have been included to allow for a ‘now and then’ comparison. I do not own the copyright for those pics.

Navigate this post – Click on links to scroll

Sperenberg
Grossenhain
Finsterwalde
Zeithain
Riesa

Sperenberg

The Soviet airbase of Sperenberg stands out in the panorama of the facilities of the Red Army in the GDR for two reasons.

Firstly, it was not an attack base, but the primary logistic airport of the Soviets in Eastern Germany. The place was developed with air transport in mind, so differently from most bases around, there are no shelters for deadly MiGs or Sukhois ‘mosquitos’, but instead enormous open-air aprons, hangars and parking bays for Antonov and Ilyushin monster-size transports, as well as for bulky Mil helicopters. The place even bolsters a small passenger terminal for military staff, a truly unique feature. The proximity to Wünsdorf, a small town in Brandenburg which since the end of WWII and until 1994 hosted the headquarters of the Soviet Forces in Germany (covered in this post), may have played a role in defining the function of this base.

Secondarily, Sperenberg was simply shut down at the time of the withdrawal of Soviet/Russian forces, but was never converted into something else – at least at the time of writing. This makes it truly a one-of-a-kind item for lovers of ‘ghost airbases’, for here everything, including all taxiways and the runway, is still there. Nature is fiercely reclaiming much of the area, which is nowadays completely surrounded and partly submerged by a wild forest – making the silent remains of the base look even more creepy, unnatural and haunted…

The installation is also very big – similar to an average-size civil airport – , and besides the airside part, there is also an extensive array of residential buildings for the troops. For the major point of interest of the place is the preserved – for now… – airport infrastructure, I concentrated on that, neglecting the barracks and housing. This was also due to the latter being closer to the old main gate to the base, and standing to the available information there are rangers and local citizens who sometimes keep that part under watch. With only a basic knowledge of German, I think it’s better to take all countermeasures to avoid misunderstandings, thus enjoying a reasonably safe and undisturbed exploration…

Sights

In order to reduce the chance of a contact with the locals, it makes sense to intrude into the perimeter from the northeast, heading southwest directly to the center of the airport, leaving the housing part to the east. This will result in a multi-miles walk in the trees, along former service roads, now seldom used by woodcutters. Sooner or later, you will meet the original fence of the base, with concrete posts, barbed wire and an unpaved service road for service cars running all around it.

Flugplatz Sperenberg – Abandoned Soviet Base

In order to make your way through the wilderness, unless you are from that very district and have a (very) good knowledge of the area, you will need a GPS. I profitably used the Ulmon app on my iPhone. It worked perfectly, all paths were precisely indicated. The external fence around the northwest area is very well preserved. The function of the first group of buildings I came across with is not very clear. You can clearly spot them on aerial photos of the base, to the northwest of the main part of the apron, connected to the airside area with a long straight service road aligned in a northwest-southeast direction.

Flugplatz Sperenberg – Abandoned Soviet Base

I guess the facility may have been a former fuel deposit – there is a large maneuver area possibly for trucks, an inner fence for further protection, a water deposit, possibly for firefighting, and a strange array of aligned pipe ends made of concrete, pointing vertically.

Flugplatz Sperenberg – Abandoned Soviet Base

Going southwards to reach the apron area, I came across an abandoned… Soviet boot, plus some more mysterious buildings, clearly blown up at a certain point in history, and possibly not built by the Soviets. These resembled in shape the cannon bunkers placed by Nazi Germany on the northern coast of France, constituting the backbone of the ‘Atlantic Wall’. Maybe residuals from an even farther back era?

Flugplatz Sperenberg – Abandoned Soviet Base

After crossing another fence – again, concrete posts and barbed wire – and going through a really wild trail in the trees, basically not signed except for traces of animals everywhere, I appeared on the apron in the northwesternmost part of the airport, with a huge array of parking bays for transport aircraft. Reportedly Antonov An-12s and Tupolev Tu-134s used to be placed in this area, as you can see also from historical pictures.

Flugplatz Sperenberg – Abandoned Soviet Base

The proportions of the abandoned airport are really striking. Taking a closer look at many of the parking bays, it is possible to find substantial traces of the original delimiting and direction strips for aircraft. The apron is made of the typical Soviet slabs, not coated with asphalt as typical for most airports in the West.

Flugplatz Sperenberg – Abandoned Soviet Base

Moving south from the parking area, which unwinds along an east-western direction – as it is clear from the aerial pictures – , walking along a connection taxiway it is possible to notice its uncommon width, which is not typical to attack bases, but necessary for a transport base operating with Soviet giants.

Flugplatz Sperenberg – Abandoned Soviet Base

Accessing the southern east-western taxiway from the west, it is possible to find a very special feature of Sperenberg – the passenger terminal. The small terminal is located to the north of a dedicated apron for passenger/mail loading and unloading.

Flugplatz Sperenberg – Abandoned Soviet Base

The terminal area is made of two main buildings. One is probably older, with a large glass window looking to the apron. A gazebo and some small walkways suggest the place was intended for waiting, and for ‘quasi-civil’ operations.

Flugplatz Sperenberg – Abandoned Soviet Base

The main terminal bears the date ‘1986’. From historical pictures, you can notice that it underwent some modifications during the few years of operations, which ceased by the year 1994. In particular, the central window on the front façade, made for the baggage treadmill, was bricked up at a certain point.

Flugplatz Sperenberg – Abandoned Soviet Base

The inside of the building has been totally spoiled, except for some wallpaper on the ceiling.

Flugplatz Sperenberg – Abandoned Soviet Base

A couple of strange movable structures, possibly extendable covered passages for passenger loading operations, can be found on the apron and in the trees besides the former terminal. Also these can be spotted in one of the aerial photographs. They are full of unofficial mottos and signatures of Soviet troops, written in Cyrillic.

Flugplatz Sperenberg – Abandoned Soviet Base

From the area of the terminal it’s a – relatively – short walk to the western end of the runway.

Flugplatz Sperenberg – Abandoned Soviet Base

Moving eastwards from the terminal along the southernmost main taxiway, you come across several interesting items, including a Soviet control tower and many parking bays for large helicopters.

Flugplatz Sperenberg – Abandoned Soviet Base

The only hangar on the airport can be found on a very wide taxiway connecting the two parallel east-western main taxiways. The hangar, albeit appearing rather big at a glance, was probably used for maintenance of helicopters and smaller transports, as large Soviet transports need a much bigger size. Traces of a motto on the front of the hangar, obviously in Cyrillic, can be seen today.

Flugplatz Sperenberg – Abandoned Soviet Base

This also are quite mysterious, for on the photos from the last days of operations the inscription cannot be spotted. It was probably covered in Russian, post-Soviet times, reappearing now as the paint coat is fading.

Flugplatz Sperenberg – Abandoned Soviet Base

Also in the area around the hangar another control tower, possibly from an older age, can be spotted, but not accessed.

Flugplatz Sperenberg – Abandoned Soviet Base

Taking again to the east along the southern taxiway, more helicopter parking bays can be found, and finally another large aircraft parking area. From pictures from the time, this area was used for parking mainly An-12s, some of them with the tail leaning over the grass. Many interesting strips and indications for aircraft can be found in this area, with writings in Cyrillic, together with strongpoints for anchoring aircraft to the ground.

Flugplatz Sperenberg – Abandoned Soviet Base

From the end of the taxiway, where more interesting signs on the ground can still be found – one of them telling ‘cars must stop here’ – it’s again pretty easy to come to the eastern end of the runway. The connection taxiway descents gently towards the runway.

Flugplatz Sperenberg – Abandoned Soviet Base

Here some of the original lights can be found. Some slabs close to the end of the runway appear highly damaged, like they were stricken from above. Possibly some overweight plane heavy-landed here at some point?

Flugplatz Sperenberg – Abandoned Soviet Base

Leaving north from the eastern end of the runway, crossing both main east-western taxiways, you can point back to the fence of the airport. Going further east you would reach the housing area, which I did not explore. Going north I came across an abandoned railway track, and a railway/truck interchange area. Finally, I reached the usual barbed wire and I left in the trees. I had to walk again along a very nice multi-miles track in the wilderness back to where I had parked.

Flugplatz Sperenberg – Abandoned Soviet Base

Now that I was fine with the goals of the exploration, I moved to the main gate – where you are quite exposed and it’s easier to get spotted – to take some pictures from the outside. These can be compared to an historical pic from post-Soviet times – see the Russian Eagle to the left of the gate.

Flugplatz Sperenberg – Abandoned Soviet Base

Another set of exciting pictures from the air, taken during a special flight over this area, can be found in this chapter.

All in all, I would say Sperenberg was among the most interesting Soviet airbase in the GDR I’ve ever visited. You can really feel the ‘Soviet ghost aura’, for the place looks really like it was simply closed up and forgotten. And I didn’t even look at the housing part. The wilderness around is really nice to walk in spring, you will see many birds, deers and some say they have spotted boars. I walked something around 12 miles in the area, my stay lasted a full afternoon, and I noticed only a few people having a look around, far in the distance. So if you are looking for an evocative walk, mixing the pleasure of the countryside to serious, top-quality urban exploration in a former military setting, this is really a place to be!

Getting there and moving around

Sperenberg is located about 20 miles south from downtown Berlin. The unattractive village bearing this name can be conveniently reached by car, and the main gate to the base can be found to the west of it. If you don’t want to access the base from here – which may attract some unwanted attention – you may elect to go to the area of Kummersdorf a few miles north, park your car and cut through the wilderness to reach the area of the former airport. For doing that you will need a map. The Ulmon map on my iPhone was perfect for guiding me on the task, all major and almost all minor service roads were perfectly signed. Due to the size of the base, you may choose to reach the perimeter from different directions, especially if you are more interested in some part than another. It used to be a full-scale transport airport, so expect to walk a lot if you – like me – want to have a look to everything. Being placed in the deep countryside of Brandenburg, finding a parking place should not be a problem.

Grossenhain

The former base of Grossenhain, close to Dresden, has been in the focus of an important conversion plan. Much of the facilities – especially the many hangars – have been converted into something else, including busy factories and warehouses. The area of the airport has been reduced, and the majority of the original buildings – some of them dating back to the Nazi era – demolished. A small flight club operates from the southeastern quarter of the base, using the original runway. From a bird’s eye view, the area for flight operations has been sensibly reduced, but thanks to the conversion, most hangars are still in place, so it’s easy to get an idea of how the base looked like in the past.

Historical pictures show that this airbase was used for open days in the years of the GDR, and in the transition period between 1989 and the withdrawal of Russian troops.

Similarly to other bases in the GDR like Rechlin/Laerz, Jüterbog and Merseburg, this attack base hosted a model GRANIT special weapon storage (‘Sonderwaffenlager’). This is still preserved today, and makes for the most prominent feature of this base.

Sights

Three items make this base really attractive. First and foremost, a bunker for storing special weapons. Perhaps a unique case in the former GDR, the bunker has undergone a complete refurbishment, and it now appears like new.

Grossenhain – Abandoned Soviet Base

Flugplatz Grossenhain – Abandoned Soviet Base

The two imposing doors are preceded by a barbed wire fence. It is inaccessible, but it can be easily photographed from the outside. There is even an explanatory panel, both in German and Russian, with photographs from an older time.

Grossenhain – Abandoned Soviet Base

A second sight of interest is the former gate guardian of the base. It is a MiG-17 of the Aviation of the Red Army. It is placed on a concrete post – designed in a pure Soviet-style – with writings in Cyrillic. Pictures from the day of operations suggest a different background than the rotting hovel now behind it. The gray sky on the day of my visit added to the Cold War atmosphere of the place.

Grossenhain – Abandoned Soviet Base

Flugplatz Grossenhain – Abandoned Soviet Base

Finally, another sight of interest is a wooden round table from the age of the Nazi dictatorship, used to align flight instrumentation. It is very large, and perfectly preserved. An explanatory panel can be found also besides this item.

Grossenhain – Abandoned Soviet Base

All in all, while not a place for a real exploration – the area is very busy and not abandoned at all – Grossenhain offers some very unique items, keeping memory of its strong military past, surely worth a detour for the committed specialist.

Getting there and moving around

Grossenhain is about 20 miles north of Dresden, and just 8 miles north of world-famous Meissen – the birthplace of the Meissen pottery. The still active ‘flugplatz’ – local airport – is immediately north of this averaged-size village. Access is via the road N.101 or N.98, surrounding the airport area to the west and south respectively. There is no barrier except for the small flight club, many public roads have replaced the original taxiways and service roads. You can move in the former area of the airbase with your car and park at your convenience. Just be sure not to interfere with the many businesses in the area, especially big trucks going in and out on smaller roads.

Finsterwalde

This once prominent, very large airbase, is still in operation as a local airport. During the Cold War, this place was selected for storing nuclear warheads with a specially built facility. Other two installations of the kind existed over the territory of the GDR, namely Brand and Rechlin/Laerz.

Sights

The airport area is largely inaccessible, for the airbase is still an active general aviation airport. Among the most visible items in this part, a great example of a control tower from the years before WWII. It has been perfectly refurbished. Nearby are some very big hangars, today hosting some private business. Closer to the apron, some shelters from Soviet times are possibly used as hangars – they were shut when I visited. I could see a Transall C-160 parked outside, a really ubiquitous military transport in Germany, likely not any more managed by the Air Force.

Finsterwalde – Abandoned Soviet Base

Flugplatz Finsterwalde – Abandoned Soviet Base

The ‘ghost part’ of the base is located to the south of the airport. The ideal trailhead is a former railway station and interchange platform. From historical pictures, it’s easy to see this was very busy supplying materials to the base, where also extensive housing could be found in Soviet times.

Finsterwalde – Abandoned Soviet Base

Going south following a former service road, still used by woodcutters and acceptably maintained at least for an easy 0.8 miles walk, you can reach the old bunker for nuclear ordnance. It is preceded by parking areas, demolished truck depots and many service roads. The assembly should have looked like the one in Brand, but most of the buildings today are gone.

Finsterwalde – Abandoned Soviet Base

The bunker is not interred, so the size can be appreciated from the side. Unfortunately, the bunker has been left open, and at some time in its history it must have been set on fire, so the walls inside are covered in black soot, and exceptionally dark – unfortunately I couldn’t take an acceptable picture even with a torchlight. More recently, it has been used as a dump for common waste. The area is far from hygienic, with piles of garbage here and there. Furthermore, on the outside it was covered by stupid and ignorant graffiti.

Finsterwalde – Abandoned Soviet Base

Flugplatz Finsterwalde – Abandoned Soviet Base

On the plus side, the crane for maneuvering the ordnance ahead of the main door is still in place with its original roof. Also visible is the truck unloading dock, ahead of the entrance to the bunker.

Finsterwalde – Abandoned Soviet Base

To the west of the area of the bunker, along the public road giving access to today’s airport, some of the original Soviet housing can be seen, apparently still inhabited in some parts. The base offers also some aircraft shelters close to the southeastern corner, but these are used as storages, and they are fenced and inaccessible.

Finsterwalde – Abandoned Soviet Base

Flugplatz Finsterwalde – Abandoned Soviet Base

Another set of exciting pictures from the air, taken during a special flight over this area, can be found in this chapter.

Generally speaking, Finsterwalde deserves a visit for the still active part of the airport, and for the unique nuclear bunker – even though it is the worst preserved of the kind in the GDR, the ‘Soviet ghost aura’ can still be perceived. A visit of about 1-1.5 hour, including a walk to the bunker and back, may be enough for the entire installation.

Getting there and moving around

Finsterwalde is located about 20 miles east of Cottbus, and about 55 miles south of downtown Berlin. The town of Finsterwalde has also another GA airport, to the northwest of the urban area. The former base is located south, and can be reached looking for ‘Fliegerstrasse’ if leaving the city to the south on ‘Dresdner Strasse’, or for ‘Sudstrasse’ when leaving on the L60 to the southeast. In any case, less than 2 miles south of the city center. Parking is possible besides the control tower, or close to the former railway station. As written above, the place is not abandoned, there are small businesses all around and even some fields of solar cells. Anyway I didn’t attract any unwanted attention when exploring the abandoned building of the railway station – even though I am sure I was spotted by the cars passing by – and when heading by foot in the trees to reach the nuclear bunker.

Zeithain

Sights

The countryside around the small sleepy town of Zeithain was once busy with tank operations, with extensive training grounds dating from before WWII. The Soviets maintained the original function of the installation. More recently, the area was mostly cleaned up, almost no buildings remain and trees have grown covering the once barren area for maneuvers, but the partially fenced former military zone still hides an item of great interest from the Cold War age.

It is a complete Soviet commemorative monument. The first part is a very unusual statue of Lenin, in a somewhat informal pose with a hand in his pocket. The centerpiece is a mural with a map showing the trail followed by the Soviets to reach Berlin during the Great Patriotic War of 1941-45 – which is how Russians call WWII. The mural is extremely well preserved, I would say it was refurbished at some point in recent history.

Zeithain – Abandoned Soviet Base

The third and most impressive ingredient is a 6 feet tall head of Mother Russia. I would say this is the most beautifully made Soviet sculpture I know of in the GDR. It makes for a good rival, and possibly a winning one, for the three majestic Soviet monuments in Berlin, but with less pomp and more art. Really something with an artistic value.

Zeithain – Abandoned Soviet Base

The fourth and last component of the monument is another mural with portraits of Soviet soldiers and an inscription in Cyrillic.

Zeithain – Abandoned Soviet Base

The ensemble is really impressive, the silence and remoteness of the place clearly adding to your perception of it. A walkway leading to the center of the monument can be seen still today.

Zeithain – Abandoned Soviet Base

As I wrote, there is something strange in this particular monument, for it is too well preserved for an outdoor monument left behind since at least 1994. I guess somebody has been taking care of it in more recent times. Nonetheless, nature is wild around it, and overgrown trees partially hide the perspective.

Zeithain – Abandoned Soviet Base

As a practical indication, I must admit I took a high risk visiting this place, cause the former perimeter of the base is fenced, and I believe the grounds are now in private hands. The original entrance to the base – you can see the original control booth and the gate – was open when I arrived, but an unlocked padlock was hanging from the door. I heard some cars and trucks moving out when I was taking pictures. So basically I think I intruded into a private business, at the high risk of remaining locked inside – together with my car… I would suggest moving in by foot, in order to make escape easier, just in case you get locked in!

Getting there and moving around

The base of Zeithain is located about 3 miles north of central Riesa, a mid-sized town in the countryside 30 miles northwest of Dresden.

Getting to the entrance of the base maybe a bit tricky, for the area under the administration of Zeithain covers an extensive part of the local countryside, so if targeted with ‘Zeithain’ your nav will probably point in the middle of nowhere and pretty far from the base.

A time-saving way to reach the place is as follows. Start from the junction between the N.98 and N.169, located east of a small town. Take to the north on the N.169. The road goes off with a gentle bend to the right immediately after the junction. Then it becomes straight, and you will have a fuel station to your right, and a road departing to the left – ‘An der borntelle’ is the name of the road. Take it as it goes straight northwest for less than half a mile, till a sharp bend to the left. At the level of the bend, a smaller road – ‘Abendrothstrasse’ – goes off abruptly to the right. Take it, and again less than 0.5 miles ahead the road splits in two, the main road going slightly to the left. Leave the main road and keep going straight. You will see a gate and a wall to your right. This is the entrance to the former training base. I skip providing any further details about how to move on from there, for as I have explained I realized this is probably an actively managed private property. Visiting and taking pictures may take 15 to 30 minutes.

Riesa

Sights

This sleepy town, mostly famous for sports than for everything else, may be interesting for the location, very close to Zeithain – see description above – and for the presence of one of the remaining statues of Lenin in the former GDR. This statue is part of the local Soviet cemetery. Such cemeteries are not so rare and scattered over the immense territory conquered by the Soviets in Europe during WWII. Besides fallen soldiers buried in war cemeteries, due to the great number of Soviet troopers and their relatives in the GDR, I guess it was not uncommon for them to be buried abroad.

Riesa – Soviet Monument Lenin

The cemetery is still maintained today, and the statue still looked after as a part of it. This makes it pretty uncommon, for all other statues of Lenin in the GDR have been removed or abandoned. There is clearly some controversy about its placement in a public park in a town of today’s Germany, so it is possible the monument will be relocated at some point in history. For now, together with the ‘Socialist housing’ right behind it in the background of the cemetery, the monument makes for an unusual picture – a Soviet-style ‘postcard from the GDR’.

Riesa – Soviet Monument Lenin

Getting there and moving around

The small cemetery and monument are located to the southwest of Riesa, and can be reached easily where Poppitzer Strasse and Mergendorfer Strasse meet. You can park at your convenience close by. Visiting will not take more than 10 minutes.

Soviet Airbases in the GDR – Second Chapter

May 14, 2017December 3, 2023 CarloRLeave a comment

	The BEST pictures from Soviet bases in the GDR ALL in ONE BOOK!
	Soviet Ghosts in Germany
	GRAB IT in PAPERBACK or KINDLE from your national Amazon store!
	amazon.com \| amazon.de \| amazon.co.uk amazon.it \| amazon.fr \| amazon.co.jp

As pointed out in other posts on the topic – here and here -, the territory belonging to the German Democratic Republic (‘GDR’, or ‘DDR’ in German) was densely populated with military bases of all kinds, including tank bases, logistic bases and airbases. This was the result of two powerful Armies coexisting within the borders of the communist DDR – the local East-German Army and the Soviet ‘Red Army’.

Looking at a map of the Country, the density of airbases is particularly striking. Due to the strategic significance suggested by its very position in central Europe, right on the border with ‘the West’, the DDR was attributed a privileged status by the Soviet government in terms of military equipment. The number of Soviet troops stationed here was in the order of the hundreds of thousands, meaning that on most bases also housing and services for Soviet soldiers and their families had to be built in large numbers.

After the German reunification, the end of the Soviet Union and the retirement of Russian – ex-Soviet – troops by the mid-Nineties, all the bases – mostly stripped of any transportable stuff, which was withdrawn to Russia – were returned to Federal Germany. This resulted in a surplus of military hardware for the German government, which soon started a lengthy plan to convert, refurbish or demolish most of the newly acquired facilities.

Consequently, some of the former bases are now commercial airports, whereas most of them had the airside areas converted into solar powerplants. In most cases, only part of the former installations have been converted to non-military use, and huge ghost hangars, depots and housing can still be found in the premises of these airbases. What remains is sometimes of great interest for war historians and urban explorers as well – especially those bases where communist memorials with writing in cyrillic alphabet can be found, and stand out as vivid memories of a recent past, when everything was very different from now in central Europe.

Similarly to other ones on this website, this post covers with photographs and some info two Soviet airbases – Rangsdorf and Brand – visited in April 2017, and what remains of three more – Brandis, Nohra and Köthen – visited in 2023. Where in the premises of the first two much hardware could be checked out (at least as of 2017), the latter (as of 2023) have been almost completely wiped out, or left to the elements and to the spoilers to the point that only few or very damaged relics remain.

To provide some sort of ‘then and now’ comparison, I included a few pics from the wonderful book Rote Plätze – Russische Militärflugplatze Deutschland 1945-1994 by Lutz Freundt and Stefan Buttner, for which I don’t own the copyright. I recently grabbed a copy of this wonderful, out-of-print book, published in 2007 by a now defunct publisher in Berlin (AeroLit), and distributed only locally. This book is now very difficult to find, and basically a collectible item. Consequently, the price was indecent, but the maps, photos and info therein are really worth the financial effort!

Navigate this post – Click on links to scroll

Rangsdorf
Brand
Köthen
Nohra
Brandis/Waldpolenz

Rangsdorf

Getting there and moving around

The former airbase in Rangsdorf can be found on the outskirts of Berlin, actually less than 8 miles south of Schönefeld Airport. It can be reached very quickly from the highway N.10, taking through the village of Rangsdorf and reaching its the south-western corner, where a small lake with sport activities and a group of new ‘American style’ houses is being built and partially completed – the land were the new houses are standing was once part of the base.

To be honest, I had some difficulties finding a parking place, because the area is densely populated and much looked after, and most parking lots are privately owned. I finally elected to park ahead of a small kindergarten, which at the time of my visit was already closed.

What remains of the base is totally abandoned, and you will likely find sheep in the former areas of operations. When preparing your exploration, just have a look a the Google map of the site to plan your moves ahead. There are a few remaining huge hangars and service buildings to explore, and they are all in the northern part of the former airfield. The original fence with lines of barbed wire and concrete posts is still standing, but there are many spots where it is cut and broken, so getting in is not difficult at all.

Notwithstanding that you can easily access the base, the populated area around is a potential threat, for entering the buildings is formally forbidden – there is also a firefighters station close to the northern section of the fence, and you could be easily spotted from outside when you are in. So I suggest being careful in your movements.

Sights

The military airbase in Rangsdorf dates back from the years of WWII and the Nazi regime, when it was a major base for transportation of high-ranking military staff traveling by plane. It was from here that Claus Schenk von Stauffenberg, the key-character in the failed attempt to murder Adolf Hitler in July 1944, took off to reach the Wolf’s Lair in what is now eastern Poland.

When the airport fell into Soviet hands, it was soon converted into a helicopter base, due to the inappropriate size of the airfield for the standards of the jet age, and the constraints put on its development by the surrounding villages. It used to be a very active helicopter transport base until the collapse of the Wall. In the years preceding the withdrawal of the Soviet/Russian troops the place became famous as ‘The Dump’ – the Soviet helicopter fleet was rationalised, and many rotorcrafts met the scrapman here.

Approaching from the west of the complex the fenced perimeter is very irregular, and when coming in I passed at least four lines of barbed wire while walking along a straight line! Many original lamps along the fences are still in place.

Flugplatz Rangsdorf – Abandoned Soviet Base

What seems to be a large air raid shelter, or possibly a reinforced communication bunker can be found before reaching the hangars. It is really big and isolated, with traces of wiring on one side.

Flugplatz Rangsdorf – Abandoned Soviet Base

Among the traces from the Soviet ‘Dump’ there are some aircraft-style seats, possibly from a big helicopter, several winches and some electric motors.

Flugplatz Rangsdorf – Abandoned Soviet Base

The two-winged building facing the grass-invaded former apron includes the control tower in the middle, and two lateral hangars. The assembly is a nice example of Nazi military design. The wooden doors and roof confirm the old age of the construction. Nonetheless, these hangars have been used also by the Soviets, as witnessed by the more modern ventilation system and traces of technical schemes and gear inside.

Flugplatz Rangsdorf – Abandoned Soviet Base

From the top floor of the old control tower it is possible to appreciate the original size of the airfield. As you can see from older pictures, only the northernmost part of the field was converted for helicopter operations. The helicopter platforms can be easily spotted, albeit half-covered by grass in the area ahead of the tower.

Flugplatz Rangsdorf – Abandoned Soviet Base

To the west of this main hangar there is a mysterious buildings with almost no windows and two pinnacles, which seem to be large twin funnels. I did not explore this thoroughly inside, as the building appeared to be in an especially bad and dangerous condition.

Flugplatz Rangsdorf – Abandoned Soviet Base

The next large hangar to the east is much bigger than the one with the tower. The construction is again pretty old, I guess again from the Thirties. Inside it is possible to find traces of mottos in big characters in cyrillic alphabet all along the wall. In older times, a famous panel with an ‘artistic’ hammer and sickle was hanging from one of the walls. This is unfortunately gone, only a barely visible trace remaining in place.

Flugplatz Rangsdorf – Abandoned Soviet Base

On one side of this big hangar a smaller service building can be found. Again, the intended function of this part of the complex is not immediately clear. I found traces of a huge table of chemical elements in Russian, like can be found in schools… but I don’t think they had a school right besides a hangar!

Flugplatz Rangsdorf – Abandoned Soviet Base

Even more to the east, close to the outer wall of the base and to a still active railway, there are two more hangars. The smaller one with wooden doors is very damaged inside, whereas the one to the north is apparently more recent in construction, but it is closed. My exploration accelerated a bit from here, as I noticed activity in the houses nearby outside the fence of the base, a watchdog started barking, and I feared to be spotted! Luckily this happened almost at the end of the exploration program…

Flugplatz Rangsdorf – Abandoned Soviet Base

Close to some communist-style housing, refurbished and still in use to the north of the airfield, I found a piece of wall, probably belonging to the original outer wall of the base, with celebrative writings in cyrillic – possibly names of sport teams from Soviet times.

Flugplatz Rangsdorf – Abandoned Soviet Base

All in all, I would say this base has the relevant advantage it was not converted to a power plant or something else, so it is poorly guarded and not totally off-limits – at least the open air grounds. It is also close to Berlin, easy to reach in a short time, and compact in size, so you won’t need to walk much, and visiting may take less time than with other former bases – about 2 hours for me, taking all the pictures. On the other hand, the populated neighborhood of Rangsdorf makes interception by the locals more likely. While not particularly rich of communist remains, the buildings in the base are still mostly in place, so visiting can be satisfactory also for photographers interested in architecture.

Brand

Getting there and moving around

The area of the former big airbase of Brand is associated to a fairly well-known attraction of our days – Tropical Island. This amusement park, which is officially indicated as an attraction even on highway N.13, connecting Berlin to Cottbus and the border with Poland, was built inside a colossal, modern hangar, designed for airships around the year 2000. This can be spotted from quite afar.

Flugplatz Brand – Abandoned Soviet Base

A large area of the former airbase is – from a viewpoint of urban exploration – compromised. The former runway has been turned into a huge parking area, whereas a luxury tropical-themed resort with bungalows and camping lots for mobile homes has been built in the western part of the airport. Most taxiways have been either recycled as alleys in the park, or literally removed. Some of the many aircraft shelters of this once prominent attack base have been converted to host other forms of business, ranging from restaurants to hay storages.

All the part connected with leisure business, which corresponds to everything north of Tropical-Islands-Allee – also named road L711 and going east from highway N.13 to the near village of Krausnick, where a small memorial to the Soviet actions in WWII can be found – is actively guarded by private guards, with their own small modern barracks close to the gate of the complex, and moving around by car.

Flugplatz Brand – Abandoned Soviet Base

In striking contrast with this, shrouded in the vegetation to the south of the same road, roughly cross the street with respect to the entrance to the Tropical Island complex, it is possible to find a conspicuous amount of Soviet relics, basically unguarded. All accesses to the roads going south is physically interdicted to cars, so parking may be not obvious in the immediate vicinity of the entrance to the park. I suggest going past the gate along L711 and driving towards Krausnick to find an unofficial but safe parking spot between the roadside and the limit of the forest, away from suspicious eyes.

Another part of great interest for war historians include the storage for nuclear warheads, typical to Brand and other few bases in the GDR. This is rather distant – about 1.8 miles southeast – from the airport area and Soviet housing. The original connection road – not accessible by car – is straight and very long, with little to offer in terms of relics. For exploring that part of the site I suggest driving to Krausnick from Tropical Island, and taking the L71 pointing southwest towards the village of Schönwalde. The road runs deep in the trees, and at some point it comes about .6 mile to the site of interest. You may park on the roadside, on one of the many service roads used by woodcutters and reach the place with a quick walk following one of those trails.

Take your time studying the area in advance on Google Maps, and choose what option best suits your needs.

You may also have a look at aerial pictures of the base, taken during a special flight over the area, described in this report.

Sights

Before being turned into a civil airport and then into an amusement park, Brand was one of the largest Soviet bases in the GDR, with flocks of MiG-21, 23, 27 stationing here, as well as Sukhoi Su-15 and even Su-27 in the final years of operation. Most notably, the base was selected already in the 1960s for storing air-launched nuclear warheads – together with Finsterwalde and Rechlin/Lärz (see this post). This led to the construction of a purpose-built reinforced storage bunker, which can still be seen. As pointed out before, there are two main focus areas in a visit to this installation.

The first is the ghost town for the troops once stationed here, and for their families. This is incredibly close to Tropical Island, but the contrast between the aura of these two places couldn’t be more striking!

Flugplatz Brand – Abandoned Soviet Base

There are residential buildings from various Soviet models, mostly three-four storeys buildings possibly from the Fifties-Sixties, but also some more imposing pre-fabricated buildings possibly dating from as recently as the Eighties.

Flugplatz Brand – Abandoned Soviet Base

Walking alone in this once lively village, with traces of playgrounds, mailboxes, lamps along walkways now invaded by vegetation, and even a swimming pool with some dead water in it, was for me one of the weirdest and creepiest experiences ever!

Flugplatz Brand – Abandoned Soviet Base

Unfortunately, from the pics you can’t feel the unreal silence where the place was immersed – the only sounds were those of the wind blowing in the trees and of some door slamming somewhere within the buildings… you would expect a zombie, some ghost troopers or a mutant monster coming out to meet you at every time!

Flugplatz Brand – Abandoned Soviet Base

Most of the buildings are in relatively good overall condition, but almost nothing survives of the interior of the apartments – which may collapse at every time and should not be accessed. By looking closely at some tires in a playground you can spot cyrillic characters on them – maybe they come from a consumed nose wheel of a MiG? The lamps are of the usual model commonly found in Soviet bases.

Flugplatz Brand – Abandoned Soviet Base

To the west of the residential area there is a similarly extensive zone with a great number of possibly former barracks or technical buildings. Almost all of them have been half-demolished by destroying the roof – I think this was made in purpose, for literally all buildings in this part have encountered the same fate. The style of these buildings suggests they are older than most of the housing. This is confirmed by comparing historical photographs of the base from above.

Flugplatz Brand – Abandoned Soviet Base

Among the most prominent buildings in the area, it is possible to find a former school, with an imposing façade of classical inspiration.

Flugplatz Brand – Abandoned Soviet Base

To the back of the school building a small gym can be found. The roof has collapsed – or it was demolished – long ago, so that some trees are growing inside – no more basketball here!

Flugplatz Brand – Abandoned Soviet Base

A highlight of the exploration in this area is a huge mosaic wall with the head of Lenin. This item is a bit of a mystery, cause it’s hard to imagine it was originally placed where it is standing today – there is no architectural ‘frame’ supporting the monument nor a backstage completing it – it looks like a decorated floor, but placed in a vertical position!

Flugplatz Brand – Abandoned Soviet Base

Anyway, the sight is of course very uncommon, and I would say unique in the panorama of communist-themed art in the former GDR.

Flugplatz Brand – Abandoned Soviet Base

Close by the ghost town, three aircraft shelters remain to the south of the road marking the ideal border with the ‘Tropical Island domain’. These can be accessed and explored. Among other particular features, it is possible to spot the rusty engine for opening the gates of one of them. These shelters could host aircraft up to the size of a MiG-23/27.

Flugplatz Brand – Abandoned Soviet Base

The second part of interest in Brand is the bunker for nuclear warheads. As stated above, this was built really far to the southeast from the housing and from the airport, differently from the other two bases in the GDR where similar bunkers were built (see this post). A straight connection road links the two portions of the base.

Flugplatz Brand – Abandoned Soviet Base

Traces of the further line of inner fence built around this area can be found today. The good quality tarmac of the roads have survived to this day.

Flugplatz Brand – Abandoned Soviet Base

The bunker is not accessible, the main gate blocked with a pile of land. Nonetheless, it is still visible and fairly well-preserved – even the camouflage above the front door – as you can see from a comparison with a photo from when the bunker was being used.

Flugplatz Brand – Abandoned Soviet Base

On the crane-supporting structures ahead of the entrance you can find traces of cyrillic writings.

Flugplatz Brand – Abandoned Soviet Base

There is a truck-loading dock nearby and several larger and smaller service buildings and garages. On some of the walls you can find ‘unofficial’ writing in cyrillic alphabet.

Flugplatz Brand – Abandoned Soviet Base

In both parts of the base I didn’t meet a single person during my exploration, which lasted about 3.5-4 hours in total, including the time for transfer from a trailhead to the other. When I visited, Tropical Island was closed for the season, with many people going in and out for maintenance. There were also tourists with mobile-homes and caravans, and guards with their cars. Anyway, during the exploration of the Soviet housing, which is really close to Tropical Island, I didn’t see a person, and as pointed out the place was unnaturally silent! The part of the nuclear warhead bunker is also very remote, and more obviously I didn’t come across anybody.

All in all, even though a substantial part of Brand has been converted into something else, what remains here is a great fun to visit, with tons of photo opportunities, a very intense ‘Soviet-ghost aura’ and much to see also for curious war historians. The countryside is pleasant and even though some walking is required, the place is nice to walk and very enjoyable. And if you feel tired, you can always decide to switch off your camera and enter Tropical Island for a relaxing rest-of-the-day!

Köthen

Getting there and moving around

The base was located immediately south of the homonym village, itself 10 miles southwest of the larger and famous town of Dessau. The entire premises of the former large Soviet base of Köthen have been converted for housing or into industrial facilities, currently run by several companies. The former airside of the base with the runway has been covered by a huge field of solar cells. As a result, visiting as tourists is strictly speaking not possible.

Possibly the only exception – in theory – is the southernmost hangar, which bears traces of the original camouflage, and the prominent portraits of Lenin, Marx and Engels on its side. The hangar is in the hands of a private energy-related company. The area around is fenced. I simply drove in as a visitor, from the road through the open gate, on the company premises all the way to the building. Access is from road K2074, roughly .4 miles south of the crossing with road 185, to the right when going south.

I asked for permission to a worker, and he cordially allowed me to move around a bit and take pictures outside of the building. Then I met another individual, possibly the village idiot having some time in the open air – surely not a worker, he was in shorts and accompanied by a little girl, very weird in a place like that! – who intimated me to leave, with some impolite and intimidating gesture also on the menu. Preferring not to start a litigation and attract attention from the workers, I left, with the pictures I had taken up to that moment. With a better luck, exploring this part of the former base should be easy and more rewarding. However, since moving around at will is clearly not possible on private grounds, the visit may be of just a few minutes in any case, making for an ideal quick detour for those passing by.

Sights

The Soviet base of Köthen was once a prominent part of the arsenal, hosting for long decades during the Cold War Soviet flying groups almost every type of MiG fighter, from MiG-15 down to MiG-29. The base was complemented with modern reinforced aircraft shelters since the 1960s, and a multi-purpose Granit-type bunker was erected later, for employment as a storage for munitions.

The only part of the former premises of this once large base which is today partly preserved and (theoretically, see directions above) visible is one of the main hangars. The construction, flanked by two low-rise towers, shows the actual origin of the facility, which dates to the years of the Third Reich. Actually, the area was busy with flying activities since even earlier (1920s).

The hangar is relatively low in height, with sliding doors closing it to the front, and painted in a brown-greenish camo coat. Inside, today a huge pile of manure can be found, arguably employed for some chemical process (the company holding the building runs an energy-related business).

The most interesting sight is represented by two medallions, with pretty unusual portraits of Lenin, Marx and Engels, in black over a white background. Besides the portrait of Lenin, to the left of the front door of the hangar, an inscription in Russian quoting a thought of Lenin on the army can be found as well.

Flugplatz Köthen – Converted Soviet base in the GDR

The medallions, inscriptions and camouflage appear rather well kept. Even a small plaque with a German translation of the inscription can be found.

Flugplatz Köthen – Converted Soviet base in the GDR

This witnesses an interesting example of a welcome and uncommon preservation effort, making a short visit to this facility interesting at least for the more committed Cold War historian.

Nohra

Getting there and moving around

The former Soviet helicopter base of Nohra used to take a sizable area both to the north and south of road 7, connecting Weimar to Erfurt. However, the base was accurately eradicated, and virtually no trace of it (except what remains of a half demolished helicopter hangar) can be seen to the north of the road. The territory has been returned to agriculture or taken over by industrial facilities, therefore even the original general appearance of the base is impossible to retrace.

Similarly, the area to the south of road 7 has been cleared of almost every trace from its aeronautical past. The only relics, described in the paragraph below, can be found along Pappelallee, which runs parallel to road 7, and can be accessed from its western end from road 85.

Along Pappelallee the old entrance to the pre-existent Third Reich base, in the typical style of the 1930s, can be clearly spotted. Today, a bed & breakfast operates this gate building, which was employed also by the Soviets. Going through would give direct access to the perspective leading to the second highlight of the place, a preserved statue of Lenin. However, going through is not possible. The statue can be reached walking along the road parting to the south of Pappelallee, from a little west from the bed & breakfast. You can leave your car close to the gate buildings, away from the road, and walk along this trail. The statue is in the focus of a perspective, and hard to miss.

Going there is not unlawful, there are no prohibition sign and no fence, plus the statue is clearly preserved.

The area around the statue has been completely reforested, so no dangerous building are to be found in the area. Since some walk is involved, a visit to this site may take about 30 minutes.

Sights

The base of Nohra was established back in WWI, and was potentiated by the Third Reich Luftwaffe from 1936 onwards. By the end of WWII, it was captured by US forces, who had to hand it over to the Soviets in July, following post-war agreements.

It was then potentiated into one of the largest helicopter bases of the Soviets in the GDR, with virtually every type of Mil helicopter being flown from here over the years, including the mighty Mil-24 over the last two decades of the Cold War.

Today, as noted in the previous paragraph, the former airbase has been completely and accurately wiped out, so that its very existence could not be suspected by unaware subjects driving along the busy roads between Erfurt and Weimar.

Curiously, two small preserved portions indeed exist, making for an interesting detour when visiting the area.

The original gate buildings of the old Luftwaffe military installation can be clearly spotted along the road. The style shows the typical features and elegance of German architecture from pre-WWII period – totally incompatible with the generally shabby appearance of Soviet architectures from the post-war period.

The original gate facility is today privately owned. However, when open, the gate between the two wings of the facility allow to spot a statue of Lenin, placed to the far end of an alley departing from the gate.

Flugplatz Nohra – Former Soviet base in the GDR

Luckily, access to the statue is possible with a short walk (see paragraph with directions above). The statue today is basically in a small forest of trees, and its location appears quite inexplicable. However, getting closer to it and moving around, traces of painted signs on a small network of asphalt roads witness the existence of a populated area once around its location. Clearly, with all buildings demolished and tall trees in their place, the scenery is not any more typical for a statue of Lenin…

Flugplatz Nohra – Former Soviet base in the GDR

Interestingly, the statue has been actively preserved – an unusual sight in the GDR panorama. The communist leader is portrayed in its typical appearance, moving forward in a proactive attitude. To the back of the statue, a curtain wall painted in crimson is likely part of the original installation.

Flugplatz Nohra – Former Soviet base in the GDR

The quality of the statue appears pretty good, when zooming on it.

Flugplatz Nohra – Former Soviet base in the GDR

All in all, despite the complete disappearance of Nohra, this preserved fragment represents an important trace of a significant chapter in the history of this area, otherwise irreversibly released into oblivion.

Brandis/Waldpolenz

Getting there and moving around

Brandis is located about 10 miles west of Leipzig city center, immediately west of the homonym village.

Differently from most former Soviet bases in the GDR, what remains of Brandis – i.e. what was not taken over by solar cells and private companies – has been left free to explore for the general public. Therefore, access to the few buildings still standing on site – which include some big old hangars, as well as technical buildings, housing and more – is possible in many ways and from many directions.

This was not my own choice, but in hindsight, the most convenient way to access the premises is getting as close as possible to the buildings in the northern part of the base and park your car, then moving around by foot. A choice for parking is where Am Alten Flugplatz changes name into Falkenallee. Car access to the latter is impeded, but you can park by the obstacles put in place, and move by foot from there.

All accessible buildings are located to the north and northwest of the base. Its original premises, including the runway area and taxiways, are now mostly taken over by solar cells. For the rest they are crossed by public roads, making the perception of the original limits of the base and its original design not so evident.

The very poor condition of most buildings will not appeal much to war historians, possibly more to urban explorers. However, since the base is sizable, the time for a thorough exploration is at least 2 hours after having parked.

Sights

The base of Brandis has a complex history, as usual dating back to the Third Reich era. It was selected for the deployment of the rocket-powered Messerschmitt Me-163 Komet, and from 1944, thanks to the direct railway connection, an ambitious program for the final assembly and operation of this interceptor was started. The war ended with the defeat of Germany before the conversion was completed. Buildings from the Luftwaffe era include at least three big hangars with a wooden door, a control tower, some official buildings, and apparently a number of smaller technical buildings.

The Soviets employed the place mostly for early jets and later (from the 1960s) for transport and attack helicopters. However, from the 1970s the base was potentiated significantly (including the addition of housing and service buildings for the families of the Soviet troops), and became active with Su-25, which were stationed here until the then-Russian military left the facility in 1992. Apparently – and unusually – no reinforced aircraft shelters were ever built by the Soviets in Brandis, preferring laterally-reinforced open-air parking bays and a large open apron (the latter similar to Sperenberg, see here).

As noted above (paragraph on directions), most of the base is gone today, with a huge solar plant having covered most of the former airside, including the runway and the huge area south of it, formerly employed for helicopter operations. Furthermore, some private companies now occupy part of the area between the hangars and the tower.

Therefore, the focus of a visit is in the hangars and tower (immediately north of the former runway), the technical buildings to the west, and the housing and service buildings along the northern perimeter.

The old hangars are three. The one to the northwest of the former airside is home to a big inscription in Russian, mentioning the 28th congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. Also some other inscriptions can be seen on the southern wall, barely emerging from the graffiti layer.

Flugplatz Brandis/Waldpolenz – Abandoned Soviet base in the GDR

Apparently, in this hangar early jet drones were stationed by the Soviets in the late 1980s.

The central hangar is bigger. Its original wooden front door is pretty well preserved. Inside, the main hall is sided by technical rooms along the solid walls. Some of them are easier to access from outside through the broken windows!

Flugplatz Brandis/Waldpolenz – Abandoned Soviet base in the GDR

Close to this hangar, a few yards to the west, is the old control tower. Despite heavily stricken by writers and spoilers, this building is an interesting example of architecture from the Third Reich era.

Flugplatz Brandis/Waldpolenz – Abandoned Soviet base in the GDR

Behind this main hangar and close to the tower, it is possible to retrace original internal roads of the base, thanks to the lights and the now overgrown hedges once framing them. Not far north from this area, major housing from the 1970s can be found.

Flugplatz Brandis/Waldpolenz – Abandoned Soviet base in the GDR

In the same area, a mystery building with a curved ceiling – a technical building of some sort – offers some relics like Soviet boots and damaged clothes.

Flugplatz Brandis/Waldpolenz – Abandoned Soviet base in the GDR

Again close to the hangar, some pipelines and some exhausted tires can be found. The labels of the latter clearly bear Russian markings.

Flugplatz Brandis/Waldpolenz – Abandoned Soviet base in the GDR

A last big hangar can be found somewhat further east. The wooden door, left partly open, has been penetrated by the vegetation, creating an unusual scenery.

Flugplatz Brandis/Waldpolenz – Abandoned Soviet base in the GDR

An interesting sight in this hangar is an original ‘No smoking’ writing in German. This is apparently in a Third Reich era font, and may be a fascinating witness of the original tenancy of the airbase. Needless to say, the inscription now barely emerges from a thick coat of meaningless ‘works of art’…

Flugplatz Brandis/Waldpolenz – Abandoned Soviet base in the GDR

The housing and service buildings along the northern perimeter of the base clearly date from different ages. The gigantic facade of some of the houses clearly betray a post-1970 building approach.

Flugplatz Brandis/Waldpolenz – Abandoned Soviet base in the GDR

Unfortunately, all these buildings are in very poor conditions, just the walls and stairs remain, and they are literally covered in graffiti. Thanks to the severe spoiling action carried out by the writers, the ghost aura of former Soviet bases is hard to feel here – everything looks more like a rotting poor neighborhood of a big town.

Flugplatz Brandis/Waldpolenz – Abandoned Soviet base in the GDR

To the west of the base, possibly an old railway or truck-loading facility can be found, maybe from the Third Reich era.

Flugplatz Brandis/Waldpolenz – Abandoned Soviet base in the GDR

Close by, an array of smaller technical buildings, apparently garages, reveal some interesting writing in old-German characters. Also these buildings are possibly from the Luftwaffe tenancy of the airbase.

Flugplatz Brandis/Waldpolenz – Abandoned Soviet base in the GDR

Finally, a highlight of the visit is what appears to be an old school building. Here an incredible mural of a Soviet soldier honoring the Red Banner, the flag of the USSR, can be found in the hall on top of the stairs.

Flugplatz Brandis/Waldpolenz – Abandoned Soviet base in the GDR

A little bit of respect has been shown by the usual writers, who massively attacked all the rest of this building similar to all others. Thus this fragment of the original Soviet decoration of the airbase is still surviving. Besides the soldier are other troops, with interesting facial appearances, resembling some different ethnicity from within the USSR. Also some writing in Russian is visible in the background.

Flugplatz Brandis/Waldpolenz – Abandoned Soviet base in the GDR

Other naive paintings can be found around this building, including 18th century characters, a few trees, and other cartoon characters, today not recognizable. Most of these innocent paintings however have been targeted by spoilers.

Flugplatz Brandis/Waldpolenz – Abandoned Soviet base in the GDR

Along the external perimeter of the base, now not obvious to retrace, some rusty parts of the original high-security fence can still be found.

Flugplatz Brandis/Waldpolenz – Abandoned Soviet base in the GDR

Wünsdorf – Nazi/Soviet Supreme Military Command

April 30, 2017April 5, 2022 CarloR2 Comments

	Heading to Berlin or the former GDR? Looking for traces of the Cold War open for a visit?
	A Travel Guide to COLD WAR SITES in EAST GERMANY Second Edition - 2024
	DON'T LEAVE IT AT HOME! AVAILABLE in PAPERBACK or KINDLE from your national Amazon store!
	amazon.com \| amazon.de \| amazon.co.uk amazon.it \| amazon.fr \| amazon.co.jp

	The BEST pictures from Soviet bases in the GDR ALL in ONE BOOK!
	Soviet Ghosts in Germany
	GRAB IT in PAPERBACK or KINDLE from your national Amazon store!
	amazon.com \| amazon.de \| amazon.co.uk amazon.it \| amazon.fr \| amazon.co.jp

For war historians and urban explorers Wünsdorf does not need any further presentation – a central place in the military history of the 20th century, famous for the many abandoned military buildings, from stately headquarters to interred bunkers. The name of this small town appears even in the very modern and interesting Military Museum of Dresden, where it is easy to find an original sign – in double alphabet – from the time when Wünsdorf hosted the Soviet military headquarters in the communist German Democratic Republic.

Wünsdorf/Zossen Sign

This report is based on photographs I took in spring 2017 in Zossen and Wünsdorf during a customized visit to the place I arranged with a local guide. For visiting information scroll down to the bottom of the page.

History – in brief

The small town of Wünsdorf, about 15 miles south of Berlin, has a serious military tradition, dating back at least to the beginning of the 20th century. At that time a large military complex with many barracks was set up by the order of the German Kaiser Wilhelm II – a central player in WWI – in the neighbor town of Zossen.

To this ‘Belle Époque’ era belongs part of the housing still in place today, as well as some of the largest and most aesthetically pleasant buildings in town. Among them, a former training camp for athletes of the army, and some big command buildings.

Following the dawn of the Nazi era, the place gained further relevance, with the institution of the German Supreme Command of the Armed Forces, also known as ‘Oberkommando der Wehrmacht’, or ‘OKW’ in brief. This was presided by general Wilhelm Keitel for all the duration of WWII, and represented the ‘top of the pyramid’ in terms of military decisions, as general Keitel reported directly to Hitler.

The staff of the OKW could be accommodated in purpose-built bunkers here, designed to withstand severe air bombing action, as well as to be disguised as normal country houses from above. These were known as the ‘Maybach bunkers’.

Besides bunkers for housing military personnel, a large communication bunker, known as ‘Zeppelin bunker’, was built to the purpose of connecting the brain of all military operations with the various divisions scattered over Europe and fighting on more war fronts.

When WWII finally came to an end, the Soviets captured the region, and that was the onset of a full new chapter in the history of the town. The reference name ‘Zossen’ was dropped in favor of ‘Wünsdorf’. The area of the two villages was totally cut-off by a 17 km wall, guarded with a top security level. Inside, housing for around 40,000 staff was prepared in subsequent stages, adding many purely Soviet-style residential buildings to what was still in place from before and during the Nazi era.

The supreme command of all Soviet forces in the occupied territory of Germany – to become the German Democratic Republic, or ‘GDR’, in 1949 – was installed here. All four branches of the Soviet armed forces had their respective headquarters in a corresponding sector of the ‘prohibited citadel’, with inner walls dividing the four areas. These headquarters controlled more than 200,000 troops stationed in the GDR until the early Nineties.

The Soviets tried to blow up the Maybach bunkers, with some success, and also the Zeppelin bunker, with no success. They developed it into an nuclear-proof installation, and added two further bunkers, for controlling military operations – including all air patrolling ones – in real time over the territory of the GDR, and along the crucial border with the Federal Republic and the Western world. Similarly to WWII, once again Wünsdorf was the main stage of crucial decisions for the full span of the Cold War.

The year 1989 marked the beginning of the end for this military town, with the reunification of the GDR with the Federal Republic and the end of the Cold War. All Soviet forces stationed in Germany – about 500,000 people, including troops and their families -, soon to become Russian forces in 1993 with the collapse of the communist regime in the USSR, began a well-coordinated retreat back to their mother Country, leaving Wünsdorf in September 1994.

Since then, the huge housing is largely uninhabited – the current population having dropped to about 4,000 – and the stately buildings built by the order of the Kaiser are deserted. Nonetheless, differently from other former military bases left to nature or converted into something else, the regional government of Brandenburg has formally taken over the property, which is not totally abandoned, nor in an irreversible state of disrepair, with the aim of selling it or transforming it into a museum.

Up to now, the place is still in the hands of the regional government, and specialized tours can be arranged with a local society of enthusiasts.

Sights

This site is really huge, with countless remains and interesting places to see. My visit took just about 5.5 hours, I think you would really need 1 day – and possibly more – to cover all features with enough time to both learn about the history and take good pictures of everything interesting! Here I will present a mainly pictorial description of the part of the complex I had the chance to visit this time. I think another day I will need to go back and complete the visit!

You may get an impression of the town from above, from this report based on aerial pictures taken during a dedicated flight over the region.

Officers’ House

This is probably the most famous non-bunker building in the complex. It dates back to the early 20th century – the place was the headquarter of a sports training ground established by the Kaiser’s army before WWI. In the Thirties, German athletes were trained here for the 1936 Olympic Games in Berlin. During WWII this became a command building for the OKW, while in Soviet times it was actually transformed into a house for higher ranking staff of the supreme Soviet command, with living rooms and entertainment facilities.

Wünsdorf/Zossen Army Quarters

Wünsdorf/Zossen House of Officers

The main building faces an almost square park, where a huge statue of Lenin was installed and is still standing.

Wünsdorf/Zossen House of Officers

Inside the main building it is possible to find clear traces of the original ‘Belle Époque’ architecture.

Wünsdorf/Zossen House of Officers

The inside of the building was spoiled of all furniture – the Russians reportedly tried to sell everything to the German government when they left, but the offer gained little interest. Only little part of the furniture, clearly from the age of the Kaiser, can be still spotted. Among the highlights of the bottom floor, there are two murals, in a typically Soviet naïve style, and a sculptured wall. Somebody is trying to put together Soviet memorabilia in a small museum, but all presented stuff is not original from here.

Wünsdorf/Zossen House of Officers

On the first floor, a very interesting industry-themed mural and a 20-ft long curved view of Moscow can be found in a corridor. In a completely dark room on the same floor, where once a small memorial museum about the Great Patriotic War – WWII for the Russians – was standing, the retreating Russian forces left one of the few remaining written messages, concerned with the atrocities of the Nazi regime – for the guide this was possibly a subliminal memento for the German People… In the same totally dark room it is possible to find a big, finely sculptured wall.

Wünsdorf/Zossen House of Officers

To the back of the main building it is possible to find a modern addition by the Soviets, a cylindrical building once hosting a diorama of the battle of Berlin. The diorama was transferred in the village of Zhukovo, halfway between Kaluga and Moscow, in the westernmost part of Russia, when the Russians left.

Wünsdorf/Zossen House of Officers

Wünsdorf/Zossen Army Quarters

The two wings to the back of the Officers’ House host two highlights of the show. In the southern wing it is possible to find an empty swimming pool, dating from the days when the place was a sports training ground, with little changes, which include the showers and the diving board, built by the Soviets. The construction technique was very good, and the pool was operated until 1993-94 reportedly with little updates.

Wünsdorf/Zossen House of Officers

In the northern wing it is possible to find a theatre. This is a bit creepy, for it is totally dark – electric power was cut off years ago – but everything, including the curtain over the stage, is in place like a performance was about to begin! The Soviet past of the place is clear here thanks to the decoration of the medallion over the stage, resembling the monument of the Soviet Soldier in Treptower Park, Berlin. In the roomy foyer it is possible to see the numbered hangers still in place!

Wünsdorf/Zossen House of Officers

The White House

Across the road from the Officers’ House it is possible to see another early 20th century building, used as a command building by the Soviets during the Cold War, and affectionately called ‘The White House’, both for its primary role in imparting orders and for the colonnade gracing the front façade. The building is inaccessible, and still property of the regional government.

Wünsdorf/Zossen Army Quarters

Nearby, a former house for officers dating from before WWII is now operated as a local city hall.

Today, some of the many immigrants coming from Africa to Europe are being hosted in a building close to the White House by the German Government.

Soviet Railway Station, Bread Factory and Soviet Housing

Due to its great strategic relevance in the Cold War era, the prohibited town of Wünsdorf was daily connected two-ways with Moscow. The last train to Moscow left in September 1994. The railway station of Wünsdorf-Waldstadt today operates on a local railway, with trains mainly to and from downtown Berlin. The old Soviet terminal and some warehouses nearby have been abandoned and are in a state of total disrepair.

Wünsdorf/Zossen Railway Station

Close by the station, it is possible to find an abandoned and unattractive small factory with a tall chimney. This is where literally tons of bread were produced every single day since the Nazi era and up to 1994 – reaching 25 tons per day when the place was most crowded in Soviet times. The building was considered a strategic asset by the Nazi, who built it with a 60 cm reinforced concrete roof able to withstand air bombing.

Wünsdorf/Zossen Army Quarters

Wünsdorf/Zossen Bread Factory

Whilst not very crowded, today some houses from the early days in the village of Zossen have been nicely restored to their original conditions. Unfortunately, they still share the roadside with some abandoned or not refurbished Soviet buildings, keeping the typical ‘Soviet ghost’ aura alive in the town.

Wünsdorf/Zossen Housing

Wünsdorf/Zossen Air Force Headquarters

Wünsdorf/Zossen Housing

Maybach Bunkers

Two complexes of peculiar bunkers were built in the Thirties – Maybach I and II – for housing staff of the OKW. From the distance and from above, these half-interred bunkers had the appearance of large farm houses. In reality, they were designed to be bomb-proof, and when they were blown-up by the Soviets after WWII they did not collapse completely.

Wünsdorf/Zossen Maybach German Bunker

One of the two Maybach complexes is very close to the fenced area where the Soviets had their three interred bunkers.

Wünsdorf/Zossen Bunker

Zeppelin Bunker

This communication bunker was built under the Nazi more than 60 feet deep into the terrain. It was made of layers of land and concrete, making it extremely durable and difficult to destroy. As a matter of fact, the Soviets tried to blow it up after the Potsdam conference in summer 1945, but they didn’t succeed at all. They decided to re-use it, sealing part of it to withstand a nuclear attack – including airlocks, reinforced doors, showers for decontamination, and sleeping quarters for troops trapped in by radioactive fallout. When leaving in the Nineties, Russian troops took home all technical rigs, stripping the bunker almost completely of any technical hardware.

Among the highlights in the Zeppelin bunker there are the sealed main entrance built by the Soviets and the decontamination facilities.

Wünsdorf/Zossen Zeppelin German Bunker

Going down it is possible to appreciate the size of the German design, with tens of rooms, long and roomy corridors and staircases. A small exhibition is dedicated to communication hardware from the Nazi and Soviet times. Copies of the Nazi schemes of the communication network from here to the Eastern front allow to understand the proportions of the system.

Wünsdorf/Zossen Zeppelin German Bunker

One of two long tunnels – the longest is about 600 ft! – was turned into a sleeping quarter for troops isolated in case of nuclear attack, and original berths are still visible today. Another corridor was so long it was used as a rifle range!

Wünsdorf/Zossen Zeppelin German Bunker

The bunker was powered by diesel engines – originally submarine engines under German ownership. These are gone today, but the smell of diesel fuel is still very marked in their room. It’s hard to imagine how noisy this place had to be! Some of the Soviet fuel tanks and air conditioning piping are still there, with original technical schemes.

Wünsdorf/Zossen Zeppelin German Bunker

A lift was added by the Soviets – it’s not working any more. On the bottom level there are water pumps and other supply systems. Normally this area cannot be toured, also due to water flooding problems.

Wünsdorf/Zossen Zeppelin German Bunker

In a small wing of the bunker it is possible to see the effect of the Soviet attempt to blow-up the bunker. The dynamics of the attempt are not clear – what explosive was used and where it was positioned. A pierce in the steel/concrete armored ceiling and a cracked reinforced concrete pillar are the only visible results. The size of the crater in the ceiling suggests much explosive was used, but the damage around is fairly limited and very localized. A feature of many military buildings occupied by the Soviets, signatures and graffitis in cyrillic alphabet can be found on some concrete walls of the bunker.

Soviet Half-Interred Bunkers

Really close to the entrance of the Zeppelin bunker, it is possible to find the way into two other less visible facilities.

One of them is a small communication bunker of simple construction. This is basically straight, with a round shaped cross-section. The corridor leading to the main part of the building is rather narrow and pointing down to the underground. The main part is much roomier, with curved steel frames making the walls and ceiling. This was used also as a training facility. This bunker was totally stripped by the retreating Russian troops.

Wünsdorf/Zossen Soviet Bunker

The second bunker is much more articulated. It was codenamed ‘Nickel’, and the Soviet construction type is UK-20. This was a communication and control bunker for military operations, in particular for air operations. Even though this bunker was stripped similarly to the other two, some technical rigs and tons of paperwork can be spotted in the semi-dark environment of this installation.

Wünsdorf/Zossen Soviet Bunker

Technical plants include the original water pumping system and several high voltage cabinets.

Wünsdorf/Zossen Soviet Bunker

The room where the air control center was is lighted. It is very big, and copies of the original schemes help to understand how the setup was. Everything there was taken back to Russia by retreating Russian army.

Wünsdorf/Zossen Soviet Bunker

Other interesting items include propaganda posters from Soviet times – they always look very exotic!

Wünsdorf/Zossen Soviet Bunker

Garrison Museum & Red Army Museum

In the old pre-WWI stables two really unmissable small museums have been prepared. I would recommend visiting them after the site itself, to better understand the relevance and usefulness of the exhibition.

The first is centered on the history of the garrison in Zossen from the years when the barracks were built, and it documents the history of the Officers’ House and all other pre-Soviet buildings around. A focus is given also to the Nazi period, with many photographs and memorabilia. All panels are unfortunately in German only, but the pictures speak for themselves.

Wünsdorf/Zossen German and Soviet Museum

The second collection is dedicated to the Soviet period. Here you can find memorabilia from all stages of the Cold War era, including both museum items already preserved by the Soviets in a museum previously existing in Berlin-Karlshorst, but also everyday items and stuff from Wünsdorf.

Wünsdorf/Zossen German and Soviet Museum

Among the many panels, a small insight dedicated to the huge nuclear base in Vogelsang, covered in this other post of mine.

Wünsdorf/Zossen German and Soviet Museum

Headquarters of the Soviet Air Force

Besides the building of the society running the guided tours of the place, it is possible to find the abandoned headquarters of the Soviet Air Force. A modern statue of a pilot is standing ahead of an Asian restaurant, whereas the main building is inaccessible. A statue of Lenin – not easily visible from the street – can be found in the vegetation, ahead of the main façade. To the side of the building it is possible to find a typical Soviet memorial.

Wünsdorf/Zossen Air Force Headquarters

Much More…!

Among the other uncommon things you can find around in Wünsdorf, there are some Winkel-type air raid shelters, 19 of which were built in the Nazi period for military staff. Most of them were blown by the Soviets, and some of the 7 (?) remaining ones are preserved today.

Wünsdorf/Zossen Winkel Shelter

Visiting

As reported, this ensemble is huge and well looked after. Technically speaking, it is not abandoned – at least the most interesting parts of it. Parts – like the Officers’ House – are awaiting for somebody to own them, parts are destined to remain tourist attractions – like the bunkers and museums. For these reasons, to make your visit practical and enjoyable, and for making the best of your time, I strongly suggest contacting a guide.

Actually the local society also in charge of the nice and interesting book selling activity, for which ‘Bücherstadt Wünsdorf’ – ‘Wünsdorf the Town of Books’ – is famous, runs guided tours on a regular schedule. Full information also in English from their website here. Besides the pre-scheduled tours, some longer special-themed tours can be booked in advance. If you are visiting – like me – from abroad, then I suggest taking contact with the guide before going there.

When I visited, I arranged with the guide a ‘double-tour’ in English just for me, asking to merge two of the tours offered with pre-booking. This was not a cheap alternative – I had to pay alone the price intended for two group tours, but all in all that was worth the financial effort! – but above all I must say I regret not having had more time!

The guide is nice and extremely knowledgeable, he speaks a perfect English and Russian as well. He knows anything from the history of the place, including interesting anecdotes and technical notions. He will take you to all places of interest with a minivan, and of course he will give you all the time for taking pictures, including some with a tripod in especially dark conditions – he has two portable lights for helping in the task! So the guided tour will not be boring at all.

After that, you may like to go back to have a look to the exterior of some buildings you had not the time to check out during the guided visit.

The towns of Wünsdorf and Zossen are basically a single entity, but possibly not on your nav. In case you get confused when driving to the building where you should meet the guide, just follow the signs for the book selling activities – the building is the same.

I mentioned there is a railway station, and of course you may choose to come in by train and move by bicycle – walking would be too time consuming in my view, due to the distance between points of interests. Coming by car is also very practical if you are not moving by train on your trip, and there is room for parking almost everywhere.

War Museums in Moscow

November 27, 2016May 9, 2020 CarloRLeave a comment

People visiting Moscow from abroad usually spend much of the time in the Kremlin and the nearby districts, where they can find many cultural attractions, as well as fashion stores, great hotels and restaurants. Among the features of Russia’s capital city less known to the average tourist are the many monuments and museums dedicated to war history, which in some cases host extremely interesting exhibitions and artifacts from various ages, which would tell the visitor as much as the most prominent attractions in town.

Three I could visit in person are cited in this post, all of them easily reachable with the usual metro rail in a few minutes from the downtown.

The following photographs were taken during a visit to Moscow in September 2015.

Central Museum of the Armed Forces

This is a purely Soviet installation Cold War buffs will definitely like very much… Despite the old-fashioned website – which after all contributes to the picture of a Soviet-state-owned company… – the building was built following WWII, better known in Russia as the Great Patriotic war of 1941-1945. On the outside, besides the entrance there are a missile and a tank. Once inside you immediately find yourself in a large two-levels hall, dominated by a sculpture of Lenin and a huge mosaic wall, plus paintings of battles and other war-themed scenes all around.

Moscow Central Armed Forces Museum Red Army

From soon after your arrival, you get to grips with the only real ‘problem’ of this installation, where – just like many others touristic sights in Russia – everything – including the escape plan in the event of fire… – is written in Russian only. So, from the viewpoint of history, you’d better go prepared if you want to get the most from this exhibition, for you won’t find any understandable written information, unless obviously you understand some Russian.

There are several halls in the museum, related to historical moments from WWI up to the present day. A first notable room presents a lively reconstruction of a WWI trench fight, with lights and sounds.

Moscow Central Armed Forces Museum Red Army

The path through the museum follows the course of history, including the revolution, which put an end to WWI for Russia. Then follows WWII. I have to say I never found a collection of Nazi artifacts so rich as the one preserved here in any other place I visited. Literally hundreds of items, from propaganda posters to flags and banners, weapons, medals, papers,… Also present in due quantity are flags and banners of the Soviet Union, as well as Soviet uniforms, weapons and medals from the age of WWII.

Moscow Central Armed Forces Museum Red Army

Probably the most notable items from the time are the red banner raised on the Reichstag in Berlin – the corresponding b/w photograph is today one of the symbols of the end of WWII – and an original metal eagle with a swastika, probably taken from the Reichstag or the Reichkanzlei. The flag and the eagle are put together in a kind of monumental installation in a large central hall, celebrating the victory of the Soviet Union in the Patriotic War.

Moscow Central Armed Forces Museum Red Army

An old coat and a hat belonging to Stalin are also part of the exhibition.

Moving on to the Cold War period, a first focus is on the early history of the Soviet atomic program, leading to the detonation of the first nuclear asset in 1949, and to the testing by the Soviets of the largest thermonuclear device ever. Many models and some documentation are available – I could not understand the details, in that occasion I really regretted having no knowledge of Russian! The development of strategic missiles is covered next, including the much connected race to space.

Moscow Central Armed Forces Museum Red Army

The highlight of this part of the exhibition – at least for western visitors – may be the wreck of Francis Gary Powers’ aircraft, downed in 1959 by a SAM, basically a Soviet invention, during an illegal flight over the territory of the USSR ordered by the CIA. A large part of the fuselage and of the wings can be seen, with technical labels in English. Also part of the ejectable seat and other parts of this Lockheed U-2 are packed together somewhat inelegantly. Some original papers and maps the pilot had with him at the time of the accident are exhibited, together with many photographs. Extremely interesting.

Moscow Central Armed Forces Museum Red Army Gary Powers U2

Approaching the last stage of the Soviet Union, scale models, mockups and parts of larger nuclear missiles are presented. Also the war in Afghanistan is mentioned and the more contemporary war actions in Chechnya and other theaters following the collapse of the USSR are outlined and artifacts and photographs showcased. A window from the relic of the ill-fated Kursk submarine remembers this more recent tragedy – together with a monument on the outside to the right of the entrance.

Moscow Central Armed Forces Museum Red Army

Finally, the backyard is full of interesting items like missiles, gantries, heavy vehicles, tanks and so on. Unfortunately, it started raining heavily at the time of my visit, so photographs were not possible.

Moscow Central Armed Forces Museum Red Army

All in all, I would say one of the best museums in Europe on the topic of 20th century war history, and probably the best on Russian/Soviet operations in the 20th century. The presentation may be perceived as antiquated for todays standards, nonetheless this may be appreciated by people who are not totally new to this piece of history and who are more interested in seeing valuable and unusual ‘hardware’. I would recommend at least a full hour for the interested visitor, extendable to 1.5 hours rather easily including a detailed visit to the outside exhibition.

Getting there and moving around

The museum is not far north from downtown Moscow, less than .2 miles from Dostoyevskaya metro stop (line 10). The building can be approached walking along ul. Sovetskoy Armii, on the side of the park. The neighborhood is decent and safe, I had no bad feelings visiting alone.

Museum of the Great Patriotic War

Moscow is scattered with monuments remembering the Soviet effort and the victorious outcome of WWII, but the focal point of the celebration is the park at Poklonnaya Hill with the museum of the Great Patriotic War. The park is an extensive area, built around a perspective leading to the top of the hill, where the museum can be found (website here). This is hosted in the curved building behind the very tall spine which can be seen from the distance.

Approaching from the east, from the famous Kutuzovski Prospekt where many important political players of the USSR used to live, including Brezhnev, it is possible to spot first a huge arch, just in the middle of the road, and departing from it the perspective leading to the hill, just to the left of the Prospekt. To the left of the hill as well as beyond the spine there is a park with several smaller installations remembering war actions involving the USSR and more recently Russia, and following WWII. It is also possible to find there an exhibition with cannons, armored vehicles and other warcrafts.

Museum of the Great Patriotic War Moscow

The museum, accessible from the front of the circular building, is intended basically to celebrate the heroism of the Red Army in the war against Germany. It acts as a place of remembrance for the many who never came back, and during my visit there I coincidentally could assist to a ceremony with high ranking military staff celebrating the 70th anniversary of the end of WWII.

Inside the most notable items are huge and very vivid dioramas – I must say, very well made, especially for the age – reconstructing some scenes from some especially dramatic battles of the war against Nazi Germany.

Museum of the Great Patriotic War Moscow

In the crypt it is possible to find the very interesting ‘Hall of sorrow’, a more modern monument to the fallen soldiers, with many crystal drops hanging from the ceiling, representing the tears of Mother Russia. These should be really many, with a proportion to the number of soldiers actually lost in the conflict.

Museum of the Great Patriotic War Moscow

The exhibition of artifacts includes a selection of items from various moments and fronts of the war. I could not tour this part freely because of the above mentioned ceremony, but what I could see was interesting. Unfortunately, I could not see the Hall of fame.

Above all, the plan of the whole installation and the Soviet style adopted, not so bombastic in this case, are extremely interesting. Touring the museum may take less than 45 minutes. If you are interested in moving in the park, you may need more. Distances here follow monumental proportions, so monuments are not really close to each other as they might seem on a map.

Museum of the Great Patriotic War Moscow

Getting there and moving around

The area can be reached easily from Park Pobedy metro stop on line 3. The perspective leading to the museum starting from the arch (and from the metro station) is about .6 miles long.

Museum-Panorama ‘The battle of Borodino’

You can find this museum very close to the Museum of the Great Patriotic War described above. The theme of the exhibition is here the battle of Borodino during the war against Napoleon and the French Army.

Borodino is located about 80 miles west of Moscow. There the advancing French Army faced the full power of the Russian Army. Napoleon himself was present and led war operations, while Kutuzov and Bagration, the top-ranking generals of the Tsar, were among the strategists on the Russian side. The battle was a prototypical battle of the time, with wild fire from cannons, infantry and cavalry, all in the arena. It turned out very cruel, taking a huge death toll on both parts. As a matter of fact, the Russian Army, which had constantly retreated avoiding the contact with the French until that great battle, continued back towards Moscow, which was finally abandoned and set on fire as Napoleon’s Army was reaching it. On one side, the Russians failed to stop the French at Borodino, on the other they set for the French a deadly trap – the French did not quit chasing the Russians until the winter of 1812 finally struck when they were infinitely far from home with no active supply lines, nor food nor resupply storages at hand. The season killed basically 9 out of 10 on the French side, triggering the end of Napoleon’s dreams of power.

The museum was recently refurbished in a modern key, with a detailed description of some moments of the battle on wide screens and interactive panels – again, unfortunately all in Russian. Uniforms, weapons and artifacts add to the visit, but the highlight here is the beautiful panorama painting. This is similar to the cyclorama in Gettysburg, PA, and it is a more than 300 ft long circular painting vividly depicting some important moments in the battle of Borodino. As you can learn from the website, the painting was made in 1912 (before the Soviets) to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the battle. The building was renovated in 1962.

Museum-Panorama The Battle of Borodino Napoleon War Moscow

The visit may not take much, especially if you are not interested in the war against Napoleon, but I would suggest going there even only for the uniqueness of the installation as well as for its artistic significance. In any case, the visit may not take more than 45 minutes, especially if you don’t understand Russian.

Right behind the museum it is possible to see the wooden hut where Kutuzov and his staff discussed and decided for the destruction of Moscow in order to jeopardize the plans of the French to find a shelter there for the approaching winter season.

Museum-Panorama The Battle of Borodino Napoleon War Moscow

Getting there and moving around

The museum can be reached easily from Park Pobedy metro stop on line 3, like the Museum of the Great Patriotic War. From the metro stop you can walk west on Kutuzovsky Prospekt, and you will soon find the museum on the left (northern) side of the road, about .2 miles from the station.

Inside the World’s Largest Aircraft – Antonov 225 Mriya

October 15, 2016May 9, 2020 CarloRLeave a comment

I am not sure this post does fit in the ‘sightseeing’ category. If you go to Malpensa – the largest airport of Milan – on a regular day, it’s unlikely you will spot the distinctive shape of the unique six-engined Antonov An-225. Yet in this post I will give a pictorial description of this crazy flying machine, so that wherever and when you should see the Mriya, here is what you might expect. This aircraft is a moving attraction, so exceptional that I feel going out to photograph it is still ‘sightseeing’ in some sense…

I had the chance to climb on it one night in early 2015, thanks to Paolo, a friend of mine from Italy, who is working in the company operating the airport system of Milan. The huge aircraft had been going in and out of Italy on an almost regular basis for some weeks, tasked with moving military equipment from central Africa back to the Italian soil.

It was a matter of coordination between me and Paolo, and of course some luck was involved, for the landing and take-off times of the Mriya are usually in the middle of the night and not perfectly predictable, plus good weather is never assured especially in winter. Anyway, in the end I succeeded in arranging a private visit to the Mriya with Paolo and another friend of mine. Paolo registered us as official visitors, so being there and allowed to walk on the apron of the largest airport in Northern Italy, we could come close also to some other interesting items.

The following photos are about that incredible night.

Sights

Mriya Parked

When we went on the apron the plane was still resting on its many (32) wheels, with doors closed and nobody around. The flight scheduled for that evening was basically a ferry flight to Africa, so no loading operations were expected. We were free to walk around taking pictures.

Antonov 225 Mriya

You may see how big this aircraft is by comparing its size to that of the guys walking under it. You will feel like walking close to a moored cruising ship more than an aircraft…

Air India Boeing 787 Dreamliner

While waiting for the crew to come to the aircraft for departure, we came close to a Dreamliner preparing for a flight to India. It still retained its ‘new plastic’ smell. Among the most distinctive features of this model are the beautiful engine nozzles, with a toothed profile for noise suppression.

Boeing 787 Dreamliner Air India

Emirates Airbus A380

We had the chance to see an A380 taxiing to the gate after arriving from Dubai. This double-decker is really impressive, as you can see again looking at the size of the people walking under its wings. Yet this time this was not the star of the show…

Airbus 380 Emirates

We walked up to the cabin, but were not allowed to take pictures. As it is the case for most modern aircraft, the cockpit is not so fascinating especially when the electronics are switched off – you just have an array of TV scopes…

Inside the Mriya

We then went back to the Mriya to meet the crew and walk in. The crew is composed by about ten people, including those connected with flight operations and those responsible for payload.

You get access to the aircraft through a hatch with an attached ladder. Otherwise, when the cargo door to the front is open, you may access the aircraft from there. There is no cargo door to the back.

Antonov 225 Mriya

The inside is structured with a main cargo deck in the central section of the aircraft, with a built-in crane capable of moving a 5 ton load. There are apparently no hooks on the ground, they possibly fasten the payload to the sides, but I’m not sure. The tail cone section can be accessed through an internal hatch for inspection, and cannot host any payload.

Antonov 225 Mriya

Along the sides of the cargo bay there are tons of bulky items and tools for servicing, spare parts including wheels, gauges connected with the landing gear operation, and small round windows to allow visually checking the wings and the engines underneath. The main cargo section is closed to the front by the folding platform for cargo loading, resting in a vertical position in flight, when the nose cargo door is closed and the nose cone lowered.

Antonov 225 Mriya

A retractable ladder gives access to the cockpit and crew resting area, which is configured in a similar fashion to the upper deck of the Boeing 747. To the front from the hatch on top of the ladder you get access to the seats of the flight engineers and to the cockpit. Seating in the engineering compartment is for four people, but I guess this was necessary for operating the Buran or for more complicate missions. Anyway, I would say at least a crewman for each side would be needed for normal flight operations. Seating in the cockpit is for two, and the arrangement of controls and gauges is neat and linear.

Antonov 225 Mriya

I would have spent one month in the engineering compartment to check every item in detail – tons of late Cold War items, and everything so Soviet-looking! – but this was not a day-off visit for the crewmen, who were busy with preparing the aircraft for the flight. To the back of the access hatch the quarters for the crew include two side compartments for living and sleeping, a small galley and a large storage room. From there it is possible to look through a window to another compartment to the back, with clusters of electronic material and other stuff, close to the wing section.

Antonov 225 Mriya

I noticed the usual placard with evacuation routes, and other strange knobs close to the upper-deck access ladder. Close to the side door of the aircraft the crew has many stickers from various places visited with this wonderful aircraft, and a bell like that of a 19th century ship!

Antonov 225 Mriya

Boeing 747 Cargo

Waiting for the Mriya to depart, we boarded a brand new Boeing 747 cargo of the Russian company ABC cargo. The contrast between this and the Antonov couldn’t be more striking. This new 747 has a fully automatic cargo deck, with a really impressive plethora of sensors and a system of rails to safely fasten cargo pallets. The flying deck is very comfortable and modern, with the typical brownish Boeing plastic, clearly reminding you this aircraft was ‘proudly manufactured in the USA’!

Boeing 747 Cargo ABC

Mriya Leaving

We finally went back to the Mriya to follow the departure sequence. The aircraft was pushed back with a dedicated towing strut, coping with the twin-mast front undercarriage. This item travels with the aircraft, so before engine startup it is necessary to open the front cargo door and load this gear, pushing it inside by pure handwork. The front undercarriage is tilted, lowering the front of the plane and making loading operations possible. After that, a crewman closes the side access door and startup of the six engines is initiated.

Antonov 225 Mriya

I shot a video during engine spool up, posted on my YouTube channel broadbandeagle.

Note

As I wrote at the beginning, this is a ‘special report’ and not a post with many how-to notes. I hope you got an idea of how the An-225 looks inside, but I was clearly lucky to be allowed on this special tour. All thanks go to Paolo, who invited me to join in, registering me as an official visitor. I dare to say that if you don’t know somebody doing his job and with his passion for aeronautics, then unfortunately you’ll hardly have a chance to board this aircraft and see the inside… unless you do his job yourself, or they retire the aircraft and put it in a museum!

Surrender Sites of Nazi Germany – Reims & Berlin-Karlshorst

October 8, 2016September 22, 2023 CarloR1 Comment

Differently from what one is usually taught in schools, World War II in Europe did not stop in one moment with the death by suicide of the Führer, on April 30th, 1945.

As soon as the advancing Western Allies established strongpoints within the original borders of Germany – as these had been before the war – in 1945 the chain of command in Germany began to vacillate. Rumors about contacts between top-ranking Nazi officials and the SHAEF (Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force) have lived to this day, and they are reasonable even though not well documented – as a matter of fact, Hitler dismissed both Göring and Himmler just before his death, on account of unauthorized contacts with ‘the enemy’, promoting Admiral Dönitz to the rank of president of Germany.

The understandable confusion of those days at the ‘top of the pyramid’ is reflected by the local autonomous surrender of substantial parts of the German armed forces around Europe, against the will of the Führer, and even before his death. Literally millions of soldiers were disarmed on both fronts in April 1945, and the process culminated in the surrender of all German forces in Italy on April 29th, the day before Hitler’s death.

The new German president Dönitz acted with the same authority of the Führer in the last stormy days of the collapsing Nazi rule, early May 1945. Under Dönitz’s mandate, between the 1st and 7th of May 1945 some separate surrenders took place, including all German forces in Austria, North-West Germany, Holland, Denmark, Berlin – who surrendered to the Soviets -, Mecklenburg and Pommern north of Berlin, and Bavaria. The German navy ceased war operations on May 5th, by direct order of admiral Dönitz.

All this preceded the ‘official’, authorized, unconditional surrender which was signed on behalf of acting president Dönitz separately by General Jödl in the headquarters of the Expeditionary Force in Reims in the early hours of May 7th, and by Feldmarschall Keitel in Berlin-Karlshorst on May 8th, in presence of General Zhukov of the Red Army. The capitulation called for quitting all military operations at 23:01 CET, May 8th. Both of the signers were arrested soon after, as were Dönitz, Göring and other top German players of the war in Europe.

Today, the two locations where the unconditional surrender(s) were signed are open for visitors. The following photographs were taken during visits in 2015 and 2016.

Navigate this post – Click on links to scroll

Reims – Musée de la Reddition
Berlin-Karlshorst – Deutsch-Russisches Museum

Reims – Musée de la Reddition

The headquarters of the SHAEF where the ‘instrument of surrender’ was signed on the western front occupied the building of a high school.

Nazi German Surrender Museum Capitulation Reims

Today, the building has returned to its original function, but a small part of it with the original room and table have been preserved inside of a museum on-site. The walls of the room are covered with original maps from the time, resembling how it looked like in 1945.

Nazi Germany Surrender Museum Capitulation Reims

Other rooms are packed with showcases, where you can see many items, including an official copy of the document signed by Jödl, authenticated by Dönitz, uniforms, original flags and other memorabilia.

Nazi German Surrender Museum Capitulation Reims

The museum is rather small, and can be toured in about 30 minutes at most. This excludes the video presentation, which I had not the chance to watch.

Getting there and moving around

The historical place is located to the north of the city center in Reims, very close to the railway station. The exact address is 12 Rue du Président Franklin Roosevelt, 51100 Reims. There is chance of public parking nearby. If you parked somewhere else for visiting historical Reims, I suggest not moving your car, as the museum can be easily reached with a short 5 minutes walk from Porte de Mars, right on the northern edge of the center. Website here.

Berlin-Karlshorst – Deutsch-Russisches Museum

	Heading to Berlin or the former GDR? Looking for traces of the Cold War open for a visit?
	A Travel Guide to COLD WAR SITES in EAST GERMANY Second Edition - 2024
	DON'T LEAVE IT AT HOME! AVAILABLE in PAPERBACK or KINDLE from your national Amazon store!
	amazon.com \| amazon.de \| amazon.co.uk amazon.it \| amazon.fr \| amazon.co.jp

Soon after the end of the war and the division of Berlin, with the district of Berlin-Karlshorst falling under Soviet rule, the Soviets converted the building where the capitulation was signed for hosting their headquarters. After the birth of the communist German Democratic Republic (GDR) at the end of the Forties, the place was turned into a museum.

Nazi German Surrender Museum Capitulation Berlin Karlshorst

Besides the very room where the document was signed, you can find some dioramas dating back to the first years of the museum, as well as a specifically designed foyer and a stained glass window portraying the statue of the Soviet Soldier in Treptower Park – dating from the same late Stalin’s era.

Nazi German Surrender Museum Capitulation Berlin Karlshorst

More recently, the museum has been refurbished and enlarged with very interesting and well prepared exhibits, including many memorabilia items, findings and relics not only from the events of May 1945, but more in general from WWII and the less known eastern front.

Nazi German Surrender Museum Capitulation Berlin Karlshorst

Compared to the museum in Reims, this is much broader and richer, going well beyond the preservation of the room and the evocation of the last stage of the war.

Getting there and moving around

The museum is in a nice residential area in southern Berlin. This is not a touristic area, so you’d better go there only if you are interested in this specific museum, cause there is not much else to see. Yet if you are interested in WWII and especially to the eastern front, I would say this absolutely a must – all in all, there is not so much information in the touristic areas of Berlin about WWII, so this might fill the gap.

Anyway, the exact location is Zwieseler Strasse 4. This can be reached with bus 296 from the S-3 station Karlshorst or from U5 stop Tierpark. Alternatively, from S-3 Karlshorst it is a walk of about ten minutes. Finally, if you are going by car – the most convenient way – there is a parking right in front of the building. Website here.

Navigate this post – click on links to scroll

Museum of Aviation Technology – Main Branch – Minsk, Belarus

Getting there

Museum of Aviation Technology – Airport Branch – Minsk Airport, Belarus

Getting there

Ukraine State Aviation Museum – Kiev, Ukraine

Getting there

Special feature – Kiev Boryspil Airport

Share this:

Soviet Ghosts in Germany

History – in brief

Sights

Map

Navigate this post – Click on links to scroll

R-5M/SS-3 Shyster Missile Launch Pad and Nuclear Bunker, Fürstenberg

Housing at Fürstenberg Military Base

R-5M/SS-3 Shyster Missile Launch Pad, Vogelsang

R-12/SS-4 Sandal Missile Launch Pads, South-East of Fürstenberg

R-12/SS-4 Sandal Missile Launch Pads, North of Vogelsang

Templin Soviet Airbase – Totally Gone

Share this:

History – in brief

The Winter War

Building the Salpa Line

The Continuation War

Sights

Map

Navigate this post – Click on links to scroll

Virolahti Bunker Museum, Virolahti

Salpa Line Museum, Miehikkälä

Hostikka Site

Lusikkovuoren Cave

Askola Site

Syysphoja and Puumala Site

General Mannerheim Headquarters and Communication Bunker

Raikuu Site

Joensuu Bunker Museum, Joensuu

Huhmarisvaara Artillery Position

Vanntajankannas Site

Harparskog Line, Hanko Peninsula

Hanko Front Museum, Hanko

Share this:

History – in brief

Sights

Navigate this post – Click on links to scroll

Zeltini Nuclear Missile Base

Getting there and moving around

Note: Nearby Dvina Missile Site, Tirza – Completely Destroyed

Skrunda Military Ghost Town

Getting there and moving around

Karosta Military Prison & Liepaja Port Town

Getting there and moving around

Klavi Nuclear Missile Base

Getting there and moving around

The Corner House – KGB Prison in Riga

Getting there and moving around

Share this:

Soviet Ghosts in Germany

Navigate this post – Click on links to scroll

Sperenberg

Sights

Getting there and moving around

Grossenhain

Sights

Getting there and moving around

Finsterwalde

Sights

Getting there and moving around

Zeithain

Sights

Getting there and moving around

Riesa

Sights

Getting there and moving around

Share this:

Soviet Ghosts in Germany

Navigate this post – Click on links to scroll

Rangsdorf

Getting there and moving around

Sights