Trondheim Airport, Øysand
Trondheim Airport, Øysand | |||||||||||
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Summary | |||||||||||
Airport type | Military | ||||||||||
Operator | Luftwaffe | ||||||||||
Serves | Trondheim, Norway | ||||||||||
Location | Øysand, Melhus | ||||||||||
Coordinates | 63°19′56″N 10°13′39″E / 63.3323°N 010.2274°E | ||||||||||
Map | |||||||||||
Runways | |||||||||||
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Trondheim Airport, Øysand (
History
Planning of Øysand commenced on 6 May 1940, just a month after the German invasion of Norway. Surveying was carried out by geologist K. Richter on behalf of Luftwaffe. He considered both Øysand and Høstad in Byneset and found the former to be most suitable. Richter proposed three different runway configurations, varying between 1,800 and 1,200 meters (5,900 and 3,900 ft) in length.[1] There was no German contractors available in Trøndelag at the time and therefore Luftwaffe organized construction with Norwegian workers, bused from Trondheim every day. The local school, chapel and youth center were requisitioned for storage space.[2]
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6b/Gaulosen_og_%C3%98ysand.jpg/220px-Gaulosen_og_%C3%98ysand.jpg)
The work was sufficient by August 1940 that the airport could be used. It was a "field airport", so that it was not intended to have a garrison,[3] receiving a 1,800-by-60-meter (5,910 by 200 ft) runway.[4] German soldiers initially stayed at surrounding farms, until the 1941 opening of the barracks.[3] A radio station was first established at Øyås, later moved to Finnset.[5] Only in the summer of 1944 was the airfield upgraded to a firm, wooden structure,[6][7] This was because of difficulties in procuring sufficient wood for the runway.[3]
Øysand's role was mostly to act as a reserve airport for Ørland and Værnes. It had a major ammunition storage and was commonly used to restock
The airport was selected as the ground aerodrome to serve any
The Kriegsmarine established a major presence in Norway, but was cut off without a major naval port and dry dock. Øysand was proposed as a suitable site for such naval base, which would have been built up as a major air force and naval site. Estimates for the plans, which were named Nordstern, were for a population of 250,000 of exclusively Germans.[13] However, all that was ever realized at Øysand was the airfield and a small army base, as well as a series of prison camps.[14]
Facilities
The airport was situated at Øysand in Melhus, a flat agricultural peninsula in
The
Accidents and incidents
- On 12 December 1944 a Heinkel bomber crashed after attempting to land at Øysand. Damaged, it attempted the landing at too low an altitude. It pulled up, but after a left banking the pilots lost control and the aircraft crashed in Leinstrand, killing one on board.[10]
- On 8 May 1945, the day the war ended, two intoxicated airmen took off with a Ju 52 aircraft. It crashed shortly after take-off into a residence in Buvika. Both airmen survived.[17]
References
Bibliography
- Brovold, Gabriel (1996). Neu-Drontheim i Hitlers regi – og Øysand under krigen. Melhus: Snøfugl Forlag. ISBN 8270832030.
- Hafsten, Bjørn; Larsstuvold, Ulf; Olsen, Bjørn; Stenersen, Sten (1991). Flyalarm: Luftkrigen over Norge 1939–1945 (in Norwegian). Oslo: Sem & Stenersen. ISBN 82-7046-058-3.
- Spotts, Frederic (2002). Hitler and the Power of Aesthetics. Hutchinson. ISBN 1-58567-345-5.