Nellingen

48°43'08"N 009°16'25"E

Runway: 09/27 - 274x91meters/...x..feet - concrete (CLOSED)

Airfield Nellingen (german: Flugplatz Nellingen) was an airfield east of Stuttgart, Germany.
Construction of an airport began in 1932 at the former horse breeding station of King Wilhem I of the House of Württemberg. The plan called for a circular airfield for the taking off and landing of aircraft. The plan was changed in 1936 however, when it was found that the area was not large enough to fit the modern needs of time. The airports'construction site was swiftly moved to the site of present day Stuttgart Airport in Echterdingen.
After the failure of the projected airport the Reichsluftfahrtministerium decided to convert the site into a Fliegerhorst. The hilly terrain was levelled and cleared of trees. In 1937 construction began of half timbered houses in the Heimatschutzstil (style of the local lands). 
The Fliegerhorst opened in 1938. It featured 5 large hangars, a pilot school and a logistics support unit, stationing about 1000 men in 1944.


Nellingen in August 1941

Zerstörergeschwader ZG76 (Bf110C) remained at the airfield from after the Poland campaign until after the French campaign. They were reinforced with a Gruppe of Me210. A Gruppe of Kampfgeschwader KG26 (the 'Löwengeschwader' or 'Lions Wing') also operated over France from the airfield. An attraction to the local population was the presence of the 'Haifisch-Geschwader' (Sharks Wing) with sharkmouths on the noses of their Me110.
Life was good at the airfield: while men were fighting at the front it was possible to spend two months of making toys to give to the children of front line soldier for Christmas in 1941. All children received their toys and as a reward the soldiers were allowed 5 days of special leave.
In 1943 a night fighter wing was formed at Nellingen. Nachtjagdgeschwader NJG-6 operated more or less unhindered from Nellingen, while surrounding airfields such as Stuttgart and Böblingen were severely damaged by Allied bombings between August and December 1944. 
In February 1944 IV./JG53 'Pik-As' was stationed at the airfield. As late as 1944 the civilian men at the airfield still engaged in glider flying in the evening hours. Only when combat Geschwader stayed at the airfiedl life was a little hectic. 
IV./JG53 remained at the airfield until a few weeks before the end of the war, when they retreated to Upper Swabia. 
The airfield was not abandoned until a part of the airfield had been demolished with explosives, however.


Nellingen in June 1945.


A Fl-282-V23 helicopter at Nellingen Flugplatz, somewhere between 1945-46. The Flettner 282 'Kolibri' is being prepared for a demonstration at Nellingen. Visible to the left is a captured Fi-156, to the right a Noorduyn UC-64 Norseman (billybils.de). Although the helicopter was transported to the US and displayed at the National Museum of the United States Air Force, Dayton, Ohio its current whereabouts are unknown.


Focke-Achgelis Fa 223 'Drache' helicopter in front of a hangar at Nellingen somewhere between 1945-46. Only two of these aircraft survived the war, one ending up in the US, the other became the first helicopter to cross the English Channel when the RAF took it to England. The 'English' example crashed during testing, the whereabouts of the 'American' example are unknown. (billybils.de).

In April 1945 the airfield was taken by French forces. They later handed control of the airfield to U.S. forces. In August 1945 they occupied the former Fliegerhorst and began to use the airfield to test some of the German helicopter models they had found in Bavaria. After testing, which continued until February 1946, some were taken to the U.S. for further testing.
The Americans helped the local civilians restore their pre-war lifes with aid programs, social activities and on Christmas 1945 they handed presents to local children.
Nellingen was mostly used as a storage site for old wartime equipment, especially Waco gliders. When the U.S. Army decided to stay even longer in 1947 they established an MP School in the Fliegerhorst buildings. Between 1945 and 1951 the airfield was used to grow wheat in support of the US Army and the local population. 
In 1951 the U.S. 7th Corps announced they were going to stay at Nellingen, much to the dismay of the local city council. In October 1951 local newspapers announced that German companies were invited to tender for the construction of 40 barracks buildings at the airfield. Soon after the number of buildings to be built was doubled. The simple two storey buildings were to be built in three months (out of 180 days assigned). Buildings for sports, recreational and office use were added, as well as hangars and motorpools.
When the US withdrew their troops from Austria, two battallions from Salzburg and Saalfelden were moved to Nellingen Barracks. A housing area and an elementary school were built between 1952 and 1954, when the Army found out they were to stay 'a little' longer in Germany. 
The surrounding communities soon learned to live with the 'Nelllingen Kaserne', the Americans and the noise of their helicopters. Up to 5,000 Americans lived in Nellingen Barracks around 1977. In the end its 16th Aviation Battalion and 223rd Aviation Battalion had flown UH-1H Iroquois ('Hueys'), AH-1 Cobras, H-13, UH-19D, UH-34A Choctaw, CH-37A Mojave , OH-58C Kiowa, UH-60A Black Hawk and AH-64A Apache helicopters.


Nellingen Kaserne in the late 1940s, showing its postwar use as a storage facility. On the right four hangars are visible. The second from the top also has a control tower (usarmygermany.com).


New barracks building at Nellingen Kaserne, September 1952 (usarmygermany.com).


CH-37A Mojave helicopters at the Nellingen flight line, which appeared from 1966 (Big-Deuce.de).


Installation map of Nellingen AHP, 1978, with:
A. Main Gate
B. Rear Gate
C. Housing Area
D. Motor pools
E. Enlisted housing
F. Generals HQ and Military hospital
G. Helicopter hangars
H. Helicopter landing area
(649th Eng., via billybils.de).


45th Med Co (AA) at Nellingen AHP in Germany, 1988-1989 (Chuck Munro, via Dustoff.org).

The fall of the Warsaw Pact caused many changes in Nellingen. Most of the units at Nellingen Barracks were deployed to southwest Asia in November 1990. They returned from Saudi Arabia in April 1991.
In November 1992 Nellingen Barracks was closed and handed over to the original owners: the town of Ostfildern, the House of Württemberg and the government of Baden-Württemberg. 
From 1995 until today a completely new town was built were the U.S. Barracks used to be. In 1996 most of the buildings were torn down except for the half timbered houses of the first command of 1937 and the housing area. The housing area was thoroughly renovated and rented to German civilians. This new part of Ostfildern is now called 'Scharnhauser Park'. It will ultimately provide 2500 jobs and house 9000 people.


Nellingen AHP in 1990.


The former AHP in 1999 (Google Earth).


The former AHP in summer 2007 (Google Earth).


The former AHP in spring 2012 (Google Earth).