Punta Sabbioni

45°26'59"N 012°25'42"E

Runway: n/a - n/a - water

Punta Sabbioni seaplane base (l'idroscalo Punta Sabbioni) was an aerodrome in Venice.
It is not clear when the aerodrome was built, but it was already in use by the competitors of the 1927 Schneider Trophy in 1927.
During World War II it was used (along with the main aerodrome at Sant'Andrea da Varriale) by both the Italian Navy (Cant Z.506) and the German Luftwaffe (Ar196 and Do-24).
According to local sources, during that conflict, the floatplanes were moored off the Forte Treporti (1 kilometer northeast) which housed an inter-service headquarters.
Cant Z.506 seaplanes routinely operated from there, using the adjacent canal for take off (always toward the sea) and landing operations.
The same local sources reported seeing transient German, diesel-powered floatplanes.

No photos of the aerodrome while in use have been found

After World War II the base was abandoned.
All that is left of the base is the hangar, a concrete ramp in severe disrepair, and a powerhouse, now converted into a church.





Punta Sabbioni in 2007 (Google Earth)





The hangar at Punta Sabbioni (now a restaurant and storage facility) and the generator house (now a church) in 2012 (photo: Erwin Leetink).





Inside the former hangar at Punta Sabbioni in 2012. Clearly, the building received a new roof not too long ago (photo: Erwin Leetink).