Brockzetel Airfield

Construction of the Brockzetel airfield began in 1941 but was hampered by poor ground conditions and halted in 1944. Only a turf runway, administrative zone, and several support buildings—warehouses, a fuel plant, and an ammunition depot—were completed. A concrete runway was started, possibly to serve as a backup for Wittmundhafen Air Base or as a decoy site.

A Reich Labor Service camp nearby housed Italian and later Dutch POWs, who worked on road building and land cultivation. The site endured bombing during WWII, and post-war, most facilities were dismantled.

In December 1945, Kurt Meyer was flown in to attend his trial at the Maple Leaf Barracks in Aurich.

In the 1950s, the Royal Air Force installed a radar station, later taken over by the German military in 1960. Parts of the area remain active as a training ground and glider airfield. A memorial honors the former labor camp.

Tragically, on August 7, 1963, a Sabre jet from Fighter Wing 71 crashed at the site, killing the pilot and five soldiers on the ground.

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Source

• Text: TracesofWar
• Photos: Carsten Steger