Deutsche Lufthansa (East Germany)

  • Germany Democratic Republic in 1949 German Democratic Republic

Flughafen Berlin- Schönefeld

The German Lufthansa ( named for distinction here Lufthansa German (DDR ) ) was the first airline in the GDR and was under this name from 1955 to 1963. You stood in no relation to Deutsche Lufthansa AG.

Foundation

On April 28, 1955 Decision of the Bureau of Ministers of the GDR was published on April 27, 1955, which reads as follows, in coordination with the Soviet embassy: " To carry out the civilian passenger and cargo air transport, with effect from 1 May 1955, the German Lufthansa to start. The German Lufthansa under the Ministry of the Interior. " This decision had since May 1954 Preparations for a on April 27, 1955 signed between the GDR and the USSR agreement to transfer ownership of the airport Schönefeld ( southern part ) preceded as the central airport of the GDR, from May 1955 was operational. On 1 July 1955, the first operational management of Deutsche Lufthansa was appointed by the Council of Ministers. This date is generally regarded as the founding of the German Lufthansa GmbH, the German Democratic Republic.

The Board

On July 8, 1955, a week earlier appointed Board met for the first time. The venue was the meeting room of the Main Office administration of the GDR government. The meeting was chaired by the Principal Director Arthur Pieck, the son of Wilhelm Pieck. Arthur Pieck's first deputy, responsible for air traffic director Fritz Horn, was a trained pilot. The technical director Ernst Wendt, a polar aviator, had become plant manager at Deutsche Lufthansa AG after his work as a locksmith and master. Director Karl Saviour eventually was responsible for the political work, but he was so far from the subject, as he had made a pilot training in the Air Force, although due to the war without a degree.

First flights

On July 30, 1955, the first machine of the new society, an Ilyushin Il -14 landed with the registration DDR -ABA, on the Central Airport Berlin -Schönefeld. On September 16, 1955, the first official flight took place. The machine took a government delegation led by Prime Minister Otto Grotewohl the signing of the treaty between the Soviet Union and the GDR to Moscow.

Scheduled flight

On February 4, 1956, Lufthansa opened on the Berlin -Warsaw regular services. In the same year followed on February 27, the show air traffic Berlin- Leipzig, and on May 16 the line Berlin- Prague -Budapest- Sofia, on May 19, Berlin- Prague -Budapest- Bucharest on October 7, Berlin- Vilnius - Moscow.

Personnel and machinery

First, the Germans established in the GDR - only Lufthansa ground staff. The crews and machines Ilyushin Il -14 initially came solely from the Soviet Union. On March 13, 1957 Gerhard Frieß flew the first German commander on a scheduled flight of Lufthansa Moscow. Were Il -14 still imported from the Soviet Union, the first 14 Ilyushin, as was the 15 already under license from Dresden. Almost Lufthansa would have received built not only in their own country, but designed in the GDR machines. However, neither the type nor the type 152 153 went into production, and so the Lufthansa revealed their need for larger passenger aircraft continue with Ilyushin machines. The Il -14 turboprops after all, came from the March 28, 1960 Il- 18. The end of 1962 Lufthansa ordered the GDR over 26 older Il -14 and Il - five 18

The end of the GDR Lufthansa

Against the background that the West German Lufthansa had bought quite effective even before the establishment of the East German Lufthansa brand names and trademarks in liquidation "old Lufthansa " Arthur Pieck took a few months after the establishment of Lufthansa, the German Democratic Republic against Grotewohl following position: " From a formal legal point of view, we are in a situation, even after our own courts to prohibit us the right to use the name of the German Lufthansa and stylized crane as a trademark. "

On March 13, 1958 approved a round of Erich Honecker, to which Arthur Pieck was to found a new society for the " emergency" and entered in the Trademark Register (DDR, Madrid, Bern ). On September 8, 1958, the Inter flight, Society for International Air Transport mbH was founded. Lufthansa introduced the GDR with 1.1 million marks, the majority of a total of two million marks capital and with Arthur Pieck the Chief Executive.

Given the threat of legal defeat Lufthansa (DDR ) against Lufthansa (West) in a process in Belgrade, the retreat began in the developed line of defense. In July 1963, the SED Politburo agreed to limit " that Lufthansa will be liquidated because it is unprofitable to have two companies, and that a company is formed under the name of Inter Flight ". On September 1, 1963, the air transport enterprises of the GDR were amalgamated and continued with the human head of the East German Lufthansa, but under the name Inter flight.

More aviation history of the GDR

The further history of aviation in the GDR is described in the article interflight.

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