Trisha Cornforth, German news reporter for "Der Kanadier"
newspaper as well as for CFN/RFC radio and television,
from the end of 1978 to the end of May 1994

The original "Der Kanadier " was the weekly newspaper for
the Canadian Forces in Europe. It was published in Lahr in the Black Forest, Germany, from 1 July 1970 until 25 May 1994,
i.e. until just before Canadian Forces Base Lahr closed down
in mid-August 1994.



As an interim substitute for Strasbourg International Airport
Lahr Airport is taking off!
On Monday 17 July 2000 the first scheduled flights finally flew to and from Lahr Airport, after months of frantic preparations to comply with all the necessary German government regulations.
But this is only temporary, until 25 August, while Strasbourg runway is being repaired, Lahr Airport will be dealing with about one third of Strasbourg's normal air traffic to European destinations. The rest will be re-routed to Colmar, Metz and Basel-Mulhouse airports, also located over the border in France. The name of Lahr will not appear on the plane tickets as it will merely be operating as a replacement for the "European Capital" during this six-week period. However, despite opposition from many local residents, it still signifies a big step forward for Lahr Airport as a chance to openly prove its potential capacities!

Although the Canadian Forces left behind good facilities at Lahr airfield, during the past few months the Lahr airport company has invested over DM 110 000 in infrastructure in order to comply with strict German government safety regulations. A fence had to be built all the way around the actual runway area to prevent people from wandering around there. The V-8 disco (formerly ???, see photos in our maps section) had to be demolished because it was too near the 1 ATU (formerly known as 5 AMU) and that also makes way for another passenger parking lot. Out on the tarmac, aircraft "parking spaces" have been painted in position. Security has been strengthened at the 1 ATU building by welding up all the bars on the window frames.

Inside, the arrival and departure lounges have been renovated and rearranged so that arriving and departing passengers cannot meet, which also involved putting in extra doors. The entrance foyer has been transformed into a check-in area with airline counters and an information desk. Luggage and passenger inspection facilities have been installed and the wall between the in-coming and out-going section has been extended up to the ceiling to prevent any object being thrown over to the other side. A secluded area has been set up for body search of any suspected passengers. Customs officers have to be brought in especially from Achern as there are no longer customs posts in Lahr or Kehl. At the last minute, the military green of the airport building was quickly painted over (white-washed!) to present a more "civil" impression.

Another big hurdle to be overcome concerned German air traffic controllers who had to be found and "chartered" before the German government would give permission for regular flights. The Lahr Airport Company really didn't know for certain until a few weeks previously that the whole re-location from Strasbourg to Lahr would indeed be allowed to actually take place. Even though both countries are members of the European Union, the air traffic organizations are quite separate and the Strasbourg ATC staff were not permitted to just move over the Rhine in the same way as the aircraft! German experts had to be specially trained (including giving instructions in French).

Most of the extra expenses for the Lahr Airport Company will therefore be spent on salaries for the extra air traffic controllers, fire-fighters and security staff (estimated at DM 340 000). Moreover there will be rental charges for additional technical equipment and fees due to the German air traffic control authorities for the loan and supervision of the ATC personnel.

There were also some unexpected extra problems caused by a thunder storm on Saturday 15 July, two evenings before the "take-off". A lightning flash struck a direct hit on the Lahr Airport control tower and almost prevented the whole project from taking place. The repair costs are estimated at about DM 250 000.

Interview with Kurt Jäger, Lahr Airport Manager
It's now almost exactly six years since the Canadian Forces left Lahr and nearly seven since 1 ATU ceased operations at CFB Lahr. Most Canadians reading this must be wondering why it took so long! We spoke to Kurt Jäger, Lahr Airport Manager, about the difficulties experienced by his organization and what they hope to achieve with these interim flights.

Mr Jäger admitted it was a mistake to completely close down the airfield after the Canadian withdrawal as it allowed local residents to get used to life without aircraft noise and it made the process of setting up a commercial airport more complicated. Then, once a company had been founded and some flying started, it was still in the hands of the local communities like Lahr, Friesenheim, Offenburg and Freiburg who all disagreed about their objectives. There was also a lot of dissent with various airfield managers who did their best to foster business. This was also the time when the 20-tonnage restriction was introduced and night flights were banned. Friesenheim still refuses to allow the construction of a middle-marker beacon on its territory, so instrument navigation is only possible from the south.

He pointed out that progress was made when the company was handed over to a consortium of local investors who are seriously interested in using the airport for transportation. Yet Lahr continues to be disadvantaged by the provincial government in Stuttgart which has subsidized Baden Air Park despite some financial irregularities there. The bureaucratic situation is made worse by the perennial rivalry between Lahr and Baden-Soellingen, where Baden was favoured by having a two-year advance on Lahr, being under a single new owner from the start and concentrating on passenger charter flights. He concludes that all these factors considerably hamper the concept of eventually developing Lahr as a freight terminal but he hopes that by efficiently "showing off its stuff" Lahr Airport will achieve public recognition.