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Aviation History
1963
1963 - 1830.PDF
FLIGHT International, 17 October 1963 637 AIR COM MERGE bn 11-18 of Interflug, showing the air line's new insignia EAST GERMANY'S INTERFLUG FROM September of this year the Deutsche Demokratische Republic (DDR) has one civil air transport operator —Interflug. Previously there were two organizations: Deutsche Lufthansa, a national corporation using (as does the West German organization) the old pre-war title; and the Interflug company started in 1958 and which was jointly owned by the Reisebiiro, the national travel agency, Deutrans, freight agents, and Deutsche Lufthansa, of the DDR. The new company has the same three shareholders as the original Interflug, plus the Minister- ium fur Verkehrswesen, the Ministry of Transport. The General Director of Sxiterflug is Herr Karl Heiland and for all operational matters the company enjoys much the same indepen dence as do these West European national operators which look to their respective Treasuries for finance. DDR civil aviation policy generally, and Interflug shareholding control in particular, is exercised through the Chief Administrator of Civil Aviation in the Ministry of Transport. Chief Ad ministrator is Herr Artur Pieck, son of the republic's first president. Under Herr Pieck, who claims to be neither a politician nor an aviator but an administrator, there are four principal departments dealing respectively with Interflug; airports and air traffic control; technical inspection of aircraft; and sport flying and gliding. The Interflug transport fleet consists of five four-engined turbo prop II-18s, constructed in and bought from the Soviet Union, and 25 twin-engined Il-14s, which are "produced in the DDR." In addition, for agricultural work—mostly crop spraying—and communications, there are 23 Soviet single-engine An-2 biplanes, and 55 Czech L60s. A number of Mi-4 helicopters are available for contract work, and are principally employed on construction sites, building and repairing chimneys, surveying, or occasional emergency transport of sick persons for the health authorities. The total employment roll of Interflug is given as 2,000. Airport employees an d air traffic controllers number another 800. The civil aviation effort in this part of post-war Germany has teen built up virtually from scratch in the last decade. Almost all % aircrew are young men trained with Soviet assistance, partly in the Soviet Union and partly in the DDR under the supervision of, or helped by, Soviet instructors. The first steps in pilot training are taken in the aero clubs or gliding centres. All young Germans in the Republic, at 17 and tfter completing the 12-year educational course, can apply to join on e of the flying or gliding clubs. No fees or flying charges are Payable. The number of gliding club members is currently estimated as 6,000 and another 300 are at the seven powered-flying clubs. The most promising of the pilots go on for further training in the Rational People's Army with the possibility open to them of trans ferring to civil flying. A few selected members of the flying clubs ™*ve gone direct to the Interflug training establishment, but it is *«ted that pilot requirements are met for the time being and there *lll be no further training next year. Operations base and headquarters of Interflug are at the central airport Berlin-Schonefeld, which has recently refurbished passenger handling buildings and is some thirty minutes' drive from the city. It has a 3,600m (11,800ft) runway and plans are agreed for a second runway of 3,000m (9,800ft) in a parallel direction. It is intended to use one runway for take-off and the other for landing. The present Interflug route network of scheduled services connect socialist countries only. Principal services are Berlin - Moscow; Berlin - Warsaw; Berlin - Prague - Budapest; Berlin - Sofia; Berlin - Bucharest; and Berlin - Belgrade - Tirana. There are also inter nal services which radiate from Schonefeld to Erfurt, Leipzig, Dresden, and to Barth on the Baltic. In the summer season there are also services from Dresden and Leipzig to the Baltic coast. One intriguing aspect of Interflug operations, as with the air services in the Soviet Union, is the economic result. Do they pay or are they subsidized ? No balance sheets are available for inspec tion but the answer given to the direct question is that Interflug is "self-supporting." Surpluses made have been invested in the company. But of course it depends upon the definition of terms. Capital for the purchase of equipment is loaned by the State, and the British corporations may care to know that no interest is payable on these loans. Amortization is over an eight-year period. The fare structure is estimated to be based on raies somewhere between IATA's tourist and first-class fares, with a 10 per cent group fare reduction, and a further reduction on inclusive tours. There is also an agreement between the socialist airlines of Eastern Europe which provides for a 50 per cent reduction on standard fares for, as far as can be ascertained, all nationals travelling between these countries. This agreement may well be the reason for the high load-factor which is claimed to be an average of 80 per cent. The DDR earnestly want more connections with the Western countries—and not just for economic or narrowly political reasons. They want contacts with other people. Interflug emphasize that they have 22 general agreements with other operators and 28 inter line agreements, but they seek more. Only six foreign companies fly scheduled services into Schonefeld and they include Aeroflot, Lot, CSA and Malev. But with pleasure they tell of non-scheduled flights by Transair, Flying Enterprise, Nortair, Finnair, Kar-air, AUA, KLM, Sabena, and SAS. They are deeply disappointed that this list does not include BEA. Although the then Minister of Aviation made a somewhat ambiguous remark to the Commons in March 1960 about there being no "prohibition" on flights to Leipzig, the fact is that political and not commercial judgment has been the deciding consideration. The potential traffic of course is not large. An estimated 1,000 people travelled to Leipzig from the United Kingdom for the 1963 spring fair. On the point of British trade, DDR civil aviation authorities say they will be interested in certain airport equipment and explain that their landing system at Schonefeld is British,
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