View source for Munich-Riem Airport

{{Short description|Former airport of Munich, Bavaria, Germany (1939–1992)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2021}}
{{Infobox airport
| name                   = Munich-Riem Airport
| nativename             = {{lang|de|Flughafen München-Riem}}
| image                  = 
| image-width            = 250
| caption                = 
| image2                 = Flughafen Riem.jpg
| image2-width           = 250
| caption2               = Munich-Riem Airport in 1988.
| IATA                   = MUC
| ICAO                   = EDDM
| FAA                    = 
| LID                    = 
| type                   = Defunct
| owner-oper             = [[Flughafen München GmbH]]
| owner                  = 
| opened                 = {{start date|1939|10|25|df=yes}}
| closed                 = {{end date|1992|05|16|df=yes}}
| operator               = 
| city-served            = [[Munich]]
| location               = [[Trudering-Riem]], [[Bavaria]]
| built                  = <!-- for military airports -->
| used                   = <!-- for military airports -->
| commander              = <!-- for military airports -->
| occupants              = <!-- for military airports -->
| metric-elev            = 
| elevation-f            = 
| elevation-m            = 
| coordinates            = {{coord|48|08|16|N|011|41|25|E|region:DE-BY|display=inline,title}}
| website                = 
| pushpin_map            = Germany Bavaria
| pushpin_mapsize        = 
| pushpin_map_alt        = 
| pushpin_map_caption    = Location within Bavaria
| pushpin_relief         = 
| pushpin_image          = 
| pushpin_label          = '''MUC'''/EDDM
| pushpin_label_position = 
| pushpin_mark           = 
| pushpin_marksize       = 
| metric-rwy             = yes
| r1-number              = 07R/25L
| r1-length-f            = 9199
| r1-length-m            = 2804
| r1-surface             = [[Concrete]] (Closed)
| r2-number              = 07L/25R
| r2-length-f            = 2671
| r2-length-m            = 814
| r2-surface             = [[Concrete]] (Closed)
| h1-number              = 
| h1-length-f            = 
| h1-length-m            = 
| h1-surface             = 
| stat-year              = 
| stat1-header           = 
| stat1-data             = 
| footnotes              = 
}}

'''Munich-Riem Airport''' ({{langx|de|Flughafen München-Riem}}) {{airport codes|MUC|EDDM}} was the [[international airport]] of [[Munich]], the [[capital city]] of [[Bavaria]] and [[List of German cities by population|third-largest city]] of Germany. It was closed down on 16 May 1992, the day before the new [[Munich Airport]] commenced operations. It was located near the old village of Riem in the borough of [[Trudering-Riem]] in the east of Munich.

The area has been redeveloped into [[Messestadt Riem]], a new urban district consisting of housing projects, a [[shopping mall]], recreational areas and the [[Neue Messe München]], an exhibition and convention center.

==History==
{{More citations needed section|date=May 2009}}
[[File:McDonnell Douglas DC-10-30, Lufthansa AN0199472.jpg|thumb|[[Lufthansa]] [[McDonnell Douglas DC-10-30]] in Riem 1989]]

===Foundation and expansion===
Construction started in 1936. The first plane landed on 25 October 1939, signalling the beginning of air traffic. At this time it was one of the most modern airports in the world. It replaced the airfield at [[Oberwiesenfeld Army Airfield|Oberwiesenfeld]] (now the site of the [[Olympiapark, Munich|Olympic Village]]).

In [[World War II]] it was home to [[Adolf Galland]]'s legendary [[Jagdverband 44]]. It was almost completely destroyed by bombings on 9 April 1945. Until that day, civilian air traffic had also been handled in Riem. George Raffeld of the [[42nd Infantry Division (United States)|United States Rainbow Division]] was the first of the allied forces to arrive at the airport. He reported to his superior officers that the airport had been abandoned by the Germans.

After the war Munich-Riem was the first airport in Germany to be used for [[civil aviation]]. Post-war operations started on 6 April 1948 with the landing of a [[DC-3]] operated by [[Pan American World Airways]]. On 12 October 1949 the Flughafen München-Riem [[GmbH]] (Munich-Riem Airport Ltd.) was founded. Wulf-Dieter Graf zu Castell became one of its [[managing director]]s. The airport's [[runway]] was lengthened to {{convert|1900|m|0}} in November 1949.

On 29 October 1958, the first [[jet aircraft]], a [[Sud Aviation Caravelle]] operated by [[Air France]], landed on the<!--apron [not mentioned in de:]--> runway that had been lengthened by further {{convert|700|m|0}}. In 1962 more than one million passengers had passed through the airport. As early as 1963 the Öchsle Commission initiated a search for a new airport location as it was obvious that further extension would not be legally or politically possible. Constructing additional runways parallel or perpendicular to the existing one would require relocating a number of nearby communities. A number of accidents further encouraged the decision to build a new airport further away from the city and to close down Riem. In October 1965 a new maintenance [[hangar]] for jets, that had been built at a cost of DM 10 million, was put into operation and transferred to [[Lufthansa]]. In 1969 the Flughafen München-Riem GmbH was renamed Flughafen München GmbH. The main runway (07R/25L) was upgraded to its final length of {{convert|2804|m}} after it was closed for resurfacing for three weeks in August, 1969. In 1971 a new arrivals hall was put into operation, the passenger throughput having attained four million. On 31 December 1972 the long-time managing director Wulf-Dieter Graf zu Castell retired.

===Later years and replacement===
Since the 1980s and into the early 1990s, the airfield was heavily congested. Originally the terminal was intended to handle between five and eight million passengers per year, but by 1991 the passenger numbers had skyrocketed to twelve million passengers per year, which was 50% to more than double the number of passengers that the airport was originally designed to handle. Because the airport's taxiway system had been designed to be used as a smaller medium-size airport, it was unable to handle the large numbers of aircraft that used the airport. To continue operations preliminary annexes to the terminal were built, including a special hall for [[charter flight]]s. 

During the night from 16 to 17 May 1992, operations moved to the new location near [[Freising]]. The [[IATA airport code]] MUC and the [[ICAO airport code]] EDDM has been reassigned to the new [[Munich Airport]].

==Redevelopment==
[[File:Messesee_and_Airport_Riem_Tower.jpg|thumb|The remaining control tower surrounded by new buildings in 2018]]
===Re-use as cultural center (1993–1996)===
During an interim time after the move, the remaining terminal buildings such as ''Zeppelinhalle'', ''Charterhalle'', ''Terminal 1'' and ''Wappensaal'' were used as venues for large events such as [[concert]]s and [[rave]]s. Riem was well known internationally in the [[techno]], [[alternative culture|alternative]], and [[rock music|rock]] scenes. For example, [[Nirvana (band)|Nirvana's ]] last concert took place there on 1 March 1994. On 17 June 1994, the [[Ultraschall]] techno club opened in what was the cafeteria's kitchen. The cultural centre was closed in the summer of 1996 because the area to be redeveloped into [[Messestadt Riem]].<ref name="mjunikdisco">{{cite book |last1=Hecktor |first1=Mirko |last2=von Uslar |first2=Moritz |last3=Smith |first3=Patti |last4=Neumeister |first4=Andreas |date=1 November 2008 |title=Mjunik Disco – from 1949 to now|publisher=Blumenbar |isbn=978-3936738476|language=de}}</ref><ref name="mitvergnuegen">{{cite web |last=Schauberger |first=Anja |url=https://muenchen.mitvergnuegen.com/2017/11-verrueckt-vergessen-clubs-muenchen/ |title=11 verrückte Clubs in München, die Geschichte schrieben |trans-title=11 crazy clubs in Munich that made history |publisher=Mit Vergnuegen |access-date=21 February 2022 |language=de}}</ref>

===Messestadt Riem===
The redevelopment of the area into ''[[Messestadt Riem]]'' ('Riem Convention City') with an eponymous [[convention centre]], apartment houses and parks was one of Munich's largest [[urban planning]] projects in the late 1990s and at the beginning of the 21st century. In 1999, the first residents moved into the new district. The only structures that remain of the airport today are the [[tower]] and the original terminal building, the ''Wappenhalle'' (hall of the coats of arms). Both structures are protected monuments. A small stretch of the former runway still exists at the eastern end. In 2005, the former airport was the site of the [[Bundesgartenschau]] (Federal Horticultural Show).<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.toytowngermany.com/wiki/Messestadt | title=Messestadt | author= | date= | website= | publisher=Toytown Germany | language= | accessdate=24 January 2015}}</ref>

==Accidents and incidents==
* On 6 February 1958 an [[Airspeed Ambassador|Airspeed AS 57 Ambassador]] charter plane crashed soon after take-off. The accident – known as the [[Munich air disaster]] – cost the lives of 23 people including eight football players from [[Manchester United F.C.|Manchester United]]. There were 21 survivors. The British pilot, [[James Thain]], was initially blamed for the disaster after investigators claimed that ice on the wings had caused the take-off attempt to end in tragic failure. However, Thain was finally cleared of any responsibility for the crash in 1969,<ref>{{Cite news |last=DRAPER |first=FRANK |date=10 June 1969 |title=Munich crash pilot cleared |page=21 |newspaper=[[Evening Standard]] |location=[[London]] |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/120198329/munich-crash-pilot-cleared/ |access-date=5 March 2023}}</ref> by which time he and his family had suffered numerous incidents of verbal abuse, hate mail and even death threats from people accusing him of causing the crash. The cause of the crash was ultimately established as slush on the runway; there had been no ice on the wings.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19580206-0|title=ASN Aircraft accident Airspeed AS.57 Ambassador 2 G-ALZU München-Riem Airport (MUC)}}</ref>
* On 17 December 1960, a [[Convair C-131 Samaritan|Convair C-131D Samaritan]] operated by the [[United States Air Force]] [[1960 Munich Convair 340 crash|crashed]] shortly after take-off, killing all 20 passengers and crew on board as well as 32 people on the ground.<ref name=ASN>[http://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19601217-0 Accident description] at the [[Aviation Safety Network]]</ref> It is one of two confirmed crashes involving an airplane and a tramway.

==References==
{{Air Force Historical Research Agency}}
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category-inline|Munich Airport Riem}}
* [https://flughafen-muenchen-riem.de/en/chronik/ Online archive of the old Munich-Riem Airport] webarchive 
* [https://www.riem-airport.de/ Technical information on Munich-Riem Airport and its radio beacons]
* [http://www.messe-riem.de/messestadt_riem/geschichte/ History of ''Messestadt Riem''] including history of the airport {{in lang|de}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20090402144920/http://www.be-4-tempelhof.de/hintergrund/wasausmuenchenriemwurde/index.html What became of München-Riem] {{in lang|de}}
* {{cite web |url=http://www.messestadt-riem.com/msr/d_newsdesk/id_history.htm |title=Little Town History of Old Riem |access-date=2010-05-20 |language=de |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110714074649/http://www.messestadt-riem.com/msr/d_newsdesk/id_history.htm |archive-date=14 July 2011 |url-status=dead }}
* {{cite web|url=http://www.austrianaviation.net/news-regional/news-detail/datum/2010/05/09/rueckblick-muenchen-riem.html |title=Austrian Aviation Net: Rückblick: München Riem |access-date=2010-05-20 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110723021526/http://www.austrianaviation.net/news-regional/news-detail/datum/2010/05/09/rueckblick-muenchen-riem.html |archive-date=23 July 2011 }}
* [https://mad.konbriefing.com/approach-charts/de-germany/munich-riem-airport.html München Riem Airport] Historical approach and aerodrome charts

{{Portal bar|Germany|Aviation}}
{{Airports in Germany}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Munich-Riem Airport}}
[[Category:Transport in Munich]]
[[Category:Defunct airports in Germany]]
[[Category:Buildings and structures in Munich]]
[[Category:Airports established in 1939]]
[[Category:Luftwaffe bases]]
[[Category:Airports disestablished in 1992]]
[[Category:Airfields of the United States Army Air Forces Air Transport Command in the European Theater]]
[[Category:Airports in Bavaria]]
[[Category:Munich in World War II]]