On May 10, 1925, the history of civil aviation in Erfurt began with the landing of two Junkers F-13s on the Roter Berg. What began as a modest runway developed over the decades into today's Erfurt-Weimar Airport, a major transportation hub for Thuringia. The airport looks back on an eventful history, ranging from military use to the resumption of civil air traffic in the GDR to the modern infrastructure of today.
After initial use at Roter Berg, the Erfurt-Bindersleben Air Base, known from then on as Erfurt North Airport, was put into operation in 1935. However, civil air traffic ceased with the outbreak of World War II in August 1939. It wasn't until 1957 that Erfurt reopened as a commercial airport, serving domestic flights within the GDR and also serving business jets from Western Europe. The stationing of the agricultural aviation squadron in 1975 ensured the continued use of the site.
After German reunification, the airport underwent extensive modernization in the 1990s, including the commissioning of a new control tower (1995) and Terminal B (1996). The motorway connection, which began in 1998, significantly improved accessibility. Modern instrument loading systems reduced the number of approaches over the city, and the extension of the runway to 2600 meters allowed for larger aircraft to be handled.
In 2000, 24-hour flight operations began, and in 2002, the airport received the "Airport of the Year" award from the pilots' association Cockpit. In 2011, it was renamed "Erfurt-Weimar Airport." Despite the withdrawal of Air Berlin and the insolvency of Germania in the past, the airport is experiencing an upward trend in passenger numbers after the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic and plays an important role in cargo, business, and air ambulance traffic.
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