History

1959 - 1969: The advent of jet aircraft

1959: On 25th August, with the agreement of the State of Schleswig-Holstein, the Hamburg senate approved the extension of the No. 2 runway towards Ohemoor, taking it beyond the boundaries of the city-state, since it was impossible for a fully-laden jet with full fuel tanks to take off in Fuhlsbüttel. Lufthansa had already responded to this problem by transferring its intercontinental flights to Frankfurt, where the runways were longer.

1960 marked the beginning of the jet era for Lufthansa. On 2nd March at 12 midday, Lufthansa's first Boeing 707-430 Intercontinental landed at Hamburg Airport. But the new jets not only reduced flying times significantly, they also created an enormous increase in passenger and cargo capacity. Hamburg Airport cemented its reputation as the air route centre of northern Europe: in terms of total traffic, it continued to be Germany's no.2 airport after Frankfurt. In October the extended No. 1 runway was put into operation.

1961: The increasing passenger figures necessitated the extension of the main airport building. On 9th November, after 2½ years of construction work, Mayor Engelhard inaugurated a new terminal tailored to meet passengers' needs.

1962: The airport authority responded to the increasing noise caused by the jets by building a soundproofed hangar where trial engine runs of the planes overhauled by Lufthansa could take place. New approach procedures were evolved; the huge jets had to avoid "racing starts", and only in exceptional cases were take-offs or landings allowed between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m. At this time, the first soundproofing programmes for the adjoining suburbs were worked out.

1964 saw the completion of the extension work on No. 2 runway. The airport site had once again expanded considerably and now covered an area of some 500 hectares.

1969: It soon became clear that the capacity now available would only be adequate until the end of the decade, so the airport administration authority decided to undertake yet another extension of the handling facilities to enable the airport to cope with a maximum of 4 million passengers. In 1969 the "Deutschlandhalle" was opened for passengers on domestic flights.

back to overview