Ron van Maanen
In mid thirties possessed the German airline Lufthansa four mother ships from which planes were catapulted for the mail service between Europe (Azores) and the United States (New York). Two of the four ships were especially built for the Lufthansa. In the Dutch newspapers was paid some attention to the trial flights and I used these for the next small note. .
Het Vaderland: staat- en letterkundig nieuwsblad evening edition dated 15 April 1936. Kiel This afternoon was the third mother ship on behalf of the German Lufthansa launched called Ostmark. She was especially built for this purpose. The other two mother ships were originally freighters, the Westfalen a steamship and the Schwabenland a motor ship. The measurement of the Ostmark was 2,000 ton. The Lufthansa needed a third ship at the South Atlantic Ocean as reserve while the regularly airline continued during the summer and winter.
Het Vaderland: staat- en letterkundig nieuwsblad evening edition dated 28 October 1936. The German newspaper Völkische Beobachter hardly reported anything dealing with the flight experiments in contrary to the British newspapers until the day that the pilots returned to the German airport Tempelhof, Berlin. The Dutch newspaper reused the item published in the German newspapers for own purpose. The Schwabenland arrived 31 August at Lisbon with on board two Dornier Do 18 flying boats called Zephir (D-ARUN) and Aeolus (D-ABYM). She left Lisbon 3 September with the Zephyr on board towards Ponta Delgada, Azores where she arrived 6 September. The Aeolus left Lisbon 5 September with the same destination and arrived after a flight of 1,450 kilometres in 6 hours and 57 minutes. The Zephyr was at sea just shortly before the arrival at the Azores launched. The planes and the ship went from Ponta Delgada towards Horta, Fayal where the trial flights were to start. The Aeolus was launched from the Schwabenland 9 September with as destination the Bermuda’s and four days later departed the Zephyr. The Schwabenland steamed in the mean time towards New York. For these trials was just one mother ship available, the other two ships served on the South Atlantic Ocean and the fourth was being built at Kiel and not completed until next spring. After arrived at New York were some trial and demonstration flight made and planes and ship went back to the Azores, Begin October started the trials from the Azores again.
Het nieuws van de dag voor Nederlandsch-Indië daily edition dated 18 March 1937. Kiel, Germany, 16 March (Transocean). This morning in the presence of the minister of the Mail Department Ohnesorge was the motor ship Friesenland launched. She was to serve as a basis ship for the new transatlantic airline which the Lufthansa intended to start soon. She was fitted out with a catapult for flying boats and would be stationed off the Azores while her sister ship Schwabenland was stationed near the American coast. The distance of 4,000 kilometres between both ships was intended to make by the flying boats without a stopover.
Het Vaderland: staat- en letterkundig nieuwsblad dated 22 June 1937 evening edition. Within a few weeks will the Lufthansa sent her new catapult ship Friesenland to the Azores to support new trial flights over the Atlantic Ocean towards New York. She made her trial on the Baltic in the meantime and was twice as large as the Ostmark which now served on the South Atlantic Ocean. She was to be stationed at Fayal and fitted out with a large workshop and cabins for the crew and the pilots. The catapult worked with 300 atmosphere pressure and was able to launch the flying boat of 20 ton in 1,3 second over a 33m long launching platform with a speed of 150 kilometres. The sledge of 2 ton weight which carried the plane was stopped within 3 metres. The Schwabenland was stationed off New York. In contrary to last year when there were 8 flights with Dornier Do 18 flying boats was this year a newly built plane fitted out with floating used. It was a so-called High Sea plane built by the Hamburger Flugzeugbau, a daughter company of the yard Blohm&Voss using four Junkers diesel engines. The plane was baptised Nordwind. The summer mail service Berlin-New York was to be accomplished within 32 hours.
Het nieuw van de dag voor Nederlandsch-Indië daily edition dated 26 February 1938. As known are the trial flights of the Lufthansa over the North Atlantic Ocean for this year again ended. They were successful. Involved were the pilots of the Nordmeer and the Nordmeer and the so-called floating islands, the mother ships. In the news item interviewed the reporter Gustav who was responsible for the catapulting of the planes. Since 1927 worked he at the airport Halle-Leipzig while repairing motors and planes when he in 1929 was appointed as the first men responsible for the catapult on board of the Lloyds ship Europa. After a long time he was transferred to the Westfalen, the first floating plane mother ship of the Lufthansa when he returned to Europe to serve on boat of the Schwabenland. When in the summer of 1938 the Friesenland was taken into service he was appointed as the first men for the catapult. He was according to the reporter really skilled in controlling the 150 atmosphere catapult. On board of the Europa he had to explain everything to the passengers what he was doing despite the sometimes rare questions in different questions, for example were the pilots fitted out with umbrellas!
Het Vaderland: staat- en letterkundig nieuwsblad dated 24 October 1938 daily edition. The flight season over the Atlantic Ocean was this year in the period 27 July-20 October. As the United States again not the mail service permitted was the Lufthansa forced to continue the series trial flights of 1937 and 1937. At this moment were the two catapult ships Schwabenland and Friesenland and the planes with floats Nordwind, Nordmeer and Nordstern available. In 3 months were 36 flights made with a total distance of 141,800 kilometres mainly on the Southern route via the Azores towards New York. In 1938 it became clear that a direct route was seldom possible due to the bad weather conditions. In 1936 8 flights with total 36,000 kilometres and in 1937 14 flights with total 71,000 kilometres. The speed was in these years increased from 231 to 246 towards New York and from 216 to 270 kilometres back to the Azores. The fastest flight towards America with contrary winds was 13 hours and 40 minutes and back 11 hours and 53 minutes. The planes were able to transport 500 kilo post in the route Horta-Azores.
