An airfield was first constructed in Tempelhof in 1923, but redesigned by the Nazis from 1936 to 1941 on the orders of Albert Speer. Ernst Sagebiel was the architect in charge of the project and it fell to him to construct a suitably impressive gateway to Berlin, centre of the Nazi empire. Sagebiel didn't pull any punches, creating a magnificent monolith which upon completion was supposed to be the second largest building in the world. Unfortunately for Tempelhof the grandeur of the airport has not been matched by its subsequent aviation achievements. Handling a mere half a million passengers a year, Tempelhof is scheduled for closure in 2008. If you are flying to or from the airport you can get there and back from the city centre on the U6 line.
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