Cottbus Airfield Museum

In the north of Cottbus, where military jets and helicopters took off until 2003, MiGs, Sukhois and Mil helicopters now stand in neat rows on the lawn. The Cottbus Airfield Museum is one of the most important addresses if you want to see the aircraft of the National People’s Army (NVA, East Germany’s armed forces) – and at a place that is itself a piece of East German aviation history. The first flying units of the GDR were set up here in 1952, and for decades a fighter wing with MiG-21s was based here. Since 1990, an association has turned it into a museum with almost 50 aircraft.

An association museum on historic ground

Unlike the Military History Museum in Berlin-Gatow, which the Bundeswehr runs, the Cottbus museum is backed by a registered association: Flugplatzmuseum Cottbus e. V. It was founded in 1990, the year of reunification, when NVA combat helicopters were still standing at the airfield. In 1994, the museum opened to visitors. The association names a Yakovlev Yak-11 as its first “founding aircraft” – a trainer on which the first GDR pilots were already trained in Cottbus in 1952.

Today, according to the museum, the grounds cover more than 40,000 square meters. Spread across them are almost 50 airplanes and helicopters, a large collection of motor vehicles, airfield and security equipment and a historical indoor exhibition. A large part of the aircraft comes from the NVA’s air force and air defense, and some NATO types are loans from Gatow. The German-language Wikipedia cites about 17,000 visitors for 2019.

For an association, that is a remarkable achievement. Restoration, upkeep of the outdoor exhibits and museum operations depend heavily on volunteers. If you want to pitch in yourself, you will find background in the article Volunteering in aviation museums.

Cottbus-Nord airfield: almost a century of aviation

The museum tells the story not only of its exhibits but above all of the place. Cottbus-Nord airfield (ICAO code ETHT) is about two kilometers northwest of the city center and has lived through several eras of German aviation.

From pioneers to Luft Hansa

According to the museum, a Cottbus locksmith made the first flight attempts as early as 1910 on the Großer Exerzierplatz (the large parade ground). From 1917, Flying Replacement Detachment 12 trained pilots here; after the end of the war, almost all facilities had to disappear at the insistence of the Inter-Allied Aeronautical Commission of Control. In December 1925, the city councilors decided to build a commercial landing field.

On May 23, 1927, scheduled service began: Luft Hansa served Cottbus on the so-called Riesengebirge route between Breslau and Berlin, using a Junkers F 13. Just a few days later, in early June 1927, Clarence Chamberlin and Charles Levine caused a stir: after their flight from New York, they had to make an emergency landing at Klinge near Cottbus and, after a repair, flew on to Berlin.

Luftwaffe and Focke-Wulf

From 1933, the character of the airfield changed fundamentally. Civilian traffic ended, and from February 1934, pilots were trained here for the initially covertly built-up Luftwaffe. From fall 1941, Focke-Wulf moved parts of its production to Cottbus, including for the Fw 200C and the Fw 190; in 1944, final assembly of the Fw 190A and Ta 152H was added. According to the museum, a large share of the workforce were forced laborers from Eastern and Western Europe. In April 1945, the Red Army took the airfield.

Cradle of the GDR air force

After the war, Soviet regiments used the airfield until the last MiG-15s left in 1953. As early as 1952, the first flying units of the Volkspolizei-Luft (the People’s Police air arm) were formed in Cottbus, with training on the Yak-18 and Yak-11. Wikipedia therefore describes Cottbus-Nord as the “cradle” of the NVA’s air force.

In 1956, Fighter Wing 1 was established, called Jagdfliegergeschwader 1 from 1961 and given the honorary name “Fritz Schmenkel” in 1967. In November 1982, it relocated its MiG-21s to Holzdorf. Combat helicopters then took over the airfield: Combat Helicopter Wing 67, called KHG-3 from 1986. On August 2, 1990, a civilian aircraft landed for the first time, a Piper Cheyenne – the beginning of a short period of shared use.

Bundeswehr and closure

With reunification, the Bundeswehr took over the NVA units on October 3, 1990. The helicopter wing became army aviation squadrons. In 2003, the last army aviators moved to Holzdorf with their Bo 105s, and on June 11, 2003, the airfield was closed. Parts of the site now carry a solar park, and the museum uses the southern part.

The collection at a glance

The museum is roughly divided into three areas: the large outdoor grounds, the historical indoor exhibition and the restoration workshop. Expect to spend most of your time outside.

Jets from the East

The core of the collection is the NVA’s combat aircraft. According to the museum website, the outdoor grounds hold the Yak-11, L-29, MiG-17, MiG-21, MiG-23 and Su-22. The MiG-15UTI, the association’s second “founding aircraft” after the Yak-11, is currently being restored.

Especially appealing for type collectors is the range of MiG-21s: a private visit report from 2016 lists six variants alone – F-13, PFM, SPS-K, MF, bis and the two-seat US. That lets you follow the development of one of the most-built supersonic fighters in a single afternoon. The swing-wing MiG-23 and Su-22 stand next to them in several versions, including two-seaters that still received Bundeswehr codes after 1990.

Helicopters from Mil production

Because Cottbus last hosted a combat helicopter wing, the strong helicopter section fits the place exactly. According to the museum, the Mi-2, Mi-4, Mi-8, Mi-9 and Mi-24 are part of the collection. The Mi-9 is a rare command version of the Mi-8 – not a type you find in many museums. As Western counterparts, an Alouette II and a Bell UH-1D stand on the grounds. If you want to reliably tell the types apart, prepare with the article Identifying helicopter types.

Trainers, agricultural and sport aircraft

Not everything in Cottbus is military. The collection also includes the An-2, the small An-14 “Pchyolka”, the agricultural aircraft Zlin Z-37 “Čmelák”, the aerobatic and training aircraft Zlin Z-42, the Let L-200 Morava and the PZL-106 Kruk. Add, according to Wikipedia, a glider of the FES-530 Lehrmeister type. These types tell of sport flying and agricultural aviation in the GDR – areas that get lost in many military museums.

NATO types as a contrast

To make the comparison work, the museum also shows Western combat aircraft: F-84, F-86 Sabre, T-33, Fiat G91 and the F-104 Starfighter. Some of them are loans from Gatow. So on a meadow in Lusatia, the jets of two military blocs face each other, which for decades only watched each other across the Iron Curtain.

The Tu-134A: an airliner among combat jets

The largest aircraft in the collection is not a fighter but an airliner: a Tupolev Tu-134A. According to Wikipedia, the association acquired the aircraft in 2017. Its background is unusual: according to media reports, the aircraft, which entered service in the Soviet Union in 1976, came to Schönefeld in the mid-1980s, was dismantled and taken by road to a training ground of the Ministry for State Security near Wartin, where special forces practiced hostage rescues on it. From 1991, it stood in a garden in nearby Grünz before the association had it dismantled and brought to Cottbus.

In East Germany, the Tu-134 was known above all as an airliner of Interflug. The Cottbus aircraft, however, does not come from the Interflug fleet; Wikipedia calls it a former Aeroflot aircraft. The association is currently restoring the aircraft. How East Germany’s civil aviation developed is covered in the article on Interflug; the manufacturer is introduced on the page for Tupolev.

Spotter highlights with tactical numbers

For number collectors, Cottbus is rich, because many exhibits still carry their original three-digit NVA numbers or later Bundeswehr codes. The following selection comes from a private visit report from 2016 (Rod Bearden). Paint schemes and locations may have changed since then through restoration – take the list as a guide, not a guarantee.

The codes with a plus sign show that some NVA aircraft briefly passed into Bundeswehr service after 1990 and were renumbered. How the system is built is explained in the article Registrations of Bundeswehr aircraft.

Airfield equipment and air defense

What sets Cottbus apart from many other collections is the equipment around flight operations. According to the museum website, the grounds hold, among other things:

• an APM-90M landing floodlight on a ZIL-130 truck
• an AG-3 starter unit on a W 50, used to start engines
• a TLF 24 fire truck on a ZIL-131
• an ATU-1 aircraft arresting system
• the antennas of the RSP-7 radar landing system
• a launch ramp with the S-75 “Dvina” surface-to-air missile

These devices show how much infrastructure a fighter wing needed. For spotters who otherwise only look at the aircraft itself, this is a good change of perspective.

Historical exhibition and flight simulator

Inside the building, the historical exhibition tells of the beginnings of aviation in Cottbus, of air sports in the 1920s and 1930s, of parachuting and gliding and of the airfield’s history to the present. On display are engines, including a cutaway model, ejection seats from various military aircraft, rocket-assisted takeoff units, archaeological finds and numerous models. A separate special exhibition is devoted to the NVA and its Cottbus barracks.

There is also a flight simulator run by a working group of the Spree-Neiße comprehensive school. Ten programs are available, such as landing practice in a Cessna 172, takeoffs from BER or aerobatics in an Extra 300. It can be used on set dates and only with a valid admission ticket. If you want to keep flying at home, you will find tips in the article Getting started with flight simulation.

Photographing at the airfield museum

The aircraft stand outdoors in rows, between trees and on lawn. That brings atmosphere but also challenges: shadows, reflections on faded paint and other exhibits in the background.

The museum website does not state fixed rules on photography. The usual ground rules apply to private shots: respect barriers, do not climb on exhibits and enter cockpits only by registration. For commercial shoots, talk to the association beforehand. Light equipment with a standard zoom and a wide-angle lens is enough – more in the equipment checklist.

Planning your visit

The museum is in the north of Cottbus; according to the museum, the address is Fichtestraße 1, 03046 Cottbus.

• Opening hours March to October: Tuesday to Friday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Saturday and Sunday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., closed Mondays.
• Opening hours November to February: Tuesday to Saturday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., closed Sundays and Mondays.
• Admission: adults €8, reduced €5 (including children aged 6 to 17), family ticket €20. Registered guided tour plus €1 per person. All details as of October 2026.
• Guided tours: by advance registration, as is trying out seats in exhibits.
• Parking: according to the provider, visitor parking is only a few meters from the entrance.
• Accessibility: ramp into the building, but the paths to many aircraft lead across lawn.

Check the times on the website before your visit; prices and procedures may differ, especially during events. The visit is especially worthwhile with children because many exhibits can be seen up close – you will find more ideas in the article Plane spotting with kids.

Events

The museum invites visitors to events throughout the year that appeal to more than aviation fans. In 2026, the calendar included a classic car and parts market in April, a utility and military vehicle meet in July, the Night of the Museums in September and a model-building exhibition in October. The association publishes the dates for the coming year on its website.

Combining the museum with live traffic

Nothing flies in Cottbus anymore. If you want to combine the museum with real flight operations on a weekend, you have three airports within reach. BER is to the northwest, and a good starting point is the observation deck at BER. To the south, Dresden Airport is an option, and the Dresden guide collects locations there. For nighttime cargo traffic, Leipzig/Halle is worth it.

If you are planning a whole museum tour through the East, combine Cottbus with the Luftwaffe Museum in Berlin-Gatow, where MiG-21s, MiG-29s and Su-22s also stand, with the Hugo Junkers Technology Museum in Dessau or the Wernigerode Aviation Museum. Across the border, the Polish Aviation Museum in Krakow and the Prague-Kbely Aviation Museum with many Warsaw Pact types are worthwhile. An overview of further museums is given in the article Aviation museums in Germany.

Conclusion

The Cottbus Airfield Museum is a museum with an association’s soul. Here you will not find the glossy exhibits of big state museums but aircraft that volunteers have gathered over decades – and at exactly the place where East Germany built up its air force. For spotters, the density of NVA types is remarkable: numerous MiG-21 variants, MiG-23, Su-22, a whole family of Mil helicopters and a Tu-134A to top it off.

Weathering on many exhibits and lawn paths come with the territory. In return, prices are moderate, the opening hours from March to October generous, and with airfield equipment, air defense and a historical exhibition, you get an overall picture that many other museums do not offer.