RAPA, Bad Lippspringer

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From: steve jones

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Bad Lippspringer was also the home to RAPA, Rhine Army Parachute Association. It was accessed of Bielefelder strasse, so you didn’t drive through any barracks to get there. I did a basic free fall course there in about the mid 70’s. And while posted in Munster often went up there for the weekend. It was a great club, ill dig out some photos when I am next home. I am sure there must be others who jumped there and remember the place fondly

The Parachute Centre Bad Lippspringe started life at the Detmold Airfield! Parachutists were loaded there, and flown down to the Sennelager Training to do their stuff; the aircraft landed either on the Windmill Strip (asphalt) or the old Luftwaffe grass strip adjoining the Lippspringe Sportsfield. Picked up survivors of the first jump of the day and carried dropping and landing until the monotony drove them all back to Detmold. Eventually Logistics, common-sense and the Rhine Army Parachute Association ( and Adventure Trg money) changed all that and the Joint Service Parachute Centre (Lippspringe) became established on the former Luftwaffe night fighter base.

Many years after the inception of the Para Centre the former Luftwaffe fuel storage tanks were found, underground, intact with viable fuel still stored.

A former member says access was via the Bielefelderstrasse without going through any Barracks - this is n't quite true! The Alte Bielefelder Post Strasse from Bad Lippsringe to Hoevelhof runs along the Eastern edge of the Field, and the flying ground, sportsfields and Golf Course are all inside the Sennelager Training Area. In the early 70s the ONLY access was from Bad Lippspringe (as it was for shooters going to the new ALMA Ranges). Eventually an access road was built from the rear of Normandy Barracks to Schlangen to access the ALMA Classification Ranges, Sports Fields and Golf Course, L Range and other new shooting facilities. The road was never designed for tanks and is the sole property of the military who can control usage.

RAPA afficionados  might enjoy these two items from Youtube:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mmWDERB9ooQ    RAPA 2018  closed

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hbIqTf7z-MU            RAPA active

(Bad Lippspringe - is the correct spelling
JSPC (L) = Joint Services Parachute Centre (Lippspringe) !

Not a lot of people know that for Wacht am Rhein (the Ardennes counter-offensive, the Battle of the Bulge), Student got his Fallschirmjäger out of the line for the first time since their mauling in Crete, to be used as intended in the coup de main role, dropping in front of the armoured Kampgrüppen to hold the roads open.

They were to fly out of Bad Lippspringe. But it was December. Landing grounds were fogbound, so they were transported in their equivalent to heliBedfords, back into the infantry meat grinder.

There were some small drops later on, but the grand plan was lost.

I have passed on messages to Barry those who message me please check your inbox

Barry - I suspect is Barry Jefferies former large and jovial Clerk at 39 Regt RA and seconded to RAPA for a summer season 1977?)
who found his niche (almost set in concrete) as their Parachute Rigger! and spent much time designing and sewing together his own Wing.

He is suffering from a bad back at the moment