Hamburg Altona Station RTO

Tone

Thanks for your latest input which brIngs back memories of my trainspotting days in BAOR in the 1950s

Did you ever have dealings with the special train for King Alfred School Ploen which stopped in Hamburg HBF to drop off/collect 40 or so pupils whose father's were stationed in the Hamburg area at the beginning and end of every term?

Incidentally I believe the Blue Train empty to and from Fallingbostel/Hannover in the last years of existence there being no sevicing facilities for either the locomotive or rolling stock in EFFing B

Looks a little different to my last visit in 1965 Hamburg trains & planes

Towards the end of 1958, the BLUE train ceased running to Hamburg. After Bremen it then ran through to Hannover where it was serviced. We airmen in Hamburg were then required to travel down to Bremen to meet and greet the morning BLUE train to the Hook around 10 am. This was a single man duty shared amongst five of us. I actually logged 41 return trips in uniform. Having waved off the Hook , we then had to keep ourselves amused until the service from the Hook arrived late afternoon.. Most of us took the opportunity to visit the NAAFI in Delmenhorst. My two years were up in April 1959. I cannot be sure but I believe 86 Movement Unit moved out some time in 1961..

Tone587 wrote:

Towards the end of 1958, the BLUE train ceased running to Hamburg. After Bremen it then ran through to Hannover where it was serviced. We airmen in Hamburg were then required to travel down to Bremen to meet and greet the morning BLUE train to the Hook around 10 am. This was a single man duty shared amongst five of us. I actually logged 41 return trips in uniform. Having waved off the Hook , we then had to keep ourselves amused until the service from the Hook arrived late afternoon.. Most of us took  the opportunity to visit the NAAFI in Delmenhorst. My two years were up in April 1959.  I cannot be sure but I believe 86 Movement Unit moved out some time in 1961..

The Military rail/sea service operated both from the UK and Germany on a Mon, Wed, and Fri, with ultimate destination
arrival the following day. You would have had to spend the night in Bremen.

Brian, Tone

To dot the eyes/cross the tees

The Blue train was diverted beyond Soltau to Hannover following the closure of Hamburg Garrison and the majority of the British Army presence in Schleswig Holstein. It officially terminated/started at Fallingbostel but loco and empty coaches were based in Hannover It continued to stop at Langwedel (for Verden and Nienburg) between Bremen and Soltau.

JPW.............A very good day to you and all others looking in.

As you know I was at King Alfred School. Plon from 1952/54 .My two sisters and I used the Train to go back and forth to School.My father was then based in Hameln.
So which would have been the train we used  and I should like to know the route taken.I do have a good memory but this one escapes me.
I remember it seemed to take for ever to get there.
However They were happy days.

Hoping you can help out.

Regards to you and all others looking in.
John.
Oxford.

P/s  Ref my promised reports  & photos on The Oxfordshire Repatriation Parades.
I still await permission to use some early photos. Sorry but it will happen.

John,

It was the Green Train that went to Hameln. It was a slow route, I traveled on it to Paderborn.

Brian

John

Are you after details of the BAOR Troop trains or the KAS version? Have details of both

Brian/John

Thank you both for your reply's

Brian.........If I might ask,when were you @ KAS please. and where in Paderborn.

John........In fact I would just like the KAS train routes please.

Thank you both again and regards to you both and all others looking in.

P/s...Are we going to get a SUMMER this year.

John.Oxford..

John, I spent a short time at Normandy Barracks in Sennelager, a few minutes from Paderborn, before being posted to German/Netherlands border near Munchen Gladbach. The only train I ever travelled on was the the Green one. Brian

Good afternoon everyone, I'm looking for some information on which barracks my father was stationed in. He's approaching his 90th birthday & I thought it would be nice for him to rekindle a few old memories. He doesn't remember the exact name but it was in the Altona district of Hamburg. He was in the Royal Engineers 1950-52 & spent most of his time in Movement Control at the train station there as well as up in Flensberg. Any information you could provide would be greatly appreciated.

Hi Mark, Welcome to the site.

Someone who specialises in the immediate post war era around Hamburg maybe able to assist you in the coming week. Good Luck!

Regards
Alan

Welcome Mark

Not sure for 1950/52 but probably the same location

Q (Movement) Hamburg District moved into the Prien Building in Uxbridge Barracks on 20 Sep 47

Hope this helps
https://britisharmyingermany.com (under construction)

Thanks Steve,I'll follow the link you provided. My father remembers that it was a recently constructed building(pre-war) & had one of those German worker/soldier large engravings on the exterior. Many thanks.

The current Hamburg Altona station your father will recall is a terminus, due to be replaced in December 2023 with a new station 1 km further north on the site of the S-Bahn station at Hamburg-Diebsteich, the existing station was sold by DB to the Hamburg City Government in June 2015 for euro 38.8 million and will be redeveloped with 1900 apartments planned

Thanks Steve, there are some photos of the station & platforms that I remember seeing many years ago.My father won't have thrown them out - the trick is finding them! Is this thread the right place to post them or is there a more dedicated thread for that sort of thing?

Thanks Mark, hope you find them and sure here will be fine.

Mark Farrell wrote:

Good afternoon everyone, I'm looking for some information on which barracks my father was stationed in. He's approaching his 90th birthday & I thought it would be nice for him to rekindle a few old memories. He doesn't remember the exact name but it was in the Altona district of Hamburg. He was in the Royal Engineers 1950-52 & spent most of his time in Movement Control at the train station there as well as up in Flensberg. Any information you could provide would be greatly appreciated.

Hi Mark,
Its a long time ago now, not too many old soldiers left, especially such a small group as Movement Control
A pity you did not ask 3 or 4 years ago, John Collier ex Mover of that period, and had a lot of info and photos, all which were on the web but have since disappeared, and I did correspond with him. Seems he died
My interest, was after nearly 2 years in BAOR with RE bridging regiment, I was posted back to UK to a Movement Control Group at Longmoor. Sept 1952
MC "units" were called groups; and they were not often together at any one time. My group at Longmoor was about 120 men.
I am only guessing, but I think only one group covered the whole of BAOR, we had a major CO, but BAOR may well have had a Lt.Col. due to its important roll, mainly the leave trains. So the Group would have been on the trains, and at important stations that military and families got on and off or were transferred. These would have been Hook of Holland, Hannover, Hamburg, Berlin and others maybe Osnabruck were the NAAFI coach was attached / detached.
So your Father may have been only one of perhaps 6 men at Hamburg, for accommodation, food etc, they would likely have been housed with other similar small groups and or with a larger regiment. Your Father may also have made a number of trips on the trains
Does anyone remember the small MP's office on Liverpool Street station, under the taxi exit ramp platform 10; likely MC men would have also used this office
I never went to Hamburg by train only truck.
Sorry I can help further
Regards
Sapper

Thank you for your reply burgess720.
Your service dates certainly seem to overlap with my father's. He spent some time at Longmoor - prior to his deployment to Germany & again when he was called back to do his 14 days camp in the years that followed. I believe he did his training at Pinefield camp outside Elgin in Scotland.
Just this morning I was encouraging him to reminisce & to his obvious delight - he remembered the name of his C.O in Hamburg - a Major Matthew Wood.
As you mentioned , there seems to have been only half a dozen of them stationed there at any one time.
I continue to look for his photographs which I'll try & post here when I find them. On behalf of myself & my father L/cpr 22393521 Donald Farrell, many thanks.

Mark Farrell wrote:

Thank you for your reply burgess720.
Your service dates certainly seem to overlap with my father's. He spent some time at Longmoor - prior to his deployment to Germany & again when he was called back to do his 14 days camp in the years that followed. I believe he did his training at Pinefield camp outside Elgin in Scotland.
Just this morning I was encouraging him to reminisce & to his obvious delight - he remembered the name of his C.O in Hamburg - a Major Matthew Wood.
As you mentioned , there seems to have been only half a dozen of them stationed there at any one time.
I continue to look for his photographs which I'll try & post here when I find them. On behalf of myself & my father L/cpr 22393521 Donald Farrell, many thanks.

Mark,
It is just possible we met, Elgin was a training camp, I did mine at Aldershot for 4 weeks then Cove, near Farnborough for 7 weeks
From your Fathers number, I reckon he joined about May / June 1950
CO a Major in Hamburg; I may be right, the MC group may have been headed by a Lt.Col
Good luck with the photos, we all enjoy those old photos, take you back to the good old days
Regards
Sapper