WIE-Spot1
Wiesbaden Erbenheim Spotting Guide
- last modified on November 29, 2023
Wiesbaden-Erbenheim Airfield (WIE/ETOU) is a small military field and used by the US Army (Lucius D. Clay Kaserne). The air base is only 20 minutes by car from Frankfurt Airport as it is located between Wiesbaden and Frankfurt – only 8 km southeast of the city center of Wiesbaden. It is a homebase for several UH-60 Blackhawks, some Cessna UC-35s and some more aircrafts of the US Army. Rarely you may also see a DHC-7 or C130/C17 using the airfield, but it is mostly a small airframe hub.
The airfield was openend back in 1929 and used by German troops till the US captured it when they took over the power in greater Wiesbaden back on the 28th of March 1945. Since then, the US forces established a hub at WIE, which gained popularity during the Berlin Airlift as it was one of the major origin airfield for the Western states for their missions over Berlin in 1954. Mostly transport and smaller paseenger airplanes used Wiesbaden Erbenheim airfield as it was never a “real” fighter air base. The airfield developed over the time and has no very important rule anymore today it is rather a training and short haul base in Germany close to Ramstein.
However, Wiesbaden Airfield also hosts events and open days from time to time. It is mostly a major station during the venue for the Berlin Airlift anniversary, which takes place every 10 years.
Written by Severin Hackenberger in cooperation with Henry Reichert and Sinan Üstün. Last Update: June 2020
| Rating | |
| Movements |  |
| Photo Locations |  |
| Weather |  |
| Airport Information | |
| Runways | |
| 07/25 | 2153m (7064ft) asphalt |
| Terminals | This airport has no terminal facilities as it is a military airfield, so no public passenger terminals at all |
| Spotting Information | |
| Ladder | It is possible to take photos without a ladder but for a better angle and nice background a ladder is needed |
| Car/Public Transport | No public transport because it is an US Army Airfield. You need a car to get to the spots. |
| Restrooms | Only in nearby cities. |
| Drinks/Food | There are several restaurants and gas stations in nearby cities. |
| Hotels | Several hotels in nearby cities, but none good for spotting directly. |
| Season | You can spot there in any season as there is traffic all year. However, southern side is harder to spot from, so summer is better, when the sun comes around more. |
| Security | Since it is a US Army Airfield you should be very careful and and follow the instructions of the security staff. |
| Runway Usage | |
| General Info | The direction of approach will mostly be the same as in Frankfurt because if not they would cross each others approaches and depatures. |
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Spot #1 – Hall – 07 Arrivals |
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| WHERE | Turn off the “Zum Friedhof” street just south of the freeway A66 to the east into “Mittelpfad” road. Then pass the cementery on your left, continue till you end up at a field and turn left again heading north for a few meters till you see some parking bays on your left. Leave your car there and search your favourite spot on the fields or dirt road just around here regarding your favourite angle. Spot can be reached well by car as the freeway exit “Wiesbaden-Erbenheim” No. 6 is very close to the spot, however there is no chance to reach this spot by public transport well. |
| WHAT | Runway 07 Arrivals and low Runway 25 Depatures. |
| TIME | In the evening and early morning – this spot can only be used in summer. |
| MISC. | You can find restaurants and restrooms in the cities of Erbenheim and Nordenstadt on the other site of the freeway, but close to the spot is nothing except a parking bay. |
| FOCAL LENGTH | 150-400mm DC3 = 240mm |
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Spot #2 – Fence North – 07 Arrivals + Line-Ups |
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| WHERE | Turn off the “Zum Friedhof” street just south of the freeway A66 to the east into “Mittelpfad” road. Then pass the cementery on your left, continue till you end up at a field and turn left again heading north for a few meters till you see some parking bays on your left. Leave your car there and now turn to the south again, follow the path/farme road till you reach the fence and search your favourite spot along the fenceside regarding your favourite angle. Spot can be reached well by car as the freeway exit “Wiesbaden-Erbenheim” No. 6 is very close to the spot, however there is no chance to reach this spot by public transport well. |
| WHAT | Arrivals and Line-Ups on runway 07 – low departures on 25 may also be shoot from here, too. |
| TIME | In the evening and early morning – this spot can only be used in summer. |
| MISC. | You can find restaurants and restrooms in the cities of Erbenheim and Nordenstadt on the other site of the freeway, but close to the spot is nothing except a parking bay. Ladder is needed. |
| FOCAL LENGTH | 30-135mm DC3 = 70mm |
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Spot #3 – Base entrance road – 07 Arrivals
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| WHERE | When coming from the west, pretend like approaching the base’s offical entrance gate on the unnamed offical road and drive towards the western gate. However, before reaching, turn off this driveway to the left/north like 600m before the gate onto the dirty road leading into the fields. You can leave your car there and by the roadside or on the edge of the farmer roads and search your favourite spot around here. Spot can be reached well by car as the freeway exit “Wiesbaden-Erbenheim” No. 6 is very close to the spot, however there is no chance to reach this spot by public transport well. |
| WHAT | Arrivals on runway 07 and low depatures from Runway 25 if you go a bit away from the runway axis or you can also take nice head on shots. |
| TIME | All day long in winter – in summer there will be backlit in the early morning and in the evening, rest of the day is fine. |
| MISC. | You can find restaurants and restrooms in the cities of Erbenheim and Nordenstadt on the other site of the freeway, but close to the spot is nothing except the fields and the base. Keep a low profile and stow your cam rather as long as possible to avoid problems and attention. |
| FOCAL LENGTH | 100-400mm Apache = 330mm / C130 = 160mm |
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Spot #4 – Field – 25 Arrivals |
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| WHERE | This spot is a bit hard to reach as it is located on the fields close to the base northwest of the city of Delkenheim. There are two options how to get here:
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| WHAT | Mainly Runway 25 Arrivals but also low Runway 07 Depatures. |
| TIME | All day long in winter – in summer there will be backlit in the early morning and in the evening, rest of the day is fine. |
| MISC. | You can find restaurants and restrooms in the cities of Delkenheim and Nordenstadt, but directly here is nothing. |
| FOCAL LENGTH | 70-300mm Cessna UC35 = 390mm / DC3 = 170mm |
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Spot #5 – Fenceside – 25 Movements + partly Apron/Taxiway + heavies on 07
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|---|---|
| WHERE | This spot is a bit hard to reach as it is located on the fields close to the base northwest of the city of Delkenheim. There are two options how to get here:
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| WHAT | All runway 25 movements and also low runway 07 depatures and heavy arrival. In addition apron and taxiway actions in front. |
| TIME | All day long in winter. In summer there will be backlit in the early morning and in the afternoon |
| MISC. | You can find restaurants and restrooms in the cities of Delkenheim and Nordenstadt, but directly here is nothing. Ladder recommended although one can also shoot thru the mesh. Keep a low profile when standing at the fence and stow your cam rather as long as possible to avoid problems and attention. |
| FOCAL LENGTH | 25-300mm DC3 on runway = 180mm / T6 on runway = 345mm / DC3 on taxiway = 50mm |
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