This is contained in a secluded corner of a Marinefliegerhorst – which I would translate as a Naval Air Station on the northern outskirts of Kiel.

Working from a memory that far predates the luxury of web searches, I have loaded an internet map of Kiel which strongly suggests to me that the Marinefliegerhorst was at the east end of Flughafen Kiel-Holtenau, entrance off K5 Boelckestrasse. Having entered the Marinefliegerhorst (and waved our MOD Form 90 at the German conscript on the gate), we must have followed the perimeter road along the northern edge of the base parallel to Schusterkrug and Prieser Strand.

The yacht club clubhouse backed onto Prieser Strand in a quiet inlet between the Marinefliegerhorst and the Stickenhornmole. Live Search suggests that the club is still there (not having been there for 22 years I cannot say if it remains British) and the yachts are clearly visible tied up to dolphins either side of the jetty. Looking at an aerial photo suggests that the guard post is no longer there so I would guess the whole place has been demilitarised.

Approaching from seaward, the Stickenhorn light on the end of the mole was our navigation point.Between the entrance from Shusterkrug and the clubhouse is a wooded area. My memory suggests that the NAAFI was airfield side of the woods, nearer the gate than the clubhouse. And thinking about it all these years later, I am now surprised to remember fairly clearly that it WAS a NAAFI and not some German equivalent, being on a German base.

Looking again at the map, this time in bird’s eye view, the detail is outstanding. As I type, the picture of the helipad south-east of the clubhouse clearly shows two helicopters (one largely inside a hangar) which look remarkably like Search and Rescue helicopters, but the two boats tied up to the jetty between the helicopter pad and the yacht club look decidedly civilian, possibly ferries across the Kieler Bucht (Kiel Bay), whereas between 1978 and 1985, these jetties were packed with decidedly military Landing Ships. I have fond memories of racing off Kiel.

Fascinated by this bird’s eye view picture I have been back and had another look. In this view you CAN see a barrier across the road, but it has been moved south a few metres, beyond the access road to the BKYC. This suggests to me that the BKYC has been demilitarised, but the airfield has not, which makes sense to me.

Just south west of the road block is a square marked out with parking spaces, surrounded by typically German garrison blocks. My memory strongly suggests that the NAAFI was in the block on the west side of the car park, furthest from the BKYC. But I could be wrong ….

AlienFTM

More information on the history of the Kiel Yacht Club can be found here.