Heuberg Training Area

[1] On the Großer Heuberg, a plateau in the southwest of the Swabian Jura in an altitude of 800–970 metres (2,620–3,180 ft),[2] is the area between Albstadt in the north, Meßstetten in the west, Schwenningen in the south and Stetten am kalten Markt on the south-east, where the army installations at Lager Heuberg and Albkaserne are located.

The barracks, the training area and the proving ground comprise approximately 47.9 square kilometres (11,800 acres).

In August 1899 the Grand Duchy of Baden's Ministry of Finance was informed by the General Command in Karlsruhe of the requirements for a future training area.

The agency assigned to conduct the search (Domänendirektion) quickly determined that the wishes of the military could not be met by any of the candidates.

Since both the terrain and the purchase presented the fewest difficulties, the site was chosen, despite the fact that the future training area was only one-third in Baden and would not have a railway connection.

Plans for a military station below the outer firing position Blumersberg in Meßstetten were worked out in detail for 8000 gold marks.

In some cases forced expropriations by the Reich Treasury was necessary, since not all prospective sellers were in agreement with the land prices offered by the military.

[7] The establishment of the training area forced the destruction of several settlements which had been built to improve the economic situation of the population in the former territory of Straßberg, Zollernalbkreis.

[8] for example, Harthof and Lenzenhütte— also called Glashüttehof— in Straßberg, Ochsenkopf and Waldhof in Kaiseringen, Knobelhof in Heinstetten, Sebastiansweiler with the Sebastian Chapel and Weinitz and Hardt in Frohnstetten.

[9] For this purpose, on February 19, 1910, the National Military Treasury acquired the so-called Hammermühle, an old ironworks in Thiergarten in Beuron with channel and weir from the House of Fürstenberg for 35.000 Reichsmarks.

Along the more than 300 metres (980 ft) higher training area three elevated tanks and a pressure line were built from 1909.

1925 Stetten was connected to the sewage treatment plant with the western center part, 1981 the district Glashütte was added.

On March 1, 1945, on the Ochsenkopf about 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) from the Camp Heuberg, 23-year-old Luftwaffe test pilot Lothar Sieber made the initial (and only) test flight of the Bachem Ba 349 "Natter"— the world's first manned flight of a vertical take-off rocket plane.

Since the training area is burdened by its nearly century-old military use to a large extent with ammunition and parts, entering and driving is extremely dangerous and therefore strictly forbidden for civilians.

After the inauguration of the firing ranges, a meadow was allocated to the Gypsies as a camping site at the edge of the restricted area.