During Soviet times, Vaiņode was the site of one of the Soviet Union’s largest military airfields in the Baltic States. During the period of Latvia’s independence, the country’s first dirigibles were based here. Eventually their hangars were dismantled and brought to Rīga, where they were used for the Rīga Central Market. They are still there today. Some of Latvia’s first gliders took off from Vaiņode. During the Soviet occupation, the airfield was home to an air defence and destroyer squadron, with 38 SU-27 “Flanker” destroyers on site. After the restoration of Latvia’s independence, the Vaiņode airfield was dismantled in part, and the big plates of concrete that covered the runways and the rest of the airfield were used to improve the Liepāja port. There are still 16 hangars at the airport, and 1,800 of the formerly 2,500 metres long runway are also still there. More information about the airfield can be found at the Vaiņode Regional Research Museum.
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