In 1912 the Halberstädter Flugzeugwerke aircraft manufacturer was founded followed by the opening of a military airbase, providing the German "Luftstreitkräfte" in World War I. After the war it had to close down according to the regulations of the Treaty of Versailles, until in the course of the German re-armament, it opened again in 1935 as a branch of the Junkers company in Dessau. The aircraft factory was the site of an "SS" forced labourer camp, one of several subcamps of Buchenwald; the production facilities and the nearby "Luftwaffe" airbase were targets of Allied bombing during the 'Big Week' in February 1944.