Liegenschaft Breitensee

Hidden in plain sight, the Liegenschaft Breitensee holds a century of secrets. This unassuming military site has witnessed a fascinating evolution. The Liegenschaft Breitensee began its life in 1916. It wasn’t a military site then. It was a factory for the Carl Zeiss GmbH. The prominent observatory dome, still visible today, hints at its original purpose. The Zeiss factory didn’t last long. It was abandoned shortly after World War I. The site was sold to Radiowerke Schrack AG in 1929. They produced radio tubes and radios there. The Wiener Radiowerke AG (WIRAG), a Philips subsidiary, took over the site in 1936. They expanded the Liegenschaft Breitensee, adding production of ship and aircraft instruments during World War II. After the war, WIRAG resumed radio tube production. They even produced the first Philips tape recorder in Austria there in 1947 and the first video recorder in 1964. The site buzzed with innovation. Radio recorders followed in the 1970s. Philips eventually moved production elsewhere between 1985 and 1987. The Austrian Armed Forces acquired the Liegenschaft Breitensee. The city of Vienna urged them to take it over. The military transformed the factory halls into storage spaces, workshops, offices, and accommodations. The Liegenschaft Breitensee even housed Austria’s main military communications hub until 2008. It connected Austrian troops on overseas missions with their homeland. The antennas and equipment were later moved to other locations. Today, the original Zeiss factory building serves as a storage facility for the Vienna Technical Museum. Despite plans to sell the Liegenschaft Breitensee, the army still uses it. It is an essential site for the Army Sports Center and other military functions.