Ministry of Aviation (Nazi Germany)

This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. Please help to improve this article by introducing more precise citations. (March 2010) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Ministry of Aviation" Nazi Germany – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (January 2021) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

Reich Ministry of Aviation

Reichsluftfahrtministerium
Reichsadler
The Ministry of Aviation, December 1938
Agency overview
Formed	27 April 1933 (1933-04-27)
Dissolved	8 May 1945 (1945-05-08)
Jurisdiction	Government of Nazi Germany
Headquarters	Reichsluftfahrtministerium 52°30′31.31″N 13°23′2.4″E / 52.5086972°N 13.384000°E / 52.5086972; 13.384000
Minister responsible	Hermann Göring

The Ministry of Aviation (German: Reichsluftfahrtministerium, abbreviated RLM) was a government department during the period of Nazi Germany (1933–45). It is also the original name of the Detlev-Rohwedder-Haus building on the Wilhelmstrasse in central Berlin, Germany, which today houses the German Finance Ministry (German: Bundesministerium der Finanzen).

The Ministry was in charge of development and production of all aircraft developed, designed, and built in Germany during the existence of the Third Reich, overseeing all matters concerning both military and civilian designs – it handled military aviation matters as its top priority, particularly for the Luftwaffe. As was characteristic of government departments in the Nazi era, the Ministry was personality-driven and formal procedures were often ignored in favour of the whims of the Minister, Reichsmarschall Hermann Göring. As a result, early successes in aircraft development progressed only slowly and erratically during World War II.