Editing Tartu (section)

===German and Soviet occupations (1940–1991)===

During World War II, the [[Stalin]]ist Soviet Union invaded and occupied Estonia and Tartu in June 1940. Large parts of the city as well as the historical ''Kivisild'' ("Stone bridge", built in 1776–1778) over the Emajõgi river were destroyed by the retreating Soviet Army, partly in 1941 and almost completely in 1944 by then retreating German Army. Already heavily damaged, Tartu was repeatedly bombed by the Soviet air forces on 27 January 1943, on 26 February 1944, on 7–8 March 1944, and on 25–26 March 1944. After the war ended, much of the city's historic centre was left in ruins. Even the less damaged buildings in entire city blocks were demolished by the Soviet occupation authorities and large swathes of previously residential areas were turned into parks and parking lots.

After the war, the Soviet authorities declared Tartu a "closed town for foreigners", as an airbase for bombers was constructed on [[Raadi Airfield]], in the northeast outskirts of the city. It was one of the largest military airbases in the former Eastern Bloc and housed strategic bombers carrying nuclear bombs.<!--The location itself was where the Estonian 2nd Air Division was situated prior to 1940. The concrete runway there was later used to house a large used cars market and was sometimes used for automotive racing.--> On one end of an older strip of the runway, the new building of [[Estonian National Museum]] was built.

[[Tartu Airport]] was opened in the south of the city in 1946. Besides the airport [[Estonian Aviation Academy]] was established in 1993. Privately owned [[Estonian Aviation Museum]], which is 5&nbsp;km to the East of the airport (7&nbsp;km by car), was opened to the public in 2002.
During the 1944–1991 Soviet occupation the population of Tartu almost doubled from 57,000 to above 100,000 — due to mass immigration from Russia and other areas of the former Soviet Union, in large part because of the military airbase. 
[[File:AHHAA.jpg|thumb|AHHAA Science Centre with Tigutorn visible in the background]]