BERLIN, Oct 28 (Reuters) - Built in just three months in 1948 to provision a city under siege, Berlin's Tegel airport closes next month, making way for the new international airport on the other side of the city, which opens this Saturday, nearly a decade behind schedule.

Tegel owes its existence to the Soviet Union's blockade of West Berlin, an isolated enclave of democratic West Germany in the Communist East, as Joseph Stalin attempted to starve out a city of around 2 million after relations among the Allies soured.

In record time, the French occupying forces that controlled that corner of Berlin constructed a new runway in a central suburb still pocked with bomb craters from the war.

The new airport helped relieve the pressure on Berlin's Tempelhof airport, also in West Berlin, where British and United States aircraft were landing almost continuously to feed the city through the cold winter of 1948-9.

It was not until the 1970s that the airport, now named after 19th century aviation pioneer Otto Lilienthal, came into its own as Berlin's main commercial airport, with an ultra modern hexagonal terminal that let passengers step from their cars onto their airliner in minutes.

That made the terminal a delight for planespotters, who loved to score close-up views from the viewing terrace, which has been reopened with social distancing for the airport's last days after having been closed due to the pandemic.

"I thought it was funny when I read that the visitors' terrace is open again," said neighbour Christina Buecher-Gaertner, remembering visiting on foot as a schoolgirl in winter 1978-9, pulling a sledge behind her.

"I don't think that's possible at any other airport because the distances are so much greater," she added. Some said they would miss the noise.

"I will miss the sound of planes when I go to bed at night because I know what time it is when they land," said Ursula Bauer, another airport neighbour.<

BERLIN, Oct 28 (Reuters) - Built in just three months in 1948 to provision a city under siege, Berlin's Tegel airport closes next month, making way for the new international airport on the other side of the city, which opens this Saturday, nearly a decade behind schedule.

Tegel owes its existence to the Soviet Union's blockade of West Berlin, an isolated enclave of democratic West Germany in the Communist East, as Joseph Stalin attempted to starve out a city of around 2 million after relations among the Allies soured.

In record time, the French occupying forces that controlled that corner of Berlin constructed a new runway in a central suburb still pocked with bomb craters from the war.

The new airport helped relieve the pressure on Berlin's Tempelhof airport, also in West Berlin, where British and United States aircraft were landing almost continuously to feed the city through the cold winter of 1948-9.

It was not until the 1970s that the airport, now named after 19th century aviation pioneer Otto Lilienthal, came into its own as Berlin's main commercial airport, with an ultra modern hexagonal terminal that let passengers step from their cars onto their airliner in minutes.

That made the terminal a delight for planespotters, who loved to score close-up views from the viewing terrace, which has been reopened with social distancing for the airport's last days after having been closed due to the pandemic.

"I thought it was funny when I read that the visitors' terrace is open again," said neighbour Christina Buecher-Gaertner, remembering visiting on foot as a schoolgirl in winter 1978-9, pulling a sledge behind her.

"I don't think that's possible at any other airport because the distances are so much greater," she added. Some said they would miss the noise.

"I will miss the sound of planes when I go to bed at night because I know what time it is when they land," said Ursula Bauer, another airport neighbour.<

Australians have been warned not to fall victim to a scam using a fake endorsement from TV personality David Koch after one man lost $30,000.

Scammers are using photos, and 'dodgy' quotes from the Sunrise host to trick people into investing their money into a fake cryptocurrency trading app.

In a tense on-air showdown with Assistant Treasurer Stephen Jones, Kochie asked how the government planned to crack down on the ads.

Kochie said a scam victim had abused him on Facebook who was angry he had lost thousands of dollars to the dodgy investment platform.

'I had a bloke on the weekend contact me through Facebook, abusing me because he had lost $30,000 on a scam that used my picture and dodgy comments from me,' he told the assistant treasurer.

The host claimed fraudsters had used his photo to push scams for years on platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook and Taboola.

Kochie appeared defeated as he admitted: 'I can't do anything about it'.

Fired-up Sunrise host David Koch (pictured left) asked Assistant Treasurer Stephen Jones (right) how the government planned to crack down on the dodgy ads

'Here at Channel Seven, we get sued by you and the ACCC if we run a dodgy ad. Why can't Facebook and Instagram and LinkedIn take the same responsibilities as mainstream media groups?' Kochie continued. 

'It's just heartbreaking for our viewers that get sucked in by these sorts of things.'

Mr Jones admitted the government was powerless to take action against the scammers because the laws were lagging so far behind the technology.

'We are adamant that the law needs to change,' Mr Jones said.

'We need to drag it into the 21st Century. Social media platforms need to be accountable for the material they are publishing.

Kochie is quoted to have said he is making 'thousands everyday' from the fake crypto scam 

'If they are told you have got dodgy stuff online and or unlawful stuff online,