The Flying Classroom (German: Das Fliegende Klassenzimmer) is a 1933 novel for children written by the German writer Erich Kästner.
In the book Kästner took up the predominantly British genre of the school story, taking place in a boarding school, and transferred it to an unmistakable German background.
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The story covers the last few days of term before Christmas for the students of Johann-Sigismund Gymnasium, through the eyes of Johnathan - an orphan who was adopted by a captain. The main characters, Johnathan and the four other boys from his dormitory - students from the Tertia (Year 8) - spend their free-time in an old railway carriage which is their secret meeting place. One evening when they are there they meet a man called Robert (referred to by the boys as Nichtraucher - or Nonsmoker - after the carriage they play in. He attests himself to be the owner of the land and makes friends with the boys. There is a bitter struggle between the students at St Thomas and the 'Externen' (outsiders) after the outsiders steal the music of the sopranos and kidnap Sebastian, son of the Direction Kreuzkamm. This results in a brawl between two champions of each side - Matz and a hard-fought snow-ball fight, both of which the six friends win, although they end up late for oratory demonstration. As a punishment they have to write and perform a Christmas play. When playing in the railway carriage, they discover a Christmas play called 'The Flying Classroom' which they decide to perform as a rap - writing out music, inventing stage effects and finding costumes. They invite Mona to join their troupe as a dancer, after seeing her street-dance one evening, which corresponds to a revolution, because girls are not actually allowed to participate. Dr. Johann 'Justus' Bökh hears the rehearsal and watches in amazement, which very quickly turns into anger when he recognises the play. He forbids the boys to continue rehearsing it, provoking Johnathan to angrily shout down the corridor at him and kick one of the pieces of scenery, causing a fire which forces the school to evacuate. In a meeting with the boys afterwards, Justus is forced to admit why he banned the play - it was because he had written it with his friend Bob who had subsequently escaped the Berlin Wall and fled to the West. The Stasi suspected Justus of aiding him and he had to quit school and become an apprentice. After the meeting the boys realise that Bob and Robert (the Nichtraucher) were the same person, and reunite the two friends.
Meanwhile, Uli, the smallest boy who is often called a coward, decides at this time to attempt something which will remove his reputation as a coward. His best friend, Matz, has in the past encouraged him, until he sees Uli about to run off the school roof suspended with two helium balloons. Uli crashes and falls unconscious, his four friends believing he's dead. Justus allays their fears that he is dead, but that he has a broken leg. The four boys gain the help of Mona, Theo and some other boys in their year and perform 'Das Fliegende Klassenzimmer' (The Flying Classroom) in a different style during the final school concert. The depiction of the "war" between the students at St Thomas and the outsiders, taken very seriously by both sides, seems to be Kästner's wry way of commenting on grown-up wars and patriotism.
Jonathan Trotz, or Johnny - a half-American boy cast away by his parents. He loves poetry and writing, and dreams of being a great writer one day. He wants to marry a kind-hearted woman and have children - children that he won't cast away.
Martin Thaler - a poor but bright student. His parents cannot afford to have him travel home this Christmas and it troubles him very much. Martin has a very strong sense of justice and will come out fighting with his friends although it means risking his scholarship.
Matthias Selbmann, or Matz - not very clever, but strong. He wants to be a professional boxer. The other children rely on him to smash their opponents. Matz is somewhat overprotective towards his best friend, Uli.
Uli von Simmern - the blonde, small, underrated rich boy, best friend of Matz. He always tries to do his best during fighting - but usually ends up hiding in fear. Uli decides to perform an act of bravado to make the others stop poking fun at him.
Sebastian Frank, or Sepp - the cynical of the five. He spends time reading 'smart books', such as ones dealing with genetics or philosophy. Although he hangs out a lot with Jonathan and the other guys, he actually has no real friends and is a lonely figure, putting up a cold mask to cover his own weaknesses.
Theodor Laban - called Der Schöne Theo (The beautiful Theo). He is Martin's prefect, busy trying to make himself look good in the eyes of the teachers.
Dr Johann Bökh, nicknamed Justus - the children's favourite teacher. He was a student of the Johann-Sigismund School and knows well how hard life in the school can be. That's why he returned to the school - to ensure that children don't have to suffer, like he did.
Dr. Robert Uthofft, nicknamed Nichtraucher - an old friend of Justus. He was a medical doctor. When he lost his wife and child, he disappeared, and later took residence in a trailer situated next to his old school. His nickname does not relate to his not smoking (he does, very much so) but to his living in an old railway carriage, which still bears a sign that reads "non-smoking".
The novel has been filmed several times, the earliest one (1954) directed by Kurt Hoffmann. In 1973 it was made as Das fliegende Klassenzimmer directed by Werner Jacobs. The newest one (2003) was directed by Tomy Wigand. The story and characters are altered to suit the present time. In Wigand's film, Sebastian Frank is fused with Rudi Kreuzkamm to produce 'Sebastian Kreuzkamm', a red-haired nerd, and the plot is liberally reinterpreted to include subjects as girls or divorce.
The principal cast are:
This was the last Kästner book published before the rise of the Nazis to power. Though Nazis are not explicitly mentioned anywhere in the book, the situation of economic crisis and mass unemployment which made many German voters turn to Hitler is very evident in the book's background.
Shortly after publishing Das fliegende Klassenzimmer he had to witness how the NSDAP turned to power and how his books were burned as well as those from other dissidents.
A short sequel, in which the characters visit the Winter Olympics of 1936 (held at Garmisch-Partenkirchen in Bavaria) was already written under the Nazi regime and was published only many years later, having less success than the original: Zwei Schüler sind verschwunden in Das Schwein beim Friseur (The Pig at the Barbershop). In it, Kästner let his characters have a friendly encounter with visiting English boys, culminating in winning their British Gold Medal, at a time when their soon meeting each other as enemy soldiers on the battlefield was already a very real possibility.