Cardonville Airfield
Encyclopedia
Cardonville Airfield is an abandoned World War II
military airfield located near the commune
of Cardonville
in the Basse-Normandie
region
of northern France
.
Located just outside of Cardonville, the United States Army Air Force established a temporary airfield shortly after D-Day
on 10 June 1944, shortly after the Allied landings in France The airfield was one of the first established in the liberated area of Normandy, being constructed by the IX Engineering Command, 816th Engineer Aviation Battalion.
"A-3", the airfield consisted of a single 5000' (1500m) Square-Mesh Track runway aligned 15/33. Tents were used for billeting and for support facilities; an access road was built to the existing road infrastructure; a dump for supplies, ammunition, and gasoline drums, along with a drinkable water and minimal electrical grid for communications and station lighting.
Combat units stationed at the airfield were the 368th Fighter Group
, which based P-47 Thunderbolt
fighters at Cardonville from 20 June though 23 August 1944, and the 370th Fighter Group, which based P-38 Lightning
fighters at the airfield from 24 July though 15 August 1944.
The fighter planes flew support missions during the Allied invasion of Normandy, patrolling roads in front of the beachhead, attacking German military vehicles, gun emplacements, anti-aircraft artillery and concentrations of German troops in Normandy and Brittany.
After the Americans moved east into Central France with the advancing Allied Armies, the airfield was used for resupply and casualty evacuation. It was closed on 1 September 1944. Today the airfield is a mixture of various agricultural fields.
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
military airfield located near the commune
Communes of France
The commune is the lowest level of administrative division in the French Republic. French communes are roughly equivalent to incorporated municipalities or villages in the United States or Gemeinden in Germany...
of Cardonville
Cardonville
Cardonville is a commune in the Calvados department in the Basse-Normandie region in northwestern France.-World War II:After the liberation of the area by Allied Forces in early June 1944, engineers of the Ninth Air Force IX Engineering Command began construction of a combat Advanced Landing Ground...
in the Basse-Normandie
Basse-Normandie
Lower Normandy is an administrative region of France. It was created in 1956, when the Normandy region was divided into Lower Normandy and Upper Normandy...
region
Régions of France
France is divided into 27 administrative regions , 22 of which are in Metropolitan France, and five of which are overseas. Corsica is a territorial collectivity , but is considered a region in mainstream usage, and is even shown as such on the INSEE website...
of northern France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
.
Located just outside of Cardonville, the United States Army Air Force established a temporary airfield shortly after D-Day
D-Day
D-Day is a term often used in military parlance to denote the day on which a combat attack or operation is to be initiated. "D-Day" often represents a variable, designating the day upon which some significant event will occur or has occurred; see Military designation of days and hours for similar...
on 10 June 1944, shortly after the Allied landings in France The airfield was one of the first established in the liberated area of Normandy, being constructed by the IX Engineering Command, 816th Engineer Aviation Battalion.
History
Known as Advanced Landing GroundAdvanced Landing Ground
Advanced Landing Ground was the term given to the temporary advance airfields constructed by the Allies during World War II in support of the invasion of Europe...
"A-3", the airfield consisted of a single 5000' (1500m) Square-Mesh Track runway aligned 15/33. Tents were used for billeting and for support facilities; an access road was built to the existing road infrastructure; a dump for supplies, ammunition, and gasoline drums, along with a drinkable water and minimal electrical grid for communications and station lighting.
Combat units stationed at the airfield were the 368th Fighter Group
368th Fighter Group
The 368th Fighter Group is an inactive United States Army Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with the XII Tactical Air Command stationed at Fliegerhorst Straubing , Germany. It was deactivated on 20 August 1946....
, which based P-47 Thunderbolt
P-47 Thunderbolt
Republic Aviation's P-47 Thunderbolt, also known as the "Jug", was the largest, heaviest, and most expensive fighter aircraft in history to be powered by a single reciprocating engine. It was heavily armed with eight .50-caliber machine guns, four per wing. When fully loaded, the P-47 weighed up to...
fighters at Cardonville from 20 June though 23 August 1944, and the 370th Fighter Group, which based P-38 Lightning
P-38 Lightning
The Lockheed P-38 Lightning was a World War II American fighter aircraft built by Lockheed. Developed to a United States Army Air Corps requirement, the P-38 had distinctive twin booms and a single, central nacelle containing the cockpit and armament...
fighters at the airfield from 24 July though 15 August 1944.
The fighter planes flew support missions during the Allied invasion of Normandy, patrolling roads in front of the beachhead, attacking German military vehicles, gun emplacements, anti-aircraft artillery and concentrations of German troops in Normandy and Brittany.
After the Americans moved east into Central France with the advancing Allied Armies, the airfield was used for resupply and casualty evacuation. It was closed on 1 September 1944. Today the airfield is a mixture of various agricultural fields.
See also
- Advanced Landing Ground