Carentan Airfield
Encyclopedia
Carentan Airfield is an abandoned World War II
military airfield, which is located near the commune
of Carentan
in the Basse-Normandie
region
of northern France
.
Located just outside of Carentan, the United States Army Air Force established a temporary airfield 15 June 1944, nine days after the first Allied landings in France on D-Day
and only three days after the capture of Carentan. The airfield was one of the first established in the liberated area of Normandy, being constructed by the IX Engineering Command, 826th Engineer Aviation Battalion.
"A-10", the airfield consisted of a single 5000' (1500m) Prefabricated Hessian Surfacing runway aligned 08/26. In addition, tents were erected for billeting and also for support facilities; an access road was built to the existing road infrastructure; a dump was created for supplies, ammunition, and gasoline drums, along with a drinkable water; and a minimal electrical grid for communications and station lighting was installed.
Combat units stationed at the airfield were the 50th Fighter Group, which based P-47 Thunderbolt
fighters at Carentan from 20 June through 23 August 1944, and the 370th Fighter Group, which based P-38 Lightning
fighters at the airfield from 25 June through 16 August 1944.
The fighter planes flew support missions during the Allied invasion of Normandy, patrolling roads in front of the beachhead; stafing German military vehicles and dropping bombs on gun emplacements, anti-aircraft artillery and concentrations of German troops when spotted.
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 4 November 1944. Today a small portion of the wartime airfield is used as a private airfield.
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, which is 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 Carentan
Carentan
Carentan is a small rural town near the north-eastern base of the French Cotentin Peninsula in Normandy in north-western France near the port city of Cherbourg-Octeville. Carentan has a population somewhat over 6,000 and is now administratively organized as a commune in the Manche department...
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 Carentan, the United States Army Air Force established a temporary airfield 15 June 1944, nine days after the first Allied landings in France on 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...
and only three days after the capture of Carentan. The airfield was one of the first established in the liberated area of Normandy, being constructed by the IX Engineering Command, 826th 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-10", the airfield consisted of a single 5000' (1500m) Prefabricated Hessian Surfacing runway aligned 08/26. In addition, tents were erected for billeting and also for support facilities; an access road was built to the existing road infrastructure; a dump was created for supplies, ammunition, and gasoline drums, along with a drinkable water; and a minimal electrical grid for communications and station lighting was installed.
Combat units stationed at the airfield were the 50th Fighter Group, 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 Carentan from 20 June through 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 25 June through 16 August 1944.
The fighter planes flew support missions during the Allied invasion of Normandy, patrolling roads in front of the beachhead; stafing German military vehicles and dropping bombs on gun emplacements, anti-aircraft artillery and concentrations of German troops when spotted.
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 4 November 1944. Today a small portion of the wartime airfield is used as a private airfield.
See also
- Advanced Landing Ground