Juvincourt-et-Damary
Encyclopedia
Juvincourt-et-Damary is a commune
in the Aisne
department in Picardy
in northern France
.
facility. It was seized by the Germans in June 1940 during the Battle of France
, and was used as a major Luftwaffe
military airfield during the occupation.
The airfield was attacked on several occasions by United States Army Air Force Eighth Air Force
heavy bombers and later by IX Bomber Command B-26 Marauder
medium bombers, the airfield was liberated by Allied Forces in early September 1944. Once in American hands, combat engineers of the IX Engineering Command 820th Engineer Aviation Regiment repaired the damaged airfield and declared it operationally ready for combat units on 7 September, only a few days after its capture from German forces, being designated as "A-68
"
The airfield was used by numerous Ninth Air Force
combat units until May 1945. Afterward, the airfield was used for transport and as a maintenance base until being closed in July 1945, and was returned to French Air Force Control.
After the war, the French Air Force began building a new faculty, with a new taxiway and modern dispersal pads. However, it appears that construction was never completed and the airfield was abandoned. Today the remains of Juvincourt Airfield consist of several abandoned World War II-era runways, along with the unfinished modern airfield in a vacant area.
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...
in the Aisne
Aisne
Aisne is a department in the northern part of France named after the Aisne River.- History :Aisne is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790. It was created from parts of the former provinces of Île-de-France, Picardie, and Champagne.Most of the old...
department in Picardy
Picardy
This article is about the historical French province. For other uses, see Picardy .Picardy is a historical province of France, in the north of France...
in 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...
.
Juvincourt Airfield
Built prior to World War II as a French Air ForceFrench Air Force
The French Air Force , literally Army of the Air) is the air force of the French Armed Forces. It was formed in 1909 as the Service Aéronautique, a service arm of the French Army, then was made an independent military arm in 1933...
facility. It was seized by the Germans in June 1940 during the Battle of France
Battle of France
In the Second World War, the Battle of France was the German invasion of France and the Low Countries, beginning on 10 May 1940, which ended the Phoney War. The battle consisted of two main operations. In the first, Fall Gelb , German armoured units pushed through the Ardennes, to cut off and...
, and was used as a major Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe is a generic German term for an air force. It is also the official name for two of the four historic German air forces, the Wehrmacht air arm founded in 1935 and disbanded in 1946; and the current Bundeswehr air arm founded in 1956....
military airfield during the occupation.
The airfield was attacked on several occasions by United States Army Air Force Eighth Air Force
Eighth Air Force
The Eighth Air Force is a numbered air force of the United States Air Force Global Strike Command . It is headquartered at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana....
heavy bombers and later by IX Bomber Command B-26 Marauder
B-26 Marauder
The Martin B-26 Marauder was a World War II twin-engine medium bomber built by the Glenn L. Martin Company. First used in the Pacific Theater in early 1942, it was also used in the Mediterranean Theater and in Western Europe....
medium bombers, the airfield was liberated by Allied Forces in early September 1944. Once in American hands, combat engineers of the IX Engineering Command 820th Engineer Aviation Regiment repaired the damaged airfield and declared it operationally ready for combat units on 7 September, only a few days after its capture from German forces, being designated as "A-68
Juvincourt Airfield
Juvincourt Airfield is an abandoned military airfield, which is located near the commune of Juvincourt-et-Damary in the Aisne department of northern France....
"
The airfield was used by numerous Ninth Air Force
Ninth Air Force
The Ninth Air Force is a numbered air force of the United States Air Force's Air Combat Command . It is headquartered at Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina....
combat units until May 1945. Afterward, the airfield was used for transport and as a maintenance base until being closed in July 1945, and was returned to French Air Force Control.
After the war, the French Air Force began building a new faculty, with a new taxiway and modern dispersal pads. However, it appears that construction was never completed and the airfield was abandoned. Today the remains of Juvincourt Airfield consist of several abandoned World War II-era runways, along with the unfinished modern airfield in a vacant area.