Kornasoren Airport is a civil airport in Noemfoor

Noemfoor

Numfor is one of the Biak Islands in Papua province, Indonesia. It was the site of conflict between Japanese and the Allied forces during World War II, and was major airbase for both sides.-Geography:The island is situated just north of the large Cenderawasih Bay...

, Schouten Islands

Schouten Islands

The Indonesian Schouten Islands are an island group of Papua province, eastern Indonesia in the Cenderawasih Bay 50 km off the north-western coast of the island of New Guinea...

, Indonesia

Indonesia

Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...

. . Currently, there is no commercial air service.

History

The airfield was one of three constructed by the Japanese during their occupation of the island in 1943/1944. The US Army 158th Regimental Combat Team (RCT) (Arizona National Guard) landed on the beach and encountered stiff resistance. The 503rd Parachute Infantry Regiment parachuted on Kamiri Airifled on 3 July 1944. The Japanese garrison was largely defeated after a suicidal counter-attack by the Japanese on 5 July. The island was finally secured after a month of hard fighting on 31 August 1944.

The three airfields on Nomefoor (Yebrurro, Kamiri and Namber) were used by the American forces after liberating the island. Kamari (00°56′49.77"S 134°49′29.23"E) is located along the northwest shoreline of the island and was used by the RAAF until July 1945 when it was abandoned. It has been disused since the end of the war.

Namber (01°04′21.72"S 134°49′51.57"E) is located along the southwest shoreline and was improved and used by American forces, then also abandoned after the end of the war.

Yebrurro Airfield, also used by the Americans, remained in service until the end of the war. It is still in use today as Kornasoren Airport.

Allied units stationed on Noemfoor

• 309th Bombardment Wing
  309th Air Division
  The 309th Air Division is an inactive United States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with Continental Air Command, assigned to Twelfth Air Force, being stationed at Hensley AFB, Texas. It was inactivated on 27 June 1949....
  
  (28 July-9 November 1944)
• 417th Bombardment Group
  417th Bombardment Group
  The 417th Bombardment Group is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with V Bomber Command, being stationed at Itami Airfield, Japan, where it was inactivated on 5 November 1945....
  
  (9 September-6 December 1944)
• 58th Fighter Group
  58th Special Operations Wing
  The 58th Special Operations Wing is a combat unit of the United States Air Force stationed at Kirtland Air Force Base, New Mexico. The 58 SOW is part of the Air Education and Training Command Nineteenth Air Force....
  
  (30 August 1944-3 April 1944)
• 348th Fighter Group
  108th Air Refueling Wing
  The 108th Air Refueling Wing is a unit of the New Jersey Air National Guard tasked with aerial refueling and other air mobility missions. It is based at McGuire Air Force Base and operationally gained by the Air Mobility Command . The current Commander of the 108th is...
  
  (26 August 1944-16 November 1944)

• RAAF 75 Squadron (P-40) 22 July 1944
• RAAF 76 Squadron (P-40) July 1944
• RAAF 80 Squadron (P-40) November 1944
• RAAF 22 Squadron (A-20) August 1944
• RAAF 37 Squadron (Loadstar) August 1944

See also

• USAAF in the Southwest Pacific
  United States Army Air Forces in the South West Pacific Theatre
  During World War II, the United States Army Air Forces engaged in combat against the air, ground and naval forces of the Empire of Japan in the South West Pacific Theatre....