Coulommiers – Voisins Aerodrome: Difference between revisions
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==History== |
==History== |
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=== Armée de l'Air use during World War II=== |
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Coulommiers Airport has its direct origins in 1938 when the French Armée de l'Air established the base. French aviation had been ongoing in the area as far back as early balloon flights by the De Montgolfier brothers in 1783 and various glider and other aeronautical experiments in the 19th Century. The battles of the Marne were fought in the region during [[World War I]], and numerous French and German aircraft were in the area.<ref>[http://www.skylighters.org/cv/index.html The Airfield at Coulommiers-Voisins]</ref> |
Coulommiers Airport has its direct origins in 1938 when the French Armée de l'Air established the base. French aviation had been ongoing in the area as far back as early balloon flights by the De Montgolfier brothers in 1783 and various glider and other aeronautical experiments in the 19th Century. The battles of the Marne were fought in the region during [[World War I]], and numerous French and German aircraft were in the area.<ref>[http://www.skylighters.org/cv/index.html The Airfield at Coulommiers-Voisins]</ref> |
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The Armée de l'Air had stationed GC III/6 and GC III/7 at the airfield; GC III/6 was equipped with single-engine [[Morane-Saulnier M.S.406]] fighters and GC III/7 with [[Bloch MB.220]] fighters. With the outbreak of [[World War II]] in Septermber 1939, additonal squadrons of both French and [[Royal Air Force]] aircraft were assigned to Coulommiers, including RAF [[Supermarine Spitfire]]s; various reconnaissance aircrft, and [[Dewoitine D.520]] (GC I/3).<ref>[http://www.anciens-aerodromes.com/terrains%20aviations/coulommiers.htm History of Coulommiers Airfield]</ref> Combat forces from the airfield fought in the [[Battle of France]] during May and June 1940, until the final armistice with Germany of 20 June. |
The Armée de l'Air had stationed GC III/6 and GC III/7 at the airfield; GC III/6 was equipped with single-engine [[Morane-Saulnier M.S.406]] fighters and GC III/7 with [[Bloch MB.220]] fighters. With the outbreak of [[World War II]] in Septermber 1939, additonal squadrons of both French and [[Royal Air Force]] aircraft were assigned to Coulommiers, including RAF [[Supermarine Spitfire]]s; various reconnaissance aircrft, and [[Dewoitine D.520]] (GC I/3).<ref>[http://www.anciens-aerodromes.com/terrains%20aviations/coulommiers.htm History of Coulommiers Airfield]</ref> Combat forces from the airfield fought in the [[Battle of France]] during May and June 1940, until the final armistice with Germany of 20 June. |
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===German use=== |
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Seized by the Germans in June 1940 during the [[Battle of France]], Coulommiers was used as a [[Luftwaffe]] military airfield during the occupation. Known units assigned (all from Luftlotte 3, Fliegerkorps IV):<ref name="ren1">[http://www.ww2.dk The Luftwaffe, 1933-45]</ref><ref>[http://www.rlm.at/cont/archiv02_e.htm Identification codes of units of the Luftwaffe 1939 - 1945]</ref> |
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* Kampfgeschwader 54 (KG 54) 10-26 Jul 1940 [[Junkers Ju 88]]A (Fuselage Code: B3+) |
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* Schnellkampfgeschwader 10 (SKG 10) Sep-Oct 1943 [Focke-Wulf Fw 190]]A |
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* Kampfgeschwader 2 (KG 2) 11 Apr-10 Aug 1943 [[Dornier Do 217]]E/K/M (Fuselage Code: U5+) |
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* Nachtjagdgeschwader 4 (NJG 4) 8 May-Aug 194 [[Messerschmitt Bf 110]] (Fuselage Code: U5+) |
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KG 54 fought in the [[Battle of Britain]]; SKG 10 was a day interceptor unit against Eighth Air Force heavy bombers; KG 2 was used to attack Allied shipping around England; NJG4 was a night interceptor unit against RAF bombing attacks. |
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| ⚫ | The Luftwaffe also expanded the facility with an entirely new dispersal area in a wooded area to the northeast of the French airfield, building numerous dispersal pads and taxiways. It was the target of frequent attacks by Allied aircraft, being attacked on 14 June 1944 by [[Eighth Air Force]] [[B-17 Flying Fortress]]es; and by [[IX Bomber Command]] [[B-26 Marauder]]s on 23 June. On 27 June over 30 [[P-51 Mustang]]s attacked the airfield on strafing runs.<ref>[http://www.peachmountain.com/5Star/Liberation_of_Coulommiers.aspx Liberation of Coulommiers, France, August 27, 1944]</ref> |
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===American use=== |
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It was liberated by Allied ground forces about 1 September 1944 during the Northern France Campaign. Almost immediately, the [[United States Army Air Force]] IX Engineering Command 825th Engineer Aviation Battalion cleared the airport of mines and destroyed Luftwaffe aircraft. Coulommiers Airfield became a USAAF [[Ninth Air Force]] combat airfield, designated as "A-58" after about one week of reconstruction on 8 September with two 6000' concrete runways fully operational.<ref>Johnson, David C. (1988), U.S. Army Air Forces Continental Airfields (ETO), D-Day to V-E Day; Research Division, USAF Historical Research Center, Maxwell AFB, Alabama.</ref><ref>[http://www.ixengineercommand.com/airfields/physical.php IX Engineer Command ETO Airfields, Airfield Layout]</ref> |
It was liberated by Allied ground forces about 1 September 1944 during the Northern France Campaign. Almost immediately, the [[United States Army Air Force]] IX Engineering Command 825th Engineer Aviation Battalion cleared the airport of mines and destroyed Luftwaffe aircraft. Coulommiers Airfield became a USAAF [[Ninth Air Force]] combat airfield, designated as "A-58" after about one week of reconstruction on 8 September with two 6000' concrete runways fully operational.<ref>Johnson, David C. (1988), U.S. Army Air Forces Continental Airfields (ETO), D-Day to V-E Day; Research Division, USAF Historical Research Center, Maxwell AFB, Alabama.</ref><ref>[http://www.ixengineercommand.com/airfields/physical.php IX Engineer Command ETO Airfields, Airfield Layout]</ref> |
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Revision as of 21:16, 27 September 2009
Coulommiers-Voisins Airport | |||||||||||||||||||
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| Summary | |||||||||||||||||||
| Location | Coulommiers, France | ||||||||||||||||||
| Elevation AMSL | 470 ft / 143 m | ||||||||||||||||||
| Coordinates | 48°50′15″N 003°00′58″E / 48.83750°N 3.01611°E | ||||||||||||||||||
| Runways | |||||||||||||||||||
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Coulommiers Airport (ICAO: LFPK) is a regional airport in France, located 4 miles (6.4 km) west-northwest of Coulommiers; 34 miles (55 km) west of Paris
It supports general aviation with no commercial airline service scheduled.
History
Armée de l'Air use during World War II
Coulommiers Airport has its direct origins in 1938 when the French Armée de l'Air established the base. French aviation had been ongoing in the area as far back as early balloon flights by the De Montgolfier brothers in 1783 and various glider and other aeronautical experiments in the 19th Century. The battles of the Marne were fought in the region during World War I, and numerous French and German aircraft were in the area.[1]
The Armée de l'Air had stationed GC III/6 and GC III/7 at the airfield; GC III/6 was equipped with single-engine Morane-Saulnier M.S.406 fighters and GC III/7 with Bloch MB.220 fighters. With the outbreak of World War II in Septermber 1939, additonal squadrons of both French and Royal Air Force aircraft were assigned to Coulommiers, including RAF Supermarine Spitfires; various reconnaissance aircrft, and Dewoitine D.520 (GC I/3).[2] Combat forces from the airfield fought in the Battle of France during May and June 1940, until the final armistice with Germany of 20 June.
German use
Seized by the Germans in June 1940 during the Battle of France, Coulommiers was used as a Luftwaffe military airfield during the occupation. Known units assigned (all from Luftlotte 3, Fliegerkorps IV):[3][4]
- Kampfgeschwader 54 (KG 54) 10-26 Jul 1940 Junkers Ju 88A (Fuselage Code: B3+)
- Schnellkampfgeschwader 10 (SKG 10) Sep-Oct 1943 [Focke-Wulf Fw 190]]A
- Kampfgeschwader 2 (KG 2) 11 Apr-10 Aug 1943 Dornier Do 217E/K/M (Fuselage Code: U5+)
- Nachtjagdgeschwader 4 (NJG 4) 8 May-Aug 194 Messerschmitt Bf 110 (Fuselage Code: U5+)
KG 54 fought in the Battle of Britain; SKG 10 was a day interceptor unit against Eighth Air Force heavy bombers; KG 2 was used to attack Allied shipping around England; NJG4 was a night interceptor unit against RAF bombing attacks.
The Luftwaffe also expanded the facility with an entirely new dispersal area in a wooded area to the northeast of the French airfield, building numerous dispersal pads and taxiways. It was the target of frequent attacks by Allied aircraft, being attacked on 14 June 1944 by Eighth Air Force B-17 Flying Fortresses; and by IX Bomber Command B-26 Marauders on 23 June. On 27 June over 30 P-51 Mustangs attacked the airfield on strafing runs.[5]
American use
It was liberated by Allied ground forces about 1 September 1944 during the Northern France Campaign. Almost immediately, the United States Army Air Force IX Engineering Command 825th Engineer Aviation Battalion cleared the airport of mines and destroyed Luftwaffe aircraft. Coulommiers Airfield became a USAAF Ninth Air Force combat airfield, designated as "A-58" after about one week of reconstruction on 8 September with two 6000' concrete runways fully operational.[6][7]
Under American control, the airfield was assigned to Ninth Air Force, with the following combat units assigned:
- 425th Night Fighter Squadron, 11 Sep-13 Oct 1944 (P-61 Black Widow)
- 410th Bombardment Group, Sep 1944-Feb 1945 (A-20 Havoc)
The combat unit then moved east along with the Allied lines and the airport became transport airfield, hosting C-47 Skytrains of the 437th Troop Carrier Group from Feburary until the summer of 1945, after end of the war. The Americans returned full control of the airport to French authorities on 8 August 1945.[8]
Postwar
After the war, the airfield was abandoned for a number of years, but remained in the hands of the French Air Ministry. During the 1950s, plans were made to use Coulommiers as an alternate for Le Bourget Airport. In addition, construction of two circular marguerite systems of aircraft hardstands was made in order to upgrade the airfield to NATO standards for possible military use. In 1960, a decision was made to reopen Orly Airport (then being a USAF base (Orly Air Base)) as a civil commercial airport and plans for the use of Coulommiers were discontinued. [9]
Current
In aerial photography the prewar French Air Force base is very evident with large numbers of wartime taxiways and both wartime runways still existing. Although greater than 70 years old, the concrete with expansion joints separating the poured sections are quite evident, but surprisingly well intact. Large numbers of Eighth Air Force bomb craters on both the 09/27 primary and the 04/22 secondary runways are quite evident by the concrete patches applied by the Air Force combat engineers in 1944. Numerous bomb craters are also in the grass areas around the margueries and the former Luftwaffe dispersal area. In additon, it appears that the American combat engineers resurfaced a significant amount of taxiways and dispersal pads connected to the runways with Prefabricated Hessian Surfacing (PHS) which remains today, in a deteriorated state. The Luftwaffe expansion to the base remains intact, complete with dispersal revetments in the woods, and concrete taxiways. Numerous bomb craters are visible in the open areas around the woods.
Numerous wartime airfield buildings surround the airfield and what appears to be the prewar French Air Force barracks and support buildings appear to be in various states of disrepair with overgrown vegetation and very tall trees that once lined the roads in a neat, military manner. A large number of bomb craters appear in the remains, with some buildings being in use, probably as agricultural buildings. The communes of Giremoutiers and Corbeville are attached to this area.
The current airport has been overlaid on the remains of the wartime airfield, with the main 09/27 runway 4600' in length being a fresh asphalt overlay on the wartime concrete runway. An asphalt taxiway is also overlaid over a wartime taxiway, with modern hangars and a terminal on the south side of the airfield. Two short grass runways were constructed over the wartime airfield, used for gliders and light aircraft. Modern navigational aids are available and the facility is well maintained.
References
This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency
- ^ The Airfield at Coulommiers-Voisins
- ^ History of Coulommiers Airfield
- ^ The Luftwaffe, 1933-45
- ^ Identification codes of units of the Luftwaffe 1939 - 1945
- ^ Liberation of Coulommiers, France, August 27, 1944
- ^ Johnson, David C. (1988), U.S. Army Air Forces Continental Airfields (ETO), D-Day to V-E Day; Research Division, USAF Historical Research Center, Maxwell AFB, Alabama.
- ^ IX Engineer Command ETO Airfields, Airfield Layout
- ^ Maurer, Maurer. Air Force Combat Units of World War II. Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History, 1983. ISBN 0-89201-092-4.
- ^ The Airfield at Coulommiers-Voisins
External links
- Coulommiers Airfield History (In French)
- Airport information for LFPK at Great Circle Mapper.
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