Cardonville
Encyclopedia
Cardonville is a commune
in the Calvados
department in the Basse-Normandie
region
in northwestern France
.
IX Engineering Command began construction of a combat Advanced Landing Ground
outside of the town. Declared operational on 14 June, the airfield was designated as "A-3
", it was used by the 368th Fighter Group
which flew P-47 Thunderbolt
s until the end of August when the unit moved into Central France. Along with the 368th, the 370th Fighter Group flew P-38 Lightning
s from the airfield until mid-August. With the combat units moved out, the airfield was closed.
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 Calvados
Calvados
The French department of Calvados is part of the region of Basse-Normandie in Normandy. It takes its name from a cluster of rocks off the English Channel coast...
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...
in northwestern 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...
.
World War II
After the liberation of the area by Allied Forces in early June 1944, engineers of the Ninth Air ForceNinth 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....
IX Engineering Command began construction of a combat Advanced Landing Ground
Advanced 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...
outside of the town. Declared operational on 14 June, the airfield was designated as "A-3
Cardonville Airfield
Cardonville Airfield is an abandoned World War II military airfield located near the commune of Cardonville in the Basse-Normandie region of northern France....
", it was used by 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 flew 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...
s until the end of August when the unit moved into Central France. Along with the 368th, the 370th Fighter Group flew 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...
s from the airfield until mid-August. With the combat units moved out, the airfield was closed.