Dijon Bourgogne - Longvic Airport
Encyclopedia
Dijon Air Base is a Front-line French Air Force
( (ALA) NATO air base. The base is located approximately 2 miles (3.2 km) east-southeast of Longvic
; about 165 miles (265.5 km) southeast of Paris
Dijon Air Base is one of the oldest of the Armée de l'Air, being established in 1914, having origins beginning in September 1910 as a civil airdrome. it has been active for over 95 years through both 20th Century World Wars, the Cold War, and numerous crisis.
Operating as a joint civilian base, it is also a commercial airport, the airline Eastern Airways
began to operate at the airport in August 2010.
.
During World War II
the airport was attacked by the Luftwaffe
on several occasions (10, 14 May) during the Battle of France
. It was seized by the German Army on 25 May. Initially during the Occupation of France, it was used as a Prisoner of War camp for French and Allied personnel during August and September 1940 who surrendered during the German Blitzkrieg, being named "Front Stalag 155". While a POW camp, prisoners were used to clear the wreckage of destroyed aircraft and tear down destroyed buildings. German engineers moved in during the winter of 1940/1941 and expanded the main runway from 800 to 1400m in length, in addition to constructing many new buildings to replace the destroyed French facilities.
The first operational Luftwaffe unit to take up residence at Dijon was IV/KG 55 "Greiff", in February 1941, consisting of three squadrons (Staffel) numbers 10, 11 and 12, equipped with 12 Heinkel 111 bombers each. The unit will also include a number of Gotha 145 and Junkers 52s. This unit took part in many bombing missions over England. In March 1943, II/NJG4 arrived, a night fighter unit, equipped with three squadrons of Messerschmitt Bf 110s; Dornier 217 N-1s (RADAR equipped), and Ju 88 Ns
Also in 1943, I/Luftlandgeschwader 2. arrived at Dijon from the Crimea in the Eastern Front, equipped with Heinkel 111Z reconnaissance aircraft, as well as Gotha 242 gliders. The unit only stayed at Dijon briefly, being moved to Istres for use in the Italian Campaign.
While under Luftwaffe control, Dijon Air Base was attacked by the United States Army Air Force Eighth Air Force heavy B-17 Flying Fortress groups on several occasions in 1944 (28 March, 25 April and August 14). Tactical air units of Twelfth Air Force, moving up from Southern France as part of Operation Dragoon
attacked the base with B-26 Marauder
medium bombers and P-47 Thunderbolt
attacks, dropping 500 pound General Purpose (GP) bombs on the airfield, hangars, maintenance shops and other support buildings, causing great damage to the Luftwaffe aircraft as well as destroying much of the support station.
With the Allied ground forces advancing into the Dijon area, the Germans evacuated the base on 10 September 1944. Prior to their retreat, German engineers attempted to destroy what little remained after the bombing attacks, blowing up the control tower; shelters; bunkers; ammunition and gasoline; water towers; tanks; electrical transformers and barracks.
On 12 September the first American units arrived at the base. The base was almost totally destroyed, and rehabilitation into an operational combat airfield was begun almost immediately by the USAAF IX Engineering Command 847th Engineer Aviation Battalion, which specialized in repair of captured airfields. Work began clearing the base of mines and destroyed Luftwaffe aircraft and repairing operational facilities for use by American aircraft. A metal Pierced Steel Planking patch was laid down over the bomb damaged runway to allow aircraft operations, as well as repairing with what could be repaired quickly, and moved in what equipment was necessary to conduct combat operations. Their work paid off as Dijon Air Base was declared operationally ready on 25 September, about two weeks after their arrival. It was designated as Advanced Landing Ground
"Y-9" as an American airfield.
USAAF units assigned to the airfield were:
It was also the Headquarters of the 42d Bombardment Group
between November 1944 and July 1945. Each of the bomb groups had three or four combat squadrons of aircraft assigned to the airfield. From Dijon, attacks on German ground forces, bridges, airfields still in Luftwaffe hands, railroads and any target of opportunity of the German forces were targets of the bombers as the ground forces moved north and east into Luxembourg
and past the Siegfried Line
into Germany.
In addition to the American units, The Free French Air Force operated B-26 Marauder
s from Dijon beginning on 11 October 1944. Dijon was returned to the French Air Ministry by the Americans on on 1 July 1945.
The war had left the airbase that genuine ruins littered with rubble, debris, scrap metal and charred remains of airplanes. A number of aircraft remains and unexploded German munitions had been hastily bulldozed into bomb craters, all of which needed to be removed. The station area and the hangars and aircraft mechanical shops were devastated, also with huge quantities of unexploded munitions still littering the ground. The American combat engineers had carried out considerable repair work on the runway, and constructed temporary structures for repair and maintenance of aircraft, however the personnel lived in tents as repair of the barracks was not considered a priority for aircraft operations.
However after much reconstruction, Dijon was returned to operational service for the French Air Force. A new jet-capable runway was built and in 1949, the 2d Fighter Wing based de Havilland Vampire
jets at the base. In 1953 Dassault Mystère IV
A's arrived; in 1956, Dassault Mirage III
and Mirage IIIE in 1961.
In 1984, the Dassault Mirage 2000C arrived, upgraded in 1999 by the 2000-5F.
Today, Dijon Air Base is a modern, front-line NATO facility.
French 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...
( (ALA) NATO air base. The base is located approximately 2 miles (3.2 km) east-southeast of Longvic
Longvic
Longvic is a commune in the Côte-d'Or department in eastern France.-Population:-References:*...
; about 165 miles (265.5 km) southeast of Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
Dijon Air Base is one of the oldest of the Armée de l'Air, being established in 1914, having origins beginning in September 1910 as a civil airdrome. it has been active for over 95 years through both 20th Century World Wars, the Cold War, and numerous crisis.
Operating as a joint civilian base, it is also a commercial airport, the airline Eastern Airways
Eastern Airways
Eastern Airways is an airline with its head office at Humberside Airport in Kirmington, North Lincolnshire, England. It operates scheduled domestic and international services and private charter services...
began to operate at the airport in August 2010.
Airlines and destinations
Squadrons and aircraft
- Staff Command force protection and security of the Air Force (CFPSA).
- 2 fighter squadrons (1/2 Cigogne; 2/2 Côte d'Or) equipped with the Mirage 2000-5 (air defense)
History
Dijon Air Base is one of the oldest of the Armée de l'Air, being established in 1914, having origins beginning in September 1910 as a civilian aerodrome. Units from the base fought in World War IWorld War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
.
During World War II
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...
the airport was attacked by the 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....
on several occasions (10, 14 May) 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...
. It was seized by the German Army on 25 May. Initially during the Occupation of France, it was used as a Prisoner of War camp for French and Allied personnel during August and September 1940 who surrendered during the German Blitzkrieg, being named "Front Stalag 155". While a POW camp, prisoners were used to clear the wreckage of destroyed aircraft and tear down destroyed buildings. German engineers moved in during the winter of 1940/1941 and expanded the main runway from 800 to 1400m in length, in addition to constructing many new buildings to replace the destroyed French facilities.
The first operational Luftwaffe unit to take up residence at Dijon was IV/KG 55 "Greiff", in February 1941, consisting of three squadrons (Staffel) numbers 10, 11 and 12, equipped with 12 Heinkel 111 bombers each. The unit will also include a number of Gotha 145 and Junkers 52s. This unit took part in many bombing missions over England. In March 1943, II/NJG4 arrived, a night fighter unit, equipped with three squadrons of Messerschmitt Bf 110s; Dornier 217 N-1s (RADAR equipped), and Ju 88 Ns
Also in 1943, I/Luftlandgeschwader 2. arrived at Dijon from the Crimea in the Eastern Front, equipped with Heinkel 111Z reconnaissance aircraft, as well as Gotha 242 gliders. The unit only stayed at Dijon briefly, being moved to Istres for use in the Italian Campaign.
While under Luftwaffe control, Dijon Air Base was attacked by the United States Army Air Force Eighth Air Force heavy B-17 Flying Fortress groups on several occasions in 1944 (28 March, 25 April and August 14). Tactical air units of Twelfth Air Force, moving up from Southern France as part of Operation Dragoon
Operation Dragoon
Operation Dragoon was the Allied invasion of southern France on August 15, 1944, during World War II. The invasion was initiated via a parachute drop by the 1st Airborne Task Force, followed by an amphibious assault by elements of the U.S. Seventh Army, followed a day later by a force made up...
attacked the base with 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 and 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...
attacks, dropping 500 pound General Purpose (GP) bombs on the airfield, hangars, maintenance shops and other support buildings, causing great damage to the Luftwaffe aircraft as well as destroying much of the support station.
With the Allied ground forces advancing into the Dijon area, the Germans evacuated the base on 10 September 1944. Prior to their retreat, German engineers attempted to destroy what little remained after the bombing attacks, blowing up the control tower; shelters; bunkers; ammunition and gasoline; water towers; tanks; electrical transformers and barracks.
On 12 September the first American units arrived at the base. The base was almost totally destroyed, and rehabilitation into an operational combat airfield was begun almost immediately by the USAAF IX Engineering Command 847th Engineer Aviation Battalion, which specialized in repair of captured airfields. Work began clearing the base of mines and destroyed Luftwaffe aircraft and repairing operational facilities for use by American aircraft. A metal Pierced Steel Planking patch was laid down over the bomb damaged runway to allow aircraft operations, as well as repairing with what could be repaired quickly, and moved in what equipment was necessary to conduct combat operations. Their work paid off as Dijon Air Base was declared operationally ready on 25 September, about two weeks after their arrival. It was designated as 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...
"Y-9" as an American airfield.
USAAF units assigned to the airfield were:
- 415th Night Fighter Squadron415th Night Fighter SquadronThe 415th Tactical Fighter Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with 49th Fighter Wing stationed at Holloman Air Force Base, New Mexico...
, (Twelfth Air Force), September– November 1944, Bristol BeaufighterBristol BeaufighterThe Bristol Type 156 Beaufighter, often referred to as simply the Beau, was a British long-range heavy fighter modification of the Bristol Aeroplane Company's earlier Beaufort torpedo bomber design... - 320th Bombardment Group, 11 November 1944 – 1 April 1945 B-26 MarauderB-26 MarauderThe 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....
, B-25 MitchellB-25 MitchellThe North American B-25 Mitchell was an American twin-engined medium bomber manufactured by North American Aviation. It was used by many Allied air forces, in every theater of World War II, as well as many other air forces after the war ended, and saw service across four decades.The B-25 was named...
(12th AF) - 17th Bombardment Group, 20 November 1944 – June 1945, B-25 MitchellB-25 MitchellThe North American B-25 Mitchell was an American twin-engined medium bomber manufactured by North American Aviation. It was used by many Allied air forces, in every theater of World War II, as well as many other air forces after the war ended, and saw service across four decades.The B-25 was named...
(12th AF)
It was also the Headquarters of the 42d Bombardment Group
42d Air Division
The 42d Air Division was a unit of the United States Air Force. It was established as the 42 Bombardment Wing on 8 February 1943. The wing first saw combat in September 1943. It was inactivated in 1991.-History:...
between November 1944 and July 1945. Each of the bomb groups had three or four combat squadrons of aircraft assigned to the airfield. From Dijon, attacks on German ground forces, bridges, airfields still in Luftwaffe hands, railroads and any target of opportunity of the German forces were targets of the bombers as the ground forces moved north and east into Luxembourg
Luxembourg
Luxembourg , officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg , is a landlocked country in western Europe, bordered by Belgium, France, and Germany. It has two principal regions: the Oesling in the North as part of the Ardennes massif, and the Gutland in the south...
and past the Siegfried Line
Siegfried Line
The original Siegfried line was a line of defensive forts and tank defences built by Germany as a section of the Hindenburg Line 1916–1917 in northern France during World War I...
into Germany.
In addition to the American units, The Free French Air Force operated 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....
s from Dijon beginning on 11 October 1944. Dijon was returned to the French Air Ministry by the Americans on on 1 July 1945.
The war had left the airbase that genuine ruins littered with rubble, debris, scrap metal and charred remains of airplanes. A number of aircraft remains and unexploded German munitions had been hastily bulldozed into bomb craters, all of which needed to be removed. The station area and the hangars and aircraft mechanical shops were devastated, also with huge quantities of unexploded munitions still littering the ground. The American combat engineers had carried out considerable repair work on the runway, and constructed temporary structures for repair and maintenance of aircraft, however the personnel lived in tents as repair of the barracks was not considered a priority for aircraft operations.
However after much reconstruction, Dijon was returned to operational service for the French Air Force. A new jet-capable runway was built and in 1949, the 2d Fighter Wing based de Havilland Vampire
De Havilland Vampire
The de Havilland DH.100 Vampire was a British jet-engine fighter commissioned by the Royal Air Force during the Second World War. Following the Gloster Meteor, it was the second jet fighter to enter service with the RAF. Although it arrived too late to see combat during the war, the Vampire served...
jets at the base. In 1953 Dassault Mystère IV
Dassault Mystère IV
|-See also:-External links:*...
A's arrived; in 1956, Dassault Mirage III
Dassault Mirage III
The Mirage III is a supersonic fighter aircraft designed by Dassault Aviation during the late 1950s, and manufactured both in France and a number of other countries. It was a successful fighter aircraft, being sold to many air forces around the world and remaining in production for over a decade...
and Mirage IIIE in 1961.
In 1984, the Dassault Mirage 2000C arrived, upgraded in 1999 by the 2000-5F.
Today, Dijon Air Base is a modern, front-line NATO facility.
See also
- Advanced Landing Ground