Picauville Airfield
Encyclopedia
Picauville Airfield is an abandoned World War II
military airfield, which is located near the commune
of Picauville
in the Basse-Normandie
region
of northern France
.
Located just outside of Picauville , the United States Army Air Force established a temporary airfield shortly after D-Day
on 20 June 1944, shortly after the Allied landings in France The airfield was one of the first established in the liberated area of Normandy, being constructed by the IX Engineering Command, 826th Engineer Aviation Battalion.
"A-8", the airfield consisted of a single 5000' (1500m) Prefabricated Hessian Surfacing runway aligned 07/25. In addition, with tents were used for billeting and also for support facilities; an access road was built to the existing road infrastructure; a dump for supplies, ammunition, and gasoline drums, along with a drinkable water and minimal electrical grid for communications and station lighting.
Combat units stationed at the airfield were the 405th Fighter Group, which based P-47 Thunderbolt
fighters at Picauville from 30 June through 14 September 1944.
The fighter planes flew support missions during the Allied invasion of Normandy, patrolling roads in front of the beachhead; stafing German military vehicles and dropping bombs on gun emplacements, anti-aircraft artillery and concentrations of German troops when spotted.
After the Americans moved east into Central France with the advancing Allied Armies, the airfield was closed on 15 September 1944. Today, little or no physical evidence of its existence is visible.
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...
military airfield, which is located near the commune
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...
of Picauville
Picauville
Picauville is a commune in the Manche department in Normandy in north-western France.-Heraldry:-World War II:After the liberation of the area by Allied Forces in early June 1944, engineers of the Ninth Air Force IX Engineering Command began construction of a combat Advanced Landing Ground to the...
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...
of 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...
.
Located just outside of Picauville , the United States Army Air Force established a temporary airfield shortly after D-Day
D-Day
D-Day is a term often used in military parlance to denote the day on which a combat attack or operation is to be initiated. "D-Day" often represents a variable, designating the day upon which some significant event will occur or has occurred; see Military designation of days and hours for similar...
on 20 June 1944, shortly after the Allied landings in France The airfield was one of the first established in the liberated area of Normandy, being constructed by the IX Engineering Command, 826th Engineer Aviation Battalion.
History
Known as Advanced Landing GroundAdvanced 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...
"A-8", the airfield consisted of a single 5000' (1500m) Prefabricated Hessian Surfacing runway aligned 07/25. In addition, with tents were used for billeting and also for support facilities; an access road was built to the existing road infrastructure; a dump for supplies, ammunition, and gasoline drums, along with a drinkable water and minimal electrical grid for communications and station lighting.
Combat units stationed at the airfield were the 405th Fighter Group, which based 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...
fighters at Picauville from 30 June through 14 September 1944.
The fighter planes flew support missions during the Allied invasion of Normandy, patrolling roads in front of the beachhead; stafing German military vehicles and dropping bombs on gun emplacements, anti-aircraft artillery and concentrations of German troops when spotted.
After the Americans moved east into Central France with the advancing Allied Armies, the airfield was closed on 15 September 1944. Today, little or no physical evidence of its existence is visible.
See also
- Advanced Landing Ground