Wiesbaden Army Airfield

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Wiesbaden Air Base was selected as the site for Headquarters, United States Air Forces in Europe on 28 September 1945 in large part due to its proximity to Frankfurt am Main, where the U.S. Seventh Army was Headquartered.

Major USAF organizations assigned to Wiesbaden AB/Lindsey AS:

363d Reconnaissance Group May - August 1945
51st Troop Carrier Group Sep 1945 - Aug 1948
317th Troop Carrier Group 30 Sep - 15 Dec 1948
7150th Air Force Composite Wing 15 Dec 1948- 1 Oct 1949
60th Troop Carrier Wing 1 Oct 1949 - 2 Jun 1951
7110th Support Wing 2 Jun 1951 - 1 Dec 1957
7030th Support Wing 1 Dec 1957 - 15 Nov 1959
7100th Support Wing 15 Nov 1959 - 15 Apr 1985
7100th Air Base Group 15 Apr 1985 - 1 Jun 1993

C-54 Skymaster

C-54 transport aircraft parked at Wiesbaden Air Base after a snow fall in March 1949. These aircraft are participating in airlift operations to support Berlin during the Berlin Airlift.

Beginning in September, 1945, the European Air Transport Service operated passenger and cargo service from Weisbaden daily to London, Munich, Bremen, Vienna and Berlin. From Berlin an EATS plane made weekly flights to Warsaw, Poland. Flights originated from Vienna for Bucharest, Belgrade, Sofia and Budapest. In the Mediterranean area EATS flights connected Udine, Pisa, Rome and Naples.

EATS originally was composed of left-over wartime troop carrier squadrons, glider and fighter pilots, B-17 crewmen and other available personnel.

In addition to regular flights which service the Army of Occupation, EATS also operated special flights such as providing transportation for diplomatic officials, evacuating sick or wounded, performing mercy flights, aiding the Graves Registration Command in returning the remains of American soldiers and rushing supplies to needy areas.

In 1948 the facilty served as the hub for all activities supporting the Berlin Airlift, with around-the-clock flights from Wiesbaden Air Base to Tempelhof Airport. Airmen from Wiesbaden distinguished themselves in support of "Operation Vittles". C-47's and C-54 "Skymaster" of the 60th Troop Carrier Group flew missions daily from Wiesbaden to Tempelhof Airport in the beleaguered city of Berlin. During one day's operations more than 80 tons of food and supplies were airlifted from Wiesbaden Air Base. The streets of Wiesbaden Air Base were named after servicemen that gave their lives during the Berlin Airlift.

In 1973 HQ USAFE was relocated to Ramstein Air Base, near Kaiserslautern. The Air Force moved most personnel out of Wiesbaden in 1975 as part of Operation Creek Swap, in which most Army facilities in Kaiserslautern were turned over to the Air Force, in exchange for the facilities at Wiesbaden. The 4th Brigade, 4th Infantry division was stationed at Wiesbaden in 1976 as part of "Brigade 76" until it was replaced by the 3D Combat Support Command and 12th Aviation Brigade in the mid 1980s. From 1975 through 1993 Wiesbaden was a joint Army/Air Force community with a service-wide reputation for excellence that was enhanced by the strong bonds that developed between these organizations.

1 Lindsey Air Station
2 See also
3 References
4 External links

[edit] Lindsey Air Station

The USAF, however, retained a small presence at Lindsey Air Station, an administrative part of Wiesbaden Air Base. Lindsey AS was established as an Army Air Force installation on 13 November 1946, having previously been a German Army facility named Gersdorff Kaserne.

Lindsey achieved its greatest prominence between December 1953 and 14 March 1973 when it was host base for Headquarters, USAFE.

With the transfer of Wiesbaden Air Base to the Army in 1976, Lindsey AS provided support for various assigned and attached Air Force units in the Wiesbaden area until the facility was closed in 1993.

In 1993, Wiesbaden Air Base was officially renamed Wiesbaden Army Air Field. Lindsey now houses the national headquarters of the Bundeskriminalamt.

[edit] See also

[edit] References

Fletcher, Harry R., Air Force Bases Volume II, Active Air Force Bases outside the United States of America on 17 September 1982, Office of Air Force History, 1989
Maurer Maurer, Air Force Combat Units Of World War II, Office of Air Force History, 1983