Tour-en-Bessin Airfield
| Tour-en-Bessin Airfield Advanced Landing Ground (ALG) A-13  | |
|---|---|
|
Basse-Normandie Region, France   Saint-Pierre-du-Mont Airfield Saint-Pierre-du-Mont Airfield (France) | |
| Coordinates | 49°17′27″N 000°44′59″W / 49.29083°N 0.74972°W |
| Type | Military airfield |
| Site information | |
| Controlled by |
 United States Army Air Forces, 1944 |
| Site history | |
| Built | July 1944 |
| Built by | IX Engineering Command |
| In use | July–December 1944 |
| Materials | Pierced Steel Planking (PSP) |
| Battles/wars |
Western Front (World War II) Northern France Campaign Eastern France/Benelux Campaign |
Tour-en-Bessin Airfield is an abandoned World War II military airfield, located near the commune of Tour-en-Bessin in the Basse-Normandie region of northern France. It lies to the southeast of Tour-en-Bessin.
The United States Army Air Force established a temporary airfield on 12 July 1944, shortly after the Allied landings in France. It was constructed by the IX Engineering Command, 833d and 846th Engineer Aviation Battalions.
History
Known as Advanced Landing Ground "A-13", the airfield consisted of a main 5000' (1500m) Pierced Steel Planking runway aligned 12/30 and a secondary 5000' PSP runway aligned 01/19. In addition, 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.[1]
The 373d Fighter Group based P-47 fighters at Tour-en-Bessin from 19 July through 19 August 1944. They were supplemented on 5 August by the 406th Fighter Group, also flying P-47s, until 17 August. When the fighter units moved east, they were replaced by the B-26-equipped 394th Bombardment Group which came in from RAF Holmsley South. The medium bombers remained until 18 September when they also moved east into Central France.[2]
The fighter planes flew support missions during the Allied push into France, patrolling roads, strafing German military vehicles and dropping bombs on gun emplacements, anti-aircraft artillery and concentrations of German troops in Normandy and Brittany when spotted. The bombers also attacked bridges and German-controlled airfields in occupied areas.
After the Americans moved east into Central France with the advancing Allied armies, the airfield was used as a resupply and casualty evacuation airfield for several months, before being closed on 2 December 1944. Today the airfield is almost indistinguishable from the agricultural fields in the area, however the south end of the 01/19 runway is visible by the curvature of some fields, and some slight ground disturbance in a field to the east probably is from the 12/30 runway.[3]
References
This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the Air Force Historical Research Agency.
- ↑ 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
- ↑ 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
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