Tantonville Airfield

Tantonville Airfield Advanced Landing Ground (ALG) Y-1
Lorraine Region, France
Tantonville Airfield
Coordinates	48°27′30.48″N 006°09′05.70″E / 48.4584667°N 6.1515833°E / 48.4584667; 6.1515833
Type	Military airfield
Site information
Controlled by	United States Army Air Forces
Site history
Built	Early 1945
In use	February–April 1945
Battles/wars	Southern France Campaign

Tantonville Airfield is an abandoned World War II United States Army Air Forces military airfield in France, which was located in the Département de Meurthe-et-Moselle approximately 18 kilometres (11 mi) north of Mirecourt and 18 kilometres (11 mi) south-southeast of Neuves-Maisons.

History

P-47D-27-RE Thunderbolt 404th Fighter Squadron, 371st Fighter Group, 9th Air Force Taken at: Tantonville Airfield (Y-1), France, 12 January 1945

The airfield was constructed by the IX Engineer Command as a temporary facility, with a 5000' x 120' all weather pierced steel planking (PSP) runway, aligned 01/19. In addition the airfield contained a large parking apron, as well as for dispersal sites. 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. It was known as Tantonville Airfield or Advanced Landing Ground Y-1 and released to Ninth Air Force on 25 December 1944.

The XIX Tactical Air Command 100th Fighter Wing 371st Fighter Group moved onto the field even before it was officially completed on 20 December, with three squadrons of P-47 Thunderbolts. They remained until 15 February until moving east.

The Twelfth Air Force 86th Fighter Group and its 525th, 526th, and 527th Squadrons operated P-47 Thunderbolts from the airfield between late February to mid-April 1945 before moving east to a captured Luftwaffe airfield at Braunshardt, Germany (Y-72) near Darmstadt.

After the 86th moved out the airfield was manned by the 98th Service Squadron. It was used as a resupply and casualty evacuation airfield for the balance of the war. It was then dismantled and the land returned to civil authorities on 11 May 1945. The area where Tantonville Airfield was constructed is now an agricultural area, although the ground still shows evidence of its runway and parking apron.

References

This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency website http://www.afhra.af.mil/.

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.
Maurer, Maurer. Air Force Combat Units of World War II. Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History, 1983. ISBN 0-89201-092-4.
Maurer, Maurer, ed. (1982) [1969]. Combat Squadrons of the Air Force, World War II (PDF) (reprint ed.). Washington, DC: Office of Air Force History. ISBN 0-405-12194-6. LCCN 70605402. OCLC 72556.
IX Engineering Command ETO Airfields layout

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Y-1 Tantonville.

USAAF Ninth Air Force in World War II

Stations

Palestine (Mand)	Lydda Muqueibile Ramat David St Jean

Egypt	Abu Sueir Ismailia El Amiriya Daba Deversoir Fayid Kabrit * Landing Ground 174 Payne Sidi Haneish

Libya	Baheira Belandah Benina Castel Benito Berca Darragh El Adem El Assa Gambut Hamraiet Lete Martuba Tmed El Chel Tobruk Tripoli Sidi Azeiz

Tunisia	Ben Gardane Bou Grara Chekira Hani Hazbub Hergla El Djem El Haouaria Kairouan Medenine Menzel Heurr Sfax Soltane

United Kingdom	Aldermaston Andover Andrews Field Ashford Balderton Barkston Heath Beaulieu Birch Bisterne Boreham Bottesford Boxted Charmy Down Chalgrove Chilbolton Chipping Ongar Christchurch Cottesmore Earls Colne Exeter Folkingham Fulbeck Gosfield Great Dunmow Greenham Common Grove High Halden Headcorn Holmsley South Hurn Ibsley Kingsnorth Langar Lashenden Little Walden Lymington Matching Membury Merryfield Middle Wallop North Witham Ramsbury Raydon Rivenhall Saltby Scorton Staplehurst Spanhoe Stansted Stoney Cross Thruxton Upottery Warmwell Welford Weston Zoyland Wethersfield Winkton Woodchurch Wormingford

Europe	Advanced Landing Grounds (ALGs) in France, Belgium, Netherlands, and Germany too numerous.

Units

Commands

Wings

Bombardment	97th Bombardment 98th Bombardment 99th Bombardment

Fighter	8th Fighter 9th Fighter 70th Fighter 71st Fighter 84th Fighter 100th Fighter 303d Fighter

Troop carrier	50th Troop Carrier 52d Troop Carrier 53d Troop Carrier

Groups

Bombardment	12th Bombardment 98th Bombardment 322d Bombardment 323d Bombardment 340th Bombardment 344th Bombardment 376th Bombardment 386th Bombardment 387th Bombardment 391st Bombardment 394th Bombardment 397th Bombardment 409th Bombardment 410th Bombardment 416th Bombardment

Fighter	36th Fighter 48th Fighter 50th Fighter 57th Fighter 79th Fighter 324th Fighter 354th Fighter 358th Fighter 365th Fighter 362d Fighter 363d Fighter 366th Fighter 367th Fighter 368th Fighter 370th Fighter 371st Fighter 373d Fighter 404th Fighter 405th Fighter 406th Fighter 474th Fighter

Troop carrier	61st Troop Carrier 64th Troop Carrier 313th Troop Carrier 314th Troop Carrier 315th Troop Carrier 316th Troop Carrier 349th Troop Carrier 434th Troop Carrier 435th Troop Carrier 436th Troop Carrier 437th Troop Carrier 438th Troop Carrier 439th Troop Carrier 440th Troop Carrier 441st Troop Carrier 442d Troop Carrier IX Troop Carrier Pathfinder (Provisional)

Reconnaissance	10th Reconnaissance 67th Reconnaissance 69th Reconnaissance

Squadrons

Liaison	14th Liaison 47th Liaison

Night fighter	422d Night Fighter 425th Night Fighter

United States Army Air Forces

USAAF Twelfth Air Force in World War II