Saints Aerodrome, was a temporary

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

airfield in France. It was located North of

Saints In religious belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of holiness Sacred describes something that is dedicated or set apart for the service or worship of a deity; is considered worthy of spiritual res ...

, in the

Île-de-France , timezone1 = CET , utc_offset1 = +01:00 , timezone1_DST = CEST , utc_offset1_DST = +02:00 , blank_name_sec1 = Gross regional product , blank_info_sec1 = Ranked 1st , bla ...

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and the interaction of humanity and t ...

in north-central

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

Overview

The airfield was one of the many built to cope with the German offensive towards the river Marne which started in late May 1918. The first units to fly from the airfield were French "escadrilles", flying missions for the resisting French troops. The newly operational American

I Corps Observation Group The I Corps Observation Group was a United States Army Air Service unit that fought on the Western Front during World War I as part of the Air Service, First United States Army. It was demobilized in France after the 1918 Armistice with Germany ...

arrived on 29 June with

1st Aero Squadron First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and reco ...

and

12th Aero Squadron The 12th Aero Squadron was a United States Army Air Service unit that fought on the Western Front during World War I. The squadron was assigned as a Corps Observation Squadron, performing short-range, tactical reconnaissance over the I Corps, ...

, while

88th Aero Squadron The 88th Aero Squadron was an Air Service, United States Army unit that fought on the Western Front during World War I. The squadron was assigned as a Corps Observation Squadron, performing short-range, tactical reconnaissance over the III Cor ...

stayed at Ourches, joining the Group later at Francheville. The stay was brief as the whole Group already moved and met together at

Francheville Aerodrome Francheville Aerodrome was a temporary World War I airfield in France. It was located north of Coulommiers, in the Île-de-France region in north-central France. Overview The airfield was built in June 1918 in some haste as the German armies w ...

, north of Coulommiers, on 6 July. The 1st Pursuit Group moved into Saints shortly afterwards (9 July) with its four pursuit (fighter) squadrons and began flying offensive combat patrols over the Aisne-Marne Sector. From Saints, the group engaged in combat at the moment when the Allied armies were beginning to push back the German troops, a reverse move that would end with the Armistice on 11 November... As the front line was moving eastwards, the Group used Coincy Aerodrome as an advance airfield, as soon as the German flying units had left it on 1 August. By early September the front had moved quiet far from Saints and the 1st Pursuit Group moved up to

Rembercourt Aerodrome Rembercourt Aerodrome was a temporary World War I airfield in France. It was located east-northeast of Rembercourt aux Pots, now part of Rembercourt-Sommaisne, in the Meuse department in northeastern France. Overview An airfield was built and ...

to get closer to action. As the 1st Pursuit Group moved out, the Saints Aerodrome had become useless and was abandoned, soon to be returned to agricultural use. Today it is a series of cultivated fields located north of Saints. The airfield was located to the north of the Départmental 15 (D15), with no indications of its wartime use.

Known units assigned

* Headquarters,

, 29 June-6 July 1918 *

(Observation) 29 June-6 July 1918 *

(Observation) 29 June-6 July 1918 * Headquarters,

1st Pursuit Group First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and reco ...

, 9 July-1 September 1918 *

27th Aero Squadron The 27th Aero Squadron was a United States Army Air Service unit that fought on the Western Front during World War I. The squadron was assigned as a Day Pursuit (Fighter) Squadron as part of the 1st Pursuit Group, First United States Army. It ...

(Pursuit) 9 July-3 September 1918 *

94th Aero Squadron The 94th Aero Squadron was the United States Army Air Service designation for the current 94th Fighter Squadron that fought on the Western Front during World War I.. The squadron was assigned as a Day Pursuit (Fighter) Squadron as part of th ...

(Pursuit) 9 July-1 September 1918 * 95th Aero Squadron (Pursuit) 9 July-2 September 1918 *

147th Aero Squadron The 147th Aero Squadron was a United States Army Air Service unit that fought on the Western Front during World War I. The squadron was assigned as a Day Pursuit (Fighter) Squadron as part of the 1st Pursuit Group, First United States Army. It ...

(Pursuit) 9 July-1 September 1918

References

* Series "D", Volume 2, Squadron histories,. Gorrell's History of the American Expeditionary Forces Air Service, 1917–1919, National Archives, Washington, D.C.

External links

{{authority control World War I sites of the United States World War I airfields in France

Overview

Known units assigned

See also

References

External links