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Tortorella Airfield is an abandoned
The major tenant of the airfield was the
''Air Force Combat Units of World War II''. Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History, 1983. pp. 170–171. . Tortorella was shared with 231 Wing ( No. 37 Squadron RAF, 37 and 70 Squadrons) of
The airfield had a single, 6,700' x 100' asphalt runway laid over pierced steel planking, oriented 16/34. A second (unfinished) runway east of the main runway was used as a crash strip. There were two perimeter tracks, and several other loop taxiways each containing about 50 aircraft parking hardstands. The 99th used the west side of the field, and the RAF the east.
There may have been some temporary hangars and buildings; however, it appears that personnel were quartered primarily in tents, and most aircraft maintenance took place in the open on hardstands. It also had a steel control tower. Headquarters for the 99th Bomb Group was located in the town of Tavernola, about 3 km east of the airfield.
Both the RAF and the 99th departed after the end of the war, the 99th moving to Marcianise Airfield in October 1945, where its B-17s were placed into storage. Sometime after that departure, the engineers moved in and dismantled the facility.
Today Tortorella Airfield has been returned to agriculture; however, some scarring of the landscape remains, with evidence of the main runway visible in aerial photos.
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
military airfield in Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
. It was located 9.4 kilometers east-northeast of Foggia
Foggia (, , ; nap, label= Foggiano, Fògge ) is a city and former ''comune'' of Apulia, in Southern Italy, capital of the province of Foggia. In 2013, its population was 153,143. Foggia is the main city of a plain called Tavoliere, also known ...
, in the Province of Foggia
The Province of Foggia ( it, Provincia di Foggia ; Foggiano: ) is a province in the Apulia (Puglia) region of southern Italy.
This province is also known as Daunia, after the Daunians, an Iapygian pre-Roman tribe living in Tavoliere plain, and ...
. The airfield was abandoned and dismantled after the end of the war in 1945.
History
Tortorella Airfield was a temporary wartime facility built by the US Army Corps of Engineers. Construction was initiated shortly after Allied forces seized control of the Tavoliere plain around Foggia, Apulia, Italy.Abandoned & Little-Known Airfields: Italy, Apulia FoggiaThe major tenant of the airfield was the
99th Bombardment Group
The 99th Infantry Division was formed in 1942 and deployed overseas in 1944. The "Checkerboard" or "Battle Babies" division landed at the French port of Le Havre and proceeded northeast to Belgium. During the heavy fighting in the Battle of the ...
, which arrived from Oudna Airfield, Tunisia on 11 December 1943. It was equipped with Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress bombers.Maurer, Maurer''Air Force Combat Units of World War II''. Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History, 1983. pp. 170–171. . Tortorella was shared with 231 Wing ( No. 37 Squadron RAF, 37 and 70 Squadrons) of
No. 205 Group RAF
No. 205 (Heavy Bomber) Group was a long-range, heavy bomber group of the Royal Air Force (RAF) established on 23 October 1941 by boosting No. 257 Wing RAF, No. 257 Wing to Group status.
Tri-force model
During the North Africa Campaign in Egypt an ...
. It was equipped with Vickers Wellington Mk.X, Consolidated LB-30 Liberators, Short Stirlings and Avro Lancaster bombers. Tortorella was one of the few stations that the RAF was in a tenant status to the US Army Air Forces.
The 99th Bomb Group consisted of four squadrons:
* 346th Bombardment Squadron
* 347th Bombardment Squadron
The 347th Bombardment Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was last assigned to the 4047th Strategic Wing. It was inactivated at McCoy Air Force Base, Florida on 1 April 1963.
During World War II, the 347th Bombardment Squ ...
* 348th Bombardment Squadron
* 416th Bombardment Squadron
The airfield had a single, 6,700' x 100' asphalt runway laid over pierced steel planking, oriented 16/34. A second (unfinished) runway east of the main runway was used as a crash strip. There were two perimeter tracks, and several other loop taxiways each containing about 50 aircraft parking hardstands. The 99th used the west side of the field, and the RAF the east.
There may have been some temporary hangars and buildings; however, it appears that personnel were quartered primarily in tents, and most aircraft maintenance took place in the open on hardstands. It also had a steel control tower. Headquarters for the 99th Bomb Group was located in the town of Tavernola, about 3 km east of the airfield.
Both the RAF and the 99th departed after the end of the war, the 99th moving to Marcianise Airfield in October 1945, where its B-17s were placed into storage. Sometime after that departure, the engineers moved in and dismantled the facility.
Today Tortorella Airfield has been returned to agriculture; however, some scarring of the landscape remains, with evidence of the main runway visible in aerial photos.
See also
*Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress airfields in the Mediterranean Theater of Operations
Units in the Mediterranean Theater of Operations (MTO) were the second-largest user of the Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress during World War II. There were a total of six combat groups (twenty-four squadrons) equipped with the bomber assigned to the ...
References
External links
Airfields of the United States Army Air Forces in Italy Airfields of the Fifteenth Air Force during World War II Airports established in 1943 {{Italy-airport-stub