The Western Air Defence District ( sv, Västra flygbasområdet, Flybo V) was an air defence district within the

Swedish Air Force The Swedish Air Force ( sv, Svenska flygvapnet or just ) is the air force branch of the Swedish Armed Forces. History The Swedish Air Force was created on 1 July, 1926 when the aircraft units of the Army and Navy were merged. Because of the es ...

that operated from 1943 to 1957. The unit was based in

Gothenburg Gothenburg (; abbreviated Gbg; sv, Göteborg ) is the second-largest city in Sweden, fifth-largest in the Nordic countries, and capital of the Västra Götaland County. It is situated by the Kattegat, on the west coast of Sweden, and has ...

. It was responsible for air base and supply service as well as for air defence warning service in

West Sweden West Sweden ( sv, Västsverige) is a National Area ( sv, Riksområde) of Sweden. The National Areas are a part of the Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics (NUTS) of Sweden. Geography It is located in the south-west of the country, ce ...

and parts of

North Middle Sweden North Middle Sweden ( sv, Norra Mellansverige) is a National Area ( sv, Riksområde) of Sweden. The National Areas are a part of the Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics (NUTS) of Sweden. Geography The region is situated in the centr ...

History

According to the

Defence Act of 1942 Defense or defence may refer to: Tactical, martial, and political acts or groups * Defense (military), forces primarily intended for warfare * Civil defense, the organizing of civilians to deal with emergencies or enemy attacks * Defense industr ...

, Sweden was divided territorially into five air defence districts. The eastern and

Upper Norrland Upper Norrland ( sv, Övre Norrland) is a National Area ( sv, Riksområde) of Sweden. The National Areas are a part of the Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics (NUTS) of Sweden. Geography Övre Norrland is the northernmost region of ...

air defence districts were established on 1 July 1942, the others a year later. The task of the air defence districts was to be responsible for the air base and supply service within the respective area, after 1948 also for air defence warning service. The task was also to maintain the administration of training sites and wartime airfields as well as facilities and depots at these in peacetime, as well as to prepare the

's basing in war. The Western Air Defence District included the III Military District, which covered the counties of

Gothenburg and Bohus Gothenburg and Bohus County ( sv, Göteborgs och Bohus län) was a Counties of Sweden, county of Sweden until 1997, when it was merged with Skaraborg County and Älvsborg County to form Västra Götaland County. The county was named after the Ci ...

, Älvsborg,

Skaraborg Skaraborg may refer to the following places: * Skaraborg County, a former county of Sweden *Västergötland, a historical province of Sweden that includes the area of the former county *Västra Götaland County Västra Götaland County ( sv, V ...

(all three now joined as

Västra Götaland County Västra Götaland County ( sv, Västra Götalands län) is a county or '' län'' on the western coast of Sweden. The county is the second most populous of Sweden's counties and it comprises 49 municipalities (''kommuner''). Its population of 1 ...

) and

Halland Halland () is one of the traditional provinces of Sweden (''landskap''), on the western coast of Götaland, southern Sweden. It borders Västergötland, Småland, Scania and the sea of Kattegat. Until 1645 and the Second Treaty of Brömsebro ...

, along with

Örebro Örebro ( , ) is the List of urban areas in Sweden by population, sixth-largest city in Sweden, the seat of Örebro Municipality, and capital of the Örebro County. It is situated by the Närke Plain, near the lake Hjälmaren, a few kilometers in ...

and

Värmland Värmland () also known as Wermeland, is a '' landskap'' (historical province) in west-central Sweden. It borders Västergötland, Dalsland, Dalarna, Västmanland, and Närke, and is bounded by Norway in the west. Latin name versions are ''Va ...

counties of the V Military District. The Western Air Defence District and the air defence district organisation ceased on 1 October 1957. The duties were taken over by the air commands (''flygeskader'').

Tasks

The main duties of the air defence district commanders during peacetime were war preparation work, including planning of the base and supply service as well as air defence warning service, as well as voluntary training for the air defence warning service, as well as management of training airfields and certain

supply depot Supply depots are a type of military installation used by militaries to store battlefield supplies temporarily on or near the front lines until they can be distributed to military units. Supply depots are responsible for nearly all other types of ...

s. The main tasks in war were to lead the base and supply service within the air defence district as well as to command the grouped base units, regarding the depots in terms of their use as bases for combat air units, as well as to lead the air defence warning service and to command the air defence warning service units. Base service operations (mainly ground service) were aimed at ensuring the operations of combat air units and preparing their operations in the air. The base service included station service, air traffic control, ground air defence and ground defence (in cooperation with certain forces from the army), signal service,

military camp A military camp or bivouac is a semi-permanent military base, for the lodging of an army. Camps are erected when a military force travels away from a major installation or fort during training or operations, and often have the form of large cam ...

and provision, medical care, transport and airfield repairs (some) and snow removal.

Commanding officers

Commanding officers: *1943–1946:

Colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...

*1946–1948: Colonel *1948–1949: Colonel *1949–1954: Colonel *1954–1958: Colonel

Names, designations and locations

References

Noter

Print

* * * *{{cite book , url=https://runeberg.org/svda/1942/0203.html , title=Svenska dagbladets årsbok (Händelserna 1942) , year=1943 , editor-first=H. E. , editor-last=Kjellberg , publisher=Svenska Dagbladet , location=Stockholm , volume=20 , language=sv , id={{LIBRIS, 283647 , page= Military units and formations of the Swedish Air Force Military units and formations established in 1943 Military units and formations disestablished in 1957 Disbanded units and formations of Sweden 1943 establishments in Sweden 1957 disestablishments in Sweden Gothenburg Garrison]