Aachen Merzbrück Airfield (german: Flugplatz Aachen-Merzbrück) is an

airfield An aerodrome (Commonwealth English) or airdrome (American English) is a location from which aircraft flight operations take place, regardless of whether they involve air cargo, passengers, or neither, and regardless of whether it is for publ ...

located near

Aachen Aachen ( ; ; Aachen dialect: ''Oche'' ; French and traditional English: Aix-la-Chapelle; or ''Aquisgranum''; nl, Aken ; Polish: Akwizgran) is, with around 249,000 inhabitants, the 13th-largest city in North Rhine-Westphalia, and the 28th- ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

History

The airfield was built about 1914 as a grass airfield, and throughout the 1930s was used by small light aircraft. After the

First World War 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 ...

in 1919, it was taken over by

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

occupying power and used as a military airfield and expanded accordingly. In 1929, the Belgian soldiers withdrew and the airfield became a civilian airfield. In 1930, the

airship An airship or dirigible balloon is a type of aerostat or lighter-than-air aircraft that can navigate through the air under its own power. Aerostats gain their lift from a lifting gas that is less dense than the surrounding air. In early ...

, '' Graf Zeppelin'' landed and took off in Merzbrück as part of a sightseeing flight in the

Rhineland The Rhineland (german: Rheinland; french: Rhénanie; nl, Rijnland; ksh, Rhingland; Latinised name: ''Rhenania'') is a loosely defined area of Western Germany along the Rhine, chiefly its middle section. Term Historically, the Rhinelands ...

. In 1931, a line connection to

Cologne Butzweilerhof Airport The Butzweilerhof was the civil airport of Cologne. It was established as a training airfield in 1912 and saw airline service from 1922 until the 1950s. It was replaced by the Cologne Bonn Airport. The airport buildings from 1935-36 are listed mo ...

was set up, which was operated with the

Junkers G 24 The Junkers G 24 was a German three-engine, all-metal low-wing monoplane passenger aircraft manufactured by Junkers from 1925. Junkers F 24 was the designation for single-engine versions of the same aircraft. Design and development The increas ...

until 1935. In 1935, the regular scheduled flight to Cologne was discontinued for economic reasons. In 1932, the world's largest airplane at that time, the

Junkers G 38 The Junkers G.38 was a large German four-engined transport aircraft which first flew in 1929.EADS Two examples were constructed in Germany. Both aircraft flew as a commercial transport within Europe in the years leading up to World War II. Durin ...

, landed in Merzbrück. In

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 ...

, Merzbrück was used by the

Luftwaffe The ''Luftwaffe'' () was the aerial-warfare branch of the German ''Wehrmacht'' before and during World War II. Germany's military air arms during World War I, the ''Luftstreitkräfte'' of the Imperial Army and the '' Marine-Fliegerabtei ...

, with IV.(Stuka)/LG 1 and I./St.G. 77 of Lehrgeschwader 1, equipped with

Junkers Ju 87 The Junkers Ju 87 or Stuka (from ''Sturzkampfflugzeug'', "dive bomber") was a German dive bomber and ground-attack aircraft. Designed by Hermann Pohlmann, it first flew in 1935. The Ju 87 made its combat debut in 1937 with the Luftwaffe's Con ...

s during the first week of the

Battle of Belgium The invasion of Belgium or Belgian campaign (10–28 May 1940), often referred to within Belgium as the 18 Days' Campaign (french: Campagne des 18 jours, nl, Achttiendaagse Veldtocht), formed part of the greater Battle of France, an Military o ...

in May 1940. After the

Battle of France The Battle of France (french: bataille de France) (10 May – 25 June 1940), also known as the Western Campaign ('), the French Campaign (german: Frankreichfeldzug, ) and the Fall of France, was the Nazi Germany, German invasion of French Third Rep ...

in June ended, the airfield was little used by the military or general aviation.The Luftwaffe, 1933-45
/ref> In January 1945, as a result of the

Western Allied invasion of Germany The Western Allied invasion of Germany was coordinated by the Allies of World War II, Western Allies during the final months of hostilities in the European theatre of World War II, European theatre of World War II. In preparation for the Allied ...

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

forces moved through the

area and captured Merzbrück Airport about 29 January. In February, combat engineers of the 818th Engineering Aviation Battalion arrived and laid down a 5000'

Pierced Steel Planking Marston Mat, more properly called pierced (or perforated) steel planking (PSP), is standardized, perforated steel matting material developed by the United States at the Waterways Experiment Station shortly before World War II, primarily for the ...

metal runway down on the grass airfield aligned 05/23 for use by combat aircraft, and the airport was designated as

Advanced Landing Ground Advanced Landing Grounds (ALGs) were temporary advance airfields constructed by the Allies during World War II during the liberation of Europe. They were built in the UK prior to the invasion and thereafter in northwest Europe from 6 June 19 ...

"Y-46 Aachen". The Americans used the airport for

P-47 Thunderbolt The Republic P-47 Thunderbolt is a World War II-era fighter aircraft produced by the American company Republic Aviation from 1941 through 1945. It was a successful high-altitude fighter and it also served as the foremost American fighter-bombe ...

combat operations until the middle of April 1945, and the airport was closed on 11 May 1945.Maurer, Maurer. Air Force Combat Units of World War II. Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History, 1983. . After the war, the airfield was used by the

British Forces in Germany British Forces Germany (''BFG'') was the generic name for the three services of the British Armed Forces, made up of service personnel, UK Civil Servants, and dependents (family members), based in Germany. It was established following the Second ...

and later by the

Belgian Forces in Germany The Belgian Forces in Germany (french: Forces belges en Allemagne or FBA, nl, Belgische strijdkrachten in Duitsland, BSD) was the name of Belgium's army of occupation in West Germany after World War II. Lasting between 1946 and 2002, the army cor ...

. Subsequently, the airfield was rebuilt with an all-weather asphalt runway, taxiways, and both concrete and grass aircraft parking areas. A parallel grass runway is also available.

Usage

There is no scheduled traffic at the airfield. It primarily is used by

general aviation General aviation (GA) is defined by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) as all civil aviation aircraft operations with the exception of commercial air transport or aerial work, which is defined as specialized aviation services ...

, and also has a large sailplane facility. The

ADAC ADAC, officially the Allgemeiner Deutscher Automobil-Club (), is Europe's largest motoring association. ADAC is the largest club (Verein) in Germany with around 21 million members. It would be more aptly described today as an individual mobi ...

air rescue service provides the air rescue helicopter ''Christoph Europa 1'' for urgent medical rescues and

air ambulance Air medical services is a comprehensive term covering the use of air transportation, aeroplane or helicopter, to move patients to and from healthcare facilities and accident scenes. Personnel provide comprehensive prehospital and emergency and cri ...

duties here. A flight school and maintenance facility (Westflug Aachen) is located here since 1967.

References

External links

Official website
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Weather station and webcams at EDKA
{{DEFAULTSORT:Merzbruck Airport Airfields of the United States Army Air Forces in Germany Airports established in 1932 Airports in North Rhine-Westphalia Aachen

History

Usage

See also

References

External links