commune
A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to:
Administrative-territorial entities
* Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township
** Communes of ...
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...
.
Juvincourt Airfield
Built prior to World War II as a French Air Force facility. It was seized by the Germans in June 1940 during the Battle of France, and was used as a major
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 ...
military airfield during the occupation.
The airfield was attacked on several occasions by
United States Army Air Forces
The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...
Eighth Air Force heavy bombers and later by IX Bomber CommandB-26 Marauder medium bombers, the airfield was liberated by Allied Forces in early September 1944. Once in American hands, combat engineers of the IX Engineering Command 820th Engineer Aviation Regiment repaired the damaged airfield and declared it operationally ready for combat units on 7 September, only a few days after its capture from German forces, being designated as " A-68"
The airfield was used by numerous
Ninth Air Force
The Ninth Air Force (Air Forces Central) is a Numbered Air Force of the United States Air Force headquartered at Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina. It is the Air Force Service Component of United States Central Command (USCENTCOM), a joint De ...
combat units until May 1945. Afterward, the airfield was used for transport and as a maintenance base until being closed in July 1945, and was returned to French Air Force Control.Maurer, Maurer. Air Force Combat Units of World War II. Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History, 1983. .
After the war, the French Air Force began building a new facility, with a new taxiway and modern dispersal pads. However, it appears that construction was never completed and the airfield was abandoned. Today the remains of Juvincourt Airfield consist of several abandoned World War II-era runways, along with the unfinished modern airfield in a vacant area.