Bou Grara Airfield is an abandoned
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
military airfield in
Tunisia
Tunisia, officially the Republic of Tunisia, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered by Algeria to the west and southwest, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Tunisia also shares m ...
, near Golfe de Bou Grara (Madanin), about 360 km south-southeast of
Tunis
Tunis (, ') is the capital city, capital and largest city of Tunisia. The greater metropolitan area of Tunis, often referred to as "Grand Tunis", has about 2,700,000 inhabitants. , it is the third-largest city in the Maghreb region (after Casabl ...
.
It was a temporary airfield built by the United States Army Corps of Engineers, used by the
United States Army Air Force
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 ...
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 D ...
during the
Tunisian Campaign
The Tunisian campaign (also known as the battle of Tunisia) was a series of battles that took place in Tunisia during the North African campaign of the Second World War, between Axis and Allied forces from 17 November 1942 to 13 May 1943. Th ...
. It was used by the
57th Fighter Group, which flew
P-40 Warhawk
The Curtiss P-40 Warhawk is an American single-engined, single-seat, all-metal fighter-bomber that first flew in 1938. The P-40 design was a modification of the previous Curtiss P-36 Hawk which reduced development time and enabled a rapid entry ...
s from the airfield during May and June 1943.
When the Americans moved out at the end of April 1943, the airfield was dismantled and abandoned. The airfield's precise location has become undetermined, as agricultural fields have obliterated its existence.
References
Further reading
* Maurer, Maurer
''Air Force Combat Units of World War II''.Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History, 1983. 521p. .
*
External links
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Airfields of the United States Army Air Forces in Tunisia
World War II airfields in Tunisia
Airports established in 1943