Sidi Haneish 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 complex in

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

, in the western desert, about 376 km (235 miles) west-northwest of

Cairo Cairo ( ; , ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Egypt and the Cairo Governorate, being home to more than 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, L ...

. The airfield, known as Haggag el Qasaba by the German Luftwaffe, was the location of one of the most daring raids during World War II by the British

Special Air Service The Special Air Service (SAS) is a special forces unit of the British Army. It was founded as a regiment in 1941 by David Stirling, and in 1950 it was reconstituted as a corps. The unit specialises in a number of roles including counter-terr ...

(SAS). On the night of 26 July 1942, SAS Detachment "L", also known as "Stirling's Raiders", attacked the airfield, then under Luftwaffe control. Driving a convoy of eighteen jeeps, each carrying 3 or 4 British or French

commandos A commando is a combatant, or operative of an elite light infantry or special operations force, specially trained for carrying out raids and operating in small teams behind enemy lines. Originally, "a commando" was a type of combat unit, as opp ...

, the raiders destroyed or damaged around forty Luftwaffe aircraft. The attack damaged the Luftwaffe's capability during the German invasion of Egypt and also, by the destruction of many transport aircraft, severely diminished its ability to re-supply German land forces in the field. The airfield was later used by the

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 ...

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 Eastern Desert Campaign by the

British Eighth Army The Eighth Army was a field army of the British Army during the Second World War. It was formed as the Western Army on 10 September 1941, in Egypt, before being renamed the Army of the Nile and then the Eighth Army on 26 September. It was cr ...

, which the 57th Fighter Group, flew

Curtiss 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 8–12 November 1942. It was apparently abandoned after the western desert campaign moved into Libya and eventually was taken over by the desert. Aerial photos show some evidence of where it existed.

British airfields

The LG-12 (Landing Ground) North site is given as – Units: * No. 33 Squadron RAF * No. 213 (Ceylon) Squadron RAF *

No. 229 Squadron RAF No. 229 Squadron RAF was a squadron of the Royal Air Force, and is an officially accredited Battle of Britain Squadron. It became No. 603 Squadron RAF in January 1945. History Formation and World War I No. 229 Squadron RAF was formed on 20 ...

* No. 238 Squadron RAF * No. 250 Squadron RAF *

No. 450 Squadron RAAF No. 450 Squadron was a unit of the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) that operated during World War II. Established at RAAF Base Williamtown, RAAF Station Williamtown, New South Wales, in February 1941, it was the first Australian Article ...

The LG-102 is given as – Units: * No. 6 Squadron RAF * No. 30 Squadron RAF * No. 80 Squadron RAF * No. 112 Squadron RAF *

* No. 250 (Sudan) Squadron RAF *

References

* Maurer, Maurer. ''Air Force Combat Units of World War II''. Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History, 1983. . * *

External links

Possible site of the airfield on Wikimapia
{{authority control Airfields of the United States Army Air Forces in Egypt World War II airfields in Egypt Defunct airports in Egypt Airfield complexes Airports established in 1941

British airfields

See also

References

Further reading

External links