Vatry Air Base was a

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Air force, air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its ori ...

base in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. After its closure, it was redeveloped into Chalons-Vatry Airport, primarily used for international air cargo transport.

History

Vatry Airport's origins begin in 1950 when, with the

Cold War The Cold War was a period of global Geopolitics, geopolitical rivalry between the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the capitalist Western Bloc and communist Eastern Bloc, which lasted from 1947 unt ...

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO ; , OTAN), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental Transnationalism, transnational military alliance of 32 Member states of NATO, member s ...

faced several problems when attempting to solve the air power survival equation. Planning for first strike survival in both conventional and nuclear wars had to be considered.McAuliffe, Jerome J: U.S. Air Force in France 1950-1967 (2005), Chapter 17, Dispersed Operating Bases The primary operating bases for NATO air forces were built on small parcels of land with very limited dispersal space. It was decided to build dispersal bases away from the primary bases to be used in the event of an emergency. Vatry was selected to be one of these " NATO Dispersed Operating Bases". No flying unit was ever permanently assigned to Vatry and it was used for dispersal training only. However, it did require the same level of equipment as a standard air base. NATO security personnel were required to control base access, guard equipment, munitions and supplies stored on the facility, as well as prevent vandalism. Construction began in 1953, and Vatry Air Base was designed for 50 fighters with three large hangars constructed. In 1956 construction was completed and Det #2, 48th Air Base Group from Chaumont-Semoutiers Air Base was designated as the host unit. Aircraft from the

21st, 48th, 49th and 388th Fighter-Bomber Wings deployed to Vatry, usually one fighter squadron at a time. In 1959 Vatry Air Base was phased down and all munitions, equipment and supplies were sent to Chaumont Air Base's Base Supply and the host detachment was inactivated. The facility was transferred to the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

as a training facility in 1960. With the French withdrawal from the integrated NATO military structure in 1967, the American forces left Vatry Air Base and it was closed. For many years, Vatry Air Base was under the control of the

French Air Force The French Air and Space Force (, , ) is the air force, air and space force of the French Armed Forces. Formed in 1909 as the ("Aeronautical Service"), a service arm of the French Army, it became an independent military branch in 1934 as the Fr ...

and used for a training facility. About 2000 it was sold to civil interests and today is being used as an international heavy cargo airport.

References

{{authority control Installations of the United States Air Force in France French Air and Space Force bases Airports established in 1956 Military installations established in 1956 Military installations closed in the 2000s