Kairouan Airfield .png) | |
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| Site information | |
| Type | Military airfield |
| Controlled by | United States Army Air Forces |
| Location | |
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| Coordinates | 35°34′47.50″N010°07′34.66″E / 35.5798611°N 10.1262944°E /35.5798611; 10.1262944 |
| Site history | |
| Built | 1943 |
| In use | 1943 |
Kairouan Airfield is an abandoned military airfield inTunisia, located approximately 11 km south-southeast ofKairouan, and126 km south ofTunis. It was a major Troop Carrier unit base of theUnited States Army Air ForceTwelfth Air Force during theNorth African Campaign. The units known to be assigned to the base were:
From Kairouan,Operation Ladbroke, the British glider landing nearSyracuse, Sicily. took place on the night of 9 July 1943 as part of the invasion of Sicily. On the night of 9/10 July 1943 a force of 144 Waco gliders, towed by US C-47, and British Handley Page Halifax and Albemarle tug aircraft, took off to take part in Operation Ladbroke – the first Allied attempt at a mass glider landing in World War II. The plan was to place a large invasion force on the ground near the town of Syracuse, secure the Ponte Grande Bridge and then take control of the city itself, including its strategically vital docks, as a prelude to the full-scale invasion ofSicily.
In addition, theNinth Air Force324th Fighter Group used the airfield in June 1943, flyingP-40 Warhawks from the airfield.
By the end of September 1943, the C-47 groups had moved to Sicily and Kairouan was dismantled and abandoned. Today, one (possibly two) main runways can be seen in aerial photography, along with traces of taxiways and dispersal pads.
This article incorporatespublic domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency
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