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| Former bases of the United States Air Force in France  | |||||||
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| Part of theCold War | |||||||
 Map of former NATO air bases in France. | |||||||
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From 1951 to 1966 theUnited States Air Force deployed thousands of personnel and hundreds of combat aircraft toFrance to counter the buildup of theSoviet Armed Forces inEastern Europe. TheCold War escalated into the attempted seizure ofWest Berlin during 1948. This convinced the western nations to form a common defense organization. Discussions led to theNorth Atlantic Treaty Organization. NATO's defense strategy came to incorporate land, sea, and air forces.
Due to the vulnerability ofWest Germany to Soviet attack, USAF planners did not want any new tactical air units moved into the U.S.Zone of Occupation there. By 1950, theUnited States Air Forces in Europe (USAFE) wanted all tactical air units to be located west of theRhine River to provide greater air defense warning time. France agreed to provide air base sites.
Between 1950 and 1967 theUnited States Air Force operated 11 major air bases inFrance. There were other communications sites,NATO Dispersed Operating Bases, Sub-Depots and minor facilities at several French Airports, such asOrly Airport andMarseille Provence Airport. TheUnited States Army also established a significant presence in France, and was responsible for much air base construction and maintenance.
France was a founding member of NATO which came into existence on 24 August 1949. The first non French NATO tenant in France was the 1630th Air Base Squadron of the USAFMilitary Air Transport Service, activated in June 1950 atParis - Orly Air Base. On 28 February 1958 the official name of Orly Air Base was changed to Orly Airport and most MATS flights were routed to Chateauroux Air Depot.
After 15 years of U.S. Air Force presence, French PresidentCharles de Gaulle decided to evict non-French NATO forces from France, having developed its own nuclear weapons. He refused to store U.S. nuclear weapons on French soil. On 7 March 1966, he announced that France would withdraw from theNATO Military Command Structure. He gave foreign NATO forces one year to depart France.
TheState Department, theUnited States Department of Defense, and Air Force carefully managed the news about the American departure from France, and the attendant problems of an integrated NATO air defense for western Europe and the decrease in tactical airpower.[1] Due to the U.S. media focus on theVietnam War, the removal of foreign, mainly US, NATO forces from France went virtually unreported in the US.
During 1966-67 all USAF offices and facilities in France were closed and personnel and equipment moved. The last USAF activities were the 1630th Air Base Squadron at Orly Airport and theParis Administration Office. Both were closed in June 1967.
On 23 October 1967, all foreign flags were furled and after 17 years the last foreign NATO forces departed France.
Today most of the old USAF air bases in France are being used by the French military and are not accessible to tourists.
