Verdun Aerodrome

Verdun, in the Meuse department, is a small city on the river Meuse, which had been heavily fortified before WW1 started. A military airfield was created in 1912 out of the eastern part of the city, in a place called "Faubourg Pavé" (Paved Suburb...); yet navigation charts did not mention the airfield, but three different military grounds elsewhere in Verdun (one with an airship hangar), with a projected new airfield north of the city, at Charny. From the beginning of the war until the outbreak of the Battle of Verdun, in February 1916, the Faubourg Pavé airfield was widely used by the French Air Service. As the battle developed, many airfields were built further away from the front line and "Faubourg Pavé" had to be abandoned.

Verdun Aerodrome
Part of American Expeditionary Forces (AEF)
Located near: Verdun, France
Verdun Aerodrome
Coordinates49°09′33″N 005°24′47″E
TypeCombat Airfield
Site information
Controlled by  Air Service, United States Army
ConditionAgricultural area
Site history
Built1918
In use1918–1919
Battles/wars
World War I
Garrison information
Garrison1st Pursuit Group (Elements)
United States First Army Air Service

In 1918, many American Air Service squadrons flew from airfields around Verdun, as Julvécourt, Souilly, Lemmes or Béthelainville. Sources also mention temporary detachment of the 95th Aero Squadron to a "Verdun" airfield, without any further details, which could probably mean any of those airfields as it stayed there for a rather long time; 27th, for itself, stayed only a few days, 7–11 November, which could be any of those airfields, or a now-forgotten temporary airstrip... As the front line moved eastwards away from Verdun during the last weeks of the war, wa can also imagine aircraft landing back at "Faubourg Pavé"...

Known units assigned

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See also

References

 This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency website http://www.afhra.af.mil/.

    • Series "D", Volume 2, Squadron histories,. Gorrell's History of the American Expeditionary Forces Air Service, 1917–1919, National Archives, Washington, D.C.
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