Fliegerhorst Woensdrecht (NL)

[Jarnob]

Hi all,

since I work with the Dutch Air Force on Woensdecht air base (NL) I started a topic on my website covering the history.
At this moment I published a page about Fliegerhorst Woensdrecht in use by JG52/ JG1/ JG26.
My main field of expertise are ww2 panzers and modern military aircraft,
so.... does anyone has additions to my webpage? Or photogrphs/-links especially of JG26?
All photographs of FLiegerhorst Woensdrecht seem scarce - if i'm correct?

Please check: https://www.jarnob.nl/aircraft-photo-re ... -luftwaffe

Thanks in advance!

[RudiS]

Aufklärungsgruppe 30 and a detachement of Jagdgeschwader 3 "Udet" were also based at Woensdrecht.

[Jarnob]

Thanks for the input. It is very difficult without any books to gather as much detailed info as possible -
and I know from experience that it will take a LONG while to gather the right books.

Will add this to my page, as well as orbats/ number of aircraft.

[Prosper Vandenbroucke]

Maybe it can be a little help:

Woensdrecht (NETH) (a.k.a. Bergen op Zoom, Hoogerheide, Huijbergen) (51 26 00 N – 04 21 00 E) General: landing ground then operational airfield (Landeplatz then Einsatzhafen) in the Netherlands 50 km NNE of Antwerpen, 52.5 km S of Rotterdam, 8 km SSE of Bergen op Zoom and 3.65 km E of Woensdrecht. History: dates from July 1933 as a civil landing ground used by KLM and sports aviation enthusiasts. Taken over by the Dutch military in September 1939 as a reserve landing ground under the control of Eindhoven airfield. Captured by German troops on 14 May 1940 and immediately put to use as a forward fighter field for I./JG 20. Major improvements began in Jul 40 with construction of buildings, a perimeter road, taxiways, aircraft shelters, reinforcement of the grass runway with additional turf, building Flak emplacements and other projects. At peak, 2,800 Dutch workers were employed on the airfield which eventually encompassed 455 hectares (1,124 acres). German station personnel were mostly housed in nearby Hoogerheide and Huijbergen. Dimensions: 1,000 x 1,000 meters (1100 x 1100 yards) with an irregular shape. Surface and Runway: firm grass. No paved runway. Equipped with boundary lighting and a flarepath. Fuel and Ammunition: and refueling points at the W and E boundaries. Ammunition was believed to have been stored in a woods off the NE boundary. Infrastructure: had 1 small repair hangar in the East dispersal area and a small cluster of barrack-type huts of the NW corner that housed the station HQ, fire station and billets. Dispersal: three areas – East, North and West – with a total of at least 56 small aircraft shelters (Mar 43). By 20 Jun 44, these had been increased to 40 covered shelters, 24 open but mostly covered with camouflage netting and 8 parking sites for a total of 78. Defenses: 2 heavy Flak positions, one with 6 guns, and 14 light Flak positions, all but a few of which were emplaced in Flak towers. Remarks: 25 Jul 43: the first air attack on the airfield and this was followed by an increasing number of attacks through October by RAF Typhoon fighter-bombers and U.S. medium bombers. The Luftwaffe ceased using Woensdrecht after Oct 43 except for emergencies. 5 Sep 43: bombed – 5 x Bf 109 G-6s from III./JG 1 badly damaged (1) or slightly damaged (4). 8 Nov 43: landing area repaired and again serviceable but the East dispersal remains heavily cratered. The North dispersal is being extended and 10 new aircraft shelters built. 21 Jan 44: at least 3 new open aircraft shelters have been built in the dispersal areas. 26 Mar 44: considerable work is still underway to extend the North dispersal to the NE. 21 Oct 44: taken by Allied forces on or about this date. - 29 - Luftwaffe Airfields 1935-45 Operational Units: I./JG 20 (May 40); I./JG 21 (Jul 40); III./JG 54 (Jul-Aug 40); 1. (H)/Aufkl.Gr. 21 (Oct 40)?; 2.(H)/Aufkl.Gr. 21 (Oct 40); I./St.G. 1 (Nov-Dec 40); 4. (H)/Aufkl.Gr. 31 (Dec 40)?; 1., 2./JG 52 (Feb-Apr 41); II./JG 1 (May 42 – Jul 43); detachment of I./JG 3 (Jun-Jul 43); I./JG 26 (Jul-Aug 43). Reserve Training & Replacement Units: IV./JG 1 (May-Jul 42). Station Commands: Behelfs-Einsatzhafen Woensdrecht (Jun 40 – 1941); Fl.H.Kdtr. (E) Woensdrecht (1941 – 1942); Fl.H.Kdtr. E 35/VI (1942 – Mar 44); Flugplatzkdo. Woensdrecht of Fl.H.Kdtr. E(v) 207/XI Gilze-Rijen (Apr 44 - ). Station Units (on various dates – not complete): elements of le.Flak-Abt. 668 (1943); 2./le.Flak-Abt. 875 (Jun 42); 7.(Flum.)/Luftgau-Nachr.Rgt. 6 (Jul 40); Flugmeldezentrale Woensdrecht (c.fall 41 – 1944); Lw.-Bau-Kp. 31/XI (later 2.Kp. Lw.-Bau-Btl. 18/IV) (JulSep 40); Ldssch.Zug d.Lw. 206/VI (Jul-Aug 43); Ldssch.Zug d.Lw. 219/VI (Jul-Aug 43); Ldssch.Zug d.Lw. 231/VI (Jul-Aug 43); Ldssch.Zug d.Lw. 323/VI (Jul 43 - ? ); Ldssch.Zug d.Lw. 362/VI (Jul-Aug 43); Stab I./Flieger-Rgt. 51 (Sep 43 - ). [Sources: AFHRA A5262 pp.620-22 (9 Sep 43 updated to 20 Jul 44); chronologies; BA-MA; NARA; PRO/NA; Grimm, Peter et al, Vliegvelden in Oorlogstijd; web site ww2.dk]
http://www.ww2.dk/Airfields%20-%20Netherlands.pdf

[Jarnob]

Nice, thank you very much!

there is definitely some info in this pdf which I can use for further research - and add to my page.
Will source reference. Tx again!

[RudiS]

Google like this:
site:ww2.dk woensdrecht

You will not only find the info Prosper Vandenbroucke posted above but also a lot more about the units based there.

Regards,
Rudi