Forgotten European Airfields

With two major world wars fought in Europe during the twentieth century and the development and use of all types of aircraft, European airfield were very important. There are the big commercial airfields in Paris and London and other locations across Europe, but more than likely your ancestors who were involved in either war and stationed in Europe (including civilian groups such as the American Red Cross) would have landed, taken off or been stationed at such an airfield. On the Internet there is a web site about abandoned or little known European Airfields, some 963 to date with photos and information.

The site is set up in alphabetical order of Western and Eastern European nations. Starting with Albania, to Austria, into Greece, Lithuania, Norway, Russia and the United Kingdom with others in between. Some 30 nations with a range of airfields has photos and descriptions. The site is still being added to. The nation with the most listed is Germany with 161 airfields.

You can click on the nation to search, such as the Republic of Ireland with 14 airfields and those are divided into regions; southeast, mid-west, southwest and west and border. The description for each in that region is provided including latitude and longitude, its name (if known), who operated it, when it started and then closed along with any interesting details. When names of certain pilots or other personnel are known that is included. Any known drawings, maps of the airfield and even surrounding regions are inserted.

Some airfields have information and images of how they were used during non-military times, especially between 1919 and 1939. So you might have had ancestors traveling to certain European airfields on business or pleasure.

This site is great to explore, to step back in time and even more so if you had ancestors from any of the countries or who traveled to these places.

Photo: In Germany, at the Böblingen airport, the photo shows the station building and a Junkers G-38 provide scale to the immense size of LZ127 ‘Graf Zeppelin’ (blimp) during a visit in 1931.

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