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Re: Inscription on reverse of photo? Place name?
Since everyone is pretty certain the first letter is a "B" rather than an "S", then I guess "Balti" is the one. There were 10 airfields, field airstrips and landing grounds around Balti by late fall 1944, but the one below was the one being used by the Luftwaffe in summer 1941:
Balti (RUSS/UKR) (a.k.a. Bălţi, Beltsy) (47 45 15 N – 27 55 05 E)
General: small city in north-central Bessarbia (today Moldova) 255 km NW of Odessa, 160 km ESE of Chernivtsi (Tschernowitz, Cernăuţi) and 71 km NNE of Iaşi/Romania.
Balti III (RUSS/UKR) (a.k.a. Balti/Ost, Balti/East, Bălţi, Beltsy) (ZNr. 10-1380) (c. 47 46 25 N – 27 57 38 E)
General: field airstrip (Feldflugplatz) 255 km NW of Odessa, 71 km NNE of Iaşi/Romania and 3.85 km NE of Balti city center. Rated for fighters, dive-bombers and other single-engine aircraft. History: existed pre-June 1941 and was/is considered the most important of the airfields around Balti during World War II, almost certainly because of the aircraft repair shops and assembly buildings adjacent to the airfield. Surface and Dimensions: firm grass surface on clay subsoil with the S end somewhat marshy. Measured approx. 1000 x 1000 meters in 1941 and Dec 43 and then enlarged to 1360 x 1300 meters (1485 x 1420 yards) in 1944. Infrastructure: no infrastructure in 1941, Dec 43 or Jul 44. It used the infrastructure available at the adjacent repair and assembly site as well as civilian buildings along the W boundary. Dispersal: there were 41 splinter-proof aircraft shelters by 3 Jul 44, according to aerial photos. Defenses: there were 6 Flak positions on 3 Jul 44, each with 2 to 6 guns.
Remarks:
22 Jun 41: Soviet VVS 55 IAP based here. Balti airfields attacked by III./KG 27 and other elements of IV. Fliegerkorps – claimed 40 Russian aircraft destroyed on the ground and hits scored on motor vehicles, barracks. Tent camps as well as 2 fuel dumps.
23 Jun 41: Balti I bombed by III./KG 27 – claimed 15 to 20 aircraft destroyed on the ground.
7-9 Jul 41: Balti captured by 3 Romanian infantry divisions (5, 13 and 14) and now in Axis hands. The airfields were said by them to be in terrible condition and situated on very marshy and wet terrain.
14 Jul 41: bombed by Soviet 45 SBAP and 146 IAP – claimed 12 Axis aircraft destroyed on the ground and violent fires started.
21 Jul 41: Balti/Ost attacked by fighters from 55 IAP and then by 8 x “DB-3s” – 11 x Ju 87s from St.G. 77 and 2 x Bf 109s from III./JG 77 damaged on the ground, plus 1 x Ju 52 assigned to JG 77 destroyed.
23 Jul 41: strafed again by 55 IAP – claimed 13 Axis planes left burning on the ground.
[Sources: chronologies; AFHRA, BA-MA (incl. RL 9/70); NARA incl. T-321 roll 239/OKL 903; OKL Flugplatzatlas; PRO/NA; Bernád, Dénes, Dmitriy Karlenko and Jean-Louis Roba - From Barbarossa to Odessa – The Luftwaffe and Axis Allies Strike South-East: June-October 1941, Hinckley (U.K.): Ian Allan/Midland Publishing, 2008. ISBN: (10) 1 85780 273 X web site ww2.dk; NARA Aerial Photographs at College Park/MD (27.6.44, 3.7.44)]
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