American aircraftfield in Germany

[KrisJG3]

Start from Time 5:31


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gciMxYzccBg

[Stig Jarlevik]

C-47 concentration obviously

Aircraft coded 3J belonged to 99TCS (441TCG) based at Wiesbaden postwar.
Aircraft coded NM is rather more difficult to explain since they belonged to 34TCS (315TCG), which was a unit tranferred into Trinidad immediately after the war was over. Most likely an aircraft no one bothered to re-code...yet.

So, is it Wiesbaden or not?

Cheers
Stig

[25Kingman49]

My guess is Limburg Airfield, 2 miles north-northwest of Limburg an der Lahn Hessen. ALG (Y-83).

This field after capture was not improved. Watching the C-47s take off this at the time of filming was still a grass field.

This film appears to come from this original source:

https://collections.ushmm.org/search/catalog/irn1002257

[Stig Jarlevik]

Thanks Scott

At least think I can see a somewhat short paved runway (more greyish than the surrounding grass) where the C-47s take off?
Grass strips used a lot, tend to be more brownish, if I remember correctly.

Cheers
Stig

[25Kingman49]

Thanks Stig

Identifying these captured Nazi airfields certainly is not easy as there are few photos of any of them.

My pick of Limburg Field was in part based on the progression of the film which appears to have been produced by Lt. Col. George C. Stevens. In procession two city signs are seen first Frankenberg and then Frankenau, two towns rather close together about 9.5 km / 6 miles apart. This is where the Nazi POWs are being held and then loaded aboard trucks.

Sadly there is no signage at the beginning of the airfield film footage. Limburg was selected because of its proximity being about 87 km / 54 miles southwest of Frankenberg (if the film crew was traveling in that direct?).

The allied troops filmed at this airfield seem a bit unusual. Most appear to be British, maybe an Australian and perhaps one from India. If this is Limburg Field it could be the air evacuation of of Ex-POWs from Stalag 12A located close to that town.

There are certainly other possibilities, including Wiesbaden which is located about 118 km / 74 miles southeast of Frankenberg.

This assumes Frankenberg is a good reference point in this film footage related to the airfield but this has not been established with certainty.

[25Kingman49]

Have been wading thru the comments below the video hoping someone identifies the airfield. No soap yet but did find an interesting comment (informed compared to the majority of comments below this video).

At the end of this film compilation is a German marshalling yard on fire but not from bombardment damage. The explanation comment in German originally translated to English here reads is as follows:

"The fire of the railway system shown from 9:51 presumably shows an event from 1946 in Kassel. At that time, a runaway car triggered the fire of a gasoline train in August 1946 at the height of the former Berlin Bridge. You can see the extinguishing attempts of the (civilian!) Fire brigade afterwards. Very impressive, high-value contemporary document (unlike the rest of the comments in this video, whose authors have probably not learned anything from history until now)."

So one small mystery solved regarding this overall film footage. Still hope this airfield can be identified.

[PMoz99]

At 9:33 the parked C-47 in the foreground appears to carry the code SF, if that's any help.

[Stig Jarlevik]

Originally Posted by PMoz99

At 9:33 the parked C-47 in the foreground appears to carry the code SF, if that's any help.

Good catch Peter (I missed that one)

The code is most likely S6 which belonged to 79TCS (436TCG) but it does not take us very far. Last home base in Europe was in France and in Aug 1945 it had returned to the States.

Since what we are looking at is a collecting point where it seems various troops from different countries most likely have come together to return home, it does not have to be a units "home base" as such, so Scott might be perfectly correct.

Cheers
Stig

[25Kingman49]

Nice contribution Peter, every tidbit of info helps.

Still wading thru these video comments (many difficult to read for their ignorance of history on both sides of this WW II equation). There was one ray of sun light found that may suggest that at least I might have been headed in the wrong direct; south rather than north in my assumptions about this airfield possible location.

The original comment was again in German, translated to English here:

"The first few minutes belong to Bad Wildungen in Northern Hesse. From 1:16 minutes you can see the Brunnenstraße, where you can see the post on the left. Over the mountain, you can also see a part, where it goes down the left Lindenstraße at the pharmacy. This part with the pharmacy can be seen in other films at the end of the III. Empire. (e.g., ZDF and Arte). From minute 2:25 you can see Frankenau with the sign in the direction of Frankenberg / Eder. Thousands of German prisoners of war gathered in these meadows in 1945 and were then transported to the Rhine meadows.
If then the cameraman drove always direction Kassel, would be the only airport with such a great flat area only Fritzlar. Where even larger aircraft can land on it today. Is my subtle opinion, since I spent there 10 years of my Bundeswehr time. The hangars could be the halls 3 and 4 and in between the tower. Maybe a Fritzlarer can confirm or deny this.
The station could be in size (if you follow the cameraman now) the Kassel freight yard. But is a mere guess of me.
Unfortunately, I have been searching in vain for years for this camera crew, who in March 1945 had to travel from Marburg via Frankenau, Bad Wildungen and Kassel to Göttingen. Unfortunately, recordings of a local struggle in Löhlbach have not been filmed or lost. Maybe this is somehow together after 71 years ?? !!"

So, with that thought in mind Fritzlar Air Field, Heeresflugplatz Fritzlar Advanced Landing Ground (ALG) Y-86 may be another good candidate. Related to Frankenberg it is only 34 km / 21 miles from Fritzlar Field. If this is Fritzlar Field the film may be showing the evacuation of Ex-POWs from Ziegenhain / (now Trutzhain); Stalag IX A, located about 24 km / 15 miles south of Fritzlar Field. Lt. Col. George C. Stevens' camera crew would not need to travel far to capture these images.

There is a postwar (1946) video of Fritzlar Field which certainly looks similar, but still with doubts in confirming the earlier films airfield location, in my opinion:

https://youtu.be/EbYL5wtMM98

In some of these old films one airfield hanger looks the same as a similar hanger on a different airfield.