Gerbini Airfield
Gerbini Airfield.png) | |
|---|---|
| Part of Twelfth Air Force | |
| Plain of Catania | |
| Coordinates | 37°27′52.36″N 014°52′22.00″E / 37.4645444°N 14.8727778°E |
| Type | Military airfield |
| Code | 505 |
| Site information | |
| Controlled by | United States Army Air Forces |
| Site history | |
| Built | 1943 |
| In use | 1943-1944 |
Gerbini Airfield is a series of abandoned World War II military airfields in Sicily, located 23 kilometres (14 mi) west of Catania, near the intersection of the A19 and SP24 highways. The airfields consisted of a series of flat agricultural fields, used for runways and parking areas. First used by German Luftwaffe forces during the Battle of Sicily, they were attacked on several occasions by United States Army Air Force Twelfth Air Force bomber aircraft. Later, they were seized by Allied ground forces and used by the USAAF during the battle. Army engineers compacted the earth and improved the field for use by light and medium bombers. Also a tent encampment was established for ground support and for station infrastructure. Twelfth Air Force units stationed at Gerbini were:
- 47th Bombardment Group, 20–24 August 1943, A-20 Havoc
- 12th Bombardment Group, 22 August-2 November 1943, B-25 Mitchell
- 60th Troop Carrier Group, 20 October 1943-5 March 1944, C-47 Skytrain
When the C-47s moved out at the end of 1944, the airfield was dismantled and returned to its owners. Today the locations of the airfields are indistinguishable from the many agricultural fields in the area.
References
This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency website http://www.afhra.af.mil/.
- Maurer, Maurer. Air Force Combat Units of World War II. Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History, 1983. ISBN 0-89201-092-4.
