Colmar – Meyenheim Air Base
Colmar-Meyenheim Air Base (Base Aerienne 132) is an airbase in the Alsace region of France, near the German and Swiss borders.[1] The base is 15 km south of Colmar, east of Autoroute A35. The base is bordered by farmland to the west, and surrounded by forest on its other sides.[2]
History
The construction of the Colmar-Meyenheim Air Base began in 1951. The first unit to arrive was Escadre de Chasse 013 with F-86 Sabres and T-33 trainer aircraft.[1] Escadre de Chasse 013 members lived on the base until the united disbanded on June 23, 1995.[1] Escadre de Chasse 030 Alsace and Normandie-Niemen were the two squadrons in operation on the base after the disbandment of Escadre de Chasse 013.[1]
The Régiment de Chasse 01/030 Normandie-Niémen was formed six months after Germany invaded the USSR in June 1941.[1] The unit was created for cooperation between the Free French and the Soviet Union governments.[3] There were initially 12 fighter pilots serving the German-Russian front,[3] but the group was officially declared Groupe de Chasse GC 3 Normandie on September 1, 1942 with Commandant Pouliquen in command.[3] After training on Yakovlev Yak-7 in January 1943, Commandant Jean Tulasne took command of the group.[3] Between March 22, 1943 and May 9, 1945, the unit destroyed 273 enemy aircraft. It received awards from both France and the Soviet Union: The French Légion d’Honneur and the Soviet Order of the Red Banner.[3] Joseph Stalin awarded the name "Niémen" after the battle of the Neman River in 1944.[3] The group flew to Morocco in March 1947,[3] trading Vulture 11s for the first of the Mirage F1Cs.[3] The EC 02/30 unit departed North Africa on March 13, 1962.[3] In December 1973, the base turned to Air Defense.[3]
Aircraft
In 1951, F86 Sabre's and T-33 trainer aircraft arrived at the base.[1] The Mirage IIIC arrived in 1962, the Dassault Mirage IIIE in 1965, the Dassault Mirage 5F in 1972 and finally the Dassault Mirage F1CT in 1992.[1] The aircraft remaining after disbandment were transferred to Reims-Champagne air base.[1]
Disbanding
The Régiment de Chasse 02/030 Normandie - Niémen was merged with The Régiment de Chasse 01/030 Normandie - Niémen in 2007.[3] The French Government announced in July 2008 that all flying activities at the base would cease one year later.[3] General Jean-Paul Paloméros, the Chief of Air Force Staff, led the ceremony for dissolution of the base.[4] The closure of the base was a restructuring of the air force.[5] The French Army started taking over base in July 2010.[3] Six Mirage F1Bs and about twelve F1CTs will relocate to Reims-Champagne.[3] The Mirage F1 will continue to operate for 4–5 years after the closure.[3] The RC 02/030 unit was expected to return in 2012 with the Rafale Aircraft.[3]
Meteorological station
The air base hosts a meteorological station maintained by Météo-France; the station is the sixth driest in France (after Marignane – Marseille Provence Airport, Perpignan, Clermont-Ferrand, Chartres and Évreux) of the French meterorological service network.
| Climate data for Colmar – Meyenheim | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Average high °C (°F) | 4.8 (40.6) |
6.8 (44.2) |
11.9 (53.4) |
16.0 (60.8) |
20.4 (68.7) |
23.7 (74.7) |
26.1 (79) |
25.8 (78.4) |
21.4 (70.5) |
15.8 (60.4) |
9.2 (48.6) |
5.5 (41.9) |
15.7 (60.3) |
| Average low °C (°F) | −1.4 (29.5) |
−1.2 (29.8) |
2.0 (35.6) |
4.8 (40.6) |
9.3 (48.7) |
12.3 (54.1) |
14.2 (57.6) |
13.7 (56.7) |
10.2 (50.4) |
6.8 (44.2) |
2.2 (36) |
−0.2 (31.6) |
6.1 (43) |
| Average precipitation mm (inches) | 31.7 (1.248) |
28.8 (1.134) |
37.4 (1.472) |
44.7 (1.76) |
74.2 (2.921) |
64.2 (2.528) |
66.8 (2.63) |
57.0 (2.244) |
57.8 (2.276) |
56.9 (2.24) |
40.1 (1.579) |
47.7 (1.878) |
607.3 (23.909) |
| Mean monthly sunshine hours | 72 | 97 | 145 | 180 | 202 | 225 | 239 | 224 | 171 | 117 | 70 | 58 | 1,799 |
| Source: Météo-France[6] | |||||||||||||
See also
References
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "Colmar-Meyenheim Aug 08". Jetwashaviationphotos.com. Retrieved 2010-08-09.
- ↑ "Airfield Directions - Colmar". Scramble.nl. Retrieved 2010-08-09.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 Touchdown Aviation. "RC 01/030 Normandie - Niémen". Touchdown Aviation. Retrieved 2010-08-09.
- ↑ Michel. "E.P. Colmar-Meyenheim - Les Fusiliers Commandos de l'Air". Commando-air.fr. Retrieved 2010-08-09.
- ↑ "Armée de l'air - Dissolution de la base aérienne de Colmar-Meyenheim - Dernières Nouvelles d'Alsace". Dna.fr. Retrieved 2010-08-09.
- ↑ "Normales mensuelles". Retrieved 9 September 2012.
Coordinates: 47°55′21″N 7°23′59″E / 47.9225°N 7.3997°E