Lucius D. Clay Kaserne Wiesbaden Army Airfield Wiesbaden Air Base Advanced Landing Ground Y-80 Fliegerhorst Wiesbaden |
|
---|---|
Located in Wiesbaden, Germany | |
Coordinates | 50°02′58″N 08°19′28″E / 50.04944°N 8.32444°ECoordinates: 50°02′58″N 08°19′28″E / 50.04944°N 8.32444°E |
Type | Military airfield |
Site information | |
Owner | United States with authority from Germany |
Controlled by |
United States Army (1976–Present) United States Air Force (1947–1975) United States Army Air Forces (1945–1947) Luftwaffe (1936–1945) |
Site history | |
Built | 1929 (Airfield) |
In use | 1929–1976 (Airfield) – Present |
Garrison information | |
Past commanders |
Colonel David H. Carstens |
Garrison | US Army Garrison Wiesbaden |
Lucius D. Clay Kaserne (formerly Wiesbaden Army Airfield or WAAF) (IATA: WIE, ICAO: ETOU) is a US military complex located southeast of the city of Wiesbaden, Hesse, Germany. It was selected to be the headquarters of the United States Army Europe after the closure of Heidelberg, Germany, United States Army in Europe (USAREUR), on 28 September 1945, in large part due to its proximity to Frankfurt am Main, where the U.S. Seventh Army was headquartered.
It currently hosts:
The land on which the airfield stands was originally the Wiesbaden track for horse races built in 1910. In 1929 it was converted into an airfield and in 1936 the German Luftwaffe took over the base. One unit stationed there was Jagdgruppe 50, a fighter group of Messerschmitt Bf 109s. On 17 August 1943 the unit intercepted American bombers taking part in the ill-fated Regensburg Strike targeting the Messerschmitt factory in Regensburg and the ball bearing plants in Schweinfurt. Alfred Grislawski, a German Luftwaffe fighter ace, took part in that mission.
The airfield was captured when the U.S. 80th Infantry Division took Wiesbaden on 28 March 1945. Subsequently the U.S. Army Air Force gave the base the temporary designation Y-80 and used it for its operations in Germany. USAAF/USAFE units assigned to Wiesbaden AB or Lindsey Air Station include: