Nea Anchialos?

No, but try the other side!

In the interests of trying to keep this thread alive, I'll have a stab at Preveza/Aktion then.

Preveza is it, with decoy F 84 and F 86.


Your control.

Thanks dash7fan.

Decoys, eh? Cool. I see the odd one is still lying around the place, if GE is anything to go by.

Regrettably, I have nothing to hand which will pass (or rather, fail) the GI test, so OH.

Here is another easy one....:)

http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2851/1...6efa2d0222.jpg

[Later]
Ooops, my apologies! That airport has been on already so OH it is!

BTW, it is Kabul.
[/]

Let's go back well into the past... The sheer size of the building is of course the first clue into the type of aviation that went on here....
http://i858.photobucket.com/albums/a...oonAirbase.jpg
and that's what it looks like nowadays
http://i858.photobucket.com/albums/a...onAirbase2.jpg

France or Germany?

Possibly Antwerp.

neither of both, but a lot of French was spoken. And the uninvited visit by the germans, marked the end of the lighter than air era for that airbase (and for the airforce as a whole as a matter of fact)
nope, although Antwerp has also a history going back to the 1920's (the airport building is still largely the original from that era). But it never had a permanent role as an airbase (excluding the years of those uninvited visitors)

That would be the ballon hangar of Zellik on the NW outskirts of Brussels, I guess...

Another clue... the base was named after a 'lighter than air' military aviator who died in Passchendaele in 1918 when he was shot down during a reconnaissance mission. By coincidence, the question ‘France or Germany’ from the previous post, can be used here. His first name was of French origin and his last name was of German origin. The airbase had mainly (or even only) tethered balloons in its inventory.

[Edit] oops, I was interrupted while typing the post, and when finishing it, the right answer was already there!! Congrats asw22!!
Indeed, the pre WW II airbase in Zellik, named after Cpt-Cdr. Serge Eckstein, was turned into a military depot after WW II and de-militarised in 1995. This building is about the only thing that remains of the pre WW II era. On GE you can find it at 50°53'31.50"N 4°16'19.00"E
See also Panoramio - Photo of Zellik/Asse, oude ballonloods Panoramio - Photo of Zellik/Asse, oude ballonloods van de luchtvaartkazerne Serge Eckstein

Hello!

> DIBO, It took some time to find this one...but with the clue "a lot of french but not France" and lighter than air...that was a nice one!

Here is my last proposal:

http://imagizer.imageshack.us/v2/800...0/543/lgds.jpg

I will let you look for it a little bit. The general sector is my usual one...If needed I will give one clue later which will make the identifying sooo much easier....;)

I flew my virtual 'plane up and down the Somme to try to find the location, but failed miserably.

And I know the Somme in person quite well.

So I dont beleive the river in the picture is the Somme so a small clue required please asw.

Russ.

(This "W" thread is so much better behaved than the "Other" one :rolleyes:)

OK....Here is the clue:

1945/1/1

;)

Marne, rather than the Somme?

Think you are referring to Operation Bodenplatte (1jan'45). Maybe we should look more north, in the Battle of the Bulge area??

There were not that many airfields targeted in Bödenplatte, and none in the battle of the Bulge area per se...

So look up north, north/north east...

Denmark?

Plus some letters

Bödenplatte operation, remember, so not Denmark...

The field pattern looks Dutch to me

If you consider the Dutch airfields targets of Bödenplatte you may notice those were large airbases with concrete runways so....

Believe it's German. Maitzborn?

Did Bodenplatte have any target in Germany? That would be surprising! You have all the elements to find rather easily the answer to the riddle...:cool:

I believe not since it was the Luftwaffe's last fling and presumably launched from German airfields close to the Low Countries. Hence my suggestion......I hadn't seen a comment indicating that latest airfield was specifically a target! ;)

Have re read previous posts. Asw22, you are quite correct re target, targeting etc. My suggestion is retracted forthwith!!

I have used the terms "target" and "targeted" already...This should narrow the field of search don't you think?:p:p:p

Excluding all the other targets, only Metz-Frescaty remains, but can't really match the photo

Somewhere in Belgium seems possible but I can't find a match

None of the Belgian (and Dutch for that matter) targets have a wide riverbed nearby
But looking at the picture (and the shades on the ground) again, have to exclude Metz-Frescaty as otherwise the sun would have been shining from the north...

I throw the towel into the ring ...

Not by any chance Findel?

There are 17 airfields listed in Wikipedia as being involved on the BotB but I cannot match them on Google Earth. I'm guessing others have done this but it might save someone else wasting their day!!

It is indeed mentioned in wikipedia...did you (at large) really check all of them:p?

So please have a look there: 50°56'49.92"N 4°23'03.98"E

The contours of the field and various landmarks around are still perfectly identifiable...From a photo interpretation standpoint, it is an easy one!

I will show you soon another one...it will not be easy even with an approximate position...and yet when you know where it is it becomes obvious!

In the mean time, OH please...

Agreed. The peri track, the river and the road pattern are unchanged. It was 14th on my list and I was getting jaded and not knowing Belgium airfields didn't help.

I must confess that I see no similarity between what those co-ordinates produce on my map and the original photo.

Perhaps the photo is not north-up?

Russ.

Actually it is NE up...but that should not be such a hindrance in this case (yet it is sometimes, true!):

http://imageshack.com/a/img40/9391/62ky.jpg

Cheers!

asw

It looks a lovely little strip but Belgium puts a fair number of obstacles to flying there that I doubt if I will ever visit.

wow, I was really mislead by the original picture. I was looking for a river in a rather wide river bed, so discarded all Belgian airfields, after having a close look on GE just to be sure. I never would have guessed it was Grimbergen (EBGB). And I've flown there, although as a passenger on the Goodyear blimp. It has 2 rather special hangars on the airfield (info in dutch: Vliegveld Grimbergen Loodsen). Some 20+ years ago it still had the original size with 3 grass runways, but environmentalists forced it to close, later opening again much smaller with one runway. The remainder of the former airfield was turned into a recreational/nature area, where the 2 old runways are still clearly visible. Some more history in dutch Recreatief Vliegveld Grimbergen - EBGB - Grimbergen Airfield (then click on 'Geschiedenis' button). The Sabena aeroclub is still based there.

Here's another....

http://imgbin.me/image/XYYHAIXH.jpg

Looks like a development aircraft so possibly Nicosia before it closed?

Not Cyprus, but it is on an island in the Mediterranean.