Luftwaffe Airfields 1935-45 Luftwaffe Airfields 1935-45 The Baltic States - Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania By Henry L. deZeng IV Alytus Airfield/Lithuania Key to Numbers: 1) Hangars (demolished in mid-July 1944 by the retreating Germans) 2) Barracks (demolished in mid-July 1944 by the retreating Germans) 3) Accommodations and Operations Buildings (demolished at the same time) Edition: May 2020 Luftwaffe Airfields 1935-45 Copyright © by Henry L. deZeng IV (Work in Progress). (1st Draft 2020) Blanket permission is granted by the author to researchers to extract information from this publication for their personal use in accordance with the generally accepted definition of fair use laws. Otherwise, the following applies: All rights reserved. No part of this publication, an original work by the authors, may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise), without the prior written permission of the author. Any person who does any unauthorized act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages. This information is provided on an "as is" basis without condition apart from making an acknowledgement of authorship. Luftwaffe Airfields 1935-45 Airfields The Baltic States - Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania Introduction Conventions 1. All spellings are as they appear in wartime German, Estonian, Latvian, Lithuanian and Allied documents with the addition of alternate spellings where known. 2. It is strongly recommended that researchers use the search function because each airfield and place name have alternate spellings, sometimes 3 or 4. A search is best done by downloading this .pdf document and then performing the search. 3. See the General Introduction to this series for matters concerning other conventions such as format, limitations of data, abbreviations, glossary, sources, etc. 4. The same holds for German military abbreviations. If you are one of the 99.9% of researchers who might have cause to use this monograph and have never taken the time to memorize the thousands and thousands of German World War II military abbreviations and acronyms, a word of caution: you would be well-advised to print the Glossary in the General Introduction and keep it handy as you use these monographs. Additionally, a special glossary of Soviet Air Force (VVS) wartime abbreviations that appear in this monograph has been provided below. 5. Attacks on Airfields: for the most part, only those airfield attacks that caused reportable damage are shown. Most other attacks were either not found or too insignificant to report. 6. Large Aerodromes: the Germans did not build from the ground up any large hub-type airfields with extensive hangars and workshops in the Baltic States, but rather repaired and improved existing ones that had been built by the Russians. 7. Large Airfield Complexes: in those cases of cities with a large complex of airfields in and around them, it has not always been possible to distinguish the principal airfield from the satellites and dispersal fields. Accordingly, the largest airfield or the one with the most infrastructure has been automatically chosen. Luftwaffe Airfields 1935-45 8. Airfield Dimensions: it is not known whether the measurements given are the over-all size of the airfield property or of just the landing area. The original German source material rarely states which. Preface The objective of the preface is to provide some basic background for this subject, which is German-built airfields, German-occupied airfields or those that existed and could have been used and/or occupied in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania from 22 June 1941 to the second half of 1944. Estonia became independent on 23 February 1918 and signed the Treaty of Tartu on 2 February 1920 whereby Russia renounced all rights to the territory of Estonia. After c. 20 years of peace, Russia began stationing military forces in Estonia on 24 September 1939 following threats of invasion based on false accusations involving a Polish submarine. Political subterfuge and threats continued until 17 June 1940 when the Republic of Estonia was formally annexed to the Soviet Union. Military aviation began in Estonia at the end of 1918 when the first airfields and seaplane bases were set up at and around Tallinn. By 1939, the small Estonian Air Force of some 80 aircraft were deployed on military airfields at Tallinn, Rakvere and Tartu. Latvia became independent on 18 November 1918 but two weeks later the Soviet Union attacked, leading to civil war which continued until 11 August 1920 when a peace treaty between the Soviet Union and the now sovereign and independent Republic of Latvia brought an end to the civil war. A period of relative peace ensued until August/September 1939, when the Soviets demanded the right to station up to 25,000 troops in Latvia or the country would face invasion. The pressure increased, including the demand to station an unlimited number of troops in the country, until 17 June 1940 when the Republic of Latvia was formally annexed to the Soviet Union. Military aviation began in the Republic of Latvia on 7 June 1919 with just 2 aircraft and the first airfields and seaplane bases were gradually set up at and around Riga. By June 1940, the Latvian Air Force was somewhat larger that the Estonian Air Force with some 130 aircraft deployed on military airfields around Riga and a few other cities and towns. Lithuania became an independent republic on 16 February 1918 with capital in Vilnius and then in Kaunas, although fighting among Lithuanians, Russians, Germans and Poles continued until October 1920 before it came to an end. A period of relative peace prevailed with occasional political turmoil Luftwaffe Airfields 1935-45 until 10 October 1939 when the so-called Soviet-Lithuanian Mutual Assistance Pact was signed and the Russians began moving 20,000 troops into the country. The Soviet annexation of Lithuania commenced between 14 and 17 June 1940 and included the immediate transfer of 150,000 Soviet troops into the country. Military aviation began in the Republic of Lithuania on 12 March 1919 with the formation of a single company (i.e., squadron) of aviation. By June 1940, the Lithuanian Air Force had grown to 117 aircraft with its primary all-weather bases at Kaunas, Šiauliai and Panevėžys. Palanga and Rukla (a small landing ground near Jonava/35 km NE of Kaunas) were also used but only in the summer. Airfields Listed A total of 269 airfields, operational airfields, landing grounds, airstrips, satellites, dispersal fields, auxiliary airstrips and emergency landing grounds are listed below along with 20 seaplane stations and anchorages for a total of 289. Not listed are the well over 100 additional airfields, operational airfields and landing grounds built by the Soviets between July 1944 and the end of the war in May 1945. None of these were ever used by the Luftwaffe, so they are not relevant to this monograph. Glossary: The main glossary for German abbreviations can be found in the “Terminology and Abbreviations” section in the Airfields – General Introduction to this series of monographs. The terminology and abbreviations listed here are those that are generally peculiar to this monograph only. Additional Soviet VVS abbreviations can be found in Airfields Russia (incl. Ukraine, Belarus & Bessarabia) - Introduction in this series. AE - Aviaeskadrilya (Aviation Squadron) AP - Aviapolk (Aviation Regiment) BAD - Bombardirovochnaya aviatsionnaya diviziya (Bomber Aviation Division) BAO - Batal’on aerodromnogo obsluzhivaniya (Airfield Servicing Battalion) with various types numbering between 764 officers and men and 360 officers and men with 70 motor vehicles. BAP - Bombardirovochnaya avia-polk (Bomber Aviation Regiment) Luftwaffe Airfields 1935-45 BBAP - Blizhnebombardirovochny avia-polk (Close Support Bomber Aviation Regiment) GvIAD - Gvardeyskiy bombardirovochnaya aviatsionnaya diviziya (Guards Bomber Aviation Division) IAB - Inshenerno-aerodromny batal’on (Airfield Engineer Construction Battalion) with 350 to 500 officers and men equipped with 70 motor vehicles plus construction equipment. IAD - Istrebitel’naya aviatsionnaya divisiya (Fighter Aviation Division) IAK - Istrebitel’naya aviatsiya korpus (Fighter Aviation Corps) IAP - Istrebitel’nyy aviatsionnyy polk (Fighter Aviation Regiment) KAE - (Artillery Correction Aviation Squadron) KRAP - (Artillery Correction-Reconnaissance Aviation Regiment) MTAD - Minno-torpednyy aviatsionny diviziya ((Naval) Mine-Torpedo Aviation Division) NKVD - Narodny Komissariat Vnutrennikh del (People’s Commisariat of Internal Affairs) OAE - Otdelnaya avia-eskadrilya (Independent Aviation Squadron) OIAE - Otdelnaya istrebitel’naya avia-eskadrilya (Independent Fighter Aviation Squadron) OKAE - (Independent Artillery Correction Aviation Squadron) ORAE - Osobaya razvedyvatelnaya avia-eskadrilya (Reconnaissance Squadron for Special Employment) PVO - Protivovoydushaya oborona (Air Defense) RAB - Raion aviatsionnogo bazirovaniya (Airfield Regional Command) with c. 50 officers, 14 uniformed civilians, 14 NCO’s and men. RAE - Razvedyvatelnaya avia-eskadrilya (Reconnaissance Aviation Squadron) RAP - Razvedchik aviapolk (Reconnaissance Aviation Regiment) SAD - Svodnaya (smeshannaya) aviatsionnaya diviziya (Mixed Aviation Division) SBAP - Skorostoi bombardirovochnyy avia-polk (Fast Bomber Aviation Regiment) ShAP - Shturmovoy aviatsionnyy polk (Ground-Attack Aviation