Fliegerhorst St-Trond (World War II Airfield)

You don't immediately think of it when you walk here in beautiful Haspengouw, but you are close to a military domain and you also pass by military history. And this information board reminds you of that: the former air base, between Brustem and Bevingen, which as an alternate airfield was little more than a grass field in 1936, was used by the German Luftwaffe in 1940. From there, support was provided for the conquest of France and attacks on England. In the first years of WWII, especially 1941 and 1942, the Luftwaffe turned it into a permanent base with hangars, ammunition depots, three runways and much more. In nearby Bevingen, living quarters were even built for the airmen (the Fliegerdorf) of the base that was now called Fliegerhorst 309 and became part of the Kammhuber Line that had to stop British bombers during their night raids on German cities. After the liberation of Sint-Truiden, American troops used the base for attacks on the Germans, where the 305th Bomb Group of the American 8th Air Force would remain there until December 1945. At a later stage the base was used by the Belgian air force in the as part of pilot training, first with the Fouga Magister (with its characteristic V-shaped wing) and later the Alpha Jet. Rochendaal Castle, a country house in Bevingen, also played an important role in the military use of the area.

In 1936, a grass field in Brustem was used as an airfield by the Belgian Air Force. It had to serve as a fallback airfield for the 3rd and 4th squadrons of the Second Fighter Regiment, which were stationed in Nivelles. On May 12, 1940, the Germans took Sint-Truiden and the German Luftwaffe took the lawn into use. First as a base to support the German ground army in its conquest of France and then as a support airfield for the Luftwaffe operations against England. Quite quickly, surrounding agricultural plots were requisitioned to expand the field. In the course of 1941 and 1942, the Luftwaffe turned Brustem into a permanent air base: various aircraft depots, hangars, buildings, ammunition depots, air defense positions, living quarters in Bevingen, etc. were built, as well as three runways. Two courses of 1450 meters and one track of 1250 meters long. All three runs were approximately 50 meters wide. The Germans called the air base Fliegerhorst 309. It became part of the Kammhuber Line – the name for the defense line against the British bombers who had started bombing German cities at night.