Taranto-Grottaglie Airport
Taranto-Grottaglie Airport Aeroporto di Taranto-Grottaglie | |||||||||||
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| Airport type | Public | ||||||||||
| Serves | Taranto / Grottaglie, Italy | ||||||||||
| Elevation AMSL | 215 ft / 66 m | ||||||||||
| Coordinates | 40°31′03″N 017°24′11″E / 40.51750°N 17.40306°E | ||||||||||
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Taranto-Grottaglie "Marcello Arlotta" Airport (Template:Lang-it) (IATA: TAR, ICAO: LIBG) is an airport serving Taranto and Grottaglie, both comunes in the province of Taranto in Italy. The airport is located 1.5 km (0.8 NM) from the city of Monteiasi, 4 km (2.2 NM) from Grottaglie and 16 km (8.6 NM) from Taranto. It is named for Marcello Arlotta (1886-1918), an Italian aviator. The airport is used for general aviation, with no commercial airline service. As Alenia Aeronautica produces big fuselage parts of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner in a hangar located beside an airport's apron, multiple times a month, a Boeing 747 Large Cargo Freighter, also known as Dreamlifter, lands at Taranto Grottaglie to pick up the parts and fly them to the Boeing factory at Paine Field and Boeing South Carolina at Charleston International Airport for final assembly. Those flights are operated by Atlas Air. It is also known as Taranto-Grottaglie Airport or Grottaglie Airport.
History
During World War II, Grottaglie Airfield was a military airfield used by the United States Army Air Forces. The airfield was designed for heavy bomber use, and was a major base for Fifteenth Air Force B-24 Liberator heavy bombers used in the strategic bombardment campaign against Germany. In addition, Twelfth Air Force tactical bombers were stationed at the airfield which were used to support Allied ground forces in the Italian Campaign.
Known USAAF units assigned to the airfield were:
- 47th Bombardment Group, 24 Sep-15 Oct 1943, A-20 Havoc (12 AF)
- 321st Bombardment Group, 15 Oct-20 Nov 1943, B-25 Mitchell (12 AF)
- 449th Bombardment Group, 4 Jan 1944-16 May 1945, B-24 Liberator (15 AF)
- 416th Night Fighter Squadron, 30 Sep 1943-28 Jan 1944, Bristol Beaufighter (12 AF)
After the war ended, the airfield was turned over to local authorities.
In August 2012, the broker ESAFLY announced that it plans to commence scheduled services from Taranto.[5]
Facilities
The airport resides at an elevation of 215 feet (66 m) above mean sea level. It has one runway designated 17/35 with an asphalt surface measuring 3,200 by 45 metres (10,499 ft × 148 ft).[1]
References
- ^ a b Airport information for LIBG from DAFIF (effective October 2006)
- ^ Airport information for TAR at Great Circle Mapper. Source: DAFIF (effective October 2006).
- ^ Maurer, Maurer. Air Force Combat Units of World War II. Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History, 1983. ISBN 0-89201-092-4.
- ^ Maurer, Maurer, ed. (1982) [1969]. Combat Squadrons of the Air Force, World War II (PDF) (reprint ed.). Washington, DC: Office of Air Force History. ISBN 0-405-12194-6. LCCN 70605402. OCLC 72556.
- ^ volaspheric: Italian broker ESAFLY plans to commence scheduled services from Taranto
External links
- Official site
- Current weather for LIBG at NOAA/NWS
- Accident history for TAR at Aviation Safety Network
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