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History

Built before World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

 as Myitkyina Airfield, the airfield was captured by the Imperial Japanese Army

Imperial Japanese Army

-Foundation:During the Meiji Restoration, the military forces loyal to the Emperor were samurai drawn primarily from the loyalist feudal domains of Satsuma and Chōshū...

 on 8 May 1942 during the Japanese conquest of Burma. During the occupation, it was used by the Japanese Air Force as a fighter base, attacking Allied aircraft flying "the Hump

The Hump

The Hump was the name given by Allied pilots in the Second World War to the eastern end of the Himalayan Mountains over which they flew military transport aircraft from India to China to resupply the Chinese war effort of Chiang Kai-shek and the units of the United States Army Air Forces based in...

" transport supply missions between India

India

India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

 and China

China

Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...

.

The airfield was attacked on numerous missions by Tenth Air Force

Tenth Air Force

The Tenth Air Force is a numbered air force of the United States Air Force Reserve Command . It is headquartered at Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base Fort Worth, Texas....

 and Royal Air Force

Royal Air Force

The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...

 fighter and bombers until being driven from the Myitkyina area by Merrill's Marauders

Merrill's Marauders

Merrill’s Marauders or Unit Galahad, officially named the 5307th Composite Unit , was a United States Army long range penetration special operations unit in the South-East Asian Theater of World War II which fought in the China-Burma-India Theater of Operations, or CBI...

 (officially named the 6th Ranger Battalion-5307th Composite Unit (provisional)) on 17 May 1944.

Once in Allied hands, the 3d Combat Cargo Group moved in with C-47 Skytrain

C-47 Skytrain

The Douglas C-47 Skytrain or Dakota is a military transport aircraft that was developed from the Douglas DC-3 airliner. It was used extensively by the Allies during World War II and remained in front line operations through the 1950s with a few remaining in operation to this day.-Design and...

s and used Myitkyina as a combat resupply airfield, air-dropping pallets of supplies and ammunition to the advancing Allied forces on the ground. In January 1945, the 80th Fighter Group flew P-47 Thunderbolt

P-47 Thunderbolt

Republic Aviation's P-47 Thunderbolt, also known as the "Jug", was the largest, heaviest, and most expensive fighter aircraft in history to be powered by a single reciprocating engine. It was heavily armed with eight .50-caliber machine guns, four per wing. When fully loaded, the P-47 weighed up to...

s from the field until 24 May 1945. The 1st Combat Cargo Group then moved in with C-47s and remained until August when elements of the 4th Combat Cargo Group

4th Combat Cargo Group

The 4th Combat Cargo Group was a World War II United States Army Air Forces combat organization that served in Tenth Air Force as part of the China Burma India Theater of World War II.-Overview:...

replaced them. The 4th CCG operated supply and passenger flights between the airfield and China until December 1945 when American forces pulled out of the area at the end of the war.