At Last - The Exact Locations of the Four WW1 Airfields around Poperinge
Dec 6, 2016
1 min read
Updated: Jul 27
My good friend and fellow researcher Annemie Morisse, who lives in Poperinge, Belgium, has unearthed a 1918 map that not only identifies the exact locations of the allied aerodromes at La Lovie, Proven, Abele and Poperinge, but also the area covered by each of the airfields. The sites of the four WW1 airfields in Poperinge have been the source of much controversy over the past few years, especially as many WW1 enthusiasts have been attempting to visit the locations as part of organised tours of the western front trenches and battlefields. I have reproduced the map below. If anyone has difficulty matching the sites to the current maps, please contact me and I will give you detailed directions.
The original field chosen bij Cdr. Charles R. SAMSON for the four RNAS aeroplanes of the 3th Sqn RNAS on october 14th 1914, doesn't figure on the German map that you show above. Those fields existed not yet in 1914. The RNAS "Poperinghe Airfield" was situated at the east side of Poperinghe, on the southeast side of the Elverdingeweg. RFC-MW 6th Sqn arrived the 16th and departed for St.-Omer on the 21th of october, some planes of the 4th Sqn and the complete 5th Sqn RFC-MW came to Poperinghe airfield on the day the 6th Sqn left.