Évreux - Fauville Air Base Évreux - Fauville Air Base ( " Base aérienne 105 Évreux " or BA 105 ) is a French Air Force base located about 2 miles ( 3 km ) east of the town of Évreux in the Eure " département " , on the north side of the Route nationale 13 ( N13 ) Highway . During the Cold War , Évreux - Fauville was a front - line base for the United States Air Forces in Europe ( USAFE ) as part of NATO ' s integrated military command . In 1967 , the US forces withdrew and the French air force began again using the base , initially flying the Nord 2501 Noratlas . At present , the base is home of two French tactical transport squadrons flying mostly Transall C - 160 transportation planes . Origins . The origins of Évreux Air Base go back to the 1920s , when a civil aerodrome was built to accommodate sport flying . In the 1930s concrete runways were constructed along with several hangars . During the Phony War period of 1939 / 40 , the French Air Force maintained Dewoitine D . 510 fighters and Potez 630 bombers . In addition , American built Curtis P - 36 Hawk , Martin A - 22 Maryland and Douglas DB - 7 light bombers provided by President Roosevelt ' s " cash and carry " program were stationed at Évreux . With the fall of France , the Luftwaffe took up residence at Évreux , flying Messerschmitt Bf 109 and Junkers Ju 88 aircraft during the Battle of Britain . During the war , the Germans improved the runways and other facilities . Later , they stationed Focke - Wulf Fw 190 fighters on the base . Évreux was heavily bombed and attacked by Allied fighters and bombers , especially those of the U . S . Army Eighth and Ninth Air Forces . By July 1944 , within a month of the Normandy invasion of 6 June , the runways and taxiways were useless , pockmarked with bomb craters and debris . With the liberation of France , the Royal Air Force used Évreux Air Base until May 1945 . After the war , the base was left mostly unused , with the exception of a small aero club . NATO Acquisition . With the outbreak of the Cold War in the late 1940s , with the Berlin Airlift and the ongoing threat from the Soviet Union to Western Europe , negotiations began in November 1950 between NATO and the United States to establish air bases and station combat wings in France to meet European defense needs . During the negotiations for selection sites , the World War II airfield at Évreux was proposed for expansion into a modern air base for troop carrier and cargo aircraft . However , the airfield was under local jurisdiction and the facility was being used as a civilian airport . Final approval was obtained in 1951 from the City of Évreux and the Department of Eure . Development of Évreux Air Base was managed by the 7305th Air Base Squadron for the next three years . The USAF planned that a troop carrier wing , flying C - 119 s could be in place at Évreux by 1954 . Preliminary surveys were conducted in April 1952 , and construction of a new base began in July . The World War II damage was removed and new runways laid down . The design of the airfield was to space parked aircraft as far apart as possible by the construction of a circular marguerite system of hardstands that could be revetted later with earth for added protection . Typically the margueriete consisted of fifteen to eighteen hardstands around a large central hangar . Each hardstand held one or two aircraft , and allowed the planes to be spaced approximately 150 feet ( 50 m ) apart . Each squadron was assigned to a separate hangar / hardstand complex . This construction can be seen clearly in the satellite image link at the bottom of this article . Roads and buildings were constructed , communications , and other infrastructure was completed and the facilities were ready by the summer of 1955 . 465th Troop Carrier Wing . The first USAF occupant of Évreux Air Base was the 465th Troop Carrier Wing , being deployed to Évreux in May 1955 . The base was still in the middle of being constructed , however minimal facilities were available to accommodate the unit . The 465th flew the C - 119 " Flying Boxcar " and consisted of 54 aircraft being assigned to the 780th , 781st and 782nd Troop Carrier Squadrons . The 780th and 781st TCS received the Air Force Outstanding Unit Award in 1956 for extraordinary operations . The Wing airlifted United Nations troops , supplies and equipment to the Middle East and flew Red Cross emergency supplies to Hungarian refugees , along with completing their scheduled training missions . During early 1957 the Lockheed C - 130 was entering the USAF inventory and with its increased range and capacity , the C - 119s began to be phased out . Also when the U . S . Army projected a decrease of airborne units in Europe , so the need for troop practice drops would decline . It was determined that the 465th would be phased down and inactivated . The 465th TCW was reorganized on 12 March 1957 when its group headquarters was inactivated and the wing deputy commander for operations took over command of the troop carrier squadrons . At this time , manpower shortages were keeping staffing at about 70 to 80 percent of authorized levels and the reorganization elimitatd about 50 personnel slots . In July , 465th Wing Headquarters and all support squadrons were inactivated . Personnel were transferred from the support squadrons into various wing vacancies , transferred to other USAFE bases or returned to the United States ( CONUS ) . By this time , the 465th along with the 317th TCW shared Évreux , with a total of six flying squadrons . The end of the 465th came on 8 July when it was inactivated and the 780th and 781st squadrons came under the command of the 317th TCW . At this time , the two squadrons were directed to prepare their C - 119s for return to Air Force Reserve troop carrier wings in CONUS . By December , 37 C - 119s departed . On 20 December the 782d squadron was inactivated . On 6 January 1958 , all the C - 119s of the 317th TCW were transferred on paper to the 780th and 781st squadrons and they flew the aircraft back to CONUS . On 8 March 1958 they were also inactivated , ending the last remnant of the 465th Troop Carrier Wing ' s presence at Évreux . In March 1958 the C - 119Gs of the three squadrons were returned to CONUS , and the squadrons were inactivated . 317th Troop Carrier Wing . On 14 April 1958 the 317th Troop Carrier Wing was relocated from Neubiberg AB Germany ( near Munich ) to Évreux . The United States agreed to return Neubiberg to the German Air Force . By 16 April 1957 the relocation to Évreux was complete , with three squadrons , the 39th , 40th and 41st joining the 465th TCW currently at Évreux . At Neubiberg , the 317th and transitioned from C - 54 s to C - 119s and shared a common mission with the 465th , transporting and paradropping airborne forces and their equipment . At Évreux , its mission was changed to support fighter weapons training at Wheelus Air Base Libya with the transport of maintenance personnel , aircraft support equipment , spare parts , tools , test sets and other equipment needed to support the squadrons at the deployed site . The 317th continued to fly C - 119s until the end of 1957 but began converting to new C - 130A " Hercules " cargo transport aircraft . In March 1957 , the 317th was inactivated along with the 465th TCW , with the aircraft and personnel coming under the direct command of HQ USAFE . In September 1958 the flying squadrons were assigned directly to the 322nd Air Division . 322nd Air Division . The 322nd Air Division ( Combat Cargo ) was the main host unit at Évreux AB , being established on 12 August 1955 and remaining until 1 April 1964 . The unit was a command element to control all airlift units assigned to USAFE . The 322nd directed the three Troop Carrier Wings in Europe - the 317th and 465th at Évreux as well as the 60th at Dreux - Louvillier Air Base . With the inactivation of the troop carrier wings at Évreux and Dreux , the 322nd became responsible for the operation and maintenance of the aircraft of the Troop Carrier Squadrons , with Air Base Groups being responsible for the command of the base support functions . Units of the 322nd Air Division flew many humanitarian missions and support NATO airborne units throughout Europe . They airlifted life rafts , tents , and emergency food supplies to flood victims in the Netherlands , and aided thousands of earthquake victims in Italy , Greece , Pakistan and Yugoslavia among many others . On 15 April 1963 , the 317th Troop Carrier Wing was briefly reactivated at Évreux . HQ USAFE determined a Wing structure to command the C - 130 squadrons at Évreux , and reduced the 322nd AD accordingly . In the spring of 1964 , it was decided that the 322nd Air Division would be transferred to MATS and the 317th TCW to Tactical Air Command . Subsequently , the 317th TCW departed Évreux on 20 June 1964 to Lockbourne AFB , Ohio . With the departure of the Troop Carrier Wing and Air Division , Évreux was placed in a reserve status , with the 7305th Combat Support Group maintaining the base and its facilities . Tactical Air Command C - 130 squadrons on temporary duty replaced the 317th wing . In November 1964 TAC C - 130s on rotation to Évreux from the 464th Troop Carrier Wing at Pope AFB , NC flew the famous DRAGON ROUGE rescue mission at Stanleyville in the former Belgian Congo . The Évreux - based C - 130s transported Belgian paratroopers to the Congo for the mission , which was followed up a few days later by a similar operation at the town of Paulis . USAF Closure . On 7 March 1966 , French President Charles De Gaulle announced that France would withdraw from NATO ' s integrated military structure . The United States was informed that it must remove its military forces from France by 1 April 1967 . The 513th Troop Carrier Wing arrived at Évreux on 15 April 1966 from Sewart Air Force Base Tennessee to facilitate the removal of USAF assets in France . Its tenure at the base was brief , moving large amounts of supplies and materiel from France to Germany and the United Kingdom . By January 1967 virtually all was complete , and the Wing was transferred to RAF Mildenhall England departing on 26 March when Évreux was returned to the French .