After the soldiers defending the battery surrendered, the British troops occupied a site 400 metres further along the coast to build one of twenty temporary airfields, the B 11, which was operational between June 26th and September 4th 1944.
Pictures 1, 2, and 3 Show Preperation and Construction of the Temporary British Airfield.
This A.L.G. (Advanced Landing Ground) could house no less than 54 planes and its runway was I200 metres long by 50 metres wide. The squadrons landing here were generally allocated to 3 different airfields, choosing where to land as required by congestion, dust and weather conditions. The runway at Longues was made of a square steel mesh fixed to the ground with special pegs. The Longues airfield took one week to construct.
To cover the runway, the British set up anti-aircraft guns on the roof of this bunker and stored ammunition inside, However, there was an accident which brought about the explosion of this makeshift magazine and caused the deaths of four soldiers. The violence of this explosion explains the total destruction of the blockhouse built by the Germans and the twisted gun barrel in front of the casemate.
Extracts taken from Pierre Clostermann Interviews to several Newspapers.
Pierre Clostermann, Le Grand Cirque.
Presses de la Cite, 1948:
The building of A.L.G.s in our sector was considerably delayed by unexpected German resistance in Caen, which, according to the plan, should have been taken on the afternoon of D-Day. As it turned out, the three first landing strips to be constructed almost came under fire from heavy Flak 88mm artillery batteries. Our planned Advanced Landing Ground at Bazenville where we had landed four days earlier had to be abandoned. Finally, it was settled that B II at Longues would be our airfield.
Pierre Clostermann, Une sacree guerre,
Flammarion. 1990:
And the chaos continued. The City of Glasgow journal reported that I had shot down a German plane at one end of our airfield at Longues and another one at the other end. All this is slightly exaggerated. I did shoot down a Messerschmitt 109 at one end of the runway, but the pilot from the other plane baled out much further away.