Airfield Construction
Historical Record of the Engineer Section
Construction Service - Services of Supply
United States Army Forces in China-Burma-India
and United States Forces in India-Burma Theater
March 1942 - August 1944
With the arrival in India of United States Army Forces in 1942 the Services of Supply
immediately began preparation of facilities for their use. Since the greater portion of these forces were made up
of Air Corps units one of the major facilities that had to be provided was air fields for their use. In accordance
with the policy established upon arrival in the Theater of utilizing to the fullest possible extent facilities and
supplies available here, arrangements were made for the construction of air fields by the British.
Air Corps requirements were submitted to SOS which placed requests to the British for the necessary
construction; maintained close liaison with GHQ(I) in order to secure administrative approval of projects; supervised
the construction work through the Engineer Sections of the Base and Advance Sections, which had been set up to expedite
problems of administration and supply. In certain areas where a large amount of construction work was planned Engineer
Areas, directly responsible to Headquarters SOS were set up to supervise and coordinate the construction work. By
August 1942 work had begun on the Agra Air Depot and fields at Chabua, Gaya, Chakulia, Nawadih and Gushkara.
The actual construction work was in most cases done by Indian contractors using the casual, unhurried
working methods of the country. Cement was mixed up by hand and conveyed to forms on the heads of a slow-moving procession
of coolies. In many cases the quality of the concrete produced in this fashion was poor.
Later in 1942 construction work was begun on several airfields in the Assam area some of which were for
use of air freight lines to China. It became apparent in January 1943 that immediate action would be necessary if these
fields were to be ready for the operation of planes which were scheduled to arrive in a short time. Although they were
informed of the situation the British failed to provide adequate labor and the work continued far behind schedule.
On May 9, General Wheeler was directed by the War Department to take immediate charge of rehabilitation
and expansion of these Assam airfields and to push repair and construction at top speed. The urgency of the matter was
emphasized as in addition to a major effort and increase in Hump tonnage the fields would later be used by V.L.R. bombers
due to arrive in the Theater in a few months. The British then directed that construction of the Assam airfields be given
first priority. The target date for their completion was set at 1 July 1943. In the meantime construction of other
airfields in the area was begun. Finally on 31 July due to the vital necessity to hasten construction on the Assam bases
General Wavell was persuaded to give the work a rating in Priority Group XX which ranked above Priority Group I and gave
the airfields precedence over all other defense works.
In September 1943, preliminary plans were made for the XX Bomber Command project and soon SOS began
negotiations with the British for procurement of fields. Plans called for five fields in the Calcutta area located at
Kharagpur, Piardoba, Lalaikunda, Chakulia and Dudhkundi. Late in November headquarters of the Bengal project was
established to handle construction of airfields for the VLR bombers. Final order forms covering the fields required by the
XX Bomber Command were turned over to SOS on 11 December 1943 at which time grading and clearing operations were already
in progress.
During February 1944, the 930th Engineer Regiment (less three battalions), the 1875th Engineer Aviation
Battalion, the 1877th Engineer Aviation Battalion, and the 879th A/B Engineer Aviation Battalion which had just arrived
in the theater were attached to SOS and immediately put to work on the project. These engineers worked side by side
with Indian labor. Batteries of concrete mixers were swung into action, earth was moved by the cubic yard rather than
by the basketful.
By 1 June 1944, the target date, all of the fields were ready for limited operation, except Kalaikunda.
Due to engineering difficulties involved this field was placed in a priority second to that of the other fields so that
work could be pushed to complete at least four fields by the target date.
In connection with the construction of these VLR fields plans were drawn up for the supply of the large
quantities of aviation gasoline which would be required. The estimated requirements for the months from March through
August in U.S. gallons were:
| March | 4,736,000 | June | 7,027,000 |
| April | 3,536,000 | July | 7,077,000 |
| May | 3,536,000 | August | 10,608,000 |
Since supply by any other method would have been extremely difficult and would have been an additional
burden on already overtaxed transportation system, pipelines were decided upon. The project called for approximately
70 miles of 6" pipeline from Budge Budge, the oil tanker terminal near Calcutta, to the vicinity of Kalaikunda and
approximately 100 miles of 4" pipeline to feed various fields. Storage facilities at each field were to be sufficient
for 1,470,000 U.S. gallons.
The project was approved on 17 December 1943 and work was immediately begun by American troops and 2000
Indian laborers provided through negotiation with the Government of India. The troops provided the necessary technical
supervision of the work. Progress was rapid and by 13 March 1944 the 6" line had been laid and the 4" extension to
Chakulia so that pumping to the storage tanks at Kharagpur and Chakulia could begin. The entire project was completed
on 6 October 1944.
From these fields the first land-based air operation against Japan was initiated.
The first problem confronting SOS in the construction of airfields in China were those of improving
existing fields in use by Chennault's Flying Tigers so that they could be used by heavy bombers and transport planes
and the building of additional fields for use of Hump transport planes. The work was handled through China's Commission
on Aeronautical Affairs or Ministry of Communication. All operational construction was handled through this agency
which let contracts for the work and paid for it. SOS engineers supervised the construction. All non-operational
construction was accomplished by SOS through direct contract.
Due to distances involved, location of the Chinese Government, and other factors, airfield construction
in most instances was handled with it reference to Headquarters, SOS. The SOS Advance Sections dealt directly with
Forward Echelon Headquarters, USAF in CBI, located in Chungking where approval for all proposed construction had to be
secured from Chinese Government. In November 1943 airfield construction in China was made the responsibility of the
Air Forces.
In Burma the construction of airfields was made the responsibility of the Air Forces at the same time.
However, the engineers building the Ledo Road constructed all the fields adjacent to the road. It should be noted that
most of the Air Force Engineer units arriving in the theater prior to February 1944 were assigned to the Ledo Road
project. The airfields constructed served as an aid in relieving the difficult supply situation as the road construction
progressed.
AIRFIELD CONSTRUCTION
Historical Record of the Engineer Section
Construction Service - Services of Supply
United States Army Forces in China-Burma-India
and United States Forces in India-Burma Theater
Document shared by Graham Thompson
Copyright © 2010 Carl W. Weidenburner