Me 163B airfields
The map shows all airfields on which Komet operated (note 1990 borders). The main operating bases are shown as large green dots, while the secondary operating locations are shown as smaller green dots. Large cities are shown in red. Of note is the distance between Stuttgart-Böbblingen and Jesau, the main manufacturing site and the production test flying locations respectively. From Jesau the aircraft were delivered to operational units.
The following list shows all airfields from which Me 163's were operated. Wartime maps are available for four major operating locations. With thanks to Bernhard Weiss of the Fliegerhorste site for part of the information. Another excellent source is the 726 page Luftwaffe Airfields 1935-45 Germany (1937 Borders) by Henry L. deZeng IV.
| Name (current name, country) | Date | Units | Current use |
| Anklam | August-September 1943 | Temporary location for EK16 after bombardment of Peenemünde | Totally demolished after WW2. Currently a civil airfield, remaining area in use for agriculture or deserted |
| Augsburg-Haunstetten | 1942-1943 | Messerschmitt factory where the Me 163A prototypes and the initial two Me 163B prototypes were built | used as a civil airfield after the war, then broken up to make room for Augsburg industry and university. A new civil airfield (Augsburg-Mühlhausen) was constructed north-east of the city |
| Bad Zwischenahn | August/September 1943 - August 1944 | Home of EK16 | ? |
| early 1945 - April 1945 | Home of II./JG400 | ||
| Brandis | July 1944 - April 1945 | Home of I./JG400. After August 1944 also EK16. | Up to 1992 a Soviet / Russian air force base with a Su 25 wing and a Mi 8/17/24 wing |
| Deelen (the Netherlands) | - | Planned operating base for Komets. Some Komet infrastructure was built. | Royal Netherlands air force base until 2000 or so |
| Fassberg | late war | A technical school at this base (Technische Schule 2) trained among others engine mechanics, for which purpose they had three Komets and an engine test stand. At the end of the war six Komets were present at the base, but all the aircraft at Fassberg were destroyed before the base was occupied by British troops. See the Lost Places site. | German air force base, housing a technical school and a helicopter unit |
| Husum-Narrenthal or Husum-Schauendahl | April 1945 - May 1945 | Final home of II./JG400 | The former airfield was demolished after WW2, the barracks were used as German Air Force barracks, and currently it is a local training area for the Husum garrison. The post-war Luftwaffe built another Husum air base to the north-east (Husum-Olderup, or Husum-Schwesing), and up to 1993 it was home of JBG41 using Alpha Jets |
| Jesau | February 1944 - ? | Airfield where production Me 163B were test flown | Now Kaliningrad-Yezau (NATO maps) or Yuzhny/Nivenskoye (Russian name). Houses helicopter and Su 27 wings. |
| Lechfeld | 1942-1944 | Luftwaffe base used for some initial testing of Me 163A and B. | Luftwaffe Tornado base |
| Peenemünde | Main testing airfield for Me 163A and B | Up to 1990 an East German Air Force MiG 23 base | |
| Regensburg-Obertraubling | Messerschmitt factory were 70 pre-series Me 163B were built | The factory and airfield were largely destroyed during several air attacks. After the war it became a refugee camp for Germans from the east, and this grew into a city, called Neutraubling. Only a few parts of the wartime buildings remain. | |
| Sorau (Zary, Poland) | 1945 probably | production test flying of Junkers/BGA produced Me 163B (Griehl, 'German Rocket Planes (Luftwaffe at War - 14)') | some 40 km south-east of Cottbus. Captured in reasonably well condition by Red Army in 1945, totally demolished two years later and abandoned. The HQ building (currently a hotel and restaurant), a small guard bunker and building foundations are still left |
| Sprottau (Szprotawa, Poland) | January 1945 | Temporary location for III./JG400 | Up to 1991 a Soviet / Russian air force Su 24 Fencer base, currently a small airport? |
| Stargard-Klützow (Stargard-Kluczewo, Poland) | October 1944 - ? | Home of 3. and 4./JG400, later II./JG400 | Up to 1992 a RussAF Su 27 Flanker base, currently a small airport? |
| Stuttgart-Böblingen | 1943-1945 | Me 163B finishing and later complete manufacturing by Klemm | US Army airfield until 1992, now reconstructed as a business area. Some historic buildings remain. |
| Twenthe (the Netherlands) | - | Planned operating base for Komets. Some Komet infrastructure was built and is still present. | Royal Netherlands air force base, to be closed in 2005? |
| Udetfeld (Mierzecice, Poland) | October 1944 - January 1945 | Home of III./JG400, which conducted flight training with Me 163A (possibly some Me 163B) | A PolAF storage airfield, sometimes used for MiG 21 operations. Now mainly used for civil purposes as Katowice International Airport |
| Venlo (the Netherlands) | June/July 1944 - August 1943 | Home of 2./JG400 | glider airfield |
| Wittmundhafen | March/April 1944 - July 1944 | Home of 1./JG400 | Luftwaffe F-4F base |
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