USAF Patch Med USAFE Hospital Wiesbaden AB

USAF Patch USAFE Hospital Wiesbaden Patch 1970s fully embroidered cut edge large 80mm by 76mm three inches by three inches

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History

Wiesbaden Air Base is on the site of a former horse racing track over which aerial demonstrations became a regular part of the racing program in the latter part of WW1. Some of the most famous German stunt pilots made their appearance at Wiesbaden during these performances and in 1926 a retired German Flying Corps officer Joseph Aumann conceived the idea of turning the racetrack into an airfield to attract more visitors to the Spas. Wiesbaden-Mainz Airport was opened in spring 1929 with private and sport flying training for future Luftwaffe pilots taking place in the early 1930s.  

In 1936 the Airport was designated a fliegerhorst or air base by Luftwaffe Headquarters and the military kaserne, runway and hangar complex was completed in 1938 and the first German military unit the famous Ace of Spades fighter wing occupied Fliegerhorst Wiesbaden. The Air Base was used throughout WW2 for fighter and bomber operations and at the peak of its use as many as 40 bombers took off every 3 hours on assigned bombing missions. Wiesbaden Air Base was the target of numerous allied bombing missions and unexploded ordnance from is occasionally found during construction projects close to the airfield.

Fliegerhorst Wiesbaden was abandoned by the Luftwaffe and occupied by advancing American troops in late March 1945. The US Army Air Force remained after the war and in 1948 following the establishment of the US Air Force Fliegerhorst Wiesbaden was designated Wiesbaden Air Base and became home to Headquarters U.S. Air Force in Europe. During the Berlin Airlift of 1949 Wiesbadens 60th Troop Carrier Group flew missions daily from Wiesbaden to Tempelhof Airport in Berlin.

In 1976 Headquarters USAFE and all USAF flying units moved to Ramstein AB and were replaced by a US Army Mechanized Infantry Brigade. With the deactivation of the Brigade in 1984 the Air Base reverted to its aviation role became the primary airfield of the US Army V Corps and in 1988 was renamed Wiesbaden Army Airfield.

US Air Force Hospital Wiesbaden was originally a WW2 Luftwaffe hospital greatly redeveloped as part of Wiesbaden Air Base located away from the Cold War border in case of a Soviet invasion. With 20 buildings 235 beds and 844 staff the hospital was the biggest and best-equipped American military medical facility in Europe. The Hospital served for many years as the major treatment center for USAF personnel in Germany and as the major evacuation hospital for wounded military personal being moved from combat zones across Europe and the Middle East. The Hospital featured in international headlines as the delivery point for the released Iran Embassy hostages greeted by President Jimmy Carter 21 January 1981.  The Hospital was considered one of the most attractive of the US Military Hospitals in Germany.

USAF Hospital Wiesbaden was closed in 1993 and handed back to the German Government. The buildings were listed and now accommodate the West Hesse Police Headquarters.

This patch dates from the late 1970s.