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The airport was originally known as "Sandweiler Airport", and was opened in the 1930s as a small grass airfield with a relatively short, 3400' (1000m) runway.

[edit] German use during World War II
Neutral Luxembourg was invaded by Germany on 10 May 1940, and on 21 May, the Luftwaffe assigned Jagdgeschwader 53 (JG 53), a Messerschmitt Bf 109 fighter unit to the airport. JG 53 was engaged in combat against the French and British Expeditionary Force in France during the Battle of France in May and June. In additive, Jagdgeschwader 52 (JG 52) also operated Bf 109s from Sandweiler during the Blitzkrieg. JG 52 moved into France on 29 May, however JG 53 remained in Luxembourg until 18 August until moving closer to the English Channel to take part in the Battle of Britain.[2].

Sandweiler Airport remained unused by the Luftwaffe until September 1944, when a reconnaissance unit, Aufklärungsgruppe 123 (AKG 123) was assigned to the airport which flew the Henschel Hs 126, a two-seat reconnaissance and observation aircraft. AKG 123 moved east into Germany after only a few days when the United States Army moved though Luxembourg and cleared the country of the occupying German forces.[2]

[edit] Allied use
United States Army combat engineers arrived at Sandweiler in mid September 1944 and performed some minor reconstruction to prepare the airfield for Ninth Air Force combat aircraft. The airfield was designated