Hollandia Airfield Complex
| Type | 122 Air Base | |
| Historical Name of Location | Hollandia, Dutch New Guinea, Dutch East Indies | |
| Coordinates | -2.576944000, 140.516111000 |
Contributor: C. Peter Chen
ww2dbaseThe Dutch arrived at the town of Numbay on the northern coast of the island of New Guinea in Sep 1909, and in Mar 1909 it was renamed Hollandia. In Apr 1942, it was occupied by the Japanese Army, who developed a complex of three airfields about 5 miles in-land, about directly west of the town. The complex was completed by Oct 1943. It was consisted the main Hollandia Airfield, Sentani Airfield, and Cyclops Airfield. The main Hollandia Airfield was western-most, near Lake Sentani; it had two runways and featured several barracks and revetments for bombers. Sentani Airfield, which had one fighter strip was to Hollandia Airfield's east. Cyclops Airfield, closest to the town of Hollandia, was about 0.75 miles northeast of Sentani Airfield; it also had only a short strip suitable for fighters only. The main airfield was captured by US Army troops on 22 Apr 1944 as a part of Operation Reckless, followed by the capture of the two satellite fields four days later. Unlike most other Japanese strongholds that were captured by the Allies during the war, a large number of Japanese abandoned their defensive positions to escape through the jungles, while a few willingly surrendered. Between late Apr 1944 and Mar 1945, Hollandia Airfield Complex (Cyclops Airfield specifically) was Douglas MacArthur's headquarters, thus the airfields were busy with various activities. After the war, the main Hollandia Airfield was abandoned and became overgrown with vegetation. Sentani Airfield remained operational. Cyclops Airfield was also abandoned after the war; a number of residential buildings of the town of Sentani would occupy the site. As of 1962, the new United Nations-controlled coastal town was renamed Kota Baru. After a brief time as Sukarnapura, it was finally renamed Jayapura in late 1968. The neighboring Humboldt Bay had since been renamed Yos Sudarso Bay. The war time Sentani Airfield would became today's Sentani Airport, the main airport for the western half of New Guinea.
ww2dbaseSources:
Wikipedia
pacificwrecks.com
Last Major Update: Jun 2016
Hollandia Airfield Complex Interactive Map
Photographs
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Maps
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Hollandia Airfield Complex Timeline
| 22 Apr 1944 | US Army troops captured the main Hollandia Airfield on the northern coast of Dutch New Guinea. |
| 26 Apr 1944 | Sentani Airfield and Cyclops Airfield near Hollandia, Dutch New Guinea was captured by US 186th Infantry Regiment. |
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Visitor Submitted Comments
27 Jan 2017 03:10:32 PM
I am a world war 2 enthusiast. I passed through and lived papua new guinea for many years as missionary priest.i relived the times of the great war in this exotic, paradise like island of new guinea and surrounding island.
9 Oct 2017 12:15:27 PM
My grandfather was in Hollandia at MacArthur's HQ at Hollandia. I am trying to locate on a map the HQ. Problem: there are at least two Hollandias. This article does not differentiate between them and so is pretty useless except for dates. Seems to me, for instance that Sentani airport is WSW or W of Hollandia (depending on which one we're talking about, the this article has it east.
All visitor submitted comments are opinions of those making the submissions and do not reflect views of WW2DB.
| WW2-Era Place Name | Hollandia, Dutch New Guinea, Dutch East Indies |
| Lat/Long | -2.5769, 140.5161 |
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14 Oct 2015 10:21:31 PM
My father Navy Sept. 14 1944. The pilots here took Navy sailors up for rides when the tested the planes after repairs. My father is Nicholas John Tostanoski. He built Quonset huts and other buildings . Building Sampson Navy and Air Force base was his boot camp. They didnt even have boats there yet. The base is a museum and the winter photos show when he was there . His building was by the lake. But IF any one has info or photos of this time frame It would be so AWESOME to get a copy I will pay for this at a Walmart Dad was also at Los Negros and Mandis building He helped build 3 bases in Plesington CA and the site of the World Fair also. Thank you all and I am PROUD of my Dad and all your familys service 3