Buiksloot

52°24'26"N 004°53'43"E

Runway: N/A - grass field

Airfield Buiksloot was an airfield in the Amsterdam-Noord burrow.
In 1937, it was built by the Amsterdamsche Club voor Zweefvliegen (Amsterdam Club for gliding) as a glider field just west of the Buiksloot area in Amsterdam. It opened in 1938 and although it was primarily a glider field, it was also frequently used by the nearby Fokker aircraft plant. 
It was upgraded to an auxiliary military airfield during the mobilisation of 1939, but it had no aircraft assigned.


Glider field 'Buiksloot' is clearly marked by a glider in this ca. 1938-1939 map of Amsterdam. The nearby Fokker plant is visible (but barely readable) on the bank of the Johan van Hasselt Kan. (West). Map via Rob van Spaandonk.

On 10 May 1940 during the German invasion, Buiksloot was assigned to the RAF. No aircraft of the RAF made use of the airfield, but 3 Fokker D-XXI aircraft of 1 JaVA (Fighter Unit) and another 5 of 2JaVA used the airfield to divert that day, along with a Fokker G.I aircraft. The D-XXI aircraft were used to form a new hastily created unit, the G.I was sent to 4JaVA at Bergen airfield.
On 11 May three more D-XXI joined the unit, but by 13.30 only 9 were still in service. Also, the "Buiksloot-JaVA" was 'augmented' by 5 obsolete D-XVII fromt the flying school at Texel/De Vlijt.
On 12 May the unit flew combat sorties over Holland in the morning hours, and received another two repaired D-XXI from 1JaVA at De Kooy.
Inexperienced pilots flew 3 D-XVII aircraft to Ruigenhoek airfield in order to protect the local C.V aircraft, but they crashlanded. Only one was repairable. On 13 May, after an early morning combat sortie with 5 aircraft the commander reported its aircraft were beginning to show wear. Crews and technicians were beginning to show fatigue after having been active non-stop since the early hours of the war. In the evening he reported 5 D-XXIs would be ready for combat the next morning, and 3 more were being prepared. Another D-XVII had joined from Soesterberg.
On 14 May the JaVA was ordered for another combat sortie, but they were instructed not to return to Buiksloot, instead they had to divert to Amsterdam Schiphol. Although Schiphol was much more dangerous and Buiksloot was still unknown to the German army, the airfield was to be demolished, as the German Army was advancing from the north. After the aircraft left, groundcrew ploughed the landing grounds and placed iron spikes in the ground. Then they marched off, along with the security troops.

Map of Airfield Buiksloot in Amsterdam, north of the IJ (source).

After the capitulation of the Netherlands, the Luftwaffe used the airfield as an emergency diversion field. Also, it was used to set up a Flak battery. The Luftwaffe abandoned the site in 1943.

Today, there is nothing to remind us of the airfield, which is a residential area now (Google Earth).