What would this WWII airfield have looked like, in terms of infrastructure?

[mennie]

I'm researching an airfield, or what's left of it, near to where I currently stay in Fortaleza Brazil.
This was called Pici Field and was constructed during WWII and abandoned after a few years of use when they constructed a new field called Cocorote (or Adjacento).
I found various maps, from very high level up to airfield level.
But I am not a pilot, and I am curious to learn if anything could be found on the ground of the infrastructure that used to be there.


- There is a RBn (Radio Beacon?) tower of 70ft near the Fueling Area, how would it have looked?
- There is a pointer to a spot between 44' and 35' in the top of the map saying FORTALEZA RADIO, would something have been there?
- WYRQ is a frequency? Which frequency?
- 226 UZ, what is that?
- What is Tower PVC / Tower WYRC, is it a ground and approach frequency?


- Again the V box FORTALEZA RADIO mentioned and WYRQ 226 UZ, would this be coming from a tower in the spot on the map?
- I think those beams are meant to locate the airfield, what would such equipment have looked like?

- This map has different info, it says RR and then there is a morse code. It has PICI 84 and ADJACENTO is 81.
- There is an H Rbn box, H being for homing? How does that work, which equipment does that?

From the same map:




We have not been able to identify what this has been used for, it's located near the area with the small buildings and the parking ramp.
I want to go again after I know more about what I am looking for.

 

[SaparotRob]

Hello mennie and welcome. I'm not one of the knowledgable members but that was some great stuff you posted.

 

[mennie]

Thank you, I hope someone can shed some more light on what kind of equipment would have been used.

There is a location Radio Panair on this map, which matches the location on the large approach map.
I also found a strange shack on the location pointed to in the smaller map, it's made of concrete. Could also be a watertower though.


I started looking into this as on YouTube someone mentioned these pillars to be that of blimp mooring mast, but clearly they are not.
Since they are in a completely different location as indicated on the map.

 

[mennie]

Ok, so the tower was nothing from WWII it was a water tower built in 1980s.


Other photos are from some foundations seen on the airfield, if I overlay the 1945 map then that had buildings there.

 

[Wurger]

The WW2 symbols on the nav charts are quite different for these use today. But let's see if we can "translate" them into understandable info.

The above is the location of the LF/MF Four-Course Radio Range Beacon. The station name is the Fortaleza Radio. The call sign of the radio is the WYRQ on 266 Kilocycles frequency. The identifying signal is "UZ". The small letter "V" on the top of the info box seems to mean the "Visual" option used for request. The same info you can find in the second chart. Additionally the course approach bearing is shown in degrees inside each spoke and each quadrant has the A or N identification shown there.

and in the Radio Range one. But in the case the Morse code for the two letter "UZ" ID signal was added.

The radio communication station operated by the airfield Control Tower, call letters WYRQ or PVC ... depending on which airfield you would like to get in contact.

- There is a RBn (Radio Beacon?) tower of 70ft near the Fueling Area,

Actually it is the antenna mast for the Radio Communication Station with the Radiobeacon facilities ... The same info you can find in the RR chart. But in the case, it means the Homing Radiobeacon Station for the the Pici airfield that uses the "PVC" sign ...

PICI 84 and ADJACENTO 81

It looks like the numbers of the radio channel for the communication.

 

[Wurger]

The Radio Communication Station/Radiobeacon antenna mast on the Pici field could look like these two seen in the pic of the United States instalations at Belem Brazil War Theatre circa 1943. Please note the smaller tower of the Light Beacon on the right.

the source: 6)USN NAF BELEM - U.S NAVY BASES - U.S. NAVY BASES IN BRAZIL - Articles - Sixtant - War II in the South Atlantic

or at Ipitanga Airfield - Bahia ... however, that's the LF/MF Four-Course Radio Range Beacon antennae IMHO .

the source: 13)USN NAF IPITANGA - U.S NAVY BASES - U.S. NAVY BASES IN BRAZIL - Articles - Sixtant - War II in the South Atlantic

 

[Wurger]

Regarding the Low Frequency Radio Range system ( LF/MF Four-Course Radio Range Beacon ) it could look like one of these seen in the pics below ... IMHO the five-tower system.

the source: Flying the Beams

the five tower Range Range Antenna system in 1943

the source: WWII Airborne Radio Part 2

 

[SaparotRob]

Great stuff! Thanks, Wurger.

 

[mennie]

Thank you so much for looking all this up Wurger!
I have 2 possible locations for the LF/MF Four-Course Radio Range Beacon, which one do you think is correct?

I have looked today at the site that I called Localizer, indicated on the 1944 Approach Chart but there was nothing there and the people living there said also nothing has been there before. The building that I thought was interesting, was just a water tower from the 1980s. And it must have been a huge site judging by your photos.

But then there is a location that is marked on an old hand written map that refers to Radio Panair, who were the construction company that made the field.


Pici Field was owned by the United States Army Air Force.
Panair do Brasil, a subsidiary of Pan American Airways, was contracted to build Pici Field, back in 1941. The air base was built under the guise of a civilian airport, as Brazil and the United States were not yet at war with the Axis.

About these approach charts, we noticed for example one error in the flow of the Rio Maranguapinho on the more detailed 4L chart, another error seems to be the location of the LF/MF Four-Course Radio Range Beacon. Therefore, I am wondering how these charts were made?
Did they make them from aerial photographs? Could there still be sources somewhere that they used to make these maps?

So the 64ft tower mentioned besides the Radio Beacon, would that be the Light Beacon?

 

[Wurger]

It should be kept in mind that the location of many navaids could be changed in time. It may happen because of the urban development, replacing of existed devices or changings places that not comply with the requirements for their work.
Also I have some doubt the charts were made with the aerial photographs at that time or based on the area pictures. IMHO you could ask about that the US Army Cartography Department or something like that. Just a suggestion.

Regarding the the Light Beacon tower .. as memo serves the standard one was of 51ft or 57ft height. So it is quite close to the 64ft but it doesn't mean it was just the tower there. The light beacon was marked with another symbol on charts. The 64ft mast could be a part of the Homing radiobeacon system or just another mast for radio communication.

 

[mennie]

Thank for replying again.
I think the field didn't change much and the 4L chart is just a little wrong then, Pici was not used for very long.
The best history description of this field I found in archive: Pici e Cocorote: as Bases Americanas no Ceará at Blog do Igor
About the radio site, which would have been huge, I couldn't find anything else!
Except that in 1985 it looks like a patch of sand on Google Earth.

Pici was only built and used during WWII, then in 1944 they already moved to the new field of Cocorote.
Pici Field runway was 16/34 and the new Cocorote is 13/31. I think the different orientation can be of two reasons; one could be because of the terrain that the hill that it's on just didn't have more room, or because they did the survey in the month of July and in these months the winds can change a little from east to south.

Fortaleza Climate, Weather By Month, Average Temperature (Ceará, Brazil) - Weather Spark

The climate in Fortaleza is hot, oppressive, windy, and partly cloudy. Over the course of the year, the temperature typically varies from 75°F to 87°F and is rarely below 73°F or above 89°F.

weatherspark.com

Would this half moon next to runway 16 also be something physical? A glide slope?

 

[Wurger]

Would this half moon next to runway 16 also be something physical? A glide slope?

To be honest I'm not sure. I haven't seen a such symbol on charts so far.

 

[ThomasP]

re:

Could this be a symbol for a 'Wide Angle Searchlight" or "Spread-Beam Searchlight"? I have read of their existence and use at airfields (including at airship landing sites), but I do not know if this is the correct symbol. One article described this type of searchlight as being able to illuminate a 1/4 x 1/2 mile area of the airfield "as if it were daylight", aiding operations at night.

 

[Snautzer01]

Map symbols WW2 Map Symbols

 

[Snautzer01]

I would say anti aircraft 3 guns. Place seems logical for it.

 

[Wurger]

IMHO about the sign it should be asked for ..

 

[mennie]

IMHO about the sign it should be asked for ..

View attachment 680407

Thank you, this agency seems to not exist anymore and I am having a difficult time finding more information about it.
Mostly I am referred to archives.gov which has nothing.

What I did come across are some records in the Air Force History Index, this one on Pici:

http://airforcehistoryindex.org/data/000/001/728.xml

And a bunch on Fortaleza, which could be Pici or Adjacento / Cocorote. But I also see a mention of Squadron 157 of the Army Airways Communications System.

Air Force History Index -- Search

They might have been operating at the tower(s), I guess?

I am also looking into 91st Strategic Reconnaissance Squadron, who might have been there with North American F-10 "Mitchells".
91st Cyberspace Operations Squadron - Wikipedia

Here are some more pictures and a story of a blimp pilot:

Daniel Cavalier | Naval Airship Assoc

www.naval-airships.org

 

[Wurger]

Thank you, this agency seems to not exist anymore and I am having a difficult time finding more information about it.

Certainly, the Office hasn't existed yet. It was abolished in 1962. Instead of this you have to check on the Naval Oceanographic Office.

NAVOCEANO

Naval Oceanographic Office - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[SaparotRob]

Thank you, this agency seems to not exist anymore and I am having a difficult time finding more information about it.
Mostly I am referred to archives.gov which has nothing.

What I did come across are some records in the Air Force History Index, this one on Pici:

http://airforcehistoryindex.org/data/000/001/728.xml

And a bunch on Fortaleza, which could be Pici or Adjacento / Cocorote. But I also see a mention of Squadron 157 of the Army Airways Communications System.

Air Force History Index -- Search

They might have been operating at the tower(s), I guess?

I am also looking into 91st Strategic Reconnaissance Squadron, who might have been there with North American F-10 "Mitchells".
91st Cyberspace Operations Squadron - Wikipedia

Here are some more pictures and a story of a blimp pilot:

Daniel Cavalier | Naval Airship Assoc

www.naval-airships.org

I hope you find the information you are looking for. The information you have posted is great!

 

[special ed]

Daniel Cavalier's story is definitely worth reading