- Learn About American Military Bases in Germanysmall american flag image by Scott McCarty from Fotolia.com
Currently, the U.S. military has more than 800 installations in over 135 countries. In Germany alone, the United States army has over 50,000 military personnel in over 20 different bases.These bases are located in Germany for several reasons: in part because it would cost too much to relocate the soldiers from the existing bases which have existed there since World War II, and in part to ensure a foreign presence for global security. - Campbell Barracks, located in Heidelberg, is one of the most important US bases in Germany. These barracks have a number of different functions. They serve as the Headquarters of the U.S. Army in Europe and the Seventh Army, the Headquarters of the V Corps, and the Headquarters of NATO's Component Command-Land Headquarters. Campbell Barracks was first built and used as part of the Nazi empire. In 1945, it was taken over by the Allied forces. By the end of 1945, the Barracks was the headquarters for the U.S. Seventh Army Group. It remained an important base throughout the Cold War, and in 1993 the headquarters of NATO's Allied Land Forces Central Europe moved to the Barracks.
- The Coleman Barracks are located in Mannheim, Germany in the district of Sandhofen. This base is used by the U.S. Army Installation Management Command-Europe. Coleman Barracks actually began simply as an airport in 1925. This was then expanded by the 1930s, and in 1937 it became a German Air Force base. A concentration camp for prisoners of war was installed in the Barracks in 1944, which was run by the SS division of the German Army. The U.S. army conquered the Barracks in 1945, and it was first used as a storage site. By the 1950s, it transformed into a staging area for troops in Germany. Currently, the Barracks holds the only maintenance facility for the Chinook helicopters, Blackhawk helicopters, Sikorsky UH-60 and Boeing CH-47 helicopters, as well as the only US-Army military prison in Europe. The Barracks is also used to train forces of NATO, the U.S. Army and civilians in flight operations.
- The Kelley Barracks are located in Stuttgart-Mohringen, Germany. The Barracks are currently used as the headquarters for the United States African Command (AFRICOM). They have been used for this purpose since October of 2008. Kelley Barracks were first built in 1938 by the German army and known as the Hellenen Kaserne. The U.S. Army overtook the Barracks by the end of the Second World War. The Barracks were initially used as the Headquarters for the VII Corps, and remained the headquarters until1992 when the Corps deactivated. The Barracks features the Kelley Theatre, and the Deutsche Kantine, a restaurant above the theatre.
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