Étain-Rouvres (Base Lieutenant Étienne Mantoux)

Base Lieutenant Étienne Mantoux, originally established as Étain-Rouvres Air Base, is a French Army Light Aviation installation located on the Lorraine Plateau in northeastern France. It sits 1.5 kilometers west of Étain, adjacent to Rouvres-en-Woevre in the Meuse département, and 19 kilometers east of Verdun.

The French Air Force constructed the original airdrome in 1937, operating Bloch-131 reconnaissance aircraft. During World War II, the Royal Air Force's No. 73 Squadron operated Hawker Hurricanes from the site prior to the Fall of France, after which the Luftwaffe stationed Focke-Wulf Fw 190D fighters there. In September 1944, United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) engineers captured and rebuilt the site as Advanced Landing Ground A-82. Between November 1944 and April 1945, the USAAF 362d Fighter Group operated P-47 Thunderbolts from the base during the Battle of the Bulge, alongside P-61 Black Widows of the 416th and 425th Night Fighter Squadrons. The facility was returned to French authorities in May 1945.

Between 1952 and 1956, the site was redeveloped as a North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) air base. Infrastructure additions included a rail spur and underground fuel storage. The United States Air Force initially stationed the 388th Fighter-Bomber Wing at Étain, equipping the unit with F-86 Sabres for tactical nuclear weapons delivery. Subsequent USAFE and U.S. Army units stationed at the facility included the 49th Fighter-Bomber Wing, the 97th and 249th Engineer Battalions, and Air National Guard F-84F Thunderstreaks deployed during the 1961 Berlin Crisis. The 366th Tactical Fighter Wing operated from the base until 1963. Following France's withdrawal from NATO's integrated military command, U.S. forces vacated the facility, transferring it back to French control in March 1967.

Currently, the base is operated by the French Army Light Aviation and hosts the 3rd Combat Helicopter Regiment (3e RHC), comprising approximately 1,000 personnel. The regiment operates fleets of SA341 and SA342 Gazelles, including VIVIANE variants, as well as SA330 Pumas and NH90 Caïman helicopters. The 3e RHC is designated as the first digitized regiment of its brigade, equipped with SIR and SIT information systems. Forces from the base have deployed to support French military operations in Côte d'Ivoire, the Balkans, Indonesia, Lebanon, and Chad.