Before the war, the French Air Ministry chose Carpiquet to create, far from the future front, an aerodrome focused on aerial bombardment, for training and observation. In June 1940, the Germans installed an important base there, engaged in the Battle of Britain (book includes never before seen photos) and in their confrontation with the invasion of Dieppe. The aerodrome suffered heavy bombardments. In June and July 1944, it became the keystone of the Battle for Caen. The Hitlerjugend put up strong resistance there against the Canadians. After the war, the aerodrome trained hundreds of pilots involved in the conflict with Algeria and became an army base before returning entirely to civil service in 2010. An exceptional documentation about a base which found itself at the heart of history. 160 pages in colour. TEXT IN FRENCH