The 47th first arrived at the airfield on 10 January 1944, however it had to abandon the field on 22 March 1944 due to the eruption of Mount Vesuvius which severely damaged the field and several A-20 Havoc aircraft. The group was evacuated to Capodichino Airport near Naples for several weeks until they returned to the repaired base on 25 April, remaining until 10 June 1944.