RAF Little Staughton – Winner of Two VCs. Part 2

October 29, 2023October 28, 2023 / Aviationtrails / 2 Comments

In Part 1, we saw how Little Staughton had developed initialled used by the USAAF as a depot for repairs and refurbishments, and how soon after it was handed back to the RAF and the Bennett’s Pathfinders.

The end of 1944 would be pivotal though, but not the happy celebratory time it should have been, but a solemn and heart rendering time for those stationed here.

On December 23rd 1944, twenty-seven Lancasters along with their three Mosquito reserves, would take off from Little Staughton and their sister airfields at Bourn and Gravely, to be joined by their escorts – three squadrons of Mustangs from 150 Wing, over France. Once out of the English fog and cloud that had harassed the bombers for several days before hand, the aircraft began to jostle for their correct position in the formation. The three formations, each made up of two Flights, A and B, would gradually settle down now able to see each other in the clearer skies above the heavy English cloud.In such a clear sky, it might be ill-considered to think that anything could go drastically wrong – but go wrong it did.

Assemblies could always be a danger and would be unsettling for any crew. At the back of the six flight formation and unseen to the Little Staughton crews at the front, Graveley’s 35 Sqn’s Flying Officer G.S. Lawson in Lancaster ‘H-How’ (PB683) began closing in on his friend Pilot Officer R. Clarke in ‘F-Freddie’ (PB678). Misjudging the narrow distance between them, Lawson’s aircraft inadvertently made contact with the wing of Clarke’s, sending both aircraft, fully laden with fuel and bombs, spiralling to the icy waters of the English Channel below. As the two Lancasters fell uncontrollably towards Earth, others in the formation could do nothing except watch in horror and prey that chutes would somehow emerge from the two Lancasters. Miraculously, six airmen did manage to escape the stricken bombers before they either broke apart due to the extreme forces exerted upon them, or they hit the water.

A rescue search was mounted immediately. Little Staughton’s reserve pathfinder Mosquito from 105 Sqn, who was sat at the rear of the formation and witnessed everything, remained on station continually radioing the airmen’s positions back to control. He remained there, watching out, until the launch arrived to begin the arduous task of searching for signs of life. But the icy winter waters of the channel were too much for the badly protected airmen, and although six managed to escape the stricken bombers, all the crew of the launch could do was pull dead bodies from the cold water. Only one crewman was unaccounted for, the body of Flt.Lt. John Faulkner was some weeks later washed up on the beach at Dieppe. He remains buried there to this day.

Meanwhile, the front two formations consisting of Lancasters from Little Staughton flew on oblivious to the carnage that had occurred behind them. Being an Oboe operation meant that the aircraft had to fly for fifteen minutes straight and level without any deviation from the beam they were following. Hopefully, the predicted cloud over the target would give them some protection from flak and fighters, hence the reason for using Oboe. When they got there however, there was none, just clear bright skies and it was daylight. Ramrod 1415 was about to feel the brunt of the Luftwaffe’s determined pilots.

The first formation had somehow become detached from the second and third, meaning their escort was way behind and having to race to catch-up. With eight minutes to target they were alone, in clear skies and vulnerable.

It was then that the flak began. 88mm and 105mm shells began exploding all around the aircraft, peppering the fuselages like hailstones on a tin can.

Within minutes the gunners had found their mark, and the first aircraft was hit. Mosquito ML998 ‘HS-B’ with 25 year old Flt. Lt. Eric Carpenter, a Canadian, and Fl. Off. William Lambert as navigator, was on fire with both engines out. Moments later, the Mosquito exploded in a massive fireball. Neither airmen would survive and Little Staughton was now one crew down.

With three minutes to go, not only had the flak intensified but fighters had appeared on the scene too. The master bomber, Sqn. Ldr. Robert Palmer in Lancaster PB 371 ‘V’, received hits causing two engines to cut. His Lancaster was now more than ever difficult to fly but on he went fighting the reluctant aircraft every inch of the way. Then further hits badly damaged the Lancaster’s tail forcing the aircraft to turn over and tumble out of the bright German sky.

As the aircraft tumbled over and over, the rear gunner Flt.Sgt. R Yeulatt, another Canadian, manged to escape his turret, more by luck than skill. After his turret was separated from the spiralling Lancaster his body was forced out between the doors by the wind. This incredible escape would be his saviour – he would be the only survivor of the seven man crew.

With all Lancasters receiving intense fire it was going to be carnage – and it was.

The second Lancaster to fall from the sky was that of American (RCAF) Flt.Lt. Arndt Reif in PB120 ‘P’. Reid’s aircraft was hit by both flak and enemy fighters. Reif himself was badly injured, and so he gave the order to bale out. Only two crewmen, Flt. Sgts MacLennan and Pearce, both Canadians, escaped with their lives, being picked up on the ground and incarcerated by the Germans.

Flt. Lt. R. Hockley in Lancaster PB141 ’60-F’ went down next. With no controls and one wing on fire, he gave the order to jump, and all seven crewmen managed to escape the burning wreck. Six were picked up by the Germans below, the seventh, 24 year old Pilot Officer Ken Hewitt was attacked by murderous civilians and shot several times. Efforts to save him by a local policeman failed and the murder was the subject to a post war criminal investigation, which concluded that the fatal shot came from Hubert Wester, who was later killed on the Eastern front. No other charges were brought against any of those present.

With one Mosquito and three Lancasters now gone, the deaths were stacking up. Fl. Off. R. Terpenning, an Australian, in Lancaster PB558 ‘A’ had by now taken several hits and was flying ‘on the deck’ to try and make his escape. Pounced on by further fighters, time was definitely of the essence.

The Lancaster’s gunners fought bravely to ward off continued determined Luftwaffe attacks. Fuel now streamed from the wing; two engines were out; the top turret had been severely damaged and many controls were out of action, it was a miracle the aircraft was still in the air. Once over Belgium and the relative safety of the allied lines, Terpenning gave the order to bale out, himself being the last to leave. All seven airmen made it safely out of the Lancaster and were back at Little Staughton just four days later.

By now chaos reigned. Communications were bad at best. Only some aircraft received the order to scatter and had done so, others meanwhile received orders to bomb visually and not by Oboe. Some of the formation dispersed, each aircraft beginning its own unscheduled bomb run.

The last of the formation aircraft to come down was that piloted by 22 year old Flt. Lt. Peter Thomas, in Lancaster PB523 ‘J’. It, like the others, had received substantial hits and was doomed to crash. After battling against persistent fighters and damaged controls, Thomas finally gave the order to bale out. With himself and a wounded Canadian P. Off. Frederick (Tex) Campbell upfront, the remaining crew escaped and the aircraft crashed. In the wreckage still at the controls, was the body of the pilot Flt. Lt. Thomas.

Of those who escaped four became prisoners of war, the fifth, twenty year old Flt. Sgt. Vivian Hobbs was killed after his chute collapsed on the descent.

Of the seventeen Little Staughton 582 Sqn Lancasters that went to Cologne that day, five failed to return along with a Mosquito of 109 Sqn. With a further two Lancasters from Gravely a total of eight aircraft were lost that day, along with all but one of their crews. The operation had been a disaster from the start, and the crews had paid the price.

After the operation Sqn. Ldr. Palmer, who was on his third operational tour and 111th sortie, was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross for his determination in continuing on to the target, even though his aircraft was severely damaged. He insisted on flying straight and level to allow Oboe to pinpoint the target. As a result the crew placed their markers precisely on the target allowing those left following to bomb accurately.*³

The full story and VC citation for Sqn Ldr. Palmer, can be read in ‘Heroic Tales‘.

The return trip to Cologne on New Year’s eve must have filled the crews with dread, however it proved to be uneventful in that all aircraft returned safely and without incident. Although losses were comparatively light for the two units, seventeen aircraft lost from 109 Sqn and around thirty from 582; equating to some 250 airmen in total; it was still a blow to the squadrons and to Little Staughton as a whole.

With a successful and uneventful last operation, the dawn of 1945 must have brought renewed hope for fewer losses and that of a forthcoming allied victory.

The poor weather of the Christmas period however, did little to deter operations over Germany. On 1st January 1945, 582 Sqn were once again in action flying to both Dortmund and Witten. For almost fifteen days crews would be flying operations, training flights or both. It was a gruelling time but losses were low. It wasn’t until the 16th-17th that the first aircraft would go down. Baling out over allied territory all crew apart from the rear gunner, Sgt. McNamara, survived. With 109 Sqn losing only one Mosquito on the 31st – again both airmen returning safely – January had proven light despite the increase in operations.

It was then in February that another Little Staughton airman would earn himself the Victoria Cross, the second for bravery and dedication to duty.

On the night of 23rd-24th February, only ten days after the historical attack on Dresden that resulted in a firestorm, 367 Lancasters and 13 Mosquitoes from 1, 6 and 8 Groups were detailed to attack the city of Pforzheim to the north-west of Stuttgart. This would be the only attack on the city and it would prove almost as devastating as Dresden and Hamburg.

The Master Bomber that night was a 582 Squadron Lancaster piloted by the only South African pilot in the Pathfinders, Captain Edwin Swales DFC. In his Lancaster III PB538 ‘N’, were seven other crewmen, including two navigators.

On the run in to the target, the Lancaster was badly hit by night fighters putting one engine and the rear turret guns out of action. Undeterred, Swales continued to perform his role, guiding the following bombers onto the target with the greatest of precision.

Only when he was satisfied that the attack had been carried out did he leave the target area. Now easy prey to more attacks, soon a second engine was put out of action, controls were damaged with some being inoperable. With a reduced speed and difficult flying conditions he headed for the allied lines, and once safely over them, he gave the order to bale out. All those on board made the jump to safety, leaving Swales at the control trying to maintain steady flight. Just as the last man left, the Lancaster gave up the struggle and was reported to hit high tension cables causing it to crash. Captain Swales was still at the controls when it was found later on.

The attack on Pforzheim was considered to be very accurate, with over 1,800 bombs having been dropped in little over twenty minutes. Over 17,000 people were known to have died that night in the raging fire that followed, and a post-war photograph, revealed that 83% of the built up area had been destroyed by the raid*⁴.

Swales’ VC was awarded posthumously, being the second such award to go to airman of Little Staughton, and the third of only three to the Pathfinders. His citation appeared in the Fifth Supplement to The London Gazette, of Friday, the 20th of April, 1945, and concluded: “Intrepid in the attack, courageous in the face of danger, he did his duty to the last, giving his life that his comrades might live.” His story also appears in ‘Heroic Tales’

The war was by now drawing to its inevitable conclusion, and the end of the Nazi’s reign of terror was near. For Little Staughton crews however, the job was far from over. By now the allies were so close to Germany that Oboe stations and forward operating airfields allowed accurate Oboe bombing of Berlin. On the 8th March 109 Squadron’s history was made with their first Oboe marking of Berlin and Munich; the longest range they ever attempted. Eighteen aircraft were ordered out to four targets, the other two being Dessau and Hamburg, The night was not the most successful though, with technical problems causing issues with a number of Pathfinder aircraft. On the Hamburg raid, four of the six aircraft marked well, one aircraft lost an engine and had to return early, whilst over Berlin, two of the four markers had to return without marking also due to technical issues. The Dessau raid suffered similar technical issues.

By now the war was in its last stages, and the night of 20th-21st April saw yet another pivotal moment in the history of the war, with the RAF’s last attack on the German capital. 109 Sqn were again in action, and it was Mosquito XVI ML929, piloted by F.O. A.C. Austin and F.O. P. Moorhead, who claimed the honour of dropping the last RAF bomb on the city. It was yet another feather in the cap for Little Staughton crews.

Other German cities then took the brunt of the Allied attacks. To the south, allied troops were approaching Hitler’s lair at Berchtesgaden, but the night’s attack in April would not be one to remember, as all Little Staughton’s aircraft suffered technical issues preventing them from marking the target. It is thought that the surrounding mountains had interrupted the Oboe signal leading to poor reception by the Pathfinders. Due to fog and snow, identifying the target was then made more difficult for the following bombers, but with relatively accurate strikes, the raid was considered a success. However, it was not to be the Pathfinder’s final night of glory.

Attention then turned to Manna operations, and 109 began to mark targets in Holland for food parcels. A remarkable effort allowing foodstuffs and urgent supplies to be dropped to starving civilians in Holland.

Whilst bomber command was concentrating on humanitarian flights, 109 Squadron took part in the final raid on Kiel on May 2nd-3rd, with four aircraft taking part. One suffered problems and was unable to mark leaving the remaining three to identify and mark the target. It was solely a Mosquito attack using aircraft from both 8 and 100 Group, after which large fires were seen rising from several parts of the town. After the last remnants of the German army left, it was declared ‘undefended’ and open, and allied troops entered unopposed just 36 hours later.

With the war’s end, the Pathfinders returned to dropping markers for food supplies, and ‘cooks’ tours began, aircrew taking ground crews on ‘sight-seeing’ trips over Germany to show the extent of the devastation caused by the war and the allied pounding of Germany’s towns and cities. An event that really brought home the effects of the war on Germany.

In September 1945 after much speculation and many staff movements, both squadrons were ordered to disband. 582 was first on the 10th with 109 Squadron soon after on the 30th. A glimmer of hope then came for 109 Sqn, when it was reborn through the renumbering of 627 Sqn at Woodhall Spa. To all intents and purposes though it was a different squadron to the one that had worked so hard and with such dedication here at Little Staughton. The operational record books for 582 Squadron simply states: “No further entry, Squadron disbanded as of 10th September 1945“. On roll were 147 airmen and 92 Officers, six of which were New Zealanders. The records also show that the squadron had dropped over 8,000 tons of bombs cumulatively, while 109 Sqn recorded: “This is the finish, all our aircraft were flown to Upwood today.”

Some 522 raids had been flown by 109 Squadron, covering over a staggering 5,400 sorties, while at either Little Staughton, Wyton or Marham, all with a loss of just 18 aircraft. 582 on the other hand had flown over 2,100 sorties in 165 raids with a loss of 28 Lancasters all whilst based at this little airfield in the Cambridgeshire countryside*⁴.

Throughout the war, thoughts had never been far away from post war aviation and in particular the development of new, larger and faster aircraft, both military and civil. With it would come the demand for bigger airfields and longer runways, which led to a search for possible extensions to existing airfields. Farnborough and the RAE (Royal Aircraft Establishment), was the preferred choice, but the site was penned in and unable to have its runway extended to the five miles thought necessary to accommodate new types of aircraft. Alternatives were sought with the final decision being the amalgamation of three airfields: Twinwood Farm, Thurleigh and Little Staughton; a five mile runway linking Thurleigh with Little Staughton which would then be linked by a taxi way with Twinwood Farm. The idea behind the huge development was to replicate the Californian Muroc test facility (now Edwards Air Force Base) to enable testing of new developments in aviation. The idea never materialised though, and would have no doubt faced serious opposition had it ever got to the consultation phase*¹.

So, with no real need for Little Staughton it was soon surplus to military requirements, and with their dramatic reduction of assets, its days were sadly numbered.

Following the departure of the two squadrons, the airfield became used as a transport base, before finally closing in December 1945, and being placed into care and maintenance. In the 1950s the runway was given consideration again and work began to extend it for use in emergencies by US military aircraft, but this was also a short lived exercise, and by the end of the decade this too had ceased, and the site was closed to all military activity. For a short while it was used by the civilian Brooklands Aviation company as a repair depot, but was soon returned to farmland although the runway, and some of the perimeter tracks remain, used by a small aviation company along with several of the hangars which are used by light industry.

The Watch Office continues to stand and is now a Grade II listed building, being listed in December 2005 for its ‘special architectural and historic interest’. Historic England describe it as “One of a very small number of control towers of the Second World War period that have survived in a substantially complete state of preservation…This is an exceptionally well-preserved example of a 1941 control tower design for bomber satellite stations, of which 24 out of 45 built survive.”*²

With that, Little Staughton quietly slipped in to the history books. The buildings left standing echoing the hectic activities of two Pathfinder Squadrons, from which over 250 airmen lost their lives.

582 Sqn had been purposefully created for a role, a role it performed to the highest standard and with the greatest pride of any squadron in the RAF. 109 Sqn had performed with the same dedication and determination, meaning that Little Staughton crews were awarded two of the three VCs the Pathfinders earned, the highest honour to be bestowed on any military personnel. In addition to these, numerous other gallantry medals were also awarded to the many crews of both squadrons, a number of whom had flown in excess of 100 sorties whilst based here at Little Staughton.

Little Staughton was only operational for a short period of time. But in that time it achieved some of the highest accolades possible in military terms. It brought a great sense of pride to the local area, and a huge influx of men and machinery. Today it stands quiet, just outside of the village which marks its history with a small stone laid close to the end of the main runway. The local church, All Saints, also has a roll of honour commemorating all those personnel who lost their lives here, and a memorial stone close by pays homage to those who served and died in this remarkable place.

The entire story can be read in Trail 29.

Sources and further reading (Little Staughton)

*¹ Smith, D., “Britain’s Military Airfields 1939 – 45” Patrick Stephens Limited, 1989

*² Historic England Website accessed 17/9/23

*³ Much of the report from this comes from a combination of Operational record books and secondary resources including Feast., S., “Heroic Endeavour“, Grub Street Publications, 2006.

*⁴ Middlebrook, M., Everitt. C., “The Bomber Command War Diaries“, Midland Publishing Ltd, 1996

National Archives Operational Records:

AIR 27/2052/2; AIR 27/2052/1; AIR 27/854/8; AIR 27/854/7; AIR 27/2052/7; AIR 27/2052/8; AIR 27/2052/10; AIR 27/2052/9; AIR 27/855/2; AIR 27/2052/14; AIR 27/2052/13; AIR 27/856/7; AIR 27/856/9; AIR 27/2449/1; AIR 27/2052/27

RAF Little Staughton – Winner of Two VCs. Part 1.

October 21, 2023October 17, 2023 / Aviationtrails / 6 Comments

Trail 29 saw a trip to two airfields both of which have now gone. A new addition to this trail, takes us back to the west of Cambridgeshire to the Bedford border and a small airfield that continues to operate as a flying entity. But, and perhaps more importantly, it is one where two VCs were won, and where RAF Pathfinders reigned supreme. Having only a short life itself, and only two front line squadrons, its rather unassuming presence hides a remarkable tale of heroism, bravery and dedication that transports it high into the ranks of wartime history.

In the latest addition to this trail we visit the small village with two airfields, starting with RAF Little Staughton.

RAF Little Staughton

The village of Little Staughton sits on Oxford Clay, a Jurassic marine sediment, and is located about 4.5 miles from Kimbolton and 8 miles from Bedford. The village itself resides in the upper most regions of Bedfordshire, but this is not the original village, that being abandoned following the bubonic plague, and so the village we see today being created as a result.

Little Staughton is unusual in that it has been home to two wartime airfields, RFC Little Staughton which was open between October 1916 and June 1917, and its World War II counterpart, RAF Little Staughton. Both add further complexities to the name by each being located over the county border in Cambridgeshire.

RAF Little Staughton, like many of its contemporaries, was cold and draughty. The staff huts dispersed around the various sites provided little comfort to those inside seeking warmth and shelter from the elements outside.

Built by a mix of construction companies including the AMWD (Air Ministry Works Directorate), it had three concrete and tarmac runways measuring 1,920 x 50 yards; 1,340 x 50 yards and 1,000 x 50 yards with the main runway running in an approximate east-west direction.

The entire story can be read in Trail 29.

A Happy Christmas!

December 22, 2019December 20, 2019 / Aviationtrails / 16 Comments

I would just like to take this opportunity to wish all those of you who have followed, read or commented on the blog, a very merry Christmas and a very happy and safe New Year.

A extra big thanks goes out to those of you who have stuck around for so long, we’re now approaching our seventh year of the blog and have managed to visit over 125 airfields, 105 memorials and 40 museums. These have stretched from Perth in Scotland to the South coast of England, Suffolk in the east to Gloucestershire in the west. The range of these airfields is enormous, and they continue to vanish, with many in a worse state now than they were when I visited at the beginning of the journey.

Very soon many of these will be gone, lets hope the memories of those who served are not also gone with them.

A very happy Christmas one and all!

RAF Andrews Field – (Great Saling/Station 485) – Trail 33: Essex Part 1.

RAF Attlebridge (Station 120) – Trail 7: Northwest Norfolk.

RAF Barkston Heath (Station 483) – Trail 2: Lincoln Borders and Newark

RAF Barton Bendish – Trail 7: Northwest Norfolk.

RAF Biggin Hill (Westersham) (Station 343) – Trail 4: Kent Part 1.

RAF Bircham Newton – Trail 20: North Norfolk (Part 1).

RAF Bodney (Station 141) – Trail 8: Swaffham and Her Neighbours (Part 1 of 3).

RAF Bottesford (Station 481) – Trail 52: Leicestershire’ Borders.

RAF Bottisham (Station 374) – Trail 55: Around Newmarket

RAF Boulmer – Trail 47: Northumberland.

RAF Bourn – Trail 31: Southern Cambridgeshire (Part 2).

RAF Brenzett (ALG) – Trail 18: Kent Part 2.

RAF Brunton – Trail 47: Northumberland.

RAF Bungay (Flixton) (Station 125) – Trail 14: Central Suffolk (Part 1).

RAF Bury St. Edmunds (Rougham) (Station 468) – Trail 16: West Suffolk (part 1).

RAF Castle Camps – Trail 45: Essex (Part 2).

RAF Caxton Gibbet – Trail 29: Southern Cambridge (Part 1).

RAF Charterhall – Trail 41: The Borders of Scotland and England.

RAF Chedburgh – Trail 49: Bomber Command – Bury St. Edmunds to Haverhill

RAF Collyweston – Trail 37: The Northern Reaches of Cambridgeshire.

RAF Coltishall – Trail 7: Northwest Norfolk.

RAF Coningsby – Trail 1: Lower Lincolnshire.

RAF Cottam – Trail 40: Yorkshire (East Riding).

RNAS Crail – Trail 53: Scotland’s East Coast – Fife

RAF Cranwell – Trail 2: Lincoln Borders and Newark.

RAF Debach (Station 152) – Trail 39: Suffolk around Ipswich (Part 1).

RAF Debden (Station 356) – Trail 46: Essex Part 3.

RAF Deenethorpe (Station 128) – Trail 6: American Ghosts.

RAF Deopham Green (Station 142) – Trail 27: Southern Norfolk (Part 3).

RAF Digby (Scopwick) – Trail 1: Lower Lincolnshire.

RAF Docking – Trail 20: North Norfolk (Part 1).

RAF Downham Market (Bexwell) – Trail 7: Northwest Norfolk.

RAF Drem – Trail 42: Edinburgh’s Neighbours.

RAF Dunino – Trail 53: Scotland’s East Coast – Fife.

RAF East Fortune – Trail 42: Edinburgh’s Neighbours.

RAF East Kirkby – Trail 1: Lower Lincolnshire.

RAF East Wretham (Station 133) – Trail 13: Southern Norfolk around Diss (Part 2).

RAF Eye (Brome) (Station 134) – Trail 14: Central Suffolk (Part 1).

RAF Fersfield – (Station 130) – Trail 28: Southern Norfolk (Part 4).

RAF Foulsham – Trail 22: North Norfolk (Part 3).

RAF Fowlmere – Trail 32: Southern Cambridgeshire (Part 3).

RAF Framlingham (Parham) (Station 153) – Trail 39: Suffolk around Ipswich (Part 1).

RAF Gamston – Trail 54: The Great North Road.

RAF Glatton (Station 130) – Trail 6: American Ghosts.

RAF Gransden Lodge – Trail 31: Southern Cambridgeshire (Part 2).

RAF Graveley – Trail 29: Southern Cambridge (Part 1).

RAF Grafton Underwood (Station 106) – Trail 6: American Ghosts.

RAF Great Dunmow (Station 164)- Trail 33: Essex (Part 1).

RAF Great Massingham – Trail 21: North Norfolk (Part 2).

RAF Great Sampford (Station 359) – Trail 50: Haverhill’s neighbours – Wratting Common and Great Sampford.

RAF Hardwick (Station 104) – Trail 12: Southern Norfolk around Diss (Part 1).

RAF Hawkinge – Trail 18: Kent Part 2.

RAF Hethel – Trail 38: To the West of Norwich.

RFC Hingham – Trail 38: To the West of Norwich.

RAF Holme on Spalding Moor – Trail 40: Yorkshire (East Riding).

RAF Hunsdon – Trail 25: Hertfordshire.

RAF Kimbolton (Station 117) – Trail 6: American Ghosts.

RAF King’s Cliffe (Station 367) – Trail 6: American Ghosts.

RAF Langham – Trail 23: North Norfolk (Part 4).

RAF Lashenden (Headcorn) – Trail 18: Kent Part 2.

RAF Lavenham (Station 137) – Trail coming soon.

RAF Leuchars – Trail 53: Scotland’s East Coast – Fife.

RAF Little Snoring – Trail 22: North Norfolk (Part 3).

RAF Little Walden – – Trail 46: Essex Part 3.

RAF Macmerry – Trail 51: Southern Scotland

RAF Marham – Trail 7: Northwest Norfolk.

RAF Martlesham Heath – Trail 48: Suffolk around Ipswich (Part 2).

RAF Matching (Station 166) – Trail 33: Essex Part 1.

RAF Matlaske (Station 178) – Trail 34: North Norfolk (Part 5).

RAF Mattishall – Trail 36: North Norfolk (Part 6).

RAF Mendlesham (Station 156) – Trail 15: Central Suffolk (Part 2).

RAF Mepal– Trail 11: Around Ely.

RAF Metheringham – Trail 1: Lower Lincolnshire.

RAF Methwold – Trail 8: Swaffham and Her Neighbours (Part 1).

RAF Milfield – Trail 47: Northumberland.

RAF Narborough (Narborough Aerodrome)- Trail 7: Northwest Norfolk.

RAF Newmarket Heath – Trail 55: Around Newmarket

RAF North Creake – Trail 23: North Norfolk (Part 4).

RAF North Pickenham (Station 143) – Trail 9: Swaffham and Her Neighbours (Part 2).

RAF North Weald – Trail 25: Hertfordshire.

RAF North Witham (Station 479) – Trail 3: Gone But Not Forgotten.

RAF Old Buckenham (Station 144) – Trail 13: Southern Norfolk around Diss (Part 2).

RAF Oulton – Trail 34: North Norfolk (Part 5).

RAF Polebrook (Station 110) – Trail 19: Northamptonshire American Ghosts II.

RAF Rattlesden (Station 126) – Trail 15: (Central Suffolk (Part 2).

RAF Sawbridgeworth – Trail 25: Hertfordshire.

RAF Scampton – Trail 30: Scampton and the Heritage Centre.

RAF Scone – Trail 56: Perthshire.

RAF Sculthorpe – Trail 21: North Norfolk Part 2.

RAF Sedgeford – Trail 20: North Norfolk (Part 1).

RAF Shipdham (Station 115) – Trail 10: Swaffham and Her Neighbours (Part 3).

RAF Snailwell (Station 361) – Trail 55: Around Newmarket

RAF Snetterton Heath – (Station 138) – Trail 27: Southern Norfolk (Part 3).

RAF Spanhoe Lodge (Station 493) – Trail 6: American Ghosts.

RAF Steeple Morden – Trail 32: Southern Cambridgeshire (Part 3).

RAF Stoke Orchard – Trail 24: Gloucestershire.

RAF Stradishall- Trail 49 : Bomber Command – Bury St. Edmunds to Haverhill

RAF Sutton Bridge – Trail 3: Gone But Not Forgotten.

RAF Swannington – Trail 36: North Norfolk (Part 6)

RAF Swanton Morley – Trail 38: To the West of Norwich.

RAF Thorpe Abbotts (Station 139) – Trail 12: Southern Norfolk around Diss (Part 1).

RAF Tibenham (Station 124) – Trail 13: Southern Norfolk around Diss (Part 2).

RAF Tuddenham – Trail 16: West Suffolk (Part 1).

RAF Tydd St. Mary – Trail 37: The Northern Reaches of Cambridgeshire.

RAF Upwood – Trail 17: The Pathfinders.

RAF Warboys – Trail 17: The Pathfinders.

RAF Waterbeach – Trail 11: Around Ely.

RAF Watton (Station 376/Station 505) – Trail 9: Swaffham & Her Neighbours (Part 2).

RAF Wendling (Station 118) – Trail 10: Swaffham and Her Neighbours (Part 3).

RAF West Malling – Trail 4: Kent Part 1.

RAF West Raynham – Trail 21: North Norfolk Part 2.

RAF Wethersfield – Trail 45: Essex (Part 2).

RAF Westley – Trail 16: West Suffolk (part 1).

RAF Winfield – Trail 41: The Borders of Scotland and England.

RAF Winthorpe – Trail 2: Lincoln Borders and Newark.

RAF Witchford – Trail 11: Around Ely.

RAF Wittering – Trail 37: The Northern Reaches of Cambridgeshire.

RAF Woodall Spa – Trail 1: Lower Lincolnshire.

RAF Wratting Common – Trail 50 – Haverhill’s neighbours – Wratting Common and Great Sampford.

The Development of Britain’s Airfields (Part 7).

May 20, 2018May 13, 2018 / Aviationtrails / 10 Comments

Whilst the runway’s remains one of the biggest features of an airfield, perhaps one of the most discussed and certainly visible is the hangar. Large sheds used to maintain aircraft, many still dominate the skyline today, used by farmers and industrial companies, they are massive buildings, but yet many remain classed as temporary or even transportable!

The development of these huge buildings is another that lasted many years, and whilst similar in layout and design, they are as complicated and as varied as any other building found on Britain’s airfields.

Hangars and Aircraft Sheds.

The topic of aircraft hangars is well versed in a large number of books and internet references. They, like the runways, can explain much about the history and use of an airfield, being the largest single building on any airfield site. Distinguishing features between hangar types is often difficult to see, many now re-clad or updated with modern features, doors or materials, even the differences between some designs is so small, without technical drawings or measurements, ascertaining the type can be all but impossible.

Hangars (or aircraft sheds as they were initially called) have been fairly constant in design, however, different services used different types, Admiralty seaplane sheds for example, were primarily side opening, whereas RAF hangars were generally front opening. Design and construction was undertaken by numerous companies (Herbertson & Co. Ltd., Nortons Ltd., Teeside Bridge and Engineering Co. Ltd., and Sir William Arrol & Co.) and even Handley Page Aircraft Co. and Boulton & Paul dabbled with the idea. With so many forms being used, it is a topic both detailed and extremely wide.

This is not therefore, intended to describe each and every hangar ever built (Second World War Air Ministry designs alone covered more than 56 types!), but more a general realisation of the huge development they undertook during this expansion and wartime period on RAF / USAAF airfields. Figures quoted here are generally rounded.

In order to understand the changes in aircraft hangars we need to briefly look at those of the First World War, where aircraft were stored in ‘sheds’, often made from canvas covering a wooden frame, or as a more permanent construction, completely wooden sheds with sliding doors. Later on these were built using metal (iron in particular) and were designed to be permanent, capable of housing several aircraft at a time.

The First World War hangars were varied and often crude, some little more than glorified tents, but through development famous names such as the Bessonneau and Hervieu were created toward the end of the war. Hangars became so large that specialist units had to be created solely to transport, erect and maintain them, and their use became more widespread.

The most common hangar of this period, the Bessonneau, was the first standard transportable hangar used on Royal Air Force airfields. Modern forms of it are still in use today, using different materials, they are quick to erect and offer reasonable protection from the weather outside.

The Bessonneau was a wooden frame structure covered in canvas. It was a simplistic design, able to be erected in as little as two days by a group of 20 skilled men. Heavy canvas doors open at one end allowing aircraft to be moved in and out with relative ease. The problem with these hangars was that the canvas was prone to freezing in winter and therefore becoming difficult to use.

There were two models of the Bessonneau built, differing only in their length – either 79 feet or 118 feet – but both were 65 feet wide.

The interwar and early war years were perhaps understandably, the years in which the greatest hangar development occurred. The Air Ministry – the body overseeing the works – decided upon a system of ‘structure type’ using names and designations such as, Type ‘A’, ‘B’, ‘C’, Bellman, ‘T2’, etc., and just like the expansion period schemes, they progressed through this system as new developments came about.

The first type was the Type ‘A’, a permanent design, originating in 1924, it was used well into the 1930s when it was gradually replaced during the expansion period. Some examples did last well into the war and even beyond, for example, North Weald, one of the first airfields to be allocated a Type ‘A’, still uses one today.

Type A Hangar at North Weald. One of the first stations to have these types of Hangar, it has workshops attached to the Hangar side.

The Type ‘A’ is probably the first to represent the modern hangar, doors at both ends in leaves of four running on rails. Workshops are attached to the hangar side, something that was discontinued as Britain entered the war. Walls were reinforced with concrete to protect from bomb splinters, and they were built 249 feet long and 122 feet wide.

During the late 1920s, the Air Ministry published requirements for new heavy bombers, and these would require new hangars in which to maintain them. In response, the Ministry then updated the Type ‘A’ hangar to the Type ‘B’. In essence a larger version of the Type ‘A’, (160 ft span and 273 ft in length) the ‘B’ was named the ‘Goliath‘ with only three being built (each being a different length). One of these was at RAF Martlesham Heath and is still used today on what is now the industrial park. Like the Type ‘A’, the roof of the ‘B’ is possibly its most discernible feature, a series of trusses along its length crossing laterally over the roof.

With expansion period demands increasing, further developments were needed, and it was envisaged that an increasing bomber size would be needed if substantial bomb loads were to be delivered deep into the continent. The current size of hangar was now considered too restrictive and so a new buildings would be needed. The requirements of the Air Ministry was for a hangar with a span of 150 feet and length of 300 feet. With these in place, new aircraft specifications could be issued.

The Type ‘C’, (designed in 1934) as it was designated, would become the dominant building on any airfield and therefore visible from quite a distance. As airfield designs were subject to scrutiny by the Society for the Preservation of Rural England, local objections were taken into account during the design process. To appease any objections, the steel frame was covered with local brick or stone, keeping it inline with other buildings not only on the airfield, but houses and buildings erected locally.

Most airfields during the expansion period were built with these hangars on site, and naturally went through a series of developments and improvements. This means, that there are many different forms of the Type ‘C’: gabled roof, hipped rafter and reinforced concrete. Another modified version of the ‘C’ appeared in 1938 and was designated the ‘C1’ (or ‘Protected’), this was an austerity measure development, reducing the amount of material used by lowering the roof height by 5 feet – internal metal work was also left partially exposed. Both the ‘C’ and ‘C1’, continued to be built with offices, workshops and aircrew accommodation attached to the hangar side, the idea being that it was more efficient to do so for the repair of the aircraft inside. As these were larger in width and length than their predecessors, they would have six leaf doors also sliding on top and bottom rails.

Type C at the former RAF Upwood.

1936 saw a dramatic change in hangar design, with two new requirements being issued by the Air Ministry. Firstly, storage space was now running out and so new facilities were required. These Aircraft Storage Unit Stations (ASU) would need their own hangar type, and so a requirement for these was put forward. Also at this time, the Ministry put out a demand for transportable hangars, these would replace the ageing Bessonneaus of the First World War. The response to these demands were three storage hangars and two temporary hangars.

Storage Hangars.

The Type ‘D’, ‘E’ and ‘L’ Hangars, were a development used specifically by the ASU stations, and they were not generally built on front line operational airfields. They were virtually identical in size to the Type ‘C’, but each type was marginally bigger in span 150 ft, 160 ft and 167 ft than the previous model, and all were the same length at 300 feet. The three types were different from previous hangars in that they had curved roofs, allowing the ‘E’ and ‘L’ to be covered with soil for protection and camouflage (the ‘D’ had straight side walls and therefore could not be covered). ASUs were built to assemble and disassemble aircraft for shipment to operational airfields in Britain or overseas. Aircraft were stored, in varying degrees of assembly within these units, and heavy hoists were often used to store aircraft ‘tail up’. However, with the outbreak of war, aircraft storage was thought better dispersed around the airfield and not concentrated in one space, so this method of storing aircraft was abandoned. Many of these hangars still remain today, used by small industrial units or for farm storage.

The next two types, the ‘J’ and ‘K’, were virtually identical in design, again with curved roofs, they were used for storage of aircraft. The ‘J’ can be found on many operational airfields, built in conjunction with other main hangars (Waterbeach is a very good example of this combination), whilst the ‘K’ was built on ASU stations. The design came in as a result of Expansion Scheme M, and was as a result of the call for 2,550 front line aircraft by March 1942.

The main difference between the two, (other than their location) was in the roof structure, the ‘K’ having lifting tackle rails along its width, while the ‘J’ were along its length. The ‘K’, being used for storage of aircraft, didn’t have any windows, where as the ‘J’ did as offices and workshops were in use constantly. Like previous hangars, the ‘J’ and ‘K’ both had a span of 150 ft and a length of 300 ft.

A ‘J’ hangar located at RAF Waterbeach.

Transportable hangars.

The 1936 transportable hangar requirement, asked for a hangar that could be easily erected and didn’t require a permanent base. It also asked for doors at both ends and needed to be simplistic in design, with parts being interchangeable. These hangers also saw the separating of the office/workshop facilities previously built onto the side of the hangars, these now being located in buildings in the technical and administrative areas. After considering numerous designs, two were chosen and ultimately built.

The first of these, and the primary choice, was the Bellman. Designed by an engineer within the Works Directorate, N.S. Bellman, they were smaller than previous hangars (88ft span and 175 ft on RAF bases) and could be built in under 500 hours by a dozen men. So successful, were they, that over 400 were built between 1938 and 1940 across a wide range of airfield types. Some of these examples even appeared in Russia.

Bellman Aircraft sheds at the former RAF Bircham Newton

The second design, was the Callender (later Callender-Hamilton with modifications) Hangar, designed by the bridge design company Callender Cable and Construction. These had a span of 90 clear feet, with a length of 185 ft, and were used on both RAF and RNAS airfields. There were only eight of these built before the outbreak of war, examples of which appear at East Fortune, further examples with lower roof clearances (17 ft) being purchased after 1940. The Callender-Hamilton are best recognised by their lattice-work on the top door rails.

Callender-Hamilton Hangar East Fortune National Museum of Flight

As the war approached, 1939 – 1940 saw a transition period between ‘permanent’ and ‘temporary’ buildings, although many of these temporary buildings still stand today! Because of this change, many airfields had various hangars built, something that often gives a mix of hangar designs on one airfield which can cause confusion as to its age and origin. However, from this point on, all wartime hangars were designed as temporary hangars, designed with short lives and easily assembled / disassembled.

By 1940, the Bellman was considered too small for the RAF’s requirements and a new design was going to be needed. An agreement between the Air Ministry and Teeside Bridge & Engineering resulted in the ‘T’ series of hangars, perhaps the most well-known of the hangar designs.

The ‘T’ series covers a wide range of (temporary or transportable) hangars, each slightly different to the previous, but designed as three main types; T1 (90 ft span), T2 (113 ft) and T3 (66 ft). The length of each hangar varied depending upon local requirements and the number of additional bays added as needed. The design number e.g T2 (26) indicated the number of bays (26) and hence the length.

The ‘T’ range were a diverse and complicated range, the ‘T2’ being sub split into 5 variants (T2, T2 Heavy Duty, TFB (flying Boat), TFBHD (flying boat heavy-duty) and T2MCS (marine craft shed), so the identification of each being difficult without measuring equipment.

A T2 hangar at RAF Wratting Common.

On first inspection the ‘T2’ and Bellman look virtually identical, both lightweight, steel lattice frames with metal side panels. The main distinctions are that the Bellman doors are flush with the top of the side panelling whereas the ‘T2’ has an extra level of panelling and so are not flush. The other difference is the lattice frame inside the roof, the ‘T2’ has only diagonal braces whereas the Bellman has vertical braces in addition to the diagonals. Both hangars have six leaf doors on sliding rails supported both top and bottom, allowing full width access.

A final addition to the ‘T2’ were the Ministry of Aircraft Production Hangars the Type ‘A’ (A1 & A2) and Type ‘B’ (B1 & B2) built in the mid war years 1942-43 and funded by the Ministry of Aircraft Production. These hangars, not to be confused with the type ‘A’ and ‘B’ of the 1920s, were designed specifically for the repair of damaged aircraft especially operational aircraft on their own airfield. They were also erected at ASUs, and Satellite Landing Grounds (SLG).

A B1 at RAF Wratting Common an RAF bomber station.

The ‘B1’ and ‘B2’ were built specifically at Bomber Command airfields for the repair of damaged bombers thus eliminating the need to transport them long distances to specialist repair depots. Designed by T. Bedford Consulting Engineers they were eventually found on virtually all Bomber Command airfields by the end of the war and were manned by civilian repair organisations. Examples of both the ‘T2’ and ‘B1’ can be found in use at Wratting Common.

‘A1’ and ‘A2’ hangars on the other hand, whilst similar in design – metal cladding on metal frames – were slightly smaller and found only on aircraft factory airfields. Thus again there are virtually two identical hangars designated primarily by their location!

The last hangar to be commonly found on RAF / USAAF airfields were the blister hangar. A hangar of a temporary nature that usually used a curved metal frame covered in metal sheeting. The Blister hangar was the brainchild of architects and consulting engineers Norman & Dawbarn and William C. Inman of Miskins & Sons, and was designed to accommodate small span aircraft ideally fighters dispersed around the perimeter of airfields. Maintenance or storage could easily be carried in these hangars, and they could easily and quickly be erected, no base or foundations being required before hand.

These types of hangar came in three designs, the standard blister, (timber construction), over type (light welded steel) and Extra Over (also light welded steel), and ranged in span from 45 – 70 feet, A further type built was that of Double extra Over and Dorman Long, a separate design similar in shape but securely bolted to foundations. Many of these hangars have now gone, the majority being dismantled and sold off, only to be erected elsewhere on farmland well away from their original location. The father of a friend of mine, was employed in this very role, one day finding a Spitfire inside a blister hangar which nobody claimed to own!

By the end of the war, in excess of 900 ‘T2’ hangars were erected on British airfields including those built abroad. In 2004 it was thought there were about 100*⁷ left surviving on MOD property in Britain. A number have also survived on farmland used to store foodstuffs or machinery, or industrial sites. The ‘T2’ remained the main hangar in use by both the RAF and USAAF during the war, appearing on all Class ‘A’ airfields, occasionally with other models also being present. A number of other older models also continue to serve even to this day. Considering many of these were built as temporary buildings, they have survived remarkably well and are testament to the engineering design of the pre and early war years.

This is by no means an exhaustive list of those hangars that were built during the period 1918 – 1945 (other examples include the: Aeroplane Twin Shed; RFC Sheds; Seaplane Sheds; General Service Sheds; Plane Stores; Running Sheds; Lamella (a German idea built in Britain); Hinaldi; Main Hangars; Lamson Hangars; Fromson Hangars; Robins Hangars; Butler (a US design); Merton; ‘S’ type Hangars (RNAS); Pentad Hangar and Boulton & Paul Hangars and of course post war examples such as the Gaydon), but hopefully it has shone a glimmer of light on these remarkable structures that often dominated the skyline and that remain the centrepiece of many a disused airfield today.

In the next section we shall look at that other main iconic building in airfield design, the watch office.

Sources and further reading.

*⁷Technical Bulletin 02/02 “World War II Hangars – Guide to Hangar Identification” Ministry of Defence (February 2002).

The Development of Britain’s Airfields (Part 6).

May 13, 2018October 26, 2018 / Aviationtrails / 6 Comments

After considering the architecture of Britain’s airfields in Part 5, we turn to the hard surfaces, primarily the runways. Developed out of necessity, they created a steep learning curve for those involved in their construction. Many problems were found, many materials were tried, but ultimately they were built and even after their removal for hardcore, many have left scars in the tissue of the earth that remind us of their once massive presence.

Runways, Perimeter Tracks and Hardstands

In the pre-war years, the development of hard runways and large airfields was a new phenomena, hard surfaces being a new aspect still very much a topic of considerable controversy. In the First World War, water logging and mud was an issue even for the small biplanes that filled the skies over Britain and France. To overcome this, ash was spread over landing surfaces and to some degree successfully, but even though many local remedies were tried, it wouldn’t be taken seriously until the Second World War loomed.

Glatton (Conington) second runway markings

Runways like this one at Glatton (Conington) remain in good condition and used by the local flying club.

At this point the typical airfield layout included up to four grass runways, one of 1,300 x 400 yards and three of 1,000 x 200 yards, many were even smaller. Bomber and Fighter Command, realising that not only would the new era of aircraft call for longer, hard runways on its airfields, but the need to maintain year round activity was essential if Britain was to defeat the Luftwaffe.

Both Fighter and Bomber Command pushed the Government to allow these to be developed, on the one hand Sir Hugh Dowding, fighting the corner for Fighter Command, pressed home the need for hard surfaces on his fighter airfields, whilst Sir Arthur Harris on the other, pushed for hard surfaces on his bomber airfields.

The entire process was lengthy and complex, and lacked in-depth, professional knowledge. The first hard ‘pavements’ later runways and taxi ways, being constructed based on road building techniques and knowledge. So before any firm decisions could be made, trials would need to be carried out to determine not only whether or not they were indeed needed, but if so, how they should be best constructed.

Initial steps in runway construction was started as early as 1937, where ‘flexible’ runways were constructed comprising layers of brick or stone covered with two further layers of tarmac and a coat of asphalt to seal the structure in. Concrete pavements, which proved to be much stronger were either 150 mm or 200 mm thick slabs laid directly onto the ground after the topsoil had been removed by heavy machinery. As would be expected, these early designs failed quite quickly under the heavy loads of the fighters and bombers that were coming into service. Rapid repairs were carried by adding a further layer of tarmac (6.5cm) and another layer (2cm) of sealant.

These early flexible constructions continued to fail whereas the concrete designs stood up to much more wear and tear and proved longer lasting. However, time was short and the learning curve would be steep.

The test to determine these needs was to take a Whitley bomber, laden to equal its full operational weight, and taxi it across a grassed surface. A rather primitive assessment, it was intended to ascertain the effects of the aircraft on the ground beneath. Trials were first carried out at Farnborough and then Odiham, and these were generally successful, the Whitley only bogging down on recently disturbed soils. Further trials were then carried out at RAF Stradishall in March 1938, and the results were a little more mixed. Whilst no take offs or landings took place during these trials, the general agreement was that more powerful bombers would have no problems using grassed surfaces, as long as the ground was properly prepared and well maintained. All well and good when the soils were dry and well-drained.

By April 1939, the Air Ministry conceded, and agreed to lay runways at a small number of fighter and bomber airfields, of which Kenley, Biggin Hill, Debden and Stradishall were identified. Whilst construction was slow, only two fighters airfields being completed by the outbreak of war, progress was finally being made.

These initial runways were only 800 yards long and 50 yards wide, but were extended later that year to 1,000 yards long, as aircraft were repeatedly running off the ends on to the grassed areas. Over the years Stradishall in particular, would be further developed, its longest runway eventually extending to 2,000 yards.

The runway at Charterhall in the borders, breaking up after many years of use both by training units and as a motor racing circuit post war.

During the early war years, the demand for airfields grew. By early 1940 the requirement was for three runways as close as possible at 60^o to each other, and of a minimum length of 1,000 yards with room for extension up to 1,400 yards. This then became the norm by late 1940 especially at bomber airfields, with the main runway being 1,400 yards and subsidiaries at 1,100 yards. A month later, this increased by another 200 yards with a requirement to be able to extend to 2,000 and 1,400 yards respectively.

However, these short piecemeal responses were not sufficient and it was both a continual problem and a thorn in the side for the Air Ministry. Sir Arthur Harris, in raising his concerns for airfields belonging to Bomber Command, also pushed the need to develop good, long and reliable surfaces. He voiced his frustration in a vehement letter*⁶ to Lord Beaverbrook in 1941, In which he states:

“For twenty years everybody on the stations and the squadrons has been screaming for runways without avail.”

and he continues stressing the need for hard surfaces particularly in winter as:

“Through not having runways our effort will be seriously detracted from in normal winter conditions and reduced very probably to zero in abnormal winter conditions.”

He then goes on to state that Britain’s views were ‘blinkered’ saying that:

“Every other nation throughout the world has long been convinced of the necessity for runways…”

By the summer of 1941, the length of runways had again increased, all stations would now have a main runway of 2,000 yards and two subsidiaries of 1,400 yards and where this was not possible, then a minimum of 1,600 and 1,100 yards (fighter and night fighter stations being shorter at 1,300 and 1,400 yards respectively).

The harsh winters were less than ideal for laying concrete (by far the best material for the job) but any delay could mean the difference between success and failure. Elaborate testing was therefore passed over, materials were laid and experience led the way. This method of trail and error, led to many instances of runways having to be dug up and relaid, this in itself led to problems as aircraft, men and machinery had to then be moved and housed elsewhere. The American Eighth Air Force suffered greatly with these problem, fully laden bombers repeatedly breaking through the surface or falling off the edges as it gave way.

Another consideration was that of training and satellite airfields. As the need for new pilots increased, the training of new recruits intensified. The harsh winters were causing major headaches for these airfields as mud, stones and other winter debris was causing continuous problems for flying. With both man power and materials being in short supply, suitable alternatives were sought. A number of solutions were offered all very similar in their design and material.

The answer it seemed lay in steel matting – of which twelve different types were used – the more common being : Sommerfeld Track, Pierced Steel Planking (PSP – also called Marston Mat), or Square Mesh Track (SMT).

Sommerfeld track was a steel mat designed by Austrian Kurt Sommerfeld. The tracking was adapted from a First World War idea, and was a steel mat that when arrived, was rolled up in rolls 3.25 m (10 ft 8 in) wide by 23 m (75 ft 6 in) long. It was so well designed that a full track could be laid, by an unskilled force, in a matter of hours. Each section could be replaced easily if damaged, and the entire track could be lifted and transported by lorry, aeroplane or boat to another location and then reused.

Sommerfeld track (along with these other track types) were not only used commonly on training and satellite airfields, but also on Advanced and Forward Landing Grounds in Kent and later France after the Allied invasion of Normandy. In the build up to D-Day, 24 Advanced Landing Grounds in southern England were created using this form of Steel Matting,

Tracking had to be robust, it had to be able to withstand heavy landings and be non-conspicuous from the air. Sommerfeld track met both of these, and other stringent criteria very well, although it wasn’t without its problems. Crews often complained of a build up of mud after heavy rain, and concerns over both tyre and undercarriage damage were also extensively voiced; several records reporting tail wheels being ripped off after catching in the track lattice.

Because of the poor state and short length of runways, bombers were still regularly running off the ends, especially at night, or being unable to fly because the surfaces were poor or even unusable. A number of ideas were tested out to alleviate the problem, one such idea led to twenty sites testing arrester hook facilities. Several heavy bombers: Halifax, Manchester, Stirlings and later the Lancaster, were all modified to undertake these trials, with Woodhall Spa becoming the first airfield to have the full complement of six arrester sets.

Runway arrester gear at Woodhall Spa.

The idea was met with scepticism, but trials went ahead and in January 1942, a list of priority airfields was sent out to the Headquarters of No. 1,3,4, and 5 Groups RAF detailing those twenty sites selected for the equipment. At the top of the list was RAF Woodhall Spa in Lincolnshire, followed by Bottesford, Swinderby, Ossington, Syerston, Middleton St. George, Linton, and ending with Waterbeach and Stradishall. By late 1942 Woodhall Spa was ready and in October, five landings were made by an Avro Manchester. A month later the decision was made to install units at all major operational airfields, but this never came to fruition and the idea was soon mothballed. By 1943, it had been forgotten about and the 120 or so units built were scrapped (many being left buried where they were laid).

It was finally during early 1942 that a standard design airfield would be put in place. Known as the Class ‘A’, it would be the standard to which all new airfields and updated older sites would be made.

A Class A airfield would be designed around three hard concrete runways, shaped like an ‘A’ with each runway at 60^o to each other where possible. The main runway would be aligned with the prevailing wind again were possible to allow aircraft to take off/land into the wind as often as possible (north-east, south-west). In several cases, due to land features and local restrictions, this was not always possible, and so many permutations of design were seen as a result.

Rapidly becoming the largest part of the airfield layout, the runways and other paved areas – perimeters tracks, aprons and hardstands – were now given high priority. The standard now called for a main runway of 2,000 yards with two subsidiaries of 1,400 yards. Each of these would be 50 yards wide whilst the connecting perimeter tracks would be 50 feet wide. Along side these runways would be an emergency landing strip, a grassed area given a landing surface of 400 and 200 yards respectively.

Dues to the high numbers of bombers returning badly damaged and unable to make safe and proper landings, a small number of emergency strips were created by extending the main runways to 4,000 yards long and 400 yards wide. One such airfield was RAF Manston in Kent. Being on of the closest airfields to the continent, it was often the first place a stricken aircraft, especially a bomber, would seek out.

Whilst the general layout of airfields did not change for the remainder of the war, some further runways were extended to 3,000 yards, one such example being RAF Sculthorpe in Norfolk which was prepared to take the heavy B29 ‘Superfortress’ and post war, the B-36 ‘Peacemaker’.

A further point worth mentioning here is that of dispersals, not required pre-war, they were also an aspect of airfield architecture that were born out of the Second World War. In the inter-war years, aircraft were housed either on a central pan (apron or ramp) or within hangars. These collections of aircraft were easy targets and even a small amount of munitions could cause huge damage. In 1939 the need for dispersals was therefore recognised and so to address the issue, hedges were removed and tracks created that took aircraft away from the main runway but kept them within easy reach of the airfield site. The initial design was that of the ‘frying pan’ a 150 ft circle connected to the perimeter track by a small concrete track.

However, by 1942, it was found that aircraft were clogging up these tracks, some even ‘falling off’ the concrete onto soft soil and so blocking following aircraft in their tracks. The answer was the ‘spectacle’ or ‘loop’ hardstand, so-called by their oval shape, generally in pairs, that allow aircraft in and out without the need to turn or block access tracks. From 1942 onward, this model became the standard hardstand for all Class A airfields, and the aim was to have 50 such hardstands placed strategically around the perimeter, with 25 at satellite airfields. As the threat of attack diminished toward the end of the war, ‘finger’ or ‘star’ dispersals began to appear, much less effective than the predecessors, they were however cheaper and easier to construct.

Unusual as many training airfields didn’t have aircraft pans, RAF Millfield, in the borders, had several

In addition to hardstands, pens were built on fighter stations. The first, an experimental pit, was dug at Feltwell, whilst overly expensive and obtrusive, it did lead the way to aircraft pens later on, pens that were developed as either type ‘B’ or ‘E’ on these fighter airfields. The main difference here is that the early type ‘B’ had cranked side walls whereas the ‘E’ had walls that were straight. The former requiring more space, was later phased out in favour of the ‘E’, named so by its shape, using side and back walls to protect the fighter or small bomber located within.

The remains of a Type ‘B’ Fighter Pen at Matlaske.

A Type ‘B’ Pen at RAF Macmerry. The cranked wall can be seen to the right, with the central wall on the left. The entrance is to the bottom right.

Examples of these pens were located at Matlaske (type ‘B’ – built to design 7151/41) and Macmerry in Scotland, whilst the type ‘E’ were found on airfields especially those around London that included Biggin HiIl, Kenley and North Weald.

One of the ‘E’ type pens found at Kings Cliffe. Adapted with rifle slits for additional defence.

These pens were designed to specific dimensions and were designed as either a ‘Hurricane’ or ‘Blenheim’ to accommodate either a single engined or twin-engined aircraft. Within the back wall of these pens was a shelter for up to 25 personnel, and in some cases, they had Stanton Shelters built-in to the structures. Some, for example, at Kings Cliffe in Northampton, remain with rifle slits for additional protection from ground forces.

Inside the aircraft pen shelter at King’s Cliffe.

Whilst the majority of these shelters were manufactured using banks of soil, sandbags, brick or concrete, there was a least one example at RAF Drem, in Scotland which used logs cut to size and shape and built in the style of a Scandinavian house. It is these various designs of aircraft pen that paved the way to modern hardened aircraft shelters (HAS) seen on military airfields today.

From the early days of grass runways to the massive lengths of concrete that were created up to and after the mid 1940s, runways and hardstands have become a defining factor in airfield design. The sole purpose of an airfield – to get aircraft off the ground as quickly as possible, get them to their target and them get them home again – led to the development of both runway lengths and construction materials, much of which has paved the way for modern airfields today. These early leaps into runway designs have enabled larger and heavier aircraft to make those important journeys that we very much take for granted in this the modern world of air travel and general aviation.

In the next section we look at one of the buildings most associated with the airfield. An early form of aircraft storage, its role changed as it was soon realised that aircraft needed to be dispersed and not grouped together on large aprons as they were in the prewar era. Aesthetics and neatly lined up aircraft were no longer an important factor in front line flying, but safety and the ability to repair aircraft quickly and efficiently were. Here we introduce the hangar, a huge building often of a temporary or transportable nature, that became one of the more longer lasting structures of airfield architecture.

Sources and further reading.

*⁶ Letter from Arthur Harris to Lord Beaverbrook, February 1941 – AIR 19/492 – National Archives

50 Aviation Trails Reached!

March 18, 2018March 10, 2018 / Aviationtrails / 10 Comments

I am pleased to announce that since starting Aviation Trails four years ago, I have now reached that magic number of 50 Trails around Britain’s wartime airfields, a feat I never thought would happen.

Each Trail covers two or more sites, in some cases six, many three, covering in total, over 100 former RAF and USAAF airfields and museums around Britain.

I can honestly say its been a terrific four years, in which I have learnt a lot about Britain’s wartime past, the men and machines that flew from these places and the tragedies that occurred at so many. The development of these airfields was staggering, the process of construction, and the subsequent decay just as eye-opening. These sites and the people who used them, have changed both the British and world landscape, leaving in many cases scars that may never heal. The buildings and stretches of concrete that remain are monuments to human endurance and sacrifice, a sacrifice that we hope may never have to be repeated.

The perimeter track at the former RAF Tibbenham.

During these four years there have been several changes at many of these sites, hangars and other buildings have gone, runways are continuing to be dug up as they become prime land for development. As we speak there are numerous sites under planning proposals, whilst others are waiting in the wings to hear what their fate will be.

To compile these trails I have personally visited each and every one of these sites, even a field has a certain something when you know who stood there before you.

To all those who have visited, commented and followed me on this journey, I thank you, I hope you have enjoyed the journey back in time as much as I have writing it. I hope that through these trails, the memories of those who gave their all may live on so that future generations may know who they were and what they did, so that we may enjoy the peace we do today.

Here’s to the next 50!

Andy.

RAF Andrews Field – (Great Saling/Station 485) – Trail 33: Essex Part 1.

RAF Attlebridge (Station 120) – Trail 7: Northwest Norfolk.

RAF Barton Bendish – Trail 7: Northwest Norfolk.

RAF Biggin Hill (Westersham) (Station 343) – Trail 4: Kent Part 1.

RAF Bircham Newton – Trail 20: North Norfolk (Part 1).

RAF Bodney (Station 141) – Trail 8: Swaffham and Her Neighbours (Part 1 of 3).

RAF Bourn – Trail 31: Southern Cambridgeshire (Part 2).

RAF Brenzett (ALG) – Trail 18: Kent Part 2.

RAF Brunton – Trail 47: Northumberland.

RAF Bungay (Flixton) (Station 125) – Trail 14: Central Suffolk (Part 1).

RAF Bury St. Edmunds (Rougham) (Station 468) – Trail 16: West Suffolk (part 1).

RAF Castle Camps – Trail 45: Essex (Part 2).

RAF Caxton Gibbet – Trail 29: Southern Cambridge (Part 1).

RAF Charterhall – Trail 41: The Borders of Scotland and England.

RAF Chedburgh – Trail 49: Bomber Command – Bury St. Edmunds to Haverhill

RAF Collyweston – Trail 37: The Northern Reaches of Cambridgeshire.

RAF Coltishall – Trail 7: Northwest Norfolk.

RAF Coningsby – Trail 1: Lower Lincolnshire.

RAF Cottam – Trail 40: Yorkshire (East Riding).

RAF Cranwell – Trail 2: Lincoln Borders and Newark.

RAF Debach (Station 152) – Trail 39: Suffolk around Ipswich (Part 1).

RAF Debden (Station 356) – Trail 46: Essex Part 3,

RAF Deenethorpe (Station 128) – Trail 6: American Ghosts.

RAF Deopham Green (Station 142) – Trail 27: Southern Norfolk (Part 3).

RAF Digby (Scopwick) – Trail 1: Lower Lincolnshire.

RAF Docking – Trail 20: North Norfolk (Part 1).

RAF Downham Market (Bexwell) – Trail 7: Northwest Norfolk.

RAF Drem – Trail 42: Edinburgh’s Neighbours.

RAF East Fortune – Trail 42: Edinburgh’s Neighbours.

RAF East Kirkby – Trail 1: Lower Lincolnshire.

RAF East Wretham (Station 133) – Trail 13: Southern Norfolk around Diss (Part 2).

RAF Eye (Brome) (Station 134) – Trail 14: Central Suffolk (Part 1).

RAF Fersfield – (Station 130) – Trail 28: Southern Norfolk (Part 4).

RAF Foulsham – Trail 22: North Norfolk (Part 3).

RAF Fowlmere – Trail 32: Southern Cambridgeshire (Part 3).

RAF Framlingham (Parham) (Station 153) – Trail 39: Suffolk around Ipswich (Part 1).

RAF Glatton (Station 130) – Trail 6: American Ghosts.

RAF Gransden Lodge – Trail 31: Southern Cambridgeshire (Part 2).

RAF Graveley – Trail 29: Southern Cambridge (Part 1).

RAF Grafton Underwood (Station 106) – Trail 6: American Ghosts.

RAF Great Dunmow (Station 164)- Trail 33: Essex (Part 1).

RAF Great Massingham – Trail 21: North Norfolk (Part 2).

RAF Great Sampford (Station 359) – Trail 50: Haverhill’s neighbours – Wratting Common and Great Sampford.

RAF Hardwick (Station 104) – Trail 12: Southern Norfolk around Diss (Part 1).

RAF Hawkinge – Trail 18: Kent Part 2.

RAF Hethel – Trail 38: To the West of Norwich.

RFC Hingham – Trail 38: To the West of Norwich.

RAF Hunsdon – Trail 25: Hertfordshire.

RAF Kimbolton (Station 117) – Trail 6: American Ghosts.

RAF King’s Cliffe (Station 367) – Trail 6: American Ghosts.

RAF Langham – Trail 23: North Norfolk (Part 4).

RAF Lashenden (Headcorn) – Trail 18: Kent Part 2.

RAF Lavenham (Station 137) – Trail coming soon.

RAF Little Snoring – – Trail 22: North Norfolk (Part 3).

RAF Marham – Trail 7: Northwest Norfolk.

RAF Martlesham Heath – Trail 48: Suffolk around Ipswich (Part 2).

RAF Matching (Station 166) – Trail 33: Essex Part 1.

RAF Matlask (Station 178) – Trail 34: North Norfolk (Part 5).

RAF Mattishall – Trail 36: North Norfolk (Part 6).

RAF Mendlesham (Station 156) – Trail 15: Central Suffolk (Part 2).

RAF Mepal– Trail 11: Around Ely.

RAF Methwold – Trail 8: Swaffham and Her Neighbours (Part 1).

RAF Millfield – Trail 47: Northumberland.

RAF Narborough (Narborough Aerodrome)- Trail 7: Northwest Norfolk.

RAF North Creake – Trail 23: North Norfolk (Part 4).

RAF North Pickenham (Station 143) – Trail 9: Swaffham and Her Neighbours (Part 2).

RAF North Weald – Trail 25: Hertfordshire.

RAF North Witham (Station 479) – Trail 3: Gone But Not Forgotten.

RAF Old Buckenham (Station 144) – Trail 13: Southern Norfolk around Diss (Part 2).

RAF Oulton – Trail 34: North Norfolk (Part 5).

RAF Polebrook (Station 110) – Trail 19: Northamptonshire American Ghosts II.

RAF Rattlesden (Station 126) – Trail 15: (Central Suffolk (Part 2).

RAF Sawbridgeworth – Trail 25: Hertfordshire.

RAF Scampton – Trail 30: Scampton and the Heritage Centre.

RAF Sculthorpe – Trail 21: North Norfolk Part 2.

RAF Shipdham (Station 115) – Trail 10: Swaffham and Her Neighbours (Part 3).

RAF Snetterton Heath – (Station 138) – Trail 27: Southern Norfolk (Part 3).

RAF Spanhoe Lodge (Station 493) – Trail 6: American Ghosts.

RAF Steeple Morden – Trail 32: Southern Cambridgeshire (Part 3).

RAF Stoke Orchard – Trail 24: Gloucestershire.

RAF Stradishall- Trail 49 : Bomber Command – Bury St. Edmunds to Haverhill

RAF Sutton Bridge – Trail 3: Gone But Not Forgotten.

RAF Swannington – Trail 36: North Norfolk (Part 6)

RAF Swanton Morley – Trail 38: To the West of Norwich.

RAF Thorpe Abbotts (Station 139) – Trail 12: Southern Norfolk around Diss (Part 1).

RAF Tibenham (Station 124) – Trail 13: Southern Norfolk around Diss (Part 2).

RAF Tuddenham – Trail 16: West Suffolk (Part 1).

RAF Tydd St. Mary – Trail 37: The Northern Reaches of Cambridgeshire.

RAF Upwood – Trail 17: The Pathfinders.

RAF Warboys – Trail 17: The Pathfinders.

RAF Watton (Station 376/Station 505) – Trail 9: Swaffham & Her Neighbours (Part 2).

RAF Wendling (Station 118) – Trail 10: Swaffham and Her Neighbours (Part 3).

RAF West Malling – Trail 4: Kent Part 1.

RAF West Raynham – Trail 21: North Norfolk Part 2.

RAF Wethersfield – Trail 45: Essex (Part 2).

RAF Westley – Trail 16: West Suffolk (part 1).

RAF Winfield – Trail 41: The Borders of Scotland and England.

RAF Winthorpe – Trail 2: Lincoln Borders and Newark.

RAF Witchford – Trail 11: Around Ely.

RAF Wittering – Trail 37: The Northern Reaches of Cambridgeshire.

RAF Woodall Spa – Trail 1: Lower Lincolnshire.

RAF Wratting Common – Trail 50 – Haverhill’s neighbours – Wratting Common and Great Sampford.

Britain’s Airfields 1944

March 13, 2016March 12, 2016 / Aviationtrails / 17 Comments

By the end of the Second World War, there were a substantial number of airfields covering the UK, mainly used by the Royal Air Force, the United States Army Air Force, the Royal Navy and all their associated branches; they were handed back to the RAF at the end of the war as the various forces were pulled out. Some were used as POW or repatriation camps, some were used to store surplus aircraft, vehicles or ordinance; many were put into care and maintenance whilst the RAF decided their ultimate fate.

Thankfully a few have lasted as airfields and are even fulfilling that role today, sadly though, many were dug up, their runways used for hardcore, the buildings demolished and the events that occurred there reserved for the history books.

The scale and pace of development was massive. The size of these sites bigger than many of the villages they took their names from, the populations larger than many towns of the time. Architecturally they changed the landscape dramatically.

Today as they dwindle away, many are mere names, locals have little knowledge of their existence, memorials are being forgotten, and life is moving on.

As a little reminder of those times and to put the scale of development into perspective, here are two maps held by the British Library that show the main Royal Air Force and Royal Navy airfields as of 31st December 1944.

The two maps, divide the UK and show not only the airfields but satellites as well. They also show Royal Air Force and Royal Navy Water Airfields, and Royal Air Force Moorings. There are a number of sites not included on the map such as relief landing grounds, and training schools, but they do give an indication of the number of airfields that covered the UK by the end of the war.

These are both low resolution pictures, and copyright is held by the British Library who have given permission for them to be reproduced here.

Security Released Airfields in the United Kingdom (Sheet 1)

Britain’s Airfields – What does the future hold?

January 24, 2016January 23, 2016 / Aviationtrails / 15 Comments

There has been a recent ‘spate’ of developments with planning applications that affect Britain’s wartime heritage, and in particular the airfields that were used during the Second World War.

With land at a premium, a housing crisis that is growing, these sites are becoming more and more handsome as development opportunities. Many have a ready-made infrastructure, many are open fields and as such, prime agricultural or development land. So what does the future hold for Britain’s heritage?

We have seen applications submitted or at least interest shown, for the former: RAF Kings Cliffe, RAF Downham Market, RAF West Raynham, RAF Denethorpe and RAF Coltishall, further applications have now been seen affecting former RAF Dunsfold, RAF Bourn and RAF Wellesbourne Mountford.

We also know that the USAF have given notice of withdrawal from their major UK base at RAF Mildenhall, the smaller site at RAF Molesworth and the remaining site at RAF Alconbury. The Government has already announced it will be selling these sites for housing after the military withdrawal in 2020-23. These three sites form part of an estimated £500m sell-off that would also include: RAF Barnham (Suffolk), Kneller Hall (Twickenham), Claro and Deverell Barracks (Ripon), Lodge Hill (Kent), Craigiehall (Edinburgh), HMS Nelson Wardroom (Portsmouth), Hullavington Airfield (Wiltshire) and MOD Felton (London). Changes at RAF Lakenheath will also see job losses through streamlining of operations.

It is estimated that the 12 sites could accommodate an estimated 15,000 homes with Alconbury having 5,000 alone.

The former airfield and barracks at RAF Waterbeach is also subject to planning proposals, and the Bassingbourn barracks near Cambridge is also under the development spotlight. The recent closure of Manston (a vital Second World War airfield) has led to speculation of its future both as an airfield (possibly London’s third) and as a development opportunity. These are perhaps just a few of the prime areas of land that are now becoming the focus of planners and developers alike.

There are many variables in this heated and long-lasting debate, in fact far too many to raise and discuss here. Strong feelings exist both toward and against the idea of development and it is certainly not a new one. Employment, jobs, environment, heritage, housing etc, they all create discussion and a strong case for both arguments, but the debate here is not “should we build or not” this is quite frankly, inevitable and in many cases much-needed, no, it’s more how can we meet the needs of an ever-growing population with the needs to preserve historically important sites that form the very thread of today’s society.

We have a dynamic population, and as health care improves, social mobility increases and a growing desire to own our own home increases, the need for more housing, affordable homes and homes for rent also increases. We are an ageing population, care homes, schools for our children and hospitals for the sick are all in much greater need. Where do we build them?

Whilst housing demands have always been with us and the need for more housing an all important one, the recent developments suggest that these old airfields could become prime land to meet these future housing needs.

Many of the current Second World War airfields are now either industrial conurbations or agricultural areas. Most have little or no remnants of their former lives visible, and certainly not widely accessible. Many argue that these sites are scrub, derelict and in need of development, and some indeed are. A proportion of the more recently used sites, are ‘mothballed’ or in part operating aviation related activities. They cover huge areas and have a ready-made infrastructure such were the designs of war and post war airfields. These sites also contain extensive dereliction, primarily due to being left and allowed to decay by their owners. Vandalism and pilfering has left them rotting like carcasses of forgotten wild animals. Where industry has been operating, contaminates have seeped into the soils, damaging flora and fauna growth; some so severe that they are rendered too difficult to reclaim as ‘Green Space’. Certainly on paper, they offer good sources for today’s desperate housing stock.

However, balance this against the historical and cultural importance of these places and the argument becomes a little blurred at the seams. Had it not been for the people who came to this country from all over the world to fight the Nazi tyranny in the war years 1939-45, then Britain and Europe would probably not be the Europe we know today. Many thousands of people gave their lives during those dark days, and for many of them, these airfields were their last homes, cold, often draughty huts on the outskirts of some bleak airfield. Their dedication helped form the very society we live in today, the democracy and freedom of speech we so enjoy and relish, the open spaces where we can walk our dog without fear and in freedom. The fact that we can have this very debate, is in itself, testament to those who came here never to return. The very nature and fabric of our local communities has been built around the ‘friendly invasion’ the acceptance of others into our quaint life and idyllic life-styles. Influences from other nations and cultures grew and developed as a result of those who came here from far and wide to give up their lives.

These sites have become monuments to them, their lives and deaths, many still have no known grave; many simply ‘disappeared’ such was the ferocity of the explosion that killed them. The design of Britain’s airfields are architecturally significant to our heritage, buildings were designed to fulfil a purpose and just like our castles and stately homes, they are monuments to a significant period of not only British, but world history. Our education system, includes this very period as a subject for discussion, debate and analysis. To build over such sites without due regard to them would be a travesty, and one that we would regret in the future. To paraphrase that well-known quote; If we are to learn from our mistakes then we need to remember the past. The Second World War is still, for the moment, in living memory, the veterans and civilians who survived it are dwindling in numbers and very soon their memories will be lost for ever. Each day brings news of a lost veteran or a newly discovered story. If we don’t acknowledge the value of these places, if we don’t plan for their ‘preservation’ then both we and our future generations, will be the ones to regret it.

So where do we go from here? The plans published for RAF West Raynham and RAF Coltishall take into account the nature of these sites, they are sympathetic to their historical value and acknowledge the sacrifices made. West Raynham utilises the very buildings that were created, thus keeping the atmosphere for those who wish to visit. Small museums create a record, first hand experiences and artefacts, all valuable records for the education of future generations. But both of these are unique. Both closed in more recent history, they have retained their structures whereas many older sites have had theirs long since demolished.

It is a delicate balance, and as sad as it would be to see them go, there has to be legislation to create compromise. Sympathetic developments have to be the way forward, acknowledgement of the sacrifice has to be high on the agenda. Many of the airfields I have been too have no museum, no memorial barely even a signpost. Surely this is wrong.

If we are to preserve our fragile heritage, we need to consider the implications of the planning process, to look at the value of these sites as both suitable housing and significant historical areas, the sacrifice of the many needs to be acknowledged and it needs to be done soon.

Sources and Further Reading.

“Laying the Foundations: A Housing Strategy for England ” HM Gov, November 2011

“Stimulating housing supply – Government initiatives (England)” House of Commons Library, 9 December 2014

The “Get Surrey” news report issued on January 5th 2016 relating to Dunsfold can be found here.

Then latest news from “Cambridge News” December 16th 2015 can be found here.

The “Stratford-Upon-Avon Herald” January 6th 2016 front page story about Wellesbourne can be found here. (This may be a limited time link).

The latest news on RAF Mildenhall and Lakenheath published by the BBC, 18th January 2016 can be found here.

RAF Gransden Lodge aircraft revealed.

January 10, 2016January 9, 2016 / Aviationtrails / 6 Comments

A recent article published by the Royal Canadian Air Force, tells the story of the fate and eventual discovery of, RCAF 405 “Vancouver” Sqn Halifax II, LQ-B.

LQ-B, s/n HR871, was based at RAF Gransden Lodge as part of 8 Group, Pathfinder Force from April 19th 1943 and was flown by Sgt. John Philips with his six crew members.

On the night in question, August 2/3 1943, they were part of a 740 strong force consisting of a mix of heavy and light bombers, who were despatched to Hamburg as part of the ongoing operation “Gomorrah”, to destroy Hamburg through blanket bombing. A combined operation by the RAF and USAAF would see continuous bombing both day and night from the end of July to the beginning of August whereupon they turned their attention to Nuremberg, Milan and then Peenemunde. In this short period some one hundred RAF aircraft were lost, many flown by Canadian, Australian and New Zealand crews, all fighting a war a very long way from home.

LQ-B set off with the other aircraft on the night of August 2nd and it was during this leg of the trip that they would encounter a terrific thunderstorm, in which lightning would strike the aircraft knocking out the two inboard engines, damaging a number of instruments and the radio.

With the aircraft difficult to control Philips made the decision to head north toward Sweden where the crew were eventually ordered to bail out. All the crew escaped the aircraft safely and were interned by the Swedish authorities until January 1944, when they were repatriated.

LQ-B went on to crash into waters just off shore of the Swedish coast where it has recently been discovered in 17 metres of water broken up and partially submerged in the silt. It is hoped to recover the aircraft in the near future.

During this same night 405 Sqn also lost the aircraft and crews of Halifaxes, LQ-E (HR849) and LQ-G (HR917) most of whom have no known grave.

Gransden Lodge, located on the Bedfordshire / Cambridgeshire border, can be seen in Trail 31, whilst the Royal Canadian Air force article can be found through this link.

A Happy New Year!

January 1, 2016 / Aviationtrails / 18 Comments

As 2015 fades away I would like to take this opportunity to thank each and every one of you who has visited, followed, liked, reblogged, commented and generally supported “Aviation Trails” during the last year. Without you, it would not be the site it is today.

It has certainly grown over the last year and taken on a new dimension. Investment in research material has enabled much longer posts and more personal information to be included, something that I know many people like to see. Not only do ‘we’ as enthusiasts, historical ‘writers’, modellers, relations of veterans etc. preserve our common history, but openly promote and educate others through the writing we do.

I believe it is important to remember what went on, the sacrifice and dedication to freedom, and if I can go a small way to helping that then it has all been worthwhile.

I have been inspired to take up old hobbies, learnt about aspects of military and natural history that I had never heard of, found new places in the world and been a part of a group of people who share the desire to learn, educate and inform others. It has been a wonderful year.

The tally of airfields I have visited is now around 75, double what it was this time last year. I have walked in the footsteps of famous people like Guy Gibson, Glenn Miller and Joe Kennedy, stood where important and famous missions have been planned and executed, trodden the very ground where so many young men and women served their country, many thousands giving the ultimate sacrifice.

It has been a most humbling experience.

So to each and every one of you, a heartfelt thank you, and here’s to a happy, peaceful and rewarding 2016.