RAF Blakehill Farm
RAF Blakehill Farm | |||||||||||
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Cricklade, Wiltshire in England | |||||||||||
Dakotas of No. 233 Squadron RAF lined up on the perimeter track at RAF Blakehill Farm, for an exercise with the 6th Airborne Division, 20 April 1944 | |||||||||||
Coordinates | 51°37′20″N 1°53′20″W / 51.62222°N 1.88889°W | ||||||||||
Site information | |||||||||||
Owner | Air Ministry | ||||||||||
Operator | Royal Air Force | ||||||||||
Controlled by | RAF Transport Command | ||||||||||
Site history | |||||||||||
Built | 1943 | ||||||||||
In use | 1944–1952 | ||||||||||
Battles/wars | Second World War | ||||||||||
Airfield information | |||||||||||
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Royal Air Force Blakehill Farm or more simply RAF Blakehill Farm is a former Royal Air Force station southwest of Cricklade in Wiltshire, England, operational between 1944 and 1952.
History
[edit]The station was originally allocated to the United States Army Air Forces Ninth Air Force but not used.[1] It opened in 1944 and was home for transport aircraft of No. 46 Group RAF Transport Command. In 1948 the airfield was a satellite of RAF South Cerney, and was used by training aircraft until the airfield closed in 1952 and was returned to agricultural use. The site is now a Wiltshire Wildlife Trust nature reserve.[2]
Units and aircraft
[edit]Unit | From | To | Aircraft | Variant | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
No. 233 Squadron RAF | 5 March 194 | 8 June 1945 | Douglas Dakota | [3] | |
No. 271 Squadron RAF | 26 February 1944 | 10 August 1945 | Douglas Dakota Harrow |
Detachment from RAF Down Ampney[4] | |
No. 437 Squadron RCAF | 1 September 1944 | 7 May 1945 | Douglas Dakota | Formed here[5] | |
No. 575 Squadron RAF | 24 November 1945 | 31 January 1946 | Douglas Dakota | [6] | |
No. 22 Heavy Glider Conversion Unit RAF | 1945 | 1945 | Waco Hadrian | I | [7] |
No. 2 Flying Training School RAF | [8] | ||||
No. 109 (Transport) OTU RAF | [8] | ||||
No. 1528 (Radio Aids Training) Flight RAF | [8] Became No. 1555 (Radio Aids Training) Flight RAF | ||||
No. 1555 (Radio Aids Training) Flight RAF | [8] |
The following units were also here at some point:[8]
- No. 18 Terminal Staging Post
- No. 19 Terminal Staging Post
- No. 92 (Forward) Staging Post
- No. 93 (Forward) Staging Post
- No. 123 (Major) Staging Post
- No. 2748 Squadron RAF Regiment
- No. 2835 Squadron RAF Regiment
Post-war intelligence role
[edit]In 1967, GCHQ set up an "experimental radio station", a secret research facility, on the site. The site was still active in some capacity until the mid-1990s,[9] and traces of the former communications mast bases can still be seen on aerial photographs.[10] The most remarkable object of the facility was a 240-foot (73 m) tall wooden lattice tower, which was one of the tallest objects in the United Kingdom built of wood. It is possible that this tower was a relic of the wartime Chain Home network, although its lattice pattern is of another type.[10] The tower was demolished on 26 January 2000.[11]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]Citations
- ^ American Museum in Britain – Blakehill Farm
- ^ "Blakehill Farm including Stoke Common Meadow, Cricklade". Wiltshire Wildlife Trust. Retrieved 18 May 2016.
- ^ Jefford 1988, p. 75.
- ^ Jefford 1988, p. 82.
- ^ Jefford 1988, p. 92.
- ^ Jefford 1988, p. 97.
- ^ Lake 1999, p. 129.
- ^ a b c d e "Blakehill Farm (Cricklade)". Airfields of Britain Conservation Trust. Retrieved 2 June 2016.
- ^ McLachlan, Richard (27 November 1998). "Cricklade Radio Site". Subterranea Britannica. Retrieved 14 November 2022.
- ^ a b Povey, Vincent. "The AN/FLR-9 Type Antenna". RAF Station Blakehall Farm. Retrieved 14 November 2022.
- ^ "The Radio Mast". RAF Station Blakehill Farm. Retrieved 15 November 2022.
Bibliography
- Jefford, C G (1988). RAF Squadrons. A comprehensive record of the movement and equipment of all RAF squadrons and their antecedents since 1912. Shrewsbury: Airlife. ISBN 1-85310-053-6.
- Lake, Alan (1999). Flying Units of the RAF. Shrewsbury: Airlife Publishing. ISBN 1-84037-086-6.
External links
[edit] Media related to RAF Blakehill Farm at Wikimedia Commons
- Povey, Vince (2018) From War To Wildlife – the complete history of the airfield
- "RAF Blakehill: Cricklade airfield which played a crucial role in D-Day". SwindonWeb. 2013.
- Dyer, Steve (2010). "Control towers: RAF Blakehill Farm airfield". controltowers.co.uk.
- "Blakehill Farm Reserve". Wiltshire Wildlife Trust. 2013.