RAF Chipping Norton

RAF Chipping Norton
Near Chipping Norton, Oxfordshire in England
Site information
Type	Royal Air Force Satellite station
Owner	Air Ministry
Operator	Royal Air Force
Location
RAF Chipping Norton Shown within Oxfordshire
Coordinates	51°55′28″N001°31′35″W / 51.92444°N 1.52639°W / 51.92444; -1.52639
Site history
Built	1940 (1940)
In use	1941-1945 (1945)
Airfield information
Elevation	207 metres (679 ft) AMSL
Runways Direction Length and surface 10/28 1,000 metres (3,281 ft)  Sommerfeld Tracking 05/23 900 metres (2,953 ft) Sommerfeld Tracking

Royal Air Force Chipping Norton or more simply RAF Chipping Norton is a former Royal Air Force satellite station located near Chipping Norton, Oxfordshire, England. It was operational from 10 July 1940 to 1945 and returned to agricultural use when disposed of in 1953.

History

The following units were posted to this airfield at some point:

• No. 3 Maintenance Unit RAF. ^[1]
• No. 6 (Pilots) Advanced Flying Unit RAF renamed No. 6 Service Flying Training School RAF. ^[1]
• No. 11 Service Flying Training School RAF. ^[1]
• No. 15 Service Flying Training School RAF. ^[1]
• No. 1517 (Beam Approach Training) Flight RAF. ^[1]

Airspeed Oxfords and North American Harvard I's flew from this airfield. ^[2]

The station was bombed on two occasions in October and November 1940. Little damage was done and on the second attempt the Luftwaffe missed the airfield by about a mile to the East.

Current use

The site is currently farmland, partly owned by Jeremy Clarkson and used for his show, Clarkson's Farm. Part of the site is used for airsoft.

See also

• List of former Royal Air Force stations

References

1. "Chipping Norton". Airfields of Britain Conservation Trust . Retrieved 21 November 2014.
2. "RAF Chipping Norton airfield". Control Towers. Retrieved 21 November 2014.