RAF Henley-on-Thames

RAF Henley-on-Thames
IATA: none ICAO: none
Summary
Airport type	Military
Owner	Air Ministry
Operator	Royal Air Force
Location	Henley-on-Thames, Berkshire
Built	1939
In use	1940-1945
Coordinates	51°32′05″N000°51′18″W / 51.53472°N 0.85500°W / 51.53472; -0.85500
Map
RAF Henley-on-Thames Location in Berkshire
Runways
Direction Length Surface ft m 00/00 0 0 Grass 00/00 0 0 Grass

Royal Air Force Henley-on-Thames or more simply RAF Henley-on-Thames is a former Royal Air Force relief landing ground in Berkshire, England, located near Henley-on-Thames. It was also known by a variety of other names: Cockpole Green, Upper Culham Farm, Crazies Hill, or Crazies Hill Farm. ^[1]

History

The site was used to assemble and test Supermarine Spitfires (produced locally by dispersed manufacturers in the Reading area), and as a Relief Landing Ground for RAF White Waltham and RAF Woodley. It was built in late 1939 and closed in October 1945. ^[2] On 18 August 1944 No. 529 Squadron RAF moved to RAF Henley-on-Thames from RAF Halton in Buckinghamshire. This squadron was initially equipped with autogyros but during April 1945 they took delivery of the new American Sikorsky R-4 helicopter (known as the 'Hoverfly I' in British service), ^[3] RAF Henley-on-Thames becoming the first RAF air base to host an operational helicopter squadron.

The following units were also here at some point: ^[1]

• Relief Landing Ground for No. 8 Elementary Flying Training School RAF (February 1941 - September 1942) ^[4]
• Relief Landing Ground for No. 10 Flying Instructors School (Elementary) RAF (July 1944 - May 1946) ^[5]
• Relief Landing Ground for No. 13 Elementary Flying Training School RAF (July - December 1940) ^[6]

Current use

As well as agricultural land, there is now a business park at the Upper Culham Farm site, off Culham Lane. There is currently little to indicate on satellite imagery that an airfield once existed here as the runways were grass. The only extant building from the aerodrome is a round defensive pillbox (F.C. Type, Mushroom Type or Oakington Type) in the middle of a field close to Ashley Hill Place, at coordinates 51.5293384 N 0.8524861 W.^{[ citation needed ]}

See also

• List of former Royal Air Force stations

References

Citations

1. "Henley-on-Thames (Crazies Hill)". Airfields of Britain Conservation Trust . Retrieved 2 October 2023.
2. Cantilever Pillbox, RAF Henley on Thames, Derelict Places, UK.
3. Jefford 1988, p. 96.
4. Sturtivant & Hamlin 2007, p. 102.
5. Sturtivant & Hamlin 2007, p. 133.
6. Sturtivant & Hamlin 2007, p. 103.

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, UK: Airlife Publishing. ISBN   1-85310-053-6.
• Sturtivant, Ray; Hamlin, John (2007). Royal Air Force flying training and support units since 1912. Tonbridge, UK: Air-Britain (Historians). ISBN   978-0851-3036-59.

External links

• Notes on Spitfire production