RAF Windrush

RAF Windrush
RAF Windrush;
	Landing Strip, Windrush Airfield
	IATA: none; ICAO: none;
Summary
Airport type	Military
Owner	Air Ministry
Operator	Royal Air Force
Location	Windrush, Gloucestershire, England
Built	1940 (Initial) ; 1942 Main buildings
In use	1940-1945
Coordinates	51°48′16″N001°44′09″W / 51.80444°N 1.73583°W
Map
	RAF Windrush Location in Gloucestershire
Runways

Last updated September 20, 2023

Royal Air Force Windrush, or more simply RAF Windrush, is a former Royal Air Force satellite station near Windrush, Gloucestershire, England. It was opened in 1940 and closed on 12 July 1945.^[1] Initially it was a Relief Landing Ground for RAF Chipping Norton, later coming under the control of RAF Little Rissington.^[2]

History

The airfield consisted of two Sommerfeld tracking runways, a concrete perimeter track, 1 T1 building and 8 Blister Hangars amongst many others. Most of this infrastructure was added in 1942.^[3] Some of the original buildings remain in situ though the site has been returned to agricultural use. The Watch Tower was restored in the 1990s. The airfield is partly in the ownership of the National Trust.^[4]

The following units were here at some point:^[5]

No. 6 (Pilots) Advanced Flying Unit RAF
No. 6 Service Flying Training School RAF
No. 15 Service Flying Training School RAF

Memorial

A memorial at the church in Windrush village describes Sgt Pilot Bruce Hancock RAFVR who died on 18 August 1940 when downing a German Heinkel bomber by ramming it with his unarmed training Avro Anson aircraft.^[6]

Postwar

Following closure in 1945 the airfield history has not been fully recorded but the then landowner Lord Sherborne purchased the airfield in 1969 back from the MOD and over time either demolished many of the hundred or so RAF buildings, or else established conifer plantations around them seeking to hide them from view. Many bomb shelters, ancillary buildings and concrete access tracks remain in these plantations. The Midland Parachuting Club was granted a lease of a strip of grass for use as a runway from 1992 until 1997 and used the Watch Tower as their base for Parachuting during that period.^[7]

Current Ownership

The western portion of the airfield came under the ownership of the National Trust in March 1987 as part of the bequest of the Lodge Park and Sherborne Estate by the 7th Baron Sherborne. It is currently part of a let agricultural holding on the estate. Apart from two public bridleways there is currently no public access to the site.

The National Trust Estate Office is in the nearby village of Sherborne, Gloucestershire.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bristol Filton Airport</span> Airport in Filton, South Gloucestershire

Filton Airport or Filton Aerodrome was a private airport in Filton and Patchway, within South Gloucestershire, 4 NM north of Bristol, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">RAF Gaydon</span> Former RAF station in Warwickshire, England

Royal Air Force Gaydon or more simply RAF Gaydon is a former Royal Air Force station located 5.2 miles (8.4 km) east of Wellesbourne, Warwickshire and 10.8 miles (17.4 km) north west of Banbury, Oxfordshire, England.

Royal Air Force Little Rissington or more simply RAF Little Rissington is an Royal Air Force station in Gloucestershire, England. It was once home to the Central Flying School, the Vintage Pair and the Red Arrows.

Royal Air Force Horsham St Faith or more simply RAF Horsham St Faith is a former Royal Air Force station near Norwich, Norfolk, England which was operational from 1939 to 1963. It was then developed as Norwich International Airport.

Royal Air Force Rackheath, more commonly known as RAF Rackheath, is a former Royal Air Force station located near the village of Rackheath, approximately 6 miles north-east of Norwich, in the county of Norfolk in England.

Turweston Aerodrome is an airfield located near the village of Turweston, in north Buckinghamshire near the Northamptonshire border. It is a former Royal Air Force Second World War bomber training facility, now a business park and airfield which is home to the Light Aircraft Association.

RAF Hullavington was a Royal Air Force station located at Hullavington, near Chippenham, Wiltshire, England. The station opened in June 1937 and was primarily used for training. It closed on 31 March 1992 when it was transferred to the British Army and renamed Buckley Barracks. The airfield part of the site, known as Hullavington Airfield, continued to be used for RAF gliding operations until 2016 when it was sold to technology company Dyson.

Royal Air Force South Cerney or more simply RAF South Cerney is a former Royal Air Force station located in South Cerney near Cirencester in Gloucestershire, England. It was built during the 1930s to conduct flying training. The airfield was turned over to the British Army in 1971 and is now known as the Duke of Gloucester Barracks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">RAF Beaulieu</span> Former Royal Air Force station

Royal Air Force Beaulieu or more simply RAF Beaulieu is a former Royal Air Force station in the New Forest, Hampshire, England. It was also known as Beaulieu airfield, Beaulieu aerodrome and USAAF Station AAF 408. It is located on Hatchet Moor 1 mile (2 km) west of the village of East Boldre, about 2 miles (3 km) west-southwest of the village of Beaulieu and 4 miles (6 km) north-east of Lymington.

Gravesend Airport, located 2.5 miles (4.0 km) south-east of Gravesend town centre, Kent and 7.0 miles (11.3 km) west of Rochester. It was operated from 1932 until 1956. It was initially a civil airfield, and became a Royal Air Force station known as RAF Gravesend during the Second World War, when it was under the control of RAF Fighter Command during the Battle of Britain. It was the first RAF station to operate the North American Mustang III. The airport returned to civilian use at the conclusion of the Second World War, although it remained under the ownership of the Air Ministry until its closure in 1956. It is notable that a decision had to be made in 1954, by the Air Ministry, as to whether this civil airport should be retained and substantially enlarged, or the extensions east of Thong Lane be released for residential development. Kent County Council had made it clear that the land west of Thong Lane, was identified as a Civil Airport. Additionally, Kent County Council also informed the Air Ministry, that it would neither support nor oppose enlargement, acknowledging, however, that it would as a result of any such enlargement, the site becoming designated as a fully operational international airport.

Royal Air Force Llandow, or more simply RAF Llandow, is a former Royal Air Force station situated near the village of Llandow, Vale of Glamorgan, South Wales, 15 miles (24 km) west of Cardiff.

RAF Moreton-in-Marsh was a Royal Air Force station near Moreton-in-Marsh, Gloucestershire. It was opened in November 1940 with three concrete and tarmac runways and five aircraft hangars. It closed for operational flying in early 1948. The base remained in use as a relief runway and for training. After a period of care and maintenance, the Station was handed over to the Home Office in 1955.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">RAF Condover</span> Former RAF base in Shropshire, England

Royal Air Force Condover or more simply RAF Condover is a former Royal Air Force Flying Training Command airfield and air navigation training establishment between August 1942 and June 1945, unusually for both fighter and bomber crews at different times. Located on the southern outskirts of Condover village in Shropshire, 4.9 miles (7.9 km) south of the county town Shrewsbury.

Royal Air Force Hibaldstow or more simply RAF Hibaldstow is a former Royal Air Force satellite station located south of Hibaldstow in Lincolnshire and 8.3 miles (13.4 km) south east of Scunthorpe, Lincolnshire, England.

Royal Air Force Babdown Farm or more simply RAF Babdown Farm is a former Royal Air Force relief landing ground located 2.9 miles (4.7 km) west of Tetbury, Gloucestershire, and 7.1 miles (11.4 km) south of Stroud, Gloucestershire, England. It was open between 1940 and 1948 as a relief landing ground used by training units before being used by maintenance units for storage. Part of the site has since been converted into an industrial estate, while the rest is used for agriculture.

Royal Air Force Southrop or more simply RAF Southrop is a former Royal Air Force satellite station west of the village of Southrop, Gloucestershire during the Second World War from August 1940 to November 1945.

Royal Air Force Ashbourne, or more simply RAF Ashbourne, is a former Royal Air Force station located approximately 1.5 miles (2.4 km) south-east of the town of Ashbourne, Derbyshire, England.

Royal Air Force Broadwell or more simply RAF Broadwell is a former Royal Air Force station located 2 miles north of Broadwell and 3 miles southeast of Burford, Oxfordshire, and within 2 miles of RAF Brize Norton.

Royal Air Force Balado Bridge or more simply RAF Balado Bridge is a former Royal Air Force station located 2 miles west of Kinross, in central Scotland. It opened in 1942 as a satellite airfield to RAF Grangemouth, and closed in 1957. It has since served as a NATO satellite station, a microlight flying base, and as the venue for the T in the Park music festival.

Royal Air Force Moreton Valence or more simply RAF Moreton Valence is a former Royal Air Force installation located 9 kilometres (5.6 mi) southwest of Gloucester, Gloucestershire and 24 kilometres (15 mi) northwest of Cirencester, Gloucestershire, England.

References

Citations

↑ "Windrush". Control Towers. Archived from the original on 16 November 2019. Retrieved 5 July 2020.
↑ Phillips, Jenni; Lillywhite, Maisie (6 May 2020). "The lost airfields of Gloucestershire and the remarkable role they played in WW2". Gloucestershire Live. Archived from the original on 28 May 2020. Retrieved 5 July 2020.
↑ "RAF Windrush". Aircraft, Airfields and Airshows. Retrieved 5 July 2020.
↑ "National Trust HBSMR and Windush". Archaeology National Trust SW. National Trust. Archived from the original on 7 October 2016. Retrieved 5 July 2020.
↑ "Windrush". Airfields of Britain Conservation Trust. Archived from the original on 26 June 2020. Retrieved 23 June 2020.
↑ "Memorial to Sgt Pilot Bruce Hancock". Archived from the original on 19 September 2009. Retrieved 20 June 2009.
↑ "Monument No. 1431860". Pastscape. Historic England. Retrieved 5 July 2020.

External links

This RAF article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.

[1] "Windrush". Control Towers. Archived from the original on 16 November 2019. Retrieved 5 July 2020.

[2] Phillips, Jenni; Lillywhite, Maisie (6 May 2020). "The lost airfields of Gloucestershire and the remarkable role they played in WW2". Gloucestershire Live. Archived from the original on 28 May 2020. Retrieved 5 July 2020.

[3] "RAF Windrush". Aircraft, Airfields and Airshows. Retrieved 5 July 2020.

[4] "National Trust HBSMR and Windush". Archaeology National Trust SW. National Trust. Archived from the original on 7 October 2016. Retrieved 5 July 2020.

[ABCT-5] "Windrush". Airfields of Britain Conservation Trust. Archived from the original on 26 June 2020. Retrieved 23 June 2020.

[6] "Memorial to Sgt Pilot Bruce Hancock". Archived from the original on 19 September 2009. Retrieved 20 June 2009.

[7] "Monument No. 1431860". Pastscape. Historic England. Retrieved 5 July 2020.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]