RAF Burtonwood

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RAF Burtonwood is the name of the Royal Air Force station that used to be situated just North-West of Warrington, Cheshire.

Burtonwood Air Base

The base opened in 1939. During World War II it acted as a servicing centre for the American Eighth Air Force, the Ninth Air Force, the Twelfth Air Force and the Fifteenth Air Force. The roar of the engines in the test beds could be heard from miles around. and especially at night. By the end of the war there were 18,000 servicemen stationed there. According to some sources Burtonwood was placed strategically so that it was out of the range of Luftwaffe bombers, however this fact is quite untrue as there were several raids on the facility. It has been said the Burtonwood would have provided a better site for a regional airport than either of the current sites occupied by Liverpool John Lennon Airport or Manchester International Airport.

Following World War II the station declined somewhat with numbers being reduced. The United States Air Force left the station in 1965, but U.S. forces moved back there in 1967 when the exit of France from NATO forced the withdrawal of units from there. The U.S. Army took over the base which was developed into a storage and forward supply depot. The largest covered area in the UK is how one of the storage buildings there has been described. The idea was that in the event of an emergency, US troops in the USA that were earmarked for NATO service in Europe would fly over and pick up their kit from Burtonwood before going on to the battle front. It was never tested for this eventuality, although the base provided service functions for the 1991 Gulf War. It closed in August 1993 is now being redeveloped into housing estates.

At present the site is being entirely demolished to make way for a new commercial development and the building of a new village called Chapelford. Part of the runways now exist on the Welcome Break Burtonwood service station. Ghosts of aircrew have been seen in the service station's kitchen.

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	United States Air Force in the United Kingdom v • d • e
ACTIVE BASES:	RAF Alconbury (USAFE) • RAF Croughton (USAFE) • RAF Fairford (USAFE) • RAF Feltwell (USAFE) • RAF Lakenheath (SAC/USAFE) • RAF Menwith Hill (USAFE) • RAF Mildenhall (SAC/USAFE/AMC) • RAF Molesworth (SAC/USAFE) • RAF Upwood (USAFE) • RAF Welford (USAFE)
INACTIVE BASES:	RAF Bentwaters (USAFE) • RAF Burtonwood (AFMC) • RAF Chelveston (SAC/USAFE) • RAF Chicksands (USAFSS) • RAF Greenham Common (SAC/USAFE) • RAF Manston (USAFE) • RAF Sculthorpe (SAC) • RAF Shepherds Grove (USAFE) • RAF Upper Heyford (SAC/USAFE) • RAF Wethersfield (USAFE) • RAF Woodbridge (USAFE)
ACTIVE ORGANIZATIONS:	United States Air Forces in Europe • HQ Air Command Europe • 48th Fighter Wing (USAFE) • 100th Air Refueling Wing (USAFE) • 501st Combat Support Wing (USAFE)
PAST ORGANIZATIONS:	Third Air Force • Sixteenth Air Force