RAF Machrihanish
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RAF Machrihanish is a former Royal Air Force station located three miles (5 km) from the town of Campbeltown at the tip of Kintyre. It is now known as MOD Machrihanish and also incorporates Campbeltown Airport which has commercial flights to Glasgow, operated by Loganair.
Its runway is 3049 m long. The United States maintained a Navy SEAL commando unit, a 20 person team known as Naval Special Warfare detachment 1 (The other overseas Naval Special Warfare Detachments, 2 and 3 were based at Roosevelt Roads, Puerto Rico, and Subic Bay, Philippines) at the base and the Royal Marines occasionally use the facility for training exercises.
Ministry of Defence and U.S. military exercises still take place there[citation needed]. The civilian airport is located at the opposite end of the base from the hangars, bunkers and the SEAL building.
During the Cold War, Machrihanish was an important North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) airfield. Millions of pounds were spent upgrading the base during the 1980s[citation needed]. While speculation regarding the base suggests its use in United States Air Force black projects (in particular the Aurora), an answer to the House of Commons in 2004 reveals that the base was handed over by the United States Navy back to Ministry of Defence control on June 30, 1995[1].
The base is now on what is termed "care and maintenance" — this allows the airfield to be used by civilian airlines, which may conduct scheduled and charter flights from the aerodrome. The MOD are responsible for the upkeep of the aerodrome, which may sometimes be used by military detachment whilst on exercise. During times of conflict or national emergency, the aerodrome could revert to its intended military use. In 2005 the MOD was still reported to be considering reactivating the base.[2]
