| Royal Air Force Twinwood Farm | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| RAF Twinwood Control Tower (Watch Office), restored in 2002 | |||
| IATA: none – ICAO: none | |||
| Summary | |||
| Airport type | Military | ||
| Location | near Bedford | ||
| Elevation AMSL | 24 ft / 80 m | ||
| Coordinates | |||
| Website | |||
| Map | |||
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RAF Twinwood Farm
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RAF Twinwood Farm is a former World War II airfield in England, located 4 mi (6.4 km) north of Bedford. For the majority of the war the airfield was home to RAF night fighters.
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Twinwood Farm opened in mid 1941 when the RAF began to use the grassed field. By April 1942 it had three concrete runways and additional temporary buildings.
From then until the end of the war the Blenheims, Beaufighters, Beauforts, Havocs and Mosquitos of No 51 Operational Training Unit use 'Twinwoods', as it was generally known[1].
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In March 1943 P51 Mustangs belonging to 164, 169, 239 and 208 Squadrons RAF engaged in Operation Spartan[1] which occurred between 1 and 12 March 1943 was conducted across southern and central England to test a wide range of procedures and tactics of British and Canadian Forces[2].
In 1944 the base was transferred to the U.S. Eighth Air Force and operated in conjunction with the nearby RAF Thurleigh[1].
Twinwood Farm was where USAAF Major Glenn Miller aircraft took off on 15 December 1944 for Paris. His plane disappeared over the English Channel and was never found.
Miller spent his last night alive at Milton Ernest Hall, on the outskirts of Milton Ernest, Bedfordshire. On December 15, 1944, Miller was to fly from the United Kingdom to Paris, France, to play for the soldiers there. His plane (a single-engined UC-64 Norseman, USAAF serial 44-70285) departed from RAF Twinwood Farm in Clapham, Bedfordshire and disappeared while flying over the English Channel.[3] No trace of the aircrew, passengers or plane has ever been found. Miller's status is missing in action.
There are three main theories about what happened to Miller's plane, including the suggestion that he might have been hit by Royal Air Force bombs after an abortive raid on Siegen, Germany. One hundred and thirty-eight Lancaster bombers, short on fuel, jettisoned approximately 100,000 incendiaries in a designated area before landing. The logbooks of Royal Air Force navigator Fred Shaw[4] recorded that he saw a small, single-engined monoplane spiraling out of control and crashing into the water. However, a second source, while acknowledging the possibility, cites other RAF crew members flying the same mission who stated that the drop area was in the North Sea[5][6].
The airfield closed in June 1945[7].
The site is now home to the Twinwood Arena [8], a large natural amphitheatre which plays host to various music festivals promoted by Twinwood Events[9] including the Rhythm Festival.
The Glenn Miller Museum is located in the restored control tower and features displays about Glenn Miller, RAF Twinwood Farm, and World War II.
Other buildings house different displays including:
The group of museums are also known as Twinwood Airfield Museum, and are open seasonally.