RAF Melton Mowbray
RAF Melton Mowbray | |||||||||||||||||||
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 RAF Buildings on the old technical site. | |||||||||||||||||||
| IATA: none – ICAO: none | |||||||||||||||||||
| Summary | |||||||||||||||||||
| Airport type | Military | ||||||||||||||||||
| Owner | Air Ministry | ||||||||||||||||||
| Operator | Royal Air Force | ||||||||||||||||||
| Location | Melton Mowbray, Leicestershire | ||||||||||||||||||
| Built | 1941 | ||||||||||||||||||
| In use | 1942-1964 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Elevation AMSL | 374 ft / 114 m | ||||||||||||||||||
| Coordinates | 52°44′01″N 000°53′47″W / 52.73361°N 0.89639°WCoordinates: 52°44′01″N 000°53′47″W / 52.73361°N 0.89639°W | ||||||||||||||||||
| Map | |||||||||||||||||||
  RAF Melton Mowbray Location in Leicestershire | |||||||||||||||||||
| Runways | |||||||||||||||||||
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Royal Air Force Station Melton Mowbray or more simply RAF Melton Mowbray is a former Royal Air Force station located 2.3 miles (3.7 km) south of the centre of Melton Mowbray, Leicestershire and 13.6 miles (21.9 km) south east of Loughborough, Leicestershire, England.
History
The Class A airfield was originally intended for aircraft maintenance but was taken over by RAF Transport Command. Many types of aircraft were flown from the airfield, including Supermarine Spitfire, de Havilland Mosquito, Vought F4U Corsair, Vultee A-31 Vengeance, Grumman F6F Hellcat, Douglas C-47 Dakota and Handley Page Halifax aircraft, plus Airspeed Horsa and Waco Hadrian gliders.
Units
- No. 4 Aircraft Preparation Unit between 5 July 1944 and 9 October 1944.[1]
- Mk X AI Conversion Flt between 29 August 1944 and 8 September 1944.[1]
- No. 306 Ferry Training Unit between 13 October 1943 and 15 January 1944.[1]
- No. 307 Ferry Training Unit between 14 October 1943 and 15 January 1944.[1]
- No. 304 Ferry Training Unit between 3 January 1944 and 9 October 1944.[1]
- No. 1 Ferry Pilot Pool between 14 January 1944 and 16 March 1944.[1]
- No. 1341 Special Duties Flt during 1944.[1]
- 'J' Flt between 28 September 1945 and 5 October 1945.[1]
- No. 12 Ferry Unit between 9 October 1944 and 7 November 1945.[1]
Post war
Between 1946 and 1958 the site was used as a Polish Resettlement Corps camp housing Polish Air Force personnel and their relations.[2]
Melton Mowbray served as a Thor Strategic missile site between 1959 and 1963, when 254(SM) Squadron[3] operated a flight of 3x3 missiles from the base.[4]
Illegal Rave
On April 30th 1993, a rave party hosted by Perception was due to take place in the airfields, and although it was cancelled at the last minute, the rave went ahead illegally until 8am the next morning.
Current use
The airfield now houses a small industrial estate and little of the original infrastructure has survived. The airfield regularly hosts large "bank holiday" markets.
See also
References
Citations
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 "RAF Melton Mowbrey". Air of Authority - A History of RAF Organisation. Retrieved 5 October 2012.
- ↑ "Memoirs of a Polish airforce veteran". Leicestershire Villages.com. Retrieved 5 October 2012.
- ↑ Jefford 1988, p. 79.
- ↑ John Pike. "RAF Melton Mowbray". Globalsecurity.org. Retrieved 2 May 2011.
Bibliography
- Jefford, C.G, MBE,BA ,RAF (Retd). RAF Squadrons, a Comprehensive Record of the Movement and Equipment of all RAF Squadrons and their Antecedents since 1912. Shrewsbury, Shropshire, UK: Airlife Publishing, 1988. ISBN 1-84037-141-2.
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to RAF Melton Mowbray. |
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