Battle Of Britain Airfields 60 Years Later...

[Maestro]

I just fell on that web site. It's interresting how places may have changed. May be some of you may even live in an old RAF airbase without knowing it...

http://www.danhamblin.btinternet.co.uk/pages/bob.htm

 

[evangilder]

It was always interesting to visit the old bases when I was there. Some were active cold war bases and to see the old buildings with guys still working in them gave me a sense of the history that must reside in the buildings.

To step onto a base like Molesworth, that originally housed the 303rd BG "Hells Angels" is like a step into the past. Gave me chills.

 

[Gnomey]

Really interesting to see how things have changed in the landscape and the sense of history in the surving bases must be special

 

[the lancaster kicks ass]

i wonder if there's any memorials or museums at any of them, i'd have thought there would be.........

 

[Maestro]

Well, I know that there is a museum in Hawkinge (the most important collection of Battle of Britain artefacts on show in the UK).

http://www.kbobm.org/

... And an other one in Tangmere.

http://www.tangmere-museum.org.uk/

But I don't know about the other airfields.

 

[evangilder]

How about Duxford?

 

[Nonskimmer]

Of course!

 

[Maestro]

How about Duxford?

Yeah, I forgot about that one.

http://duxford.iwm.org.uk/

 

[trackend]

Heres my local airfields war time history.

http://www.southendairport.net/2nd_ww.htm

 

[Nonskimmer]

Ah, interesting.

 

[evangilder]

There is some interesting aviation history there! We used to have 2 airports in Thousand Oaks/Newbury Park. Sadly, they are both closed now and there is no trace of either. But the movie "It's a mad mad mad mad world" was filmed at one of them, although there were some modifications made to it for the filming.

 

[trackend]

Commercial progress sometimes destroys what will be important historic sites with out realizing it Evan its a shame but inevitable. Next time I'm at the trip wire on the end of the run way I'll get a shot of the wartime pill box that's still there lads.

 

[plan_D]

There's loads of airfields around here that were in service during World War 2 - there's two in Doncaster, there's RAF Finningley and Sandtoft. The two in Doncaster have been built over and there's nothing left - I walk over one of the airstrips when going to the Cinema!

RAF Finningley closed down in 1994 - and is now an airport, quickly becoming an international one.

Sandtoft is an airstrip - they use the taxi way as a runway these days for C-150s and C-170s - a potato factory is on the end of the old runway.

 

[the lancaster kicks ass]

we have barely any airfields down here........