Abbots Mitre Memorabilia - Chilbolton Airfield
Memorabilia
Both these pictures are on display in the Abbots Mitre. The Harfield photo has a family dedication “This is a picture of Ernie Harfield, resident of Chilbolton, pictured here with ‘Whisky’, during the making of ‘Sound Barrier’ in 1952. This picture was given to the Abbots Mitre one year exactly since his death on 28th April, 2005.”
Chilbolton Airfield Potted History
The airfield was listed under construction in 1938, however the first aircraft to arrive (Harvard I) landed on the 3rd. May 1940. At this stage the surface was grass.
The airfield was used by Hurricane and Spitfire squadrons during the Battle of Britain in 1940. In December 1941 the Glider Pilots Exercise Unit arrived using Tiger Moth, Miles Master tug aircraft and Hotspur gliders.
In November 1942 the airfield was allocated to the USAAF, although RAF Hurricane squadrons continued to use the airfield through the Spring of 1943. Commencing in May the airfield was rebuilt with hard runways and dispersals. The airfield reopened in December as US Air Station 404.
368th Fighter Group arrived in March 1944 flying three squadrons of P-47 Thunderbolts preparing for the coming invasion. Following these missions the 442nd Transport Carrier Group arrived with three squadrons of C-47 Dakotas and Waco CG-4A Gliders.
The first major operation was Market Garden; the capture and control of bridges in Holland. Elements of the 101st Airborne took off from here. The second operation was by elements of the 17th Airborne in support of the Battle of The Bulge.
The USAAF vacated in March 1945 and the airfield returned to RAF command and stayed in use until November 1946.
In February 1947 Vicker-Supermarine test flight centre arrived. The airfield being used in the development of the Swift which broke the sound barrier here at Chilbolton. Also flight tested here was the Folland Gnat.
The airfield finally closed in 1961. During 1963 work started on a radio telescope/observatory in the centre of the airfield and remains in use today.
Date of coverage
1938 -1961Place
ChilboltonLanguage
EnglishReference number
AQ12086.1Storage location
OneDriveFormat
Area
Subject
You can carry out an advanced search of the archive by search term.
No Comments
Add a comment about this page