|
Class A Airfield
Class A airfields were World War II military installations constructed to specifications laid down by the British Air Ministry Directorate-General of Works (AMDGW). Intended for use by heavy bombers and transports, they were the standard air base design for the Royal Air Force as well as U.S. Army Air Forces units operating from the UK. Upon the entry of the US into the war a number of RAF Class A bases were transferred to the U.S. Eighth Air Force for use as heavy bomber bases with the RAF units formerly occupying them being redeployed to other RAF bomber airfields, and U.S. Army Engineer Units constructed more airfields to this standard or brought earlier airfields up to this specification by lengthening runways, etc. Many units of the U.S. Ninth Air Force also flew from Class A airfields. The term Class 'A' came about because, quite often, the resultant aerial shot of the crossed runways would look like the letter A. Design The specifications set by the British Air Ministry ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
RAF Bassingbourn - Site Map 2
The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and the Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS). Following the Allied victory over the Central Powers in 1918, the RAF emerged as the largest air force in the world at the time. Since its formation, the RAF has taken a significant role in British military history. In particular, it played a large part in the Second World War where it fought its most famous campaign, the Battle of Britain. The RAF's mission is to support the objectives of the British Ministry of Defence (MOD), which are to "provide the capabilities needed to ensure the security and defence of the United Kingdom and overseas territories, including against terrorism; to support the Government's foreign policy objectives particularly in promoting international peace and security". The RAF ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
RAF Podington
Royal Air Force (RAF) Podington is a former Royal Air Force Royal Air Force station, station in northern Bedfordshire, England, south-east of Wellingborough, Northamptonshire. History Podington airfield was originally built between 1940 and 1941 to accommodate two Royal Air Force (RAF) bomber squadrons. USAAF use On 18 April 1942 it was made available to the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) 8th Air Force. Podington was assigned USAAF Station Number 109. 28th Troop Carrier Squadron The first USAAF unit to use Podington was the 28th Troop Carrier Squadron in June 1942, arriving from Westover Army Air Field, Massachusetts. The 20th was part of the 60th Troop Carrier Group, based at RAF Chelveston. The 28th TCS flew Douglas C-47 Skytrains from the base until rejoining the 60th at RAF Aldermaston in August. 15th Bombardment Squadron (Light) The 15th Bombardment Squadron, arrived on 15 September 1942 from RAF Molesworth, flying the British Douglas DB-7, Boston III light ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
RAF Molesworth
Royal Air Force Molesworth or more simply RAF Molesworth is a Royal Air Force station located near Molesworth, Cambridgeshire, England with a history dating back to 1917. Its runway and flight line facilities were closed in 1973 and demolished. New facilities were constructed to support ground-launched cruise missile operations in the early 1980s. It was one of the two British bases to house cruise missiles and a focus for protests. It is now a non-flying facility under the control of the United States Air Force (USAF), and is one of two Royal Air Force (RAF) stations in Cambridgeshire currently used by the United States Air Forces in Europe (USAFE). Molesworth, RAF Alconbury and RAF Upwood were considered the "Tri-Base Area" due to their close geographic proximity and interdependency until RAF Upwood closed in late 2012. RAF Alconbury and RAF Molesworth were the last Second World War era Eighth Air Force airfields in the United Kingdom that were still actively in use and cont ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
RAF Kimbolton
RAF Kimbolton is a former Royal Air Force station located west of Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire, England. History USAAF use The airfield was originally built in 1941 for RAF Bomber Command, then expanded to Class A airfield standards for use by American heavy bombers during 1942. Kimbolton was assigned to the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) Eighth Air Force. It was given the designation USAAF Station 117. 91st Bombardment Group (Heavy) The airfield was opened in 1942 and was first used by the USAAF Eighth Air Force 91st Bombardment Group (Heavy), arriving from Walla Walla AAF, Washington during September. The 91st was assigned to the 1st Combat Bombardment Wing of the 1st Bombardment Division. Its tail code was Triangle-A. Its operational Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress squadrons were: * 322d Bombardment Squadron (LG) * 323d Bombardment Squadron (OR) * 324th Bombardment Squadron (DF) * 401st Bombardment Squadron (LL) The 91st stayed at Kimbolton only a few weeks, becaus ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
RAF Grafton Underwood
Royal Air Force Grafton Underwood or more simply RAF Grafton Underwood is a former Royal Air Force station located northeast of Kettering, Northamptonshire, England. Royal Air Force use The airfield at Grafton Underwood was opened in 1941 and was first used by the RAF Bomber Command No. 1653 Heavy Conversion Unit RAF with Consolidated Liberators. The original runways were approximately 1,600 yards and 1,100 yards in length. However, these were unsuitable for the operation of heavy, four-engined bombers and the field was upgraded to Class A airfield standards, including the lengthening of the runways to the required 2,000 yards for the main and 1,400 yards for each of the others, started in late 1942. United States Army Air Forces use Grafton Underwood was assigned United States Army Air Forces Eighth Air Force in 1942. Its designation was USAAF Station 106. USAAF Station Units assigned to RAF Grafton Underwood were: * 443d Sub-Depot * 18th Weather Squadron * 33rd Stat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
RAF Chelveston
Royal Air Force Chelveston, or more simply RAF Chelveston, is a former Royal Air Force station located on the south side of the B645 (former A45 road), east of Wellingborough, near the village of Chelveston in Northamptonshire, England. During the Second World War the airfield was occupied by both the Royal Air Force and the United States Army Air Forces. It was given the USAAF designation Station 105. During the Cold War, Chelveston housed some flying units but its main role was that of a readiness station to receive USAF units from the United States in case of an emergency. In the mid-1970s, the majority of the airfield was sold by the Ministry of Defence to private landholders, with the exception of a military housing area occupied by U.S. service members assigned to RAF Alconbury and RAF Molesworth. Origins Construction of Chelveston began in 1940 with short grass runways and three hangars grouped together. The airfield opened in August 1941 as a RAF station. It was firs ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
RAF Bassingbourn
Royal Air Force Bassingbourn or more simply RAF Bassingbourn is a former Royal Air Force Royal Air Force station, station located in Cambridgeshire approximately north of Royston, Hertfordshire, Royston, Hertfordshire and south west of Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, England. During the Second World War it served first as an RAF station and then as a bomber airfield of the Eighth Air Force, of the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF). It remains the home of the Tower Museum Bassingbourn. Origin and development Construction RAF Bassingbourn was constructed by John Laing Group, John Laing & Son between 1937 and 1939 in the parishes of Wendy, Cambridgeshire, Wendy and Bassingbourn (village), Bassingbourn immediately to the west of the A14 road (Great Britain), A14 (now the A1198 road, A1198) road. The site selected was low ground between several tributaries of the River Cam. The area had been long cleared of forest and tended to be swampy and unstable, and because the boggy ground ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
RAF Alconbury
Royal Air Force Alconbury or more simply RAF Alconbury is an active Royal Air Force station near Huntingdon, England. The airfield is in the civil parish of The Stukeleys, close to the villages of Great Stukeley, Little Stukeley, and Alconbury. Flying operations are no longer based at the site, with most of the land, including the runway, having been sold in 2009 to become the new settlement of Alconbury Weald. History Opened in 1938 for use by RAF Bomber Command, the station has been used from 1942 by the United States Army Air Force. It was occupied by the 93d Bomb Group of the Eighth Air Force: visitors included King George VI who visited the site and saw the Boeing B-17 Flying Fortresses there on 13 November 1942. It was announced by The Pentagon on 8 January 2015 that RAF Alconbury and RAF Molesworth would be closing by 2020. Most of the units at Alconbury and Molesworth will be moved to RAF Croughton, along with the personnel. However, changing security conditions in Eu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
East Anglia
East Anglia is an area in the East of England, often defined as including the counties of Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire. The name derives from the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of the East Angles, a people whose name originated in Anglia, in what is now Northern Germany. Area Definitions of what constitutes East Anglia vary. The Anglo-Saxon Kingdom of East Anglia, established in the 6th century, originally consisted of the modern counties of Norfolk and Suffolk and expanded west into at least part of Cambridgeshire, typically the northernmost parts known as The Fens. The modern NUTS 3 statistical unit of East Anglia comprises Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire (including the City of Peterborough unitary authority). Those three counties have formed the Roman Catholic Diocese of East Anglia since 1976, and were the subject of a possible government devolution package in 2016. Essex has sometimes been included in definitions of East Anglia, including by the London Society o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Asphalt
Asphalt, also known as bitumen (, ), is a sticky, black, highly viscous liquid or semi-solid form of petroleum. It may be found in natural deposits or may be a refined product, and is classed as a pitch. Before the 20th century, the term asphaltum was also used. Full text at Internet Archive (archive.org) The word is derived from the Ancient Greek ἄσφαλτος ''ásphaltos''. The largest natural deposit of asphalt in the world, estimated to contain 10 million tons, is the Pitch Lake located in La Brea in southwest Trinidad (Antilles island located on the northeastern coast of Venezuela), within the Siparia Regional Corporation. The primary use (70%) of asphalt is in Road surface, road construction, where it is used as the glue or binder mixed with construction aggregate, aggregate particles to create asphalt concrete. Its other main uses are for bituminous waterproofing products, including production of roofing felt and for sealing flat roofs. In material sciences an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
.png "Click for more on -> RAF Kimbolton")
