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RAF Aston Down
Aston Down is in Gloucestershire, South West England, east of Minchinhampton, southeast of Stroud and west of Cirencester. The nearest settlement is the large village of Chalford, 1 mile (1.6 km) to the northwest. The airfield was used by the Royal Air Force from the First World War until 1967 when the Cotswold Gliding Club moved in from their previous base near Tetbury. In 2002 the land and most of hangars surrounding the airfield were sold by the Ministry of Defence to private developers for use as industrial units. History First World War The airfield was originally opened as RAF Minchinhampton and was first used in the First World War, serving as an aerodrome for the Australian Flying Corps with No. 2 Squadron AFC flying the Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.5a and the Sopwith Pup and No. 3 Squadron AFC flying the Avro 504. The airfield closed shortly afterwards. Reopening In 1938 the airfield reopened under the new name of RAF Aston Down at the request of the reside ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cotswold Gliding Club
The Cotswold Gliding Club (CGC) is based at Aston Down airfield, between Cirencester and Stroud, Gloucestershire, Stroud in Gloucestershire, South West England. The club maintains a fleet of aircraft for training purposes, and is a centre for Gliding#Cross-country, cross-country gliding and Gliding competitions, competitions. Club CGC was formed in 1964. It was initially based at Long Newnton airfield near Tetbury, but in 1967 moved to its current home, Aston Down—at that time still a military airfield. In 1980-1, with the help of Sports Council grants and other loans, the club purchased a large part of the airfield when it was auctioned off by the Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom), Ministry of Defence. Having since acquired further land, CGC now owns most of the airfield within the perimeter track. CGC has some 200 members, including 80 students from the University of the West of England (UWE) in Bristol. There are about 30 associate members: these include both pilots ( ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
