Camden Airport is an

aerodrome An aerodrome (Commonwealth English) or airdrome (American English) is a location from which aircraft flight operations take place, regardless of whether they involve air cargo, passengers, or neither, and regardless of whether it is for publ ...

located on the outskirts of

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

northwest of

Camden, New South Wales Camden is a historic town and suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, located 65 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district. Camden was the administrative centre for the local government area of Camden Council until July/August ...

, Australia. The airport is located approximately from Sydney's central business district. Camden is used as a

general aviation General aviation (GA) is defined by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) as all civil aviation aircraft operations with the exception of commercial air transport or aerial work, which is defined as specialized aviation services ...

overflow airport for the busier

Bankstown Airport Bankstown Airport is an airport and business park located in the City of Canterbury-Bankstown, approximately from the Sydney Central Business District (CBD), Australia and west of Sydney Airport. It is situated on of land and has three pa ...

; and provides facilities for

gliding Gliding is a recreational activity and competitive air sport in which pilots fly unpowered aircraft known as gliders or sailplanes using naturally occurring currents of rising air in the atmosphere to remain airborne. The word ''soaring'' is al ...

and

ballooning Ballooning may refer to: * Hot air ballooning * Balloon (aeronautics) * Ballooning (spider) * Ballooning degeneration, a disease * Memory ballooning See also * Balloon (disambiguation) A balloon is a flexible container for (partially or fully) co ...

. The aerodrome has one grass- and one paved runway and two glider airstrips. It is in the south-west corner of the designated Sydney flight training area.

History

Early history

racecourse A race track (racetrack, racing track or racing circuit) is a facility built for racing of vehicles, athletes, or animals (e.g. horse racing or greyhound racing). A race track also may feature grandstands or concourses. Race tracks are also use ...

owned by prominent local grazier

Arthur Macarthur-Onslow Francis Arthur Macarthur-Onslow (7 June 1879 – 3 March 1938) was an Australian grazier and real estate investor. After service in the South African War, he raised sheep, was a director of the Camden Park Estate and its associated dairy farm, and ...

originally occupied the site of the Camden aerodrome. The shooting of the film '' Silks and Saddles'' at the track involved an

Avro 504K The Avro 504 was a First World War biplane aircraft made by the Avro aircraft company and under licence by others. Production during the war totalled 8,970 and continued for almost 20 years, making it the most-produced aircraft of any kind tha ...

biplane piloted by

Edgar Percival Edgar Wikner Percival (23 February 1897 – 21 January 1984) was a noted Australian aircraft designer and pilot whose aircraft were distinguished by speed and grace. Percival went on to set up the Percival Aircraft Company, a British aircraft ...

landing on the set, and the occasion led to Macarthur-Onslow's sons Edward,

Denzil Denzil is a Cornish given name. It may refer to: People *Denzil Batchelor, British journalist and writer *Denzil Best, American jazz percussionist * Denzil Botus, Trinidadian pannist *Denzil Davies, British politician *Denzil Dean Harber, British T ...

and Andrew displaying a keen interest in aviation. By 1935, the Macarthur-Onslow family owned several aircraft including a

de Havilland Hornet Moth The de Havilland DH.87 Hornet Moth is a single-engined cabin biplane designed by the de Havilland Aircraft Company in 1934 as a potential replacement for its highly successful de Havilland Tiger Moth trainer. Although its side-by-side two-se ...

and a

Comper Swift The Comper C.L.A.7 Swift is a British 1930s single-seat sporting aircraft produced by Comper Aircraft Company Ltd of Hooton Park, Cheshire. Design and development In March 1929 Flight Lieutenant Nicholas Comper left the Royal Air Force and form ...

which they stored in a shed on the property. The boys established the Macquarie Grove Flying School on the property in 1938, however the operations of the school would be wound back significantly when Edward Macarthur-Onslow, now responsible for Macquarie Grove Aerodrome and the associated flying school, offered the facility to the government following the outbreak of war.

World War II

Originally a private airstrip, the area that was to become Camden Aerodrome was utilised by the

Royal Australian Air Force "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colours = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = RAAF Anniversary Commemoration ...

(RAAF) and other Allied air forces during World War II. RAF C-47 at Camden

Camden airfield hosted Nos. 4, 15, 21, 32 and 78

RAAF "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colours = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = RAAF Anniversary Commemoration ...

Squadrons at various stages during the war. In addition the

Central Flying School The Central Flying School (CFS) is the Royal Air Force's primary institution for the training of military flying instructors. Established in 1912 at the Upavon Aerodrome, it is the longest existing flying training school. The school was based at ...

operated between 1940 and 1942, and a British transport unit, No. 243 Squadron RAF, was based at Camden during the latter part of World War II. Camden was also the No.13 Operational Base. By 1946 the airfield had been returned to its civil status. In May 1942, No. 4 Squadron RAAF moved to Camden from

Canberra Canberra ( ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The ci ...

equipped with

CAC Wirraway The CAC Wirraway (an Aboriginal word meaning "challenge") was a training and general purpose military aircraft manufactured in Australia by the Commonwealth Aircraft Corporation (CAC) between 1939 and 1946. It was an Australian development of ...

s, but were redeployed to

Kingaroy, Queensland Kingaroy is a rural town and suburbs and localities (Australia), locality in the South Burnett Region, Queensland, Australia. The town is situated on the Road Junction, junction of the D'Aguilar Highway, D'Aguilar and the Bunya Highway, Bunya H ...

in September. No. 15 Squadron RAAF was formed as a maritime patrol unit at Camden on 27 January 1944 equipped with Australian built versions of the

Bristol Beaufort The Bristol Beaufort (manufacturer designation Type 152) is a British twin-engined torpedo bomber designed by the Bristol Aeroplane Company, and developed from experience gained designing and building the earlier Blenheim light bomber. At l ...

torpedo bomber. The squadron maintained detachments at Camden until the end of the war although it was based at other airfields for short periods. No. 21 Squadron RAAF arrived at Camden in January 1944 from

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu Hiri Motu, also known as Police Motu, Pidgin Motu, or just Hiri, is a language of Papua New Guinea, which is spoken in surrounding areas of Port Moresby (Capital of Papua New Guinea). It is a simplified version of ...

to re-equip with

Consolidated B-24 Liberator The Consolidated B-24 Liberator is an American heavy bomber, designed by Consolidated Aircraft of San Diego, California. It was known within the company as the Model 32, and some initial production aircraft were laid down as export models des ...

s. The conversion was complete by July and the squadron departed to forward operating bases in northern Australia. The

Lockheed Hudson The Lockheed Hudson is a light bomber and coastal reconnaissance aircraft built by the American Lockheed Aircraft Corporation. It was initially put into service by the Royal Air Force shortly before the outbreak of the Second World War and prim ...

equipped No. 32 Squadron RAAF deployed to Camden in November 1942. While stationed at Camden the squadron performed anti-submarine patrols and was re-equipped with Beaufort torpedo bombers. The base hosted the squadron until May 1944 when it was redeployed to

Lowood, Queensland Lowood is a rural town and locality in the Somerset Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , the locality of Lowood had a population of 4,159 people. Geography The town is on the Brisbane River, west of the state capital, Brisbane, and north ...

. No. 78 Squadron RAAF, equipped with

P-40 Kittyhawk The Curtiss P-40 Warhawk is an American single-engined, single-seat, all-metal fighter and ground-attack aircraft that first flew in 1938. The P-40 design was a modification of the previous Curtiss P-36 Hawk which reduced development time and ...

fighters was formed on 20 July 1943 at RAAF Base Camden. The squadron trained here until it was operational and deployed to Kiriwina Island in November. No. 83 Squadron RAAF equipped with Australian built

CAC Boomerang The CAC Boomerang is a fighter aircraft designed and manufactured in Australia by the Commonwealth Aircraft Corporation between 1942 and 1945. Approved for production shortly following the Empire of Japan's entry into the Second World War, t ...

fighters arrived at Camden from Gove in the

Northern Territory The Northern Territory (commonly abbreviated as NT; formally the Northern Territory of Australia) is an states and territories of Australia, Australian territory in the central and central northern regions of Australia. The Northern Territory ...

in August 1944. The squadron had moved to nearby Menangle by early 1945. From late 1944 until April 1946 Camden was the main base for No. 300 Group RAF, which flew transport aircraft in support of the

British Pacific Fleet The British Pacific Fleet (BPF) was a Royal Navy formation that saw action against Japan during the Second World War. The fleet was composed of empire naval vessels. The BPF formally came into being on 22 November 1944 from the remaining ships ...

. The Camden War Cemetery, located in the Camden General Cemetery, contains twenty three graves comprising four

Australian Army The Australian Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of Australia, a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. The Army is commanded by the Chief of Army (Austral ...

, two

Royal Air Force 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 ...

and seventeen Royal Australian Air Force personnel. Most of those buried here died in three separate air training accidents.

Satellite airfields

* The Oaks Airfield * Menangle Airfield

Post war

In 1946, ownership of the airport was transferred to the Department of Civil Aviation who oversaw the development of further civil aviation infrastructure on the site including the sealing of runway 06/24. By 1962, a control tower had been built on the site, and in 1978 the primary taxiway providing access between the apron and runway was sealed. In 1988, the airport was transferred to the

Federal Airports Corporation The Federal Airports Corporation (FAC) was a business enterprise of the Government of Australia responsible for the operation of major passenger airports in Australia. It was established by the Hawke Labor Government by an Act of Parliament in ...

and throughout the 1990s further improvements were made to the system of taxiways and aprons to improve aircraft circulation and traffic flow. Major works in 1997 saw all sealed aprons, runways and taxiways resurfaced. VH-SOX (Cessna 152) at Camden Airport

In 1968 the Camden Museum of Aviation was established at Camden Airport. It moved to another location at Harrington Park in 1976. The FAC was wound down in 1998 and Camden was transferred along with Bankstown, the former

Hoxton Park Airport Hoxton Park Airport was a general aviation aerodrome in south-western Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The aerodrome was non-towered, and so operated according to Common Traffic Advisory Frequency (CTAF) procedures. Traffic was light; at ...

and Kingsford Smith Airport to Sydney Airports Corporation Limited, but at this stage was still a government controlled enterprise. In 2003, it was controversially sold by the Australian government to a private company, along with Bankstown and

Hoxton Park Hoxton Park is a suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Hoxton Park is located 38 kilometres west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of the City of Liverpool and is part of the Greater We ...

. It is now mostly used by trainee pilots for flying schools, Phoenix Aero Club, the

Australian Air League The Australian Air League (AAL) is a not-for-profit, civilian operated aviation youth organisation in Australia. Its objective is to encourage the spirit of aviation and air-mindedness in the youth of Australia. The Australian Air League receive ...

NSW Air Activities Centre, No. 3 Wing

Australian Air Force Cadets The Australian Air Force Cadets (AAFC), known as the ''Air Training Corps (AIRTC)'' until 2001, is a Federal Government funded youth organisation. The parent force of the AAFC is the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF). Along with the Australian ...

Scouts Australia Scouts Australia is a trading name of The Scout Association of Australia, which is the largest scouting organisation in Australia, with an estimated 55,038 youth participants in 2021, and a member of the World Organization of the Scout Movemen ...

NSW Air Activity Centre, several gliding clubs, hot air ballooning and other forms of general aviation. The airport was used as the car-testing track for the television series ''

Top Gear Australia ''Top Gear Australia'' was an Australian motoring reality television series, based on the British BBC series ''Top Gear''. The programme first premiered on SBS One on 29 September 2008. A second season was ordered following the high ratings for ...

''. In 2020 a Preliminary Draft Master Plan (MP) has been prepared for public review and comment.Camden Airport Master Plan 2020/2
Sydney Metro Airports

Radio procedures

Camden operates as an ICAO Class D airport from 8:00 am to 6:00 pm. At other times it is a

Common Traffic Advisory Frequency Common traffic advisory frequency (CTAF) is the name given to the VHF radio frequency used for air-to-air communication at United States, Canadian and Australian non-towered airports. Many towered airports close their towers overnight, keeping t ...

airport.

References

External links

Camden Airport

Australian Air League
{{Airports in New South Wales Airports in New South Wales Airports in Greater Sydney Military history of Australia during World War II Military history of Sydney during World War II Airports established in 1935 Camden, New South Wales