Royal Air Force Bellasize, also known as RAF Bellasize, was a former RAF airfield in the hamlet of

Bellasize Bellasize is a hamlet in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It is situated approximately east of the market town of Howden. History The name of the hamlet derives from the French meaning ''beautiful seat (belle + assis, belasis, belasyse)' ...

, near

Gilberdyke Gilberdyke is a village and civil parish in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It is situated approximately south-east of York and west of Hull. Gilberdyke lies near to Howden which is away. It lies on the B1230 road, south of the M62 ...

East Riding of Yorkshire The East Riding of Yorkshire, or simply East Riding or East Yorkshire, is a ceremonial county and unitary authority area in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. It borders North Yorkshire to the north and west, South Yorkshire to t ...

, England. Originally opened in 1916, Bellasize was one of only four Yorkshire-based RAF locations to see use in the

First First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and rec ...

and

Second World Wars World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. Flying at Bellasize was sporadic and training based, with the site not being used in an offensive capacity during the Second World War.

History

Bellasize appears to have been equipped with just one runway, which was a grass strip measuring angled in a north east/south west direction across a rectangular field. There are no records of any hangars or permanent buildings at the site. The site was opened in April 1916 as a 1st class landing ground. It was originally used by No. 33 and No. 76 Squadrons in the Home Defence (HD) role, even though its proximity to the River Ouse meant that the airfield was often flooded; Bellasize was only above sea level. The site was handed over to the Royal Air Force in April 1918, and then relinquished a year later in April 1919. However, during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, the site was reactivated, and covered an area of , measuring by . Bellasize was one of only four sites used by the RAF in the First and Second World Wars, (the other being

Driffield Driffield, also known as Great Driffield, is a market town and civil parish in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. The civil parish is formed by the town of Driffield and the village of Little Driffield. By road, it is north-east of Leeds ...

Doncaster Doncaster (, ) is a city in South Yorkshire, England. Named after the River Don, it is the administrative centre of the larger City of Doncaster. It is the second largest settlement in South Yorkshire after Sheffield. Doncaster is situated in ...

and Catterick). For the entire period of the war, Bellasize belonged to

Flying Training Command Flying Training Command was an Command (military formation), organization of the Royal Air Force; it controlled flight training units. The command's headquarters were at Shinfield Park, Reading, Berkshire, Reading in Berkshire. History Flying ...

, and was used as relief landing ground (RLG) by No. 4 Elementary Flying Training School (No. 4 EFTS). No. 4 EFTS was based at nearby

Brough Aerodrome Brough Aerodrome was a private use aerodrome located at Brough, East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It is now disused with the last known flight out of the airfield occurring in 2011. The airfield closed in 2013. It is planned that the site ...

, and the increased use of Bellasize was due to the prevalance of aircraft movements at Brough originating from the aircraft factory. Flying at RAF Bellasize ceased in July 1945. The site has been converted back to farmland.

Notes

References

Sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bellasize, RAF Royal Air Force stations in Yorkshire History of the East Riding of Yorkshire Royal Air Force stations of World War I in the United Kingdom Royal Air Force stations of World War II in the United Kingdom