Earls Colne Airfield is 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 ...
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 south-east of the village of
Earls Colne
Earls Colne is a village in Essex, England named after the River Colne, on which it stands, and the Earls of Oxford who held the manor of Earls Colne from before 1086 to 1703.
History Manor of Earls Colne
In the time of Edward the Confess ...
,
Essex
Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and Grea ...
, England.
The site was previously RAF Earls Colne, a
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) an ...
station which was primilarly used by the
United States Army Air Forces
The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...
.
History
The following units were here at some point:
*
No. 38 Group Communication Flight RAF (October 1944 - May 1946)
*
No. 296 Squadron RAF between 29 September 1944 and 23 January 1946 using
Armstrong Whitworth Albemarle I, V, & VI and the
Handley Page Halifax
The Handley Page Halifax is a British Royal Air Force (RAF) four-engined heavy bomber of the Second World War. It was developed by Handley Page to the same specification as the contemporary twin-engine Avro Manchester.
The Halifax has its orig ...
V, III & A.7
*
No. 297 Squadron RAF
No 297 Squadron was a squadron of the Royal Air Force. It was notable for being the first airborne forces squadron formed. With sister No 296 Squadron it formed No 38 Wing RAF in January 1942, joined in August by No 295 Squadron; the Wing ex ...
between 30 September 1944 and 1 April 1946 using Albemarle I, II, V & VI and the Halifax V, III & A.7
*
94th Bombardment Group
The Type 094 (; Chinese designation: 09- IV; NATO reporting name: Jin class) is a class of ballistic missile submarine developed by China for the People's Liberation Army Navy Submarine Force. The Type 094 succeeds the Type 092 submarine and ...
*
323d Bombardment Group
3 (three) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 2 and preceding 4, and is the smallest odd prime number and the only prime preceding a square number. It has religious or cultural significance in many soci ...
*
331st Bombardment Squadron 331st may refer to:
* 331st Air Expeditionary Group, inactive United States Air Force unit
*331st Fighter-Interceptor Squadron, former unit of the United States Air Force
* 331st Guards Airborne Regiment, formation of the Russian Airborne Troops, ...
*
332nd Bombardment Squadron
*
333rd Bombardment Squadron
*
410th Bombardment Squadron
The 410th Bombardment Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force unit, formerly assigned to the 94th Bombardment Group. It was inactivated at Dobbins Air Force Base, Georgia on 20 March 1951 after being called to active duty for the Korea ...
*
453rd Bombardment Squadron
*
454th Bombardment Squadron
*
455th Bombardment Squadron
*
456th Bombardment Squadron
The 456th Bombardment Squadron is one of the two predecessors of the 556th Tactical Air Support Squadron, an inactive United States Air Force unit. Formed in 1985 by the consolidation of the 456th with another inactive bombardment squadron. It ...
Post war
The following companies were here at some point:
* Anglian Flight Centres
* Bulldog Aviation
* Essex Air Ambulance
* Essex Flying School
* Herts Air Ambulance
See also
*
List of former Royal Air Force stations
This list of former RAF stations includes most of the stations, airfields and administrative headquarters previously used by the Royal Air Force.
The stations are listed under any former county or country name which was appropriate for the du ...
References
Citations
Bibliography
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{{Royal Air Force
Earls Colne