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Royal Air Force Stradishall or more simply RAF Stradishall is a former
History of Bomber Command
{{DEFAULTSORT:Stradishall Military units and formations established in 1938 Royal Air Force stations in Suffolk Royal Air Force stations of World War II in the United Kingdom
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 located north east of Haverhill, Suffolk
Suffolk () is a ceremonial county of England in East Anglia. It borders Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south; the North Sea lies to the east. The county town is Ipswich; other important towns include ...
and south west of Bury St Edmunds
Bury St Edmunds (), commonly referred to locally as Bury, is a historic market, cathedral town and civil parish in Suffolk, England.OS Explorer map 211: Bury St.Edmunds and Stowmarket Scale: 1:25 000. Publisher:Ordnance Survey – Southampton ...
, Suffolk, England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...
. Part of the site remains in use as Stradishall Training Area.
History
In his memoirs,Murray Peden
Flight Lieutenant David Murray Peden (19 October 1923 – 6 January 2022) was a Canadian air force officer, lawyer, and author. From 1941 to 1945 Peden served in the Royal Canadian Air Force as a bomber pilot and completed the majority of his ...
, a Royal Canadian Air Force
The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; french: Aviation royale canadienne, ARC) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environm ...
pilot, recounts his training at Stradishall. In the RAF's "heavy conversion unit" (No. 1657 Heavy Conversion Unit) at the airfield, he and others were trained to fly Short Stirling
The Short Stirling was a British four-engined heavy bomber of the Second World War. It has the distinction of being the first four-engined bomber to be introduced into service with the Royal Air Force (RAF).
The Stirling was designed during t ...
bombers. He describes in detail his experiences flying there, and the life on the ground of aircrew who were shortly to begin operations over Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...
as part of RAF Bomber Command
RAF Bomber Command controlled the Royal Air Force's bomber forces from 1936 to 1968. Along with the United States Army Air Forces, it played the central role in the strategic bombing of Germany in World War II. From 1942 onward, the British bo ...
during World War II
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 World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
.
The airfield was home to a number of squadrons during its lifetime:
* No. 1 Squadron RAF, No. 9 Squadron RAF, No. 35 Squadron RAF, No. 51 Squadron RAF
Number 51 Squadron is a squadron of the Royal Air Force. Since 2014 it has operated the Boeing RC-135W Airseeker R.1, more commonly referred to as the Rivet Joint, from RAF Waddington, Lincolnshire.
It had previously flown the Hawker Sidde ...
, No. 54 Squadron RAF
Number 54 Squadron (sometimes written as No. LIV Squadron) is a squadron of the Royal Air Force based at RAF Waddington, Lincolnshire. On 1 September 2005, it took on the role of Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance ( ISR) Operational ...
, No. 75 Squadron RAF
No. 75 Squadron of the Royal Air Force operated as a bomber unit in World War II, before being transferred to the Royal New Zealand Air Force in 1945.
First World War, Royal Flying Corps, Home Defence Squadron
Established as a unit of the Roy ...
, No. 85 Squadron RAF, No. 89 Squadron RAF.
* No. 101 Squadron RAF, No. 109 Squadron RAF
No. 109 Squadron RAF was an aircraft squadron of the Royal Air Force.
History
The squadron first formed on 1 November 1917 as 109 Squadron Royal Flying Corps at South Carlton and began training on the de Havilland DH.9 bomber but was disbanded on ...
, No. 115 Squadron RAF, No. 125 Squadron RAF
Number 125 (Newfoundland) Squadron was a Royal Air Force squadron active during World War II and briefly in the mid-1950s. Throughout its service the squadron primarily operated night fighters.
History First World War
No. 125 Squadron was initia ...
, No. 138 Squadron RAF
No. 138 Squadron RAF was a squadron of the Royal Air Force that served in a variety of roles during its career, last disbanded in 1962. It was the first 'V-bomber' squadron of the RAF, flying the Vickers Valiant between 1955 and 1962.
History
...
, No. 148 Squadron RAF, No. 149 Squadron RAF
No. 149 Squadron RAF was a Royal Air Force Squadron between 1918 and 1956. Formed 1918 in the Royal Flying Corps as a night-bomber unit, it remained in that role for the rest of its existence which spanned three periods between 1918 and 1956.
...
, No. 150 Squadron RAF, No. 152 Squadron RAF
No. 152 (Hyderabad) Squadron RAF was an aircraft squadron of the Royal Air Force during both World War I and World War II.
Squadron history World War I
No 152 Squadron was first formed on 1 October 1918 at RAF Rochford as a Sopwith Camel night ...
, No. 158 Squadron RAF
No. 158 Squadron RAF was a World War I proposed ground attack squadron that did not become operational in time to see action, and a World War II bomber squadron. After World War II had ended in Europe the squadron operated in the transport role ...
, No. 186 Squadron RAF.
* No. 207 Squadron RAF, No. 208 Squadron RAF, No. 214 Squadron RAF, No. 215 Squadron RAF, No. 236 Squadron RAF, No. 245 Squadron RAF, No. 254 Squadron RAF
No. 254 Squadron of the Royal Air Force was the designation of a number of units formed throughout the 20th century.
History World War One
No. 254 Squadron first formed in 1918 as a coastal reconnaissance squadron operating from Prawle Point. ...
, No. 263 Squadron RAF
No 263 Squadron was a Royal Air Force fighter squadron formed in Italy towards the end of the First World War. After being disbanded in 1919 it was reformed in 1939 flying mainly strike and heavy fighter aircraft until becoming No 1 Squadro ...
.
* No. 311 Squadron RAF
No. 311 (Czechoslovak) Squadron RAF was a Czechoslovak-manned bomber squadron of the Royal Air Force in the Second World War. It was the RAF's only Czechoslovak-manned medium and heavy bomber squadron. It suffered the heaviest losses of any Cze ...
.
Current use
The airfield closed in 1970 and is now the site of two category C prisons: HMP Highpoint North and HMP Highpoint South. Part of the former airfield remains aMinistry of Defence
{{unsourced, date=February 2021
A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is an often-used name for the part of a government responsible for matters of defence, found in state ...
training site which is not accessible to the public.
The airfield has been sold to a private buyer to be converted into farm land and is out of bounds to the public.
Update 2021: The Airfield is now a Solar Farm with grazing for cattle and nature walk. It is open from dawn to dusk.
There is a memorial to RAF Stradishall outside Stirling House which was once part of the officers quarters and is now a training unit for the Prison service.
References
Citations
Bibliography
*External links
History of Bomber Command
{{DEFAULTSORT:Stradishall Military units and formations established in 1938 Royal Air Force stations in Suffolk Royal Air Force stations of World War II in the United Kingdom