RAF Bradwell Bay

RAF Bradwell Bay
RAF Bradwell Bay
Bradwell-on-Sea, Essex in England
	RCAF Douglas Boston Mk III taxiing at RAF Bradwell Bay in 1942
	RAF Bradwell Bay Shown within Essex
Coordinates	51°44′07″N 000°54′06″E
Type	Royal Air Force station
Code	RB
Site information
Owner	Air Ministry
Operator	Royal Air Force
Controlled by	RAF Fighter Command
Site history
Built	1940/41
In use	November 1941-1946
Battles/wars	European theatre of World War II
Airfield information
Elevation	9 metres (30 ft)[1] AMSL
Runways
04/22	Tarmac/Asphalt
10/28	Tarmac/Asphalt
16/34	Tarmac/Asphalt

Royal Air Force Bradwell Bay or more simply RAF Bradwell Bay is a former Royal Air Force station located 9.5 miles (15.3 km) east of Maldon, Essex, England and 3.1 miles (5 km) south west of West Mersea, Essex.

The memorial to aircrews from the airfield who were lost during World War 2. The reason for the Mosquito aeroplane is that many squadrons based at the airfield during WW2 had re-equipped with the type.

History

The central area of the current airfield was first laid down before WW2 as a grass-surfaced landing ground for the nearby Dengie firing ranges off the coast before being rebuilt from 1940 onwards as an enlarged RAF station with concrete runways, hangars and ancillary buildings.[2] The station is unique as it was the only fighter station where the Fog Investigation and Dispersal Operation (FIDO) was used.[3]

Based units

No. 3 Squadron RAF (1944)
No. 19 Squadron RAF
No. 23 Squadron RAF (1942)[4]
No. 25 Squadron RAF
No. 29 Squadron RAF (1943)[5]
No. 56 Squadron RAF (1943)[6]
No. 64 Squadron RAF (1944)
No. 68 Squadron RAF
No. 85 Squadron RAF
No. 124 Squadron RAF (1944)[7]
No. 125 Squadron RAF
No. 126 Squadron RAF (1944)
No. 151 Squadron RAF (1945)[8]
No. 157 Squadron RAF (1943)[9]
No. 198 Squadron RAF (1943)[10]
No. 219 Squadron RAF (1944)[11]
No. 247 Squadron RAF (1943)[12]
No. 264 Squadron RAF
No. 278 Squadron RAF (1944)[13]
No. 287 Squadron RAF (1945)[14]
No. 309 Polish Fighter-Reconnaissance Squadron
No. 310 Squadron RAF (1944-45)
No. 312 (Czechoslovak) Squadron RAF (1944-45)
No. 313 Squadron RAF (1944-45)
No. 418 Squadron RCAF (1942-43)[15]
No. 456 Squadron RAAF (1945)
No. 488 Squadron RNZAF (1943-44)[16]
No. 501 Squadron RAF (1944-45)[17]
No. 605 Squadron RAF (1943-44)[18]
No. 611 Squadron RAF (1944)

Units

No. 2 Armament Practice Camp[19]
No. 2 Armament Practice Station[19]
No. 3 Fighter Command Servicing Unit[19]
No. 5 Fighter Command Servicing Unit[19]
No. 111 (Transport) Wing RAF[19] (as a transport one)
No. 134 (Czechoslovak) Wing RAF[19] (as a fighter one)
No. 150 Airfield[19]
No. 1332 Wing RAF Regiment[19]
No. 1333 Wing RAF Regiment[19]
No. 2727 Squadron RAF Regiment[19]
No. 2730 Squadron RAF Regiment[19]
No. 2739 Squadron RAF Regiment[19]
No. 2831 Squadron RAF Regiment[19]
No. 2840 Squadron RAF Regiment[19]
No. 3208 Servicing Commando[19]
No. 4101 Anti-Aircraft Flight RAF Regiment[19]

Current use

An area of the northern part of the site is occupied by the remains of the Bradwell nuclear power station, the Magnox element of which is currently being decommissioned. Several of the hangars are still used as storage by the local farmers and the control tower is now a private house. Agricultural buildings, built in the '70s and '80s on runways one and two, are now home to several local businesses. [20]

References

Citations

Falconer 1998, p. 17.
"RAF Bradwell Bay airfield". Control Towers. Retrieved 4 May 2012.
"RAF Bradwell Bay". Wartime Memories. Archived from the original on 28 May 2012. Retrieved 4 May 2012.
Jefford 1988, p. 32.
Jefford 1988, p. 34.
Jefford 1988, p. 42.
Jefford 1988, p. 58.
Jefford 1988, p. 62.
Jefford 1988, p. 63.
Jefford 1988, p. 67.
Jefford 1988, p. 72.
Jefford 1988, p. 77.
Jefford 1988, p. 82.
Jefford 1988, p. 83.
Jefford 1988, p. 91.
Jefford 1988, p. 94.
Jefford 1988, p. 95.
Jefford 1988, p. 99.
"Bradwell Bay". Airfields of Britain Conservation Trust. Retrieved 9 April 2022.
"RAF Bradwell Bay". English Heritage - Pastscape. Retrieved 4 May 2012.

Bibliography

Falconer, J (1998). RAF Fighter Airfields of World War 2. UK: Ian Allen Publishing. ISBN 0-7110-2175-9.
Jefford, C. G. (1988). RAF Squadrons: A Comprehensive Record of the Movement and Equipment of All RAF Squadrons and Their Antecedents Since 1912. Shrewsbury: Airlife. ISBN 1-85310-053-6. OCLC 17981231.

External links

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.

[FOOTNOTEFalconer199817-1] Falconer 1998, p. 17.

[CT-2] "RAF Bradwell Bay airfield". Control Towers. Retrieved 4 May 2012.

[WM-3] "RAF Bradwell Bay". Wartime Memories. Archived from the original on 28 May 2012. Retrieved 4 May 2012.

[FOOTNOTEJefford198832-4] Jefford 1988, p. 32.

[FOOTNOTEJefford198834-5] Jefford 1988, p. 34.

[FOOTNOTEJefford198842-6] Jefford 1988, p. 42.

[FOOTNOTEJefford198858-7] Jefford 1988, p. 58.

[FOOTNOTEJefford198862-8] Jefford 1988, p. 62.

[FOOTNOTEJefford198863-9] Jefford 1988, p. 63.

[FOOTNOTEJefford198867-10] Jefford 1988, p. 67.

[FOOTNOTEJefford198872-11] Jefford 1988, p. 72.

[FOOTNOTEJefford198877-12] Jefford 1988, p. 77.

[FOOTNOTEJefford198882-13] Jefford 1988, p. 82.

[FOOTNOTEJefford198883-14] Jefford 1988, p. 83.

[FOOTNOTEJefford198891-15] Jefford 1988, p. 91.

[FOOTNOTEJefford198894-16] Jefford 1988, p. 94.

[FOOTNOTEJefford198895-17] Jefford 1988, p. 95.

[FOOTNOTEJefford198899-18] Jefford 1988, p. 99.

[ABCT-19] "Bradwell Bay". Airfields of Britain Conservation Trust. Retrieved 9 April 2022.

[PS-20] "RAF Bradwell Bay". English Heritage - Pastscape. Retrieved 4 May 2012.