This old airfield?

[cjs]

Just saw this old, abandoned? airfield on Google Earth, anyone know anything about it?

http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?q=southampton&oe...

[cjs]

Reckon I've answered my own question!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RAF_Beaulieu

[FuzzyLogic]

Yup - Beaulie disused, now used as a visual reference point by Bournemouth and Solent for air traffic reference.

[speedtwelve]

There's another good one about 5-ish miles to the NNW, at Stoney Cross, also used as a VRP for Bournemouth.

Still stands out very well from the air, ex-P51 Mustang, P38 Lightning and B26 Marauder airfield.

[MartG]

There are quite a lot of disused airfield scattered around the country that are visible on Google Earth. Even if the runways have been torn up you can often see the different colout of crops due to the different soil underneath when the runways were removed. Some old airfields even have the remains of Thor IRBM launchers visible.

[BigS]

You can still see the old dispersal areas in the fields between RAF St Athan and the long closed RAF Llandow on Google Earth.
According to my Grandfather, prior to D Day they used to practice with the gliders there, taking off from Llandow, dropping them onto St Athan and then towing them back through the dispersal areas to Llandow to go again.

You can follow it's meandering route from the North of the Pickeston part of St Athan through the fields to Llandow to the North West on this link
http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?hl=en&ie=UTF8&am...

Can't see any sign or have never heard about there being similar between St Athan and RAF Rhoose (now Cardiff International) to the west, so guessing that there wasn't.

Edit.
Not quite an airfield, but here's also all that's left of Island Farm POW camp outside Bridgend
http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?hl=en&ie=UTF8&am...

The only hut left is Hut 9, which is where the escape tunnel was dug from.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Island_Farm

Edited by BigS on Wednesday 29th December 17:20

[Ginetta G15 Girl]

Another good resource for the location of airfields is:

http://www.homepages.mcb.net/bones/06airfields/UK/...

which lists them by date of opening and lat/long.

[Matt172]

MartG said:

Some old airfields even have the remains of Thor IRBM launchers visible.

this one is up near us, still has the remnants of it's three Thor lauch pads visible

http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?hl=en&ie=UTF8&am...

[Munter]

If you want to drive on one closed ww2 airfield...(road part resurfaced)...

http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?f=q&source=s_q&a...

[Ginetta G15 Girl]

Matt172 said:

this one is up near us, still has the remnants of it's three Thor launch pads visible

http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?hl=en&ie=UTF8&am...

RAF Harrington opened 1943. Home of USAAF 8th AF 801st (later 492nd) Bomb Group (5 Aug 1944 - 8 Jul 1945) with B24 Liberators known as the 'CarpetBaggers' flying Special Ops missions.

Closed post war but re-opened in 1958 as a Douglas Thor IRBM site (one of 20 Stations) with 3 launchers operated by 218 Sqn as part of 'Project Emily' (operating under the control of Group command at RAF North Luffenham). The unit was disbanded on 23 August 1963 with the termination of the Thor project and the land returned to civilian use.

The concrete used for the Thor launch pads is notoriously difficult to grub up owing to its high strength and density hence it often remains long after the other airfield structures have been removed.

[aeropilot]

Ginetta G15 Girl said:

Matt172 said:

this one is up near us, still has the remnants of it's three Thor launch pads visible

http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?hl=en&ie=UTF8&am...

RAF Harrington opened 1943. Home of USAAF 8th AF 801st (later 492nd) Bomb Group (5 Aug 1944 - 8 Jul 1945) with B24 Liberators known as the 'CarpetBaggers' flying Special Ops missions.

Closed post war but re-opened in 1958 as a Douglas Thor IRBM site (one of 20 Stations) with 3 launchers operated by 218 Sqn as part of 'Project Emily' (operating under the control of Group command at RAF North Luffenham). The unit was disbanded on 23 August 1963 with the termination of the Thor project and the land returned to civilian use.

The concrete used for the Thor launch pads is notoriously difficult to grub up owing to its high strength and density hence it often remains long after the other airfield structures have been removed.

The Thor site at the former RAF Harrington, is considered the best preserved of the four remaining Thor sites (out of the original 20) and is very likely to be scheduled as a listed historic site. There was a proposal 6 months ago for a large wind turbine farm on the site, and the council refused permission on these grounds as well as in relation to other nearby sites.

[wildeep]

Take a look at http://www.abct.org.uk for a great resource of airfield info.

[Matt172]

Ginetta G15 Girl said:

Matt172 said:

this one is up near us, still has the remnants of it's three Thor launch pads visible

http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?hl=en&ie=UTF8&am...

RAF Harrington opened 1943. Home of USAAF 8th AF 801st (later 492nd) Bomb Group (5 Aug 1944 - 8 Jul 1945) with B24 Liberators known as the 'CarpetBaggers' flying Special Ops missions.

Closed post war but re-opened in 1958 as a Douglas Thor IRBM site (one of 20 Stations) with 3 launchers operated by 218 Sqn as part of 'Project Emily' (operating under the control of Group command at RAF North Luffenham). The unit was disbanded on 23 August 1963 with the termination of the Thor project and the land returned to civilian use.

The concrete used for the Thor launch pads is notoriously difficult to grub up owing to its high strength and density hence it often remains long after the other airfield structures have been removed.

What website did you copy that lot from

Wife and I went for a snoop around last year, but it tipped it down as we were in the middle of the field so made a hasty retreat. Main museum website is here

http://www.harringtonmuseum.org.uk/CarpetbaggerMus...

[Simpo Two]

Matt172 said:

What website did you copy that lot from

The internet quotes from Ginetta G15 Girl

[perdu]

Simpo Two said:

Matt172 said:

What website did you copy that lot from

The internet quotes from Ginetta G15 Girl

[mrloudly]

Harrington is right next to me here at Naseby. Whilst learning to fly from Sywell during the late eighties, I had several memorable dogfights with USAF A10's overhead.
The CFI told me it was a regular thing. Good thing was, the little Beagle Pups could out turn the A10's, not too good in a tail chase though ;-)

[DamienB]

wildeep said:

Take a look at http://www.abct.org.uk

... for a great resource of look-at-me look-at-me info from Alan Partidge's twin.

The Airfield Research Group is of a great deal more value:

http://www.airfieldinformationexchange.org

And if you search for ABCT on there you'll find out what people think of the "one man's ego memorial factory".

Edited by DamienB on Thursday 30th December 21:54