1 Group

by Patrick Otter

  KELSTERN

  Visitors will find it difficult to find anything that remains of Kelstern, apart from the impressive roadside memorial to the men of 625 Squadron who flew from there from late 1943 until the spring of 1945. There was an airfield there in the First World War but the new bomber base was built some distance away, a mile or so north of the hamlet from which it was named. 625 Squadron formed from a nucleus of experienced 100 Squadron crews at the end of September 1943 and was in action within a matter of days. Kelstern was part of 12 Base and 625 flew initially as a two flight squadron. A third was formed in 1944 and part of it was detached in September to help form 170 Squadron, which later moved to Dunholme Lodge. In the spring of 1945 625 left Kelstern for the last time, A and B Flights moving to Scampton and C Flight to Fiskerton where it merged into 576 Squadron. Later that year the airfield closed and the land was put under the control of the Ministry of Agriculture before being sold to tenant farmers in the 1960s.

  Kelstern saw the erection of the very first bomber squadron memorial in Lincolnshire in 1964, followed by an annual roadside ceremony attended by 625 Squadron veterans from all parts of the world. Today some scattered buildings still survive together with sections of perimeter track.

  KIRMINGTON

  RAF station Kirmington still survives today in the guise of Humberside Airport although very little of the original bomber airfield remains apart from a few buildings on the old dispersal sites on the edge of the nearby Brocklesby Estate. Kirmington opened in January 1942 but was not used by 1 Group until October of that year, allowing 150 Squadron to move in with its Wellingtons from its base at Snaith, near Goole. The squadron was only to be at Kirmington for a matter of weeks before one element moved to the Middle East. The remainder was later to merge with the home echelon of 142 Squadron to form the bomber squadron which will always be synonymous with Kirmington, 166. The squadron continued to fly its Wellingtons from Kirmington until September 1943 when it began to convert to Lancasters. The squadron’s C Flight was detached in October 1944 to help reform 153 Squadron before a new C Flight, formed at Faldingworth, moved to Kirmington a few days later. Operational flying ended at Kirmington in April 1945 and 166 Squadron disbanded later that year. After the war Kirmington was used to stage a number of disposal sales of military vehicles and equipment, events which drew huge crowds. The airfield returned largely to agriculture although there was some limited private flying. In the late 1960s and early 1970s flying increased and in 1974 the then Lindsey County Council, with the financial backing of the British Steel Corporation whose own airstrip at Scunthorpe had been swallowed up in the development of the Anchor Steelworks, opened the airfield as Kirmington Airport. Days later, Lindsey County Council vanished as part of local government reorganisation and the new Humberside County Council rebranded Kirmington ‘Humberside (Hull) Airport’, the name ‘Hull’ quickly being dropped after vigorous local protests.

  Today the airport operates flights to numerous destinations as well as being the base for busy helicopter operations to North Sea gas installations. The A18 runs alongside the airfield and it is worth noting that just north-east of the present airport buildings a section of the wartime runway can be seen on the opposite side of the road. During wartime barriers were dragged across the road while flying was taking place.

  A handsome memorial to those who flew from Kirmington is situated in nearby Kirmington village together with a stained glass window in St Helen’s Church in the village, the distinctive copper-sheathed spire of which proved to be a welcome site for homebound Wellington and Lancaster crews.

  LINDHOLME

  Built as part of the 1930s Expansion Programme, Lindholme in South Yorkshire opened as a 5 Group airfield in June 1940. It was then known as Hatfield Woodhouse, being renamed in August 1940, and was built with five brick-built C-type hangars. Its first occupants were the Hampdens of 50 Squadron which were joined in June 1941 by a second Hampden squadron, 408 of the Royal Canadian Air Force. 408 was only there for a month before Lindholme was transferred to 1 Group. 50 Squadron went to Swinderby and 408 to Syerston in Nottingham, exchanging places with two Polish squadrons, 304 and 305.They were to fly operationally from Lindholme until 1942 before 304 was transferred to Coastal Command and 305 went to Hemswell. Lindholme closed for flying until two runways were laid (there wasn’t room for the standard third runway) and from October of that year became the headquarters of 1 Group’s heavy conversion training. 1656 HCU was formed there and Lindholme was later to host 1667 HCU and No 1 Lancaster Finishing School.

  Lindholme was to have important role to play in the post-war history of the RAF, operating first Lincoln bombers of 50 and 100 Squadrons and later Lincolns, Varsities and Hastings of the Bomber Command Bomber School. Adaptations to Canberras were also conducted at Lindholme and later the airfield was to house Northern Radar, part of a chain of similar centres providing radar cover across the country for both military and civilian traffic. In 1985 the site was sold and is now occupied by Her Majesty’s Prison Lindholme. Virtually all trace of the old airfield has disappeared although the old hangars were incorporated into the prison buildings.

  LUDFORD MAGNA

  Built by Wimpeys, Ludford came to epitomise all that wartime airfields were about. It was wet, cold and muddy yet its only occupants, 101, were to write themselves into RAF history. Ludford, constructed at one of the highest points on the Lincolnshire Wolds with a north-south main runway, opened in June 1943 and within days 101 Squadron moved in with its Lancasters from Holme-on-Spalding Moor. The airfield was built on the south side of Magna Mile, the road running between the twin villages of Ludford Magna and Ludford Parva while most of the accommodation sites lay to the north side. It later became 14 Base headquarters and was eventually to have seven hangars, handling as it did major servicing for squadrons at its satellite airfields at Faldingworth and Wickenby. In the autumn of 1943 101 Squadron’s aircraft were fitted with ABC electronic equipment intended to disrupt German night fighter transmissions and, as such, was required to fly on virtually all major bombing attacks until the end of the war, with subsequent heavy losses. Ludford was also to be fitted with FIDO fog-dispersal equipment. After the war 101 Squadron moved to Binbrook and Ludford was mothballed and much of the site returned to agriculture. It was reactivated and housed Thor missiles between 1959 and 1963 before finally closing.

  Ludford’s control tower, complete with potted plants, 1945. (Vic Redfern)

  Nissen huts being dismantled at Ludford in the late 1940s. Most were sold for industrial or agricultural use. In the background is one of the airfield’s seven hangars. (Grimsby Telegraph)

  Today a few buildings remain together with sections of perimeter track. The runways themselves were torn up and used as hardcore for industrial development along the Humber bank. A memorial to 101 Squadron and the 1,176 men it lost in action – the highest figure in Bomber Command – can be found in the village.

  NEWTON

  Another Expansion plan pre-war airfield, Newton, which is only a few miles from the centre of Nottingham, was one of the first two airfields to be used by 1 Group, 103 and 150 Squadrons arriving there with their Fairey Battles from France in July 1940. Both squadrons later converted to Wellingtons during their time at Newton and moved the following July to Elsham Wolds and Snaith respectively, ending 1 Group’s direct association with the airfield. However, in its next role, Newton was to house a flying training school for Polish aircrew, many of whom went on to fly with 1 Group squadrons. Newton continued in its training role from its grass runways throughout the war. Flying continued at Newton until 2001 when most of the land was sold for light industrial purposes.

  The brick built hangars still remain, as does the original control tower while one of the ancillary buildings is still used by the local air cadet unit. The village sign for Newton incorporates an image of JN-X, a 150 Squadron Wellington.

  NORTH KILLINGHOLME

  One of the last operational airfields to open in 1 Group, No
rth Killingholme’s first and only occupants was 550 Squadron which flew in from Waltham on January 3, 1944. The squadron, which was to earn itself an outstanding reputation during its time at North Killingholme, began operations almost immediately and was finally disbanded in October 1945. The RAF had no long-term use for it and much of it was sold for agricultural purposes

  The airfield lays adjacent to the villages of both North and South Killingholme and East Halton and today is a major industrial estate. One of the original hangars still exists together with a few buildings while large sections of runway and perimeter tracks remain and are now used for storage purposes.

  There is a memorial to those who flew with 550 Squadron at the main entrance on the road between South Killingholme and East Halton.

  SANDTOFT

  RAF station Sandtoft officially came into being at about the same time as North Killingholme but it was never to play an operational role in 1 Group. It was in February 1944 that its first and only occupants, 1667 Heavy Conversion Unit, arrived from Faldingworth and was to fly a mixture of Halifaxes and Lancasters from there in its training role, suffering its share of accidents and crashes. At the end of 1944 it passed into the hands of 7 Group and was yet another airfield for which no military use could be found in the post-war years.

  Today Sandtoft is home to a large industrial estate, including vast areas of imported car and van storage alongside the M180 motorway which now runs alongside the old airfield. Some buildings, runways and perimeter tracks do remain.

  SCAMPTON

  An airfield which is perhaps the most famous of all Bomber Command bases was to play a role in the final months of 1 Group’s wartime history. Scampton, then known as Brattleby, was a major Royal Flying Corps airfield in the First World War but flying ended in 1920 after which virtually all trace of the old airfield disappeared. In the early 1930s the site was chosen for one of the first of the RAF’s major new airfields and Scampton, as it was now called, reopened in August 1936. It was home first to 9 Squadron with its exotic Handley Page Heyfords and later 214 Squadron’s Vickers Virginias and Handley Page Harrows. Other pre-war aircraft to fly from Scampton included Audaxes, Wellesleys and Hinds before the new Hampden made its debut there in the hands of 49 Squadron with 83 Squadron converting soon afterwards. These were the aircraft with which Scampton, and 5 Group, went to war. Two of the RAF’s first wartime VCs were won by men flying Hampdens from Scampton, F/Lt ‘Babe’Learoyd and Sgt John Hannah. Both squadrons later flew Manchesters from Scampton before 57 Squadron arrived with Lancasters in November 1942. In the spring of 1943 617 Squadron was formed at Scampton and its CO, W/Cmdr Guy Gibson, was to win a third VC from the airfield leading the raid on the Ruhr dams in May 1943. Shortly afterwards the station closed for flying for the laying of hardened runways and the next operational unit to operate from there was 1 Group’s 153 Squadron, which moved in during October 1944 from Kirmington following the transfer of the airfield to1 Group. It was joined in the last month of the war by 625 Squadron. Both squadrons were disbanded there after the war before Scampton became the home to a succession of Lincoln squadrons. During the Berlin blockade crisis in 1948 and 1949 it was used by two USAF B29 units. Scampton was later used by several Canberra squadrons before being closed in 1955 for major redevelopment, including lengthening the main runway with the resulting loop in the otherwise dead-straight A15 Lincoln-Caenby Corner road. The airfield reopened in 1958 and became home to the Scampton Wing, three squadrons of Vulcan bombers, providing a major element of Britain’s Cold War defences. The Vulcan remained in service until the 1980s and the Scampton became home to the RAF’s Red Arrows aerobatic team.

  The dedication of the 625 Squadron memorial – the first airfield memorial in Lincolnshire – in 1964 at Kelstern. (Clem Koder)

  At the time of writing, the Red Arrows are still flying from Scampton but the future of the base, the last remaining airfield with links to 1 Group still in RAF hands, remains very much in doubt.

  SNAITH

  Opened in July 1941, Snaith was to be used by the Wellingtons of 150 Squadron for 15 months before the airfield was transferred to 4 Group and became home to 51 Squadron, which arrived with its Whitleys after a six-month detachment to Coastal Command. It converted to Halifaxes and remained at Snaith until the end of the war. The airfield was always known locally as ‘Pollington’ after the village which it bordered. It closed for flying in April 1945 when 51 Squadron moved to Leconfield and the land was later sold for agricultural purposes.

  Today the remains of RAF Snaith can just be glimpsed from the M62, which cuts across one of the old runways. Still there is the airfield’s distinctive J-type hangar together with a few remaining buildings.

  STURGATE

  Sturgate was the very last wartime airfield built in Lincolnshire. Built between the villages of Heapham and Upton, near Gainsborough, it was intended for 1 Group but by the time it opened in September 1944 it was redundant. It was used briefly by No 1 Lancaster Finishing School at Hemswell and was later allocated to 71 Base HQ at Lindholme and used occasionally by its heavy conversion units. After the war Sturgate was used by the USAF as a fighter airfield before finally closing. Today the airfield is used by the Lincoln Aero Club.

  SWINDERBY

  Among the first airfields to be used by 1 Group, work of Swinderby began in the late 1930s and it opened in August 1940, being occupied almost immediately by the Poles of 300 and 301 Squadron, who flew their first operations in Battles. They later converted to Wellingtons and both squadrons flews from there until the summer of 1941 when they moved to Hemswell. Swinderby then passed to 5 Group and was used by 455 and 50 Squadrons before it was allocated to 1660 Heavy Conversion Unit. In the post war years Swinderby was used for both piston and jet-engined training before becoming the home of the RAF’s School of Recruit Training. It finally closed in 1996.

  Large areas of the airfield – which lays alongside the A46 Lincoln-Newark road – still remain, including the three hangars. The large accommodation site has now been incorporated into the new village of Witham St Hugh’s.

  SYERSTON

  Opened in December 1940, Syerston, which lays between Newark and Nottingham, was used for a little over six months by 1 Group until the two squadrons there, the Poles of 304 and 305 Squadrons, were found a new home at Lindholme. Syerston itself went on to earn fame as a 5 Group bomber airfield, 49, 61, 106 and 408 Squadrons operating Manchesters and Lancasters from the Nottinghamshire airfields. Guy Gibson led 106 Squadron there before moving to Scampton to form 617 and it was from Syerston that F/Lt Bill Reid was awarded a Victoria Cross after a raid on Dusseldorf in November, 1943. The airfield was also home to No 5 Lancaster Finishing School in 1944. After the war it was used by RAF Transport Command and then for training purposes and for gliding.

  The J-type hangars remain together with most of the runways and perimeter tracks.

  WALTHAM

  Its official name was RAF Grimsby, but to all it was simply known as ‘Waltham’. The airfield lay on the outskirts of Grimsby between the villages of Waltham and Holton-le-Clay and before the war had been Grimsby’s municipal airport, a place where Alan Cobham’s flying circus had performed to the delight of thousands. The RAF link began in 1938 with the setting up of Bomber Command’s 25 Elementary and Reserve Training School and that, together with the local branch of the Civil Air Guard, was to provide the RAF with many aircrew recruits in the coming years. Work on building the bomber airfield began in May 1940 and by the following summer it was already being used as a relief landing ground by neighbouring Binbrook, which lacked Waltham’s concrete runways. 142 Squadron finally moved in during the autumn of 1941 and flew from there for just over a year, part of the squadron moving to North Africa and the remainder to Kirmington. It was immediately replaced by 100 Squadron, which was reformed at Waltham after suffering a hard time in the Far East. They soon took charge of their first Lancasters and the squadron was to operate them for the remainder of the war from Waltham. In Apri
l 1945 100 Squadron moved to Elsham and Waltham closed. Attempts were made in the post-war years to resurrect civilian flying but came to nothing.

  Much of the airfield remains today, including two of the hangars and large sections of runway and perimeter track. A memorial to those who flew from Waltham stands alongside the A16 to the east of the airfield, close to the spot where, during the war, traffic lights were installed to halt vehicles on the Grimsby-Louth road while flying took place.

  WICKENBY

  Wickenby had the standard three-runway, three-hangar configuration yet, despite its comparatively modest size, was to accommodate two Lancaster squadrons in the last 18 months of the war. The airfield was built on flat farmland between the villages of Wickenby and Holton Beckering, north-east of Wragby, and opened in September 1942 when it was immediately occupied by the Wellington IIs and IIIs of 12 Squadron on its move from Binbrook. Soon after their arrival 12 Squadron began converting to Lancasters and flew them for the first time operationally in January 1943. In November that year the squadron’s C Flight was detached to form 626 Squadron and both operated from Wickenby with great distinction until the war ended. In November, 1945 12 Squadron returned to Binbrook, 626 was disbanded and the airfield was turned over to 93 Maintenance Unit for the dismantling of munitions. It finally closed in 1956 but seven years later parts of the airfield, including the runways, were acquired for civilian flying.