RAF Davidstow Moor
Encyclopedia
| RAF Davidstow Moor | |
|---|---|
| Command: | Coastal Command RAF Coastal Command RAF Coastal Command was a formation within the Royal Air Force . Founded in 1936, it was the RAF's premier maritime arm, after the Royal Navy's secondment of the Fleet Air Arm in 1937. Naval aviation was neglected in the inter-war period, 1919–1939, and as a consequence the service did not receive... |
| Function: | Operational, Parent |
| Runways: | 304 deg 2,000 x 50yd 248 deg 1,400 x 50yd 210 deg 1,400 x 50yd |
| Runway surface: | Concrete |
| Hangars: | T.2 x 3 |
| Dispersals: | 50 x Concrete 130ft diam |
| Personnel: | Officers - 302 (4 WAAF Women's Auxiliary Air Force The Women's Auxiliary Air Force , whose members were invariably referred to as Waafs , was the female auxiliary of the Royal Air Force during World War II, established in 1939. At its peak strength, in 1943, WAAF numbers exceeded 180,000, with over 2,000 women enlisting per week.A Women's Royal Air... ) Other Ranks - 2 958 (508 WAAF Women's Auxiliary Air Force The Women's Auxiliary Air Force , whose members were invariably referred to as Waafs , was the female auxiliary of the Royal Air Force during World War II, established in 1939. At its peak strength, in 1943, WAAF numbers exceeded 180,000, with over 2,000 women enlisting per week.A Women's Royal Air... ) |
| Coordinates: |
Davidstow
Davidstow is a civil parish and village in north Cornwall, United Kingdom. The village is north of Bodmin Moor straddling the A395 road about 3 miles north of Camelford....
near Camelford
Camelford
Camelford is a town and civil parish in north Cornwall, United Kingdom, situated in the River Camel valley northwest of Bodmin Moor. The town is approximately ten miles north of Bodmin and is governed by Camelford Town Council....
in Cornwall
Cornwall
Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...
, United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
from late 1942 until 1945. Despite a few periods of intense activity it was one of Coastal Command's
RAF Coastal Command
RAF Coastal Command was a formation within the Royal Air Force . Founded in 1936, it was the RAF's premier maritime arm, after the Royal Navy's secondment of the Fleet Air Arm in 1937. Naval aviation was neglected in the inter-war period, 1919–1939, and as a consequence the service did not receive...
less-used airfields.
History
The land was acquired in 1941 and a three-runway airfield with extensive dispersal area was constructed in the first half of 1942. Despite the moorland conditions construction was reasonably straightforward, although it did involve the removal of various field boundaries the closure of minor roads and some drainage work.The airfield was closed in December 1945 to become a motor racing circuit, known as Davidstow Circuit
Davidstow Circuit
Davidstow Circuit is a disused motor racing circuit and airfield built in Cornwall, in the United Kingdom. The circuit was built on the site of a World War II bomber base, RAF Davidstow Moor, opened in 1942. Davidstow circuit opened in 1952, and held three Formula 1 races between 1954-1955...
. In the early 1950s three Formula One
Formula One
Formula One, also known as Formula 1 or F1 and referred to officially as the FIA Formula One World Championship, is the highest class of single seater auto racing sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile . The "formula" designation in the name refers to a set of rules with which...
races were held there (the Cornwall MRC Formula 1 Race
Cornwall MRC Formula 1 Race
The Cornwall MRC Formula 1 Races were three non-Championship motor races run to Formula One rules, held at Davidstow Circuit, in Cornwall, UK. There were two events in 1954 and one the following year, before the circuit ceased to host serious motor racing events.The second of these races marked the...
s) including the first success for the Lotus
Team Lotus
Team Lotus was the motorsport sister company of English sports car manufacturer Lotus Cars. The team ran cars in many motorsport series including Formula One, Formula Two, Formula Ford, Formula Junior, IndyCar and sports car racing...
marque.
Royal Air Force
| Squadron | Dates Stationed | Planes Used | Duties |
| 53 Sqn No. 53 Squadron RAF -History:No. 53 squadron of the Royal Flying Corps was formed at Catterick on 15 May 1916. Originally intended to be a training squadron, it was sent to France to operate reconnaissance in December that year. The squadron was equipped with BE2Es—swapped for the RE8 in April 1917... |
1 January 1943 - 18 February 1943 | Lockheed Hudson Lockheed Hudson The Lockheed Hudson was an American-built light bomber and coastal reconnaissance aircraft built initially for the Royal Air Force shortly before the outbreak of the Second World War and primarily operated by the RAF thereafter... |
|
| 144 Sqn No. 144 Squadron RAF No. 144 Squadron, RAF, was a British aviation and missle squadron during World War I, World War II, and the Cold War.-World War I:No. 144 Squadron, RFC, was formed at Port Said, Egypt, on 20th March 1918... |
10 May 1944 - 1 July 1944 | Bristol Beaufighter Bristol Beaufighter The Bristol Type 156 Beaufighter, often referred to as simply the Beau, was a British long-range heavy fighter modification of the Bristol Aeroplane Company's earlier Beaufort torpedo bomber design... |
Covered the west flank of the Normandy landings. Helped to destroy the German naval forces in Western France |
| 206 Sqn No. 206 Squadron RAF No. 206 Squadron was a Royal Air Force unit employed, until 2005, in the maritime patrol role with the Nimrod MR.2 at RAF Kinloss, Moray. It was announced in December 2004 that 206 Squadron would disband on 1 April 2005, with half of its crews being redistributed to Nos. 120 and 201 Squadrons, also... |
18 March 1944 - 12 April 1944 | B-24 Liberator B-24 Liberator The Consolidated B-24 Liberator was an American heavy bomber, designed by Consolidated Aircraft of San Diego, California. It was known within the company as the Model 32, and a small number of early models were sold under the name LB-30, for Land Bomber... , B-17 Flying Fortress |
|
| 269 Sqn No. 269 Squadron RAF No. 269 Squadron RAF was a maritime patrol unit of the Royal Air Force that saw service in World War I, World War II, and the Cold War.-World War I:... |
8 January 1944 - 8 March 1944 | Lockheed Hudson Lockheed Hudson The Lockheed Hudson was an American-built light bomber and coastal reconnaissance aircraft built initially for the Royal Air Force shortly before the outbreak of the Second World War and primarily operated by the RAF thereafter... , Supermarine Walrus Supermarine Walrus The Supermarine Walrus was a British single-engine amphibious biplane reconnaissance aircraft designed by R. J. Mitchell and operated by the Fleet Air Arm . It also served with the Royal Air Force , Royal Australian Air Force , Royal Canadian Air Force , Royal New Zealand Navy and Royal New... |
Air-sea rescue Air-sea rescue Air-sea rescue is the coordinated search and rescue of the survivors of emergency water landings as well as people who have survived the loss of their sea-going vessel. ASR can involve a wide variety of resources including seaplanes, helicopters, submarines, rescue boats and ships... duties |
| 281 Sqn det No. 281 Squadron RAF No. 281 Squadron was a Royal Air Force air-sea rescue squadron during the second world war.-History:No. 281 Squadron was formed at RAF Ouston, England on the 29 March 1942 as an air-sea rescue squadron. The squadron was equipped with the Supermarine Walrus and the Avro Anson... |
December 1943 - February 1945 | Vickers Warwick Vickers Warwick The Vickers Warwick was a multi-purpose British aircraft used during the Second World War. Built by Vickers-Armstrongs at Brooklands, Surrey, the Warwick was used by the Royal Air Force as a transport, air-sea rescue and maritime reconnaissance platform, and by the civilian British Overseas... |
Air sea rescue duties |
| 282 Sqn No. 282 Squadron RAF No. 282 Squadron was a Royal Air Force air-sea rescue squadron during the second world war.-History:No. 282 Squadron was formed at RAF Castletown, Scotland on 1 January 1943 as an air-sea rescue squadron. The squadron was equipped with the Supermarine Walrus and the Avro Anson... |
1 February 1944 - 19 September 1944 | Vickers Warwick Vickers Warwick The Vickers Warwick was a multi-purpose British aircraft used during the Second World War. Built by Vickers-Armstrongs at Brooklands, Surrey, the Warwick was used by the Royal Air Force as a transport, air-sea rescue and maritime reconnaissance platform, and by the civilian British Overseas... |
Air sea rescue duties |
| 304 Sqn No. 304 Polish Bomber Squadron No. 304 Polish Bomber Squadron was a Polish World War II bomber unit. It fought alongside the Royal Air Force under their operational Command and operated from airbases in the United Kingdom, serving as a bomber unit in RAF Bomber Command, as an anti-submarine unit in RAF Coastal Command and as a... |
7 June 1943 - 13 December 1943 | Vickers Wellington Vickers Wellington The Vickers Wellington was a British twin-engine, long range medium bomber designed in the mid-1930s at Brooklands in Weybridge, Surrey, by Vickers-Armstrongs' Chief Designer, R. K. Pierson. It was widely used as a night bomber in the early years of the Second World War, before being displaced as a... |
Anti-submarine patrols over the Bay of Biscay Bay of Biscay The Bay of Biscay is a gulf of the northeast Atlantic Ocean located south of the Celtic Sea. It lies along the western coast of France from Brest south to the Spanish border, and the northern coast of Spain west to Cape Ortegal, and is named in English after the province of Biscay, in the Spanish... |
| 524 Sqn No. 524 Squadron RAF No. 524 Squadron was a Royal Air Force Coastal Command aircraft squadron that operated during the Second World War.-History:No. 524 Squadron was formed at RAF Oban, Argyll and Bute in Scotland on 20 October 1943 to operate the Martin Mariner flying boat. The squadron's role was to introduce the... |
7 April 1944 - 1 July 1944 | Vickers Wellington Vickers Wellington The Vickers Wellington was a British twin-engine, long range medium bomber designed in the mid-1930s at Brooklands in Weybridge, Surrey, by Vickers-Armstrongs' Chief Designer, R. K. Pierson. It was widely used as a night bomber in the early years of the Second World War, before being displaced as a... |
Patrols against E-Boats off the French coast |
| 547 Sqn No. 547 Squadron RAF No. 547 Squadron RAF was a Royal Air Force Squadron formed as an RAF Coastal Command anti-shipping and anti submarine squadron in World War II.-Formation in World War II:... |
31 May 1943 - 25 October 1943 | Vickers Wellington Vickers Wellington The Vickers Wellington was a British twin-engine, long range medium bomber designed in the mid-1930s at Brooklands in Weybridge, Surrey, by Vickers-Armstrongs' Chief Designer, R. K. Pierson. It was widely used as a night bomber in the early years of the Second World War, before being displaced as a... |
Anti-submarine patrols over the Bay of Biscay Bay of Biscay The Bay of Biscay is a gulf of the northeast Atlantic Ocean located south of the Celtic Sea. It lies along the western coast of France from Brest south to the Spanish border, and the northern coast of Spain west to Cape Ortegal, and is named in English after the province of Biscay, in the Spanish... |
| 612 Sqn No. 612 Squadron RAF No. 612 Squadron RAF was originally formed in 1937 as an Army Co-operation unit, and flew during World War II in the General Reconnaissance role. After the war the squadron was reformed and flew in the Day Fighter role until disbanded in 1957. At present the squadron has a non-flying role as a... |
12 April 1943 - 25 May 1943 | Vickers Wellington Vickers Wellington The Vickers Wellington was a British twin-engine, long range medium bomber designed in the mid-1930s at Brooklands in Weybridge, Surrey, by Vickers-Armstrongs' Chief Designer, R. K. Pierson. It was widely used as a night bomber in the early years of the Second World War, before being displaced as a... |
Anti-submarine patrols over the Channel The channel The channel may refer to:*the means of distribution of components involved in producing consumer electronics.*the English Channel... and the Bay of Biscay Bay of Biscay The Bay of Biscay is a gulf of the northeast Atlantic Ocean located south of the Celtic Sea. It lies along the western coast of France from Brest south to the Spanish border, and the northern coast of Spain west to Cape Ortegal, and is named in English after the province of Biscay, in the Spanish... |
| 1603 Flt | 16 December 1942 - 27 January 1943 | Hawker Henley Hawker Henley -See also:-References:NotesBibliography* Cooper, H.J.,O.G. Thetford and C.B. Maycock. Aircraft of the Fighting Powers - Volume II. Leicester, UK: Harborough Publishing, 1942.... |
Target towing |
Royal Canadian Air Force
- 404 SqnNo. 404 Squadron RCAF404 Maritime Patrol and Training Squadron is a long range patrol and training squadron in the Royal Canadian Air Force. The squadron was originally No. 404 Squadron of the Royal Canadian Air Force .-History:...
8 May 1944 - September 1944 Bristol BeaufighterBristol BeaufighterThe Bristol Type 156 Beaufighter, often referred to as simply the Beau, was a British long-range heavy fighter modification of the Bristol Aeroplane Company's earlier Beaufort torpedo bomber design...
Davidstow Airfield and Cornwall at War Museum
More recently the Davistow Airfield and Cornwall at War Museum has been set up to commemorate the work and people of RAF Davidstow Moor. It is located next to a creamery where Davidstow and Cathedral City cheeses are produced. Many exhibits cover life in World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
in Cornwall, including other airfields along the North Cornwall coast, the Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
, Army civilian services, and life on the home front. Other exhibits include artifacts from the Royal Observer Corps
Royal Observer Corps
The Royal Observer Corps was a civil defence organisation operating in the United Kingdom between 29 October 1925 and 31 December 1995, when the Corps' civilian volunteers were stood down....
and the Light Infantry
Light infantry
Traditionally light infantry were soldiers whose job was to provide a skirmishing screen ahead of the main body of infantry, harassing and delaying the enemy advance. Light infantry was distinct from medium, heavy or line infantry. Heavy infantry were dedicated primarily to fighting in tight...
, vehicles and weapons.