RAF Eye
Encyclopedia
RAF Eye is a former World War II
airfield in England
. The field is located 11 miles NE of Stowmarket
in Suffolk
.
490th Bombardment Group
(Heavy). The 490th arrived from Mountain Home AAF
Idaho
and was assigned to the 93d Combat Bombardment Wing. The group tail code was a "Square-T". It's operational squadrons were:
The group flew B-17 Flying Fortresses and B-24 Liberator
s as part of the Eighth Air Force's strategic bombing campaign.
The 490th BG combat in June 1944 with B-24's, bombing airfields and coastal defenses in France
immediately preceding and during the invasion of Normandy
. Then struck bridges, rail lines, vehicles, road junctions, and troop concentrations in France. Supported ground forces near Caen
in July and near Brest
in September 1944.
The group converted to B-17's in October and operated primarily against strategic targets until the end of February 1945. The 490th mounted attacks against enemy oil plants, tank factories, marshalling yards, aircraft plants, and airfields in such cities as Berlin
, Hamburg
, Merseburg
, Münster
, Kassel
, Hannover, and Cologne
. Interrupted strategic missions to attack supply lines and military installations during the Battle of the Bulge
, December 1944-January 1945. Beginning in March 1945, attacked interdictory targets and supported advancing ground forces.
After V-E Day, carried food to flood-stricken areas of Holland and transported French, Spanish, and Belgian prisoners of war from Austria
to Allied centers.
The 490th returned to Drew AAF
, Florida
on 3 September 1945, then was deactivated on 7 November 1945.
The world's first poultry litter
-fueled generating plant was built on the site in 1992. It produces 12.7MW of power and consumes 140,000 tonnes of chicken litter a year, as well as a proportion of horse bedding and feathers, and is owned by Energy Power Resources (EPR).
Many of the old taxiways and runways remain, along with a T-2 hangar and various wartime buildings in various states of repair and use.
World 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...
airfield in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. The field is located 11 miles NE of Stowmarket
Stowmarket
-See also:* Stowmarket Town F.C.* Stowmarket High School-External links:* * * * *...
in Suffolk
Suffolk
Suffolk is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in East Anglia, England. It has borders with Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south. The North Sea lies to the east...
.
USAAF use
Eye airfield was constructed by the 827th and 859th U S Army Engineer Battalions during 1943, with additional work by British contractors. It was completed early in 1944 and was assigned USAAF designation Station 138. Eye airfield was one of the last wartime airfields to be built in the area and some of the equipment used in its construction remained for many years after the war.490th Bombardment Group (Heavy)
The airfield was opened on 1 May 1944 and was used by the United States Army Air Force Eighth Air ForceEighth Air Force
The Eighth Air Force is a numbered air force of the United States Air Force Global Strike Command . It is headquartered at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana....
490th Bombardment Group
490th Bombardment Group
The 490th Bombardment Group is an inactive United States Army Air Force unit. Its last assignment was to the III Bomber Command, being stationed at Drew Field, Florida. It was inactivated on 7 November 1945....
(Heavy). The 490th arrived from Mountain Home AAF
Mountain Home Air Force Base
Mountain Home Air Force Base is a United States Air Force installation located in southwestern Idaho, United States. The base is in Elmore County, 12 miles southwest of the city of Mountain Home, which is 40 miles southeast of Boise, via Interstate 84.The host unit at Mountain Home since 1972...
Idaho
Idaho
Idaho is a state in the Rocky Mountain area of the United States. The state's largest city and capital is Boise. Residents are called "Idahoans". Idaho was admitted to the Union on July 3, 1890, as the 43rd state....
and was assigned to the 93d Combat Bombardment Wing. The group tail code was a "Square-T". It's operational squadrons were:
- 848th Bombardment Squadron (7W)
- 849th Bombardment Squadron (W8)
- 850th Bombardment Squadron (7Q)
- 851st Bombardment Squadron (S3)
The group flew B-17 Flying Fortresses and 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...
s as part of the Eighth Air Force's strategic bombing campaign.
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
immediately preceding and during the invasion of Normandy
D-Day
D-Day is a term often used in military parlance to denote the day on which a combat attack or operation is to be initiated. "D-Day" often represents a variable, designating the day upon which some significant event will occur or has occurred; see Military designation of days and hours for similar...
. Then struck bridges, rail lines, vehicles, road junctions, and troop concentrations in France. Supported ground forces near Caen
Caen
Caen is a commune in northwestern France. It is the prefecture of the Calvados department and the capital of the Basse-Normandie region. It is located inland from the English Channel....
in July and near Brest
Brest, France
Brest is a city in the Finistère department in Brittany in northwestern France. Located in a sheltered position not far from the western tip of the Breton peninsula, and the western extremity of metropolitan France, Brest is an important harbour and the second French military port after Toulon...
in September 1944.
The group converted to B-17's in October and operated primarily against strategic targets until the end of February 1945. The 490th mounted attacks against enemy oil plants, tank factories, marshalling yards, aircraft plants, and airfields in such cities as Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
, Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
, Merseburg
Merseburg
Merseburg is a town in the south of the German state of Saxony-Anhalt on the river Saale, approx. 14 km south of Halle . It is the capital of the Saalekreis district. It had a diocese founded by Archbishop Adalbert of Magdeburg....
, Münster
Münster
Münster is an independent city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located in the northern part of the state and is considered to be the cultural centre of the Westphalia region. It is also capital of the local government region Münsterland...
, Kassel
Kassel
Kassel is a town located on the Fulda River in northern Hesse, Germany. It is the administrative seat of the Kassel Regierungsbezirk and the Kreis of the same name and has approximately 195,000 inhabitants.- History :...
, Hannover, and Cologne
Cologne
Cologne is Germany's fourth-largest city , and is the largest city both in the Germany Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia and within the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Area, one of the major European metropolitan areas with more than ten million inhabitants.Cologne is located on both sides of the...
. Interrupted strategic missions to attack supply lines and military installations during the Battle of the Bulge
Battle of the Bulge
The Battle of the Bulge was a major German offensive , launched toward the end of World War II through the densely forested Ardennes mountain region of Wallonia in Belgium, hence its French name , and France and...
, December 1944-January 1945. Beginning in March 1945, attacked interdictory targets and supported advancing ground forces.
After V-E Day, carried food to flood-stricken areas of Holland and transported French, Spanish, and Belgian prisoners of war from Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
to Allied centers.
The 490th returned to Drew AAF
Tampa International Airport
Tampa International Airport is a major public airport located six nautical miles west of the central business district of Tampa, in Hillsborough County, Florida, United States. This airport is publicly owned by Hillsborough County Aviation Authority...
, Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
on 3 September 1945, then was deactivated on 7 November 1945.
Postwar RAF use
After the war Eye then transferred to RAF Bomber Command on 1 November 1945 as an active station. However the airfield was gradually run down and was finally sold by the Air Ministry during 1962-63.Civil use
With the end of military control, Eye airfield was converted into an industrial estate with a small factory for processing straw being established in the hangars and former technical site. Later, other industrial development and new buildings were built in the same area. There is a natural gas pumping station in the center of the former airfield.The world's first poultry litter
Poultry litter
In agriculture, poultry litter or broiler litter is a material used as bedding in poultry operations to renderthe floor more manageable. Common litter materials are wood shavings, sawdust, peanut hulls, shredded sugar cane, straw, and other dry, absorbent, low-cost organic materials...
-fueled generating plant was built on the site in 1992. It produces 12.7MW of power and consumes 140,000 tonnes of chicken litter a year, as well as a proportion of horse bedding and feathers, and is owned by Energy Power Resources (EPR).
Many of the old taxiways and runways remain, along with a T-2 hangar and various wartime buildings in various states of repair and use.