RAF West Ruislip
Encyclopedia
RAF West Ruislip was a Ministry of Defence
site, located in Ickenham
within the London Borough of Hillingdon
. The base was originally built as a depot for the Royal Air Force
(RAF), split by what is now the Chiltern Main Line
. North of the railway was RAF Blenheim Crescent
, which housed the RAF Records Office and the depot's original personnel accommodation.
The site was leased to the US Air Force in 1955, followed by the US Navy in 1975, eventually housing the Navy Exchange of the U.S. Naval Activities, United Kingdom
command, and the Navy's Morale, Welfare and Recreation Department.
Following a review of properties, the US Navy vacated the site in 2006 and it became surplus to the Ministry of Defence's requirements under Project MoDEL
. The following year, initial plans for around 415 homes and a retirement home were approved by the London Borough of Hillingdon in July 2007. Almost all buildings were subsequently demolished to make way for the new development. Cala Homes bought the 21 acres (84,984.1 m²) site for £180m in November.
to house the Ordnance Aircraft Stores Depot from Farnborough, although a decision was made instead to establish the depot in Didcot, beside the existing buildings there. In 1917, the Ruislip site was revisited, and on 3 July was selected to house a depot for the Royal Flying Corps
, under an military acquisition order. The close proximity to the Great Western and Metropolitan Railways made it ideal for the purpose.
Additional construction costs meant the final total was £736,000, up from an original estimate of £235,000. The need for heating brought with it the requirement for boiler houses, plus additional foundations which were needed for the buildings to the north of the railway. Lieutenant J.G.N. Clifts of the Royal Engineers
created the design for the site and buildings, and the contractor involved was a U.S. Army civil engineering company, appearing on records as American Construction Company. A temporary railway siding was created to aid in the delivery of building supplies. By 13 December 1918, several sheds had been completed, as were the Officers' Mess, sleeping quarters and the Navy and Army Canteen Board.
Between May and July 1918, military stores from White City
, Wormwood Scrubs
and Baker Street
were moved to the site, with items kept in the completed sheds. A shortage of bricks in October meant the widening of the bridge over the railway was delayed, as was the construction of the railway line into the site.
Fairlight House, built in 1914, was included within the site and later became the residence of the Commander of US Naval Activities, United Kingdom. RAF Records were also based at the site along with the Maintenance Unit. The Great Western Railway, now the Chiltern Main Line, ran through the site, separating the regimental buildings to the north from the depot buildings to the south.
A "Homice Scheme" was established at all RAF stations in 1921, to prepare for cases of civil disturbance. To prepare, the fences around the depot belonging to the nearby railway company were replaced by a non-climable variety. An RAF guard made up of a sergeant, corporal, acting corporal and twenty three airmen was formed to protect the site. During the rest of the decade, the Metropolitan Police
provided a guard of eleven constables, eight of whom were housed in the sick bay. The remaining three were married, and were given their own houses in Park Road in Uxbridge
.
The Air Ministry placed an order in 1922 for the closure of the public footpath that ran through the site, providing £750 for the maintenance of nearby Green Lane where the path originated. The eventual order, dated 15 October 1924, replaced two previous orders from 1922 and 1923 which had required a replacement route, though no such route was established.
In 1924, the Air Ministry officially separated the two sites administratively, so that the depot site and accommodation site (RAF Blenheim Crescent) were considered two separate RAF stations. Between 1920 and 1939, the original accommodation buildings in the north of the site were replaced by new married quarters.
The RAF established the Apprentice Clerks Scheme at the Records Office in October 1925, after an earlier trial in 1921 had concluded successfully. Under the scheme, apprentices were be trained in general administrative and accounting duties, practising shorthand typing in the depot while also acting as messengers in the Records Office. A total of 2,080 apprentices passed through the scheme between 1925 and 1942.
The station commander, Wing Commander
Lyons died in his quarters on 1 February 1926 and was buried in the churchyard of St Giles' Church
on 4 February. His funeral was attended by all personnel from the depot, the Records Office and the Central Band of the RAF. He was succeeded by Wing Commander F. H. Kirby.
, the depot became part of No. 40 Group RAF (Equipment) in 1939 as No. 4 Maintenance Unit, under the overall command of Air Commodore R. W. Thomas.
The depot became responsible for the provision and maintenance of engines for the Advanced Air Striking Force
. These were then sent to Hartlebury
and Quedgeley
to be despatched to units. Ammunition was also prepared and sent to squadrons in action.
No. 71 Maintenance Unit in Slough
came under control of the Ruislip depot in January 1941. The increase in personnel lead to an extension of the station canteen in May. Additionally, a Navy, Army and Air Force Institutes
(NAAFI) canteen was built on the RAF Blenheim Crescent site on 6 May. In order to protect it from potential enemy bombing, the majority of the Records Office was moved to a temporary base in Gloucester on 10 May.
Later in the war, No. 4 Maintenance Unit became involved with radio and RDF preparations for the D-Day landings. It also produced waterproof radar equipment for use by the US Air Force's 2nd Tactical Air Force in 1944 which could be used even when submerged under 6 feet (1.8 m) of water.
base at nearby RAF South Ruislip
which began to be serviced from April 1949. The American vehicles were maintained in a dedicated shed, No. 5.
The remaining Records Office operation closed at Ruislip on 1 May 1951, having been run as a subsidiary of the Gloucester office since the previous year. A lack of available housing in the Gloucester meant the closure was not completed until 16 May 1952. It was proposed in April of that year to convert the base to an Air Ministry Unit and transfer the operations of RAF West Drayton
to it.
On 1 August 1951, the Medical Survey Office was formed on the station as a unit of RAF Home Command
. The office was responsible for all medical records, which were transferred from the RAF Records Office. It was moved to another building in November but was relocated to RAF Innsworth
on 16 May 1952.
The station was passed to the US Air Force Third Air Force on 1 December 1955, to enable the consolidation of facilities at several sites in the country into a single location. On 1 October 1962, the American 7500th Air Base Group was relocated to RAF West Ruislip from RAF South Ruislip. After the US Air Force decided to close RAF South Ruislip and move their headquarters to RAF Mildenhall
in 1972, 77 civilian members of staff at West Ruislip were made redundant.
Between 1958 and 1960, the station's chapel was built by Brandt O'Dell. The building incorporated a nave
with seating space for 350 people, and connecting wings to the hall and narthex
. In 1962, the gymnasium was built on the site.
The US Navy leased the site in December 1975 and constructed additional facilities for personnel and their families, including a bar, filling station, post office, cinema, chapel, school, baseball diamond and a medical and dental centre. These came under the Morale, Welfare and Recreation Department.
A large area of the site was demolished in the late 1980s for a large residential development named "Brackenbury Village". Housing was shared between personnel and British families. The Children's Welfare and Family Services Centre was built in 1988 by Kier Construction. The building incorporated separate sections for children and families. Among other recreational facilities, two squash courts were built in 1989, and a baseball diamond and field house were built in 1995. Dugouts were also built nearby the following year.
were lowered.
All personnel from the Navy Exchange had already transferred to new facilities in Naples. U.S. Naval Activities, United Kingdom was officially stood down on 14 September 2007 at a ceremony at RAF Daws Hill
.
In late 2007, all military buildings on the site except the elementary school were demolished. RAF Blenheim Crescent was not included in the demolition works. The Brackenbury Village housing was retained as it was separate from the military buildings. Cala Homes purchased the 21 acres (84,984.1 m²) site for £180m in November 2007. Explore Living Thames Valley later bought a 5.5 acres (22,257.7 m²) plot from Cala Homes in February 2008. A McCarthy and Stone tailored care living development is also due to begin construction in November 2011, subject to planning permission, with an opening date of January 2013.
Outline planning permission was granted by the London Borough of Hillingdon in January 2009 despite local opposition to some buildings having flat roofs. Up to 50% of the new homes will be social housing. The plan included 415 homes, with an 80-bed care home; the largest buildings will be six storeys high.
In September 2010, Cala Homes sought permission from the London Borough of Hillingdon to sell the first 30 completed homes before completing all highway work on the site in order to keep the development financially viable.
By September 2011, around 50 of the first 100 homes had been sold, with an additional 30 houses under construction. The largest building under construction, Cottesmore House, is due to be completed in October 2011. The final homes on the site are due to be completed in 2013.
Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom)
The Ministry of Defence is the United Kingdom government department responsible for implementation of government defence policy and is the headquarters of the British Armed Forces....
site, located in Ickenham
Ickenham
Ickenham is a suburban area centred on an old village in Greater London, part of the London Borough of Hillingdon.While no major historical events have taken place in Ickenham, settlements dating back to the Roman occupation of Britain have been discovered during archaeological surveys, and the...
within the London Borough of Hillingdon
London Borough of Hillingdon
The London Borough of Hillingdon is the westernmost borough in Greater London, England. The borough's population was recorded as 243,006 in the 2001 Census. The borough incorporates the former districts of Ruislip-Northwood, Uxbridge, Hayes and Harlington and Yiewsley and West Drayton in the...
. The base was originally built as a depot for the Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
(RAF), split by what is now the Chiltern Main Line
Chiltern Main Line
The Chiltern Main Line is an inter-urban, regional and commuter railway, part of the British railway system. It links London and Birmingham on a 112-mile route via the towns of High Wycombe, Banbury, and Leamington Spa...
. North of the railway was RAF Blenheim Crescent
RAF Blenheim Crescent
RAF Blenheim Crescent is a non-flying Royal Air Force station located in Ruislip in Greater London.-Units:The primary units assigned to the base are branch offices of the European Office of Aerospace Research and Development; the Office of Naval Research Global, the Naval Criminal Investigative...
, which housed the RAF Records Office and the depot's original personnel accommodation.
The site was leased to the US Air Force in 1955, followed by the US Navy in 1975, eventually housing the Navy Exchange of the U.S. Naval Activities, United Kingdom
U.S. Naval Activities, United Kingdom
Commander, U.S. Naval Activities, United Kingdom was an echelon three command subordinate to the Commander in Chief, U.S. Naval Forces, Europe until 2007. As the regional area coordinator for the United Kingdom and Northern Europe, COMNAVACTUK also exercised authority over the following...
command, and the Navy's Morale, Welfare and Recreation Department.
Following a review of properties, the US Navy vacated the site in 2006 and it became surplus to the Ministry of Defence's requirements under Project MoDEL
Project MoDEL
Project MoDEL is a project run for the Ministry of Defence by the ministry's Defence Infrastructure Organisation and VSM Estates, a joint venture established between Vinci PLC and St. Modwen Properties to bid for the contract...
. The following year, initial plans for around 415 homes and a retirement home were approved by the London Borough of Hillingdon in July 2007. Almost all buildings were subsequently demolished to make way for the new development. Cala Homes bought the 21 acres (84,984.1 m²) site for £180m in November.
Establishment
The land upon which the site was developed was originally owned by Edward Hilliard. It was chosen in March 1915 by Wing Commander T. O. Lyons of the Air MinistryAir Ministry
The Air Ministry was a department of the British Government with the responsibility of managing the affairs of the Royal Air Force, that existed from 1918 to 1964...
to house the Ordnance Aircraft Stores Depot from Farnborough, although a decision was made instead to establish the depot in Didcot, beside the existing buildings there. In 1917, the Ruislip site was revisited, and on 3 July was selected to house a depot for the Royal Flying Corps
Royal Flying Corps
The Royal Flying Corps was the over-land air arm of the British military during most of the First World War. During the early part of the war, the RFC's responsibilities were centred on support of the British Army, via artillery co-operation and photographic reconnaissance...
, under an military acquisition order. The close proximity to the Great Western and Metropolitan Railways made it ideal for the purpose.
Additional construction costs meant the final total was £736,000, up from an original estimate of £235,000. The need for heating brought with it the requirement for boiler houses, plus additional foundations which were needed for the buildings to the north of the railway. Lieutenant J.G.N. Clifts of the Royal Engineers
Royal Engineers
The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually just called the Royal Engineers , and commonly known as the Sappers, is one of the corps of the British Army....
created the design for the site and buildings, and the contractor involved was a U.S. Army civil engineering company, appearing on records as American Construction Company. A temporary railway siding was created to aid in the delivery of building supplies. By 13 December 1918, several sheds had been completed, as were the Officers' Mess, sleeping quarters and the Navy and Army Canteen Board.
Between May and July 1918, military stores from White City
White City
-Australia:* White City Woodville, a football club from the South Australian Super League* White City Football Club, a football club from the NSW Conference League South...
, Wormwood Scrubs
Wormwood Scrubs
Wormwood Scrubs, known locally as The Scrubs, is an open space located in the north-eastern corner of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in west London. It is the largest open space in the Borough, at 80 ha , and one of the largest areas of common land in London...
and Baker Street
Baker Street
Baker Street is a street in the Marylebone district of the City of Westminster in London. It is named after builder William Baker, who laid the street out in the 18th century. The street is most famous for its connection to the fictional detective Sherlock Holmes, who lived at a fictional 221B...
were moved to the site, with items kept in the completed sheds. A shortage of bricks in October meant the widening of the bridge over the railway was delayed, as was the construction of the railway line into the site.
Inter-war years
The Air Ministry wrote to the land surveyors employed by Edward Hilliard on 3 September 1919 to announce they wished to buy the land to allow for its permanent use by the RAF. Hilliard did not accept the initial offer of £5,900, but agreed to sell by the eventual deadline of 17 January 1920, receiving the sum of £6,350. A resident of the land, Mrs Saitch of Home Farm, had her tenancy cancelled on 29 September and was paid compensation by the military until 25 March 1921, although the authorities did not believe her worthy.Fairlight House, built in 1914, was included within the site and later became the residence of the Commander of US Naval Activities, United Kingdom. RAF Records were also based at the site along with the Maintenance Unit. The Great Western Railway, now the Chiltern Main Line, ran through the site, separating the regimental buildings to the north from the depot buildings to the south.
A "Homice Scheme" was established at all RAF stations in 1921, to prepare for cases of civil disturbance. To prepare, the fences around the depot belonging to the nearby railway company were replaced by a non-climable variety. An RAF guard made up of a sergeant, corporal, acting corporal and twenty three airmen was formed to protect the site. During the rest of the decade, the Metropolitan Police
Metropolitan police
Metropolitan Police is a generic title for the municipal police force for a major metropolitan area, and it may be part of the official title of the force...
provided a guard of eleven constables, eight of whom were housed in the sick bay. The remaining three were married, and were given their own houses in Park Road in Uxbridge
Uxbridge
Uxbridge is a large town located in north west London, England and is the administrative headquarters of the London Borough of Hillingdon. It forms part of the ceremonial county of Greater London. It is located west-northwest of Charing Cross and is one of the major metropolitan centres...
.
The Air Ministry placed an order in 1922 for the closure of the public footpath that ran through the site, providing £750 for the maintenance of nearby Green Lane where the path originated. The eventual order, dated 15 October 1924, replaced two previous orders from 1922 and 1923 which had required a replacement route, though no such route was established.
In 1924, the Air Ministry officially separated the two sites administratively, so that the depot site and accommodation site (RAF Blenheim Crescent) were considered two separate RAF stations. Between 1920 and 1939, the original accommodation buildings in the north of the site were replaced by new married quarters.
The RAF established the Apprentice Clerks Scheme at the Records Office in October 1925, after an earlier trial in 1921 had concluded successfully. Under the scheme, apprentices were be trained in general administrative and accounting duties, practising shorthand typing in the depot while also acting as messengers in the Records Office. A total of 2,080 apprentices passed through the scheme between 1925 and 1942.
The station commander, Wing Commander
Wing Commander (rank)
Wing commander is a commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many other Commonwealth countries...
Lyons died in his quarters on 1 February 1926 and was buried in the churchyard of St Giles' Church
St Giles' Church, Ickenham
St. Giles' Church is a church in Ickenham, within the London Borough of Hillingdon in England.The church is located in the centre of Ickenham, at the intersection of Swakeleys Road and Long Lane....
on 4 February. His funeral was attended by all personnel from the depot, the Records Office and the Central Band of the RAF. He was succeeded by Wing Commander F. H. Kirby.
Second World War
Under the newly formed RAF Maintenance CommandRAF Maintenance Command
RAF Maintenance Command was the Royal Air Force command which was responsible for controlling maintenance for all the United Kingdom-based units from formation on 1 April 1938 until being renamed RAF Support Command on 31 August 1973.- History :...
, the depot became part of No. 40 Group RAF (Equipment) in 1939 as No. 4 Maintenance Unit, under the overall command of Air Commodore R. W. Thomas.
The depot became responsible for the provision and maintenance of engines for the Advanced Air Striking Force
RAF Advanced Air Striking Force
Before the Second World War it had been agreed between the United Kingdom and France that in case of war, the light bomber force of the Royal Air Force would move to bases within France from which it could operate against targets in Nazi Germany. To achieve this, the RAF Advanced Air Striking Force...
. These were then sent to Hartlebury
Hartlebury
Hartlebury is a village in Worcestershire, England. It is a few miles south of Kidderminster and is in Wychavon district. The village registered a population of 2,549 in the Census 2001.The railway station is about half a mile to the east of the village....
and Quedgeley
Quedgeley
Quedgeley is a suburb and civil parish of Gloucester, England, situated southwest of the city. It is the only civil parish in Gloucester, and a has a population of 11,800.-See also:*RAF Quedgeley, a large RAF logistics site which closed in 1995...
to be despatched to units. Ammunition was also prepared and sent to squadrons in action.
No. 71 Maintenance Unit in Slough
Slough
Slough is a borough and unitary authority within the ceremonial county of Royal Berkshire, England. The town straddles the A4 Bath Road and the Great Western Main Line, west of central London...
came under control of the Ruislip depot in January 1941. The increase in personnel lead to an extension of the station canteen in May. Additionally, a Navy, Army and Air Force Institutes
Navy, Army and Air Force Institutes
The Navy, Army and Air Force Institutes is an organisation created by the British government in 1921 to run recreational establishments needed by the British Armed Forces, and to sell goods to servicemen and their families...
(NAAFI) canteen was built on the RAF Blenheim Crescent site on 6 May. In order to protect it from potential enemy bombing, the majority of the Records Office was moved to a temporary base in Gloucester on 10 May.
Later in the war, No. 4 Maintenance Unit became involved with radio and RDF preparations for the D-Day landings. It also produced waterproof radar equipment for use by the US Air Force's 2nd Tactical Air Force in 1944 which could be used even when submerged under 6 feet (1.8 m) of water.
Post-war years
Following the end of the war, the depot was responsible for the repair of vehicles and the conversion of aircrew coaches. Aircraft engines, propellers and radar equipment also continued to be repaired on the site, as were vehicles from the US Air Force's Third Air ForceThird Air Force
The Third Air Force is a numbered air force of the United States Air Forces in Europe . It is headquartered at Ramstein Air Base, Germany....
base at nearby RAF South Ruislip
RAF South Ruislip
RAF South Ruislip was a non-flying Air Force station located in South Ruislip near London, England.The station opened in 1949 and was used by the United States Air Force as an administrative station to coordinate Third Air Force and 7th Air Division activities in Great Britain with the British...
which began to be serviced from April 1949. The American vehicles were maintained in a dedicated shed, No. 5.
The remaining Records Office operation closed at Ruislip on 1 May 1951, having been run as a subsidiary of the Gloucester office since the previous year. A lack of available housing in the Gloucester meant the closure was not completed until 16 May 1952. It was proposed in April of that year to convert the base to an Air Ministry Unit and transfer the operations of RAF West Drayton
RAF West Drayton
RAF West Drayton was a non-flying Royal Air Force station in West Drayton, within the London Borough of Hillingdon, which served as the main centre for military air traffic control in the United Kingdom. It was co-located with the civilian London Terminal Control Centre to provide a vital link...
to it.
On 1 August 1951, the Medical Survey Office was formed on the station as a unit of RAF Home Command
RAF Home Command
RAF Home Command was the Royal Air Force command which was responsible for the maintenance and training of reserve organisations from formation on 1 February 1939 as RAF Reserve Command with interruptions until it ceased to exist on 1 April 1959.-History:...
. The office was responsible for all medical records, which were transferred from the RAF Records Office. It was moved to another building in November but was relocated to RAF Innsworth
RAF Innsworth
Imjin Barracks in Gloucestershire became the home of the Headquarters Allied Rapid Reaction Corps in 2010.The Barracks were named after the Battle of Imjin because of the connection with the Gloucestershire Regiment which formed part of the United Nations contingent in the Korean War, and was...
on 16 May 1952.
The station was passed to the US Air Force Third Air Force on 1 December 1955, to enable the consolidation of facilities at several sites in the country into a single location. On 1 October 1962, the American 7500th Air Base Group was relocated to RAF West Ruislip from RAF South Ruislip. After the US Air Force decided to close RAF South Ruislip and move their headquarters to RAF Mildenhall
RAF Mildenhall
RAF Mildenhall is a Royal Air Force station located at Mildenhall in Suffolk, England. Despite its status as an RAF station, it primarily supports United States Air Force operations and is currently the home of the 100th Air Refueling Wing...
in 1972, 77 civilian members of staff at West Ruislip were made redundant.
Between 1958 and 1960, the station's chapel was built by Brandt O'Dell. The building incorporated a nave
Nave
In Romanesque and Gothic Christian abbey, cathedral basilica and church architecture, the nave is the central approach to the high altar, the main body of the church. "Nave" was probably suggested by the keel shape of its vaulting...
with seating space for 350 people, and connecting wings to the hall and narthex
Narthex
The narthex of a church is the entrance or lobby area, located at the end of the nave, at the far end from the church's main altar. Traditionally the narthex was a part of the church building, but was not considered part of the church proper...
. In 1962, the gymnasium was built on the site.
The US Navy leased the site in December 1975 and constructed additional facilities for personnel and their families, including a bar, filling station, post office, cinema, chapel, school, baseball diamond and a medical and dental centre. These came under the Morale, Welfare and Recreation Department.
A large area of the site was demolished in the late 1980s for a large residential development named "Brackenbury Village". Housing was shared between personnel and British families. The Children's Welfare and Family Services Centre was built in 1988 by Kier Construction. The building incorporated separate sections for children and families. Among other recreational facilities, two squash courts were built in 1989, and a baseball diamond and field house were built in 1995. Dugouts were also built nearby the following year.
Closure and redevelopment
Following a review of facilities, the US Navy elected to vacate the West Ruislip site, beginning on 30 June 2006. The final chapel service had been held on 5 June. Many operations returned to the United States, as part of a plan to save $1 million each year. Staff redundancies involved 7 US service personnel, 55 civilian staff from the US Department of Defence and 95 British civilian staff. The base closed during a ceremony on 28 September, in which the American flag and Royal Air Force EnsignRoyal Air Force Ensign
The Royal Air Force Ensign is the official flag which is used to represent the Royal Air Force. The Ensign has a field of air force blue with the Union Flag in the canton and the Royal Air Force roundel in the middle of the fly....
were lowered.
All personnel from the Navy Exchange had already transferred to new facilities in Naples. U.S. Naval Activities, United Kingdom was officially stood down on 14 September 2007 at a ceremony at RAF Daws Hill
RAF Daws Hill
RAF Daws Hill is a Royal Air Force station on the outskirts of High Wycombe, in Buckinghamshire, England. The base is situated on Daws Hill Lane, the road between Flackwell Heath and Marlow Hill, High Wycombe, off the A404 road and adjacent to the M40 motorway....
.
In late 2007, all military buildings on the site except the elementary school were demolished. RAF Blenheim Crescent was not included in the demolition works. The Brackenbury Village housing was retained as it was separate from the military buildings. Cala Homes purchased the 21 acres (84,984.1 m²) site for £180m in November 2007. Explore Living Thames Valley later bought a 5.5 acres (22,257.7 m²) plot from Cala Homes in February 2008. A McCarthy and Stone tailored care living development is also due to begin construction in November 2011, subject to planning permission, with an opening date of January 2013.
Outline planning permission was granted by the London Borough of Hillingdon in January 2009 despite local opposition to some buildings having flat roofs. Up to 50% of the new homes will be social housing. The plan included 415 homes, with an 80-bed care home; the largest buildings will be six storeys high.
In September 2010, Cala Homes sought permission from the London Borough of Hillingdon to sell the first 30 completed homes before completing all highway work on the site in order to keep the development financially viable.
By September 2011, around 50 of the first 100 homes had been sold, with an additional 30 houses under construction. The largest building under construction, Cottesmore House, is due to be completed in October 2011. The final homes on the site are due to be completed in 2013.