RAF Little Rissington
Former Royal Air Force base in Gloucestershire, England / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Royal Air Force Little Rissington or more simply RAF Little Rissington (ICAO: EGVL) is an Royal Air Force satellite station in Gloucestershire, England. It was once home to the Central Flying School, the Vintage Pair and the Red Arrows.
RAF Little Rissington | |||||||||||
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Near Upper Rissington, Gloucestershire in England | |||||||||||
Coordinates | 51°52′N 001°42′W | ||||||||||
Type | Royal Air Force satellite flying station | ||||||||||
Code | LR | ||||||||||
Site information | |||||||||||
Owner | Ministry of Defence | ||||||||||
Operator | Royal Air Force | ||||||||||
Controlled by | No. 22 Group (Training) | ||||||||||
Condition | Active | ||||||||||
Site history | |||||||||||
Built | 1937 (1937)/38 | ||||||||||
In use | 1938–1976 (RAF), 1981-1993 (USAFE), 1993-Present (RAF) | ||||||||||
Fate | Retained in military use by the RAF following USAFE withdrawal in 1993, as a site for gliding, as a parachute drop-zone and periodic training by ground units and aircraft. | ||||||||||
Garrison information | |||||||||||
Occupants | 621 Volunteer Gliding Squadron 637 Volunteer Gliding Squadron | ||||||||||
Airfield information | |||||||||||
Identifiers | ICAO: EGVL | ||||||||||
Elevation | 223 metres (732 ft)[1] AMSL | ||||||||||
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Built during the 1930s, the station was opened in 1938 and closed in 1994. The married-quarters and main technical site were sold in 1996 (the former becoming the village of Upper Rissington). RAF Little Rissington has been retained by the Ministry of Defence and is known as Little Rissington Airfield. It remains active along with the southern technical sites, under the operational control of HQ No. 2 Flying Training School RAF at RAF Syerston. It is now home to 621 Volunteer Gliding Squadron RAF and 637 Volunteer Gliding Squadron RAF as the primary military units, providing elementary flying training for Combined Cadet Force and Air Training Corps cadets. The airfield is also used by the forces as a relief landing ground, training area and parachute dropping area.
In March 2015 a new hangar is being built on the airfield.
In 2017 investment was made in upgrading facilities for the RAF Air Cadets. The old fire station was upgraded to provide modern teaching facilities and an accommodation block with canteen was built next door. The new hangar is now operational for the storage and maintenance of the gliders. The airfield has had major groundworks on the grassed area creating a grassed runway.