RAF Witchford

Royal Air Force Witchford, or more simply RAF Witchford, is a former Royal Air Force Royal Air Force sub-station about 2 miles (3 km) southwest of Ely, Cambridgeshire, England and 13 miles (21 km) north of Cambridge, Cambridgeshire.

RAF Witchford
Witchford, Cambridgeshire in England
RAF Witchford Shown within Cambridgeshire Show map of Cambridgeshire RAF Witchford RAF Witchford (the United Kingdom) Show map of the United Kingdom
Coordinates	52°22′52″N 000°13′51″E
Type	RAF Sub-station
Code	EL[1]
Site information
Owner	Air Ministry
Operator	Royal Air Force
Controlled by	RAF Bomber Command * No. 3 Group RAF
Site history
Built	1942 (1942)/43
In use	June 1943 - March 1946 (1946)
Battles/wars	European theatre of World War II
Airfield information
Elevation	14 metres (46 ft)[1] AMSL
Runways Direction Length and surface 04/22  Asphalt 10/28  Asphalt 16/34  Asphalt

History

Units:

• No. 115 Squadron RAF first started using RAF Witchford from 26 November 1943 with the Avro Lancaster II before changing to the Mk I and III Lancasters in March 1944 before moving to RAF Graveley on 10 September 1945^[2]
• No. 195 Squadron RAF reformed at the airfield on 1 October 1944 with the Lancaster I and III before moving to RAF Wratting Common on 13 November 1944 where the squadron disbanded on 14 August 1945^[3]
• No. 196 Squadron RAF started using the airfield on 19 Jul 1943 with the Vickers Wellington X until these were replaced with the Short Stirling III during their stay. The squadron left on 18 November 1943 moving to RAF Leicester East^[3]
• No. 513 Squadron RAF formed at Witchford on 15 September 1943 with the Stirling III before disbanding on 21 November 1943 at the airfield^[4]
• No. 29 Air Crew Holding Unit between October 1945 and March 1946^[5]
• An element of No. 3 Lancaster Finishing School RAF between May and July 1944^[6]

A total of 99 bombers despatched on operations from Witchford were lost, 8 being Stirlings and 91 Lancasters.^[7]

RAF Witchford was at first included among the initial sites for the Project Emily deployment of PGM-17 Thor intermediate range ballistic missiles, at the instigation of the Americans in 1958, but the land was owned by the Church Commissioners, and nearby RAF Mepal was substituted. The main selection criterion was the condition of the road network connecting the bases; a grade of more than one in seventeen was considered an unacceptable risk of grounding the missile transport.^[8]

Current use

Most of the site is now the Lancaster Way Business Park,^[9] with the rest used for farming.^[7]

See also

• List of former Royal Air Force stations

References

Citations

1. Falconer 2012, p. 215.
2. Jefford 1988, p. 57.
3. Jefford 1988, p. 67.
4. Jefford 1988, p. 95.
5. Sturtivant & Hamlin 2007, p. 44.
6. Sturtivant & Hamlin 2007, p. 171.
7. "Bomber Command - Witchford". Royal Air Force. Retrieved 30 June 2012.
8. Boyes 2015, p. 57.
9. "Lancaster Way, a modern business park in Ely, Cambridgeshire", Cambridge Independent 08 March 2017, accessed 29 July 2021.

Bibliography

• Boyes, John (2015). Thor Ballistic Missile: The United States and the United Kingdom in Partnership. Stroud, Gloucestershire: Fonthill Media. ISBN 978-1-78155-481-4.
• Falconer, J. (2012). RAF Airfields of World War 2. UK: Ian Allan Publishing. ISBN 978-1-85780-349-5.
• Jefford, C G (1988). RAF Squadrons. A comprehensive record of the movement and equipment of all RAF squadrons and their antecedents since 1912. Shrewsbury: Airlife. ISBN 1-85310-053-6.
• Sturtivant, R.; Hamlin, J. (2007). Royal Air Force flying training and support units since 1912. UK: Air-Britain (Historians). ISBN 978-0851-3036-59.

External links

• Cameron, Donald. "C-Cameron: Memoirs of World War II in Bomber Command". – by a former RAF Squadron 115 pilot
• Loss of Lancaster HK559 - an account of just one crew lost from Witchford and of subsequent commemoration ceremonies
• The RAF Witchford & Mepal Display – collection of memorabilia
• An extensive history of the station, with some coverage of RAF Mepal, is contained in 'Memories of RAF Witchford' by Barry and Sue Aldridge.