RAF Atcham
Encyclopedia
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 5 miles E of Shrewsbury
Shrewsbury
Shrewsbury is the county town of Shropshire, in the West Midlands region of England. Lying on the River Severn, it is a civil parish home to some 70,000 inhabitants, and is the primary settlement and headquarters of Shropshire Council...
in Shropshire
Shropshire
Shropshire is a county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. It borders Wales to the west...
on the north eastern boundary of Attingham Park
Attingham Park
Attingham Park is a country house in Shropshire, England, which is owned by the National Trust. It is a Grade I listed building.- Location :It is located near to the village of Atcham, on the B4380 Shrewsbury to Wellington road.- History :...
. The airfield was opened in 1941 and was initially used by 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...
74 Sqn
No. 74 Squadron RAF
No. 74 Squadron RAF, also known as a "Tiger Squadron" from its tiger head motif, is a squadron of the Royal Air Force. It operated fighter aircraft from 1917 to the 1990s.-First World War:...
, 131 Sqn
No. 131 Squadron RAF
No. 131 Squadron RAF was a Royal Air Force Squadron formed to be a night bomber unit in World War I and reformed as a fighter unit in World War II.-Formation and World War I:No...
, 232 Sqn
No. 232 Squadron RAF
No. 232 Squadron of the Royal Air Force was active in both World War I and World War II in a variety of roles, having seen action as an anti-submarine patrol, fighter and transport squadron.-In World War I:...
and 350 Sqn.
Early days
The book Images of Aviation - Shropshire Airfields Compiled by Alec Brew and Barry Abraham states on page 9 about RAF Atcham:-- "Atcham was built as a standard RAF fighter sector station to accommodate two squadrons, with a satellite station being planned at Condover. The first squadron to arrive was No.131, which arrived with the first of its Spitfires on 27 September 1941. These were replaced by No.350 (Belgian) Squadron in February 1942, which shared the airfield with No.74 Squadron for about two months, before the latter went to the Middle East and No.350 moved to Warmwell. In April 1942 No.232 Squadron reformed at Atcham with its Spitfires, but a month later moved to Valley (Anglesey). The Luftwaffe were no longer penetrating so far into north-west England and Atcham was handed over to the United States Army Air Force."
RAF Condover
RAF Condover
RAF Condover was a Royal Air Force Flying Training Command airfield and air navigation training establishment between August 1942 and June 1945, unusually for both fighter and bomber crews at different times...
did eventually open in August 1942, but with no further RAF presence at Atcham the field at Condover became a satellite field of RAF Shawbury
RAF Shawbury
RAF Shawbury is a Royal Air Force station by the village of Shawbury near Shrewsbury, Shropshire.The station at Shawbury was first used for military flying training in 1917 by the Royal Flying Corps, but it was returned to agricultural use in 1920. In 1938 it was reactivated as a training...
instead.
USAAF use
Atcham was transferred to 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....
on 15 June 1942. It was designated as Station 342 (AP). Located some distance away from the other Eighth AF bases in East Anglia
East Anglia
East Anglia is a traditional name for a region of eastern England, named after an ancient Anglo-Saxon kingdom, the Kingdom of the East Angles. The Angles took their name from their homeland Angeln, in northern Germany. East Anglia initially consisted of Norfolk and Suffolk, but upon the marriage of...
, at first Atcham was used as an operational fighter base, however beginning late 1942 its primary use became operational training of fighter pilots for both Eighth and Ninth Air Force
Ninth Air Force
The Ninth Air Force is a numbered air force of the United States Air Force's Air Combat Command . It is headquartered at Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina....
units.
31st Fighter Group
The first American use of Atcham was the 31st Fighter Group31st Fighter Wing
The 31st Fighter Wing is a United States Air Force unit assigned to the United States Air Forces in Europe Third Air Force. It is stationed at Aviano Air Base, Italy where it is also the host unit....
, consisting of the 307th, 308th and 309th Fighter Squadrons. The ground echelon of the 31st arrived from New Orleans AAF, Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
on 11 June 1942, with the pilots following later in the month, and was assigned to the Eighth Air Force. The group consisted of the following squadrons:
- 307th Fighter Squadron307th Fighter SquadronThe 307th Fighter Squadron is part of the 414th Fighter Group and stationed at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, North Carolina.-Mission:...
(MX) - 308th Fighter Squadron308th Fighter SquadronThe 308th Fighter Squadron is part of the 56th Operations Group at Luke Air Force Base, Arizona.-Mission:The 308th FS , fly Block 42 F-16C/Ds, wearing the dark green and white checkerboard fin band onducting F-16 Fighting Falcon crew training for active duty USAF pilots.-World War II:Initially...
(HL) - 309th Fighter Squadron309th Fighter SquadronThe 309th Fighter Squadron is part of the 56th Operations Group at Luke Air Force Base, Arizona. It operates the F-16 Fighting Falcon aircraft conducting advanced fighter training.-Mission:...
(WZ)
Note: The 309th Fighter Squadron was based at RAF High Ercall
High Ercall
High Ercall, also known in the past as Ercall Magna, is a village in the borough of Telford and Wrekin and ceremonial county of Shropshire, England. The civil parish is still called Ercall Magna, and had a total population of 1,679 at the 2001 census. The parish also includes the villages of...
.
The group arrived without assigned aircraft as its P-39s were found unsuitable for long-distance formation ferry flights. Provided with British Supermarine Spitfire
Supermarine Spitfire
The Supermarine Spitfire is a British single-seat fighter aircraft that was used by the Royal Air Force and many other Allied countries throughout the Second World War. The Spitfire continued to be used as a front line fighter and in secondary roles into the 1950s...
Vbs by the RAF, the 31st FG entered combat in August and supported a raid made by Canadian, British, American, and French forces
Dieppe Raid
The Dieppe Raid, also known as the Battle of Dieppe, Operation Rutter or later on Operation Jubilee, during the Second World War, was an Allied attack on the German-occupied port of Dieppe on the northern coast of France on 19 August 1942. The assault began at 5:00 AM and by 10:50 AM the Allied...
at Dieppe
Dieppe, Seine-Maritime
Dieppe is a commune in the Seine-Maritime department in France. In 1999, the population of the whole Dieppe urban area was 81,419.A port on the English Channel, famous for its scallops, and with a regular ferry service from the Gare Maritime to Newhaven in England, Dieppe also has a popular pebbled...
on 19 August. The group also escorted bombers and flew patrol and diversionary missions.
In August 1942, the 31st moved to RAF Westhampnett
RAF Tangmere
RAF Tangmere was a Royal Air Force station famous for its role in the Battle of Britain, located at Tangmere village about 3 miles east of Chichester in West Sussex, England. American RAF pilot Billy Fiske died at Tangmere and was the first American aviator to die during World War II...
in Sussex
Sussex
Sussex , from the Old English Sūþsēaxe , is an historic county in South East England corresponding roughly in area to the ancient Kingdom of Sussex. It is bounded on the north by Surrey, east by Kent, south by the English Channel, and west by Hampshire, and is divided for local government into West...
before moving into Tafaraoui, Algeria
Algeria
Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...
on 8 November 1942 as part of Twelfth Air Force.
14th Fighter Group
The 14th Fighter Group14th Flying Training Wing
The 14th Flying Training Wing is a wing of the United States Air Force based out of Columbus Air Force Base, Mississippi.-Mission:...
moved to Atcham on 18 August 1942 from Hamilton AAF
Hamilton Air Force Base
Hamilton Air Force Base was a United States Air Force base located along the western shore of San Pablo Bay, south of Novato, California.-History:...
California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
and was assigned to the Eighth Air Force. The group consisted of the following squadrons:
- 48th Fighter Squadron (ES)
- 49th Fighter Squadron (QU)
Equipped with Lockheed P-38 Lightnings
P-38 Lightning
The Lockheed P-38 Lightning was a World War II American fighter aircraft built by Lockheed. Developed to a United States Army Air Corps requirement, the P-38 had distinctive twin booms and a single, central nacelle containing the cockpit and armament...
, the 14th escorted B-17 and B-24 bombers to targets in France
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...
. In addition, fourteen P-38s of the 48th Squadron were sent on detached service to RAF West Hampnett and RAF Ford in southern England, where in coordination with British squadrons, the pilots engaged in a number of practice sweeps across the English Channel
English Channel
The English Channel , often referred to simply as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates southern England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest to in the Strait of Dover...
.
After flying sweep sorties during which there was no contact with the Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe is a generic German term for an air force. It is also the official name for two of the four historic German air forces, the Wehrmacht air arm founded in 1935 and disbanded in 1946; and the current Bundeswehr air arm founded in 1956....
, in November 1942 the 14th was moved to Tafaraoui, Algeria
Algeria
Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...
as part of Twelfth Air Force.
1st Provisional Gunnery Flight
From 2 January until 3 March 1943 the 1st Provisional Gunnery Flight used Atcham for target towing using Westland Lysander and Miles Masters. The unit then moved to RAF Llanbedr.495th Fighter Training Group
From November 1942 to October 1943 Atcham was host to 6th Fighter Wing, as a Combat Crew Replacement Centre, flying Spitfires and Bell P-39 Airacobras, these being replaced with Republic P-47 Thunderbolts.In October 1943 6th Fighter Wing was renamed the 2906th Observation Training Group, then renamed again as 495th Fighter Training Group. Operational squadrons of the 495th TFG were:
- 551st Fighter Training Squadron (VM)
- 552nd Fighter training Squadron (DQ)
The 495th FTG stayed until February 1945, moving to RAF Cheddington
RAF Cheddington
RAF Cheddington is a former World War II airfield in England, located 1 mile south-west of Cheddington in Buckinghamshire. The airfield was closed in 1952.-Origins:...
. From August 1944 the Ninth AF P-38s from the 496th FTG/554th FTS from RAF Goxhill
RAF Goxhill
RAF Goxhill is a former Royal Air Force and United States Army Air Force station in England. It is located just to the east of the village of Goxhill, on the south bank of the Humber estuary, opposite the city of Kingston upon Hull, in north Lincolnshire....
used Atcham as a training field.
RAF use
Atcham was returned to the RAF Flying Training CommandRAF Flying Training Command
Flying Training Command was an organization within the Royal Air Force which controlled units responsible for delivering flying training. The command's headquarters were at Shinfield Park, Reading in Berkshire.-History:...
on 14 March 1945 becoming a satellite of RAF Ternhill
RAF Ternhill
RAF Ternhill is a small Royal Air Force station at Ternhill in Shropshire, near the towns of Newport and Market Drayton. The station, home of Volunteer Gliding Squadron 632, was a helicopter base but is now principally used as an outpost for the tri-service helicopter training establishment at RAF...
. No. 5 (Pilot) Advanced Flying Unit and No. 6 Service Flying Training School. 577 Sqn target towing with Oxford, Spitfire and Vengeance used the airfield until the end of the war.
Atcham was abandoned on 22 October 1946 and disposed of on 20 January 1958.
Civil use
With the end of military control, Atcham airfield was returned to farmland with the runways being broken up and removed and the control tower demolished.Today there is little evidence of Atcham airfield. Some minor agricultural roads which were part of the perimeter track remain as access to farm fields, and the B4394 uses part of the former North-South main runway. The three T-2 hangars of the former technical site remain together in use with all the administration buildings, the whole complex forming the Atcham Industrial Estate northwest of the former airfield area.