RAF Dalton
Encyclopedia
RAF Dalton was an airfield used by RAF Bomber Command
during the Second World War. It was a satellite or sub-station of nearby RAF Topcliffe
and actually nearer to the village of Topcliffe than the station so named.
was home to No. 102 Squadron
beginning in November 1941. No. 102 Squadron returned to Topcliffe in June 1942 and for a time Dalton hosted No. 1652 Heavy Conversion Unit (HCU) flying Halifaxes
. The airfield was improved in 1942 and in early 1943 was allocated to No. 6 Group
Royal Canadian Air Force
(RCAF). Canadian squadrons stationed here at one time or another included No. 428 Squadron
, No. 424 Squadron
, No. 420 Squadron
, and No. 1666 Heavy Conversion Unit (which moved to RAF Wombleton
in October 1943). The station also housed no. 1691 Bomber Gunnery Flight (BGF) RCAF and its successor, No. 1695 Bomber Defence Training Flight (BDTF) RCAF, the last RCAF unit to serve at this station.
In November 1944, control passed from No. 6 Group to the new No. 7 (Training) Group. By August 1945 all units at Dalton were disbanded or transferred. The aerodrome facilities are now being used for commercial and industrial uses.
|+data from
! Unit !! From !! To !! Aircraft !! Version
|-
| No. 102 Squadron RAF
|| 15 November 1941 || 7 June 1942 || Armstrong Whitworth Whitley
Handley Page Halifax
|| Mk.V
Mk.II
|-
| No. 420 Squadron RCAF
|| 6 November 1943 || 12 December 1943 || Vickers Wellington
|| Mk.X
|-
| No. 424 Squadron RCAF
|| 3 May 1943 || 15 May 1943 || Vickers Wellington
|| Mk.X
|-
| No. 428 Squadron RCAF
|| 7 November 1942 || 31 May 1943 || Vickers Wellington
|| Mks.III and X
|-
| No. 1652 HCU || 13 July 1942 || 22 August 1942 || Handley Page Halifax
|| Mks.I, II
|-
| No. 1666 'Mohawk' HCU || 5 June 1943 || 21 October 1943 || Handley Page Halifax
|| Mks.II, III
|-
| No. 1691 Bomber Gunnery Flight || 26 June 1943 || 15 February 1944 || Miles Martinet
Airspeed Oxford
|| Mk.I
Mk.II
|-
| No. 1695 Bomber Defence Training Flight || 15 February 1944 || 23 April 1945 || Miles Martinet
Hawker Hurricane
Supermarine Spitfire
|| Mk.I
MksIIc, IV
Mk.I, IIa, Vb, Vc
RAF Bomber Command
RAF Bomber Command controlled the RAF's bomber forces from 1936 to 1968. During World War II the command destroyed a significant proportion of Nazi Germany's industries and many German cities, and in the 1960s stood at the peak of its postwar military power with the V bombers and a supplemental...
during the Second World War. It was a satellite or sub-station of nearby RAF Topcliffe
RAF Topcliffe
RAF Topcliffe is a Royal Air Force station in North Yorkshire. It is a satellite station of RAF Linton-on-Ouse.Topcliffe opened in September 1940 as a bomber station in RAF Bomber Command and was home to 77 and 102 Squadrons flying the Whitley heavy bomber. There was a decoy site at Raskelf...
and actually nearer to the village of Topcliffe than the station so named.
History
RAF Dalton, HambletonDalton, Hambleton
Dalton is a village and civil parish in the Hambleton district of North Yorkshire, England. It is about 4 miles south of Thirsk and near the A168 road....
was home to No. 102 Squadron
No. 102 Squadron RAF
No. 102 Squadron was a Royal Air Force night bomber squadron in World War I and a heavy bomber squadron in World War II. After the war it flew briefly as a transport squadron before being reformed a light bomber unit with the Second Tactical Air Force within RAF Germany. Its last existence was as a...
beginning in November 1941. No. 102 Squadron returned to Topcliffe in June 1942 and for a time Dalton hosted No. 1652 Heavy Conversion Unit (HCU) flying Halifaxes
Handley Page Halifax
The Handley Page Halifax was one of the British front-line, four-engined heavy bombers of the Royal Air Force during the Second World War. A contemporary of the famous Avro Lancaster, the Halifax remained in service until the end of the war, performing a variety of duties in addition to bombing...
. The airfield was improved in 1942 and in early 1943 was allocated to No. 6 Group
No. 6 Group RCAF
No. 6 Group RCAF was an organization of Royal Canadian Air Force bomber squadrons which operated from airfields in Yorkshire, England during the Second World War. Although 6 Group was RCAF, it was controlled by the Royal Air Force as part of Bomber Command. No. 6 Group had been previously active...
Royal Canadian Air Force
Royal Canadian Air Force
The history of the Royal Canadian Air Force begins in 1920, when the air force was created as the Canadian Air Force . In 1924 the CAF was renamed the Royal Canadian Air Force and granted royal sanction by King George V. The RCAF existed as an independent service until 1968...
(RCAF). Canadian squadrons stationed here at one time or another included No. 428 Squadron
No. 428 Squadron RCAF
No. 428 Squadron RCAF, also known as 428 Bomber Squadron, and 428 Ghost Squadron, was a bomber squadron in the Royal Canadian Air Force. Throughout its service in the Second World War the squadron was based in England and flew bombing missions against the enemy. After the end of the war the...
, No. 424 Squadron
No. 424 Squadron RCAF
424 "City of Hamilton" Transport and Rescue Squadron is a search and rescue/transport squadron of the Canadian Forces and based out of 9 Hangar with 8 Wing CFB Trenton.-History:...
, No. 420 Squadron
No. 420 Squadron RCAF
No. 420 "City of London" Squadron RCAF was a squadron of the Royal Canadian Air Force which existed from late December 1941 forwards. The Squadron's nickname was "Snowy Owl". Their motto was Pugnamus Finitum, Latin for We Fight To The Finish. No. 420 Squadron is no longer active.-History:No...
, and No. 1666 Heavy Conversion Unit (which moved to RAF Wombleton
RAF Wombleton
RAF Wombleton was a World War II training airfield located in the county of North Yorkshire, about 1/2 mile south of Wombleton, England.Wombleton opened in 1943 as a sub-station of RAF Topcliffe. It was part of RAF Bomber Command's No. 6 Group RCAF, and along with the main station at Topcliffe and...
in October 1943). The station also housed no. 1691 Bomber Gunnery Flight (BGF) RCAF and its successor, No. 1695 Bomber Defence Training Flight (BDTF) RCAF, the last RCAF unit to serve at this station.
In November 1944, control passed from No. 6 Group to the new No. 7 (Training) Group. By August 1945 all units at Dalton were disbanded or transferred. The aerodrome facilities are now being used for commercial and industrial uses.
Operational units and aircraft
{|class="wikitable"|+data from
! Unit !! From !! To !! Aircraft !! Version
|-
| No. 102 Squadron RAF
No. 102 Squadron RAF
No. 102 Squadron was a Royal Air Force night bomber squadron in World War I and a heavy bomber squadron in World War II. After the war it flew briefly as a transport squadron before being reformed a light bomber unit with the Second Tactical Air Force within RAF Germany. Its last existence was as a...
|| 15 November 1941 || 7 June 1942 || Armstrong Whitworth Whitley
Armstrong Whitworth Whitley
The Armstrong Whitworth A.W.38 Whitley was one of three British twin-engine, front line medium bomber types in service with the Royal Air Force at the outbreak of the Second World War...
Handley Page Halifax
Handley Page Halifax
The Handley Page Halifax was one of the British front-line, four-engined heavy bombers of the Royal Air Force during the Second World War. A contemporary of the famous Avro Lancaster, the Halifax remained in service until the end of the war, performing a variety of duties in addition to bombing...
|| Mk.V
Mk.II
|-
| No. 420 Squadron RCAF
No. 420 Squadron RCAF
No. 420 "City of London" Squadron RCAF was a squadron of the Royal Canadian Air Force which existed from late December 1941 forwards. The Squadron's nickname was "Snowy Owl". Their motto was Pugnamus Finitum, Latin for We Fight To The Finish. No. 420 Squadron is no longer active.-History:No...
|| 6 November 1943 || 12 December 1943 || Vickers Wellington
Vickers Wellington
The Vickers Wellington was a British twin-engine, long range medium bomber designed in the mid-1930s at Brooklands in Weybridge, Surrey, by Vickers-Armstrongs' Chief Designer, R. K. Pierson. It was widely used as a night bomber in the early years of the Second World War, before being displaced as a...
|| Mk.X
|-
| No. 424 Squadron RCAF
No. 424 Squadron RCAF
424 "City of Hamilton" Transport and Rescue Squadron is a search and rescue/transport squadron of the Canadian Forces and based out of 9 Hangar with 8 Wing CFB Trenton.-History:...
|| 3 May 1943 || 15 May 1943 || Vickers Wellington
Vickers Wellington
The Vickers Wellington was a British twin-engine, long range medium bomber designed in the mid-1930s at Brooklands in Weybridge, Surrey, by Vickers-Armstrongs' Chief Designer, R. K. Pierson. It was widely used as a night bomber in the early years of the Second World War, before being displaced as a...
|| Mk.X
|-
| No. 428 Squadron RCAF
No. 428 Squadron RCAF
No. 428 Squadron RCAF, also known as 428 Bomber Squadron, and 428 Ghost Squadron, was a bomber squadron in the Royal Canadian Air Force. Throughout its service in the Second World War the squadron was based in England and flew bombing missions against the enemy. After the end of the war the...
|| 7 November 1942 || 31 May 1943 || Vickers Wellington
Vickers Wellington
The Vickers Wellington was a British twin-engine, long range medium bomber designed in the mid-1930s at Brooklands in Weybridge, Surrey, by Vickers-Armstrongs' Chief Designer, R. K. Pierson. It was widely used as a night bomber in the early years of the Second World War, before being displaced as a...
|| Mks.III and X
|-
| No. 1652 HCU || 13 July 1942 || 22 August 1942 || Handley Page Halifax
Handley Page Halifax
The Handley Page Halifax was one of the British front-line, four-engined heavy bombers of the Royal Air Force during the Second World War. A contemporary of the famous Avro Lancaster, the Halifax remained in service until the end of the war, performing a variety of duties in addition to bombing...
|| Mks.I, II
|-
| No. 1666 'Mohawk' HCU || 5 June 1943 || 21 October 1943 || Handley Page Halifax
Handley Page Halifax
The Handley Page Halifax was one of the British front-line, four-engined heavy bombers of the Royal Air Force during the Second World War. A contemporary of the famous Avro Lancaster, the Halifax remained in service until the end of the war, performing a variety of duties in addition to bombing...
|| Mks.II, III
|-
| No. 1691 Bomber Gunnery Flight || 26 June 1943 || 15 February 1944 || Miles Martinet
Miles Martinet
|-See also:-Bibliography:* Amos, Peter. and Brown, Don Lambert. Miles Aircraft Since 1925, Volume 1. London: Putnam Aeronautical, 2000. ISBN 0-85177-787-0....
Airspeed Oxford
Airspeed Oxford
The Airspeed AS.10 Oxford was a twin-engine aircraft used for training British Commonwealth aircrews in navigation, radio-operating, bombing and gunnery during the Second World War.-Design and development:...
|| Mk.I
Mk.II
|-
| No. 1695 Bomber Defence Training Flight || 15 February 1944 || 23 April 1945 || Miles Martinet
Miles Martinet
|-See also:-Bibliography:* Amos, Peter. and Brown, Don Lambert. Miles Aircraft Since 1925, Volume 1. London: Putnam Aeronautical, 2000. ISBN 0-85177-787-0....
Hawker Hurricane
Hawker Hurricane
The Hawker Hurricane is a British single-seat fighter aircraft that was designed and predominantly built by Hawker Aircraft Ltd for the Royal Air Force...
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...
|| Mk.I
MksIIc, IV
Mk.I, IIa, Vb, Vc