RAF Hurn
Encyclopedia
- For the civil use of this facility after 1944, see Bournemouth AirportBournemouth AirportBournemouth Airport is an airport located north-northeast of Bournemouth, in southern England...
RAF Station Hurn is a former World War II
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 Dorset
Dorset
Dorset , is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The county town is Dorchester which is situated in the south. The Hampshire towns of Bournemouth and Christchurch joined the county with the reorganisation of local government in 1974...
, 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 airfield is located approximately 4 miles (6.4 km) north east of Christchurch
Christchurch, Dorset
Christchurch is a borough and town in the county of Dorset on the south coast of England. The town adjoins Bournemouth in the west and the New Forest lies to the east. Historically in Hampshire, it joined Dorset with the reorganisation of local government in 1974 and is the most easterly borough in...
; about 90 miles (144.8 km) southwest of London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
Opened in 1941, it was used by both 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...
and United States Army Air Force. During the war it was used primarily as a transport and fighter airfield.
Since 1969, it has been called Bournemouth Airport
Bournemouth Airport
Bournemouth Airport is an airport located north-northeast of Bournemouth, in southern England...
, although some still refer to it as Hurn.
Overview
The site was originally intended as a satellite airfield but a decision to put down hardened runways on the low-lying land was made in 1941.The airfield consisted of three runways of 6,000 ft (08-26), 4,800 ft (17-35), and 3,390 ft (13-31). 30 "Frying Pan" hardstands were constructed along with 46 "Loop" type connecting to an enclosing perimeter track, of a width of 50 feet.
The ground support station was constructed largely of Nissen hut
Nissen hut
A Nissen hut is a prefabricated steel structure made from a half-cylindrical skin of corrugated steel, a variant of which was used extensively during World War II.-Description:...
s of various sizes. The support station was where the group and ground station commanders and squadron headquarters and orderly rooms were located. Also on the ground station were the mess facilities, chapel, hospital, operations briefing and debriefing, armoury and bombsite storage, life support, parachute rigging, supply warehouses, station and airfield security, motor transport and the other ground support functions necessary to support the air operations of the group. These facilities were all connected by a network of single path support roads.
The technical site, connected to the ground station and airfield consisted of four T-2, three Bellman and 10 blister hangars. In addition, various organisational, component and field maintenance shops along with the crew chiefs and other personnel necessary to keep the aircraft airworthy and to quickly repair light and moderate battle damage. Aircraft severely damaged in combat were sent to repair depots for major structural repair. The ammunition dump was located on the north side of the airfield, outside of the perimeter track surrounded by large dirt mounds and concrete storage pens for storing the aerial bombs and the other munitions required by the combat aircraft.
Various domestic accommodation sites were constructed dispersed away from the airfield, but within a mile or so of the technical support site, also using clusters of Maycrete or Nissen huts. The huts were either connected, set up end-to-end or built singly and made of prefabricated corrugated iron with a door and two small windows at the front and back. They provided accommodation for 2,440 personnel, including communal and a sick quarters.
The airfield was opened in July 1941. It was used for operational fighters and paratroop training. It was closed in October 1944 by the RAF.
RAF Transport Command use
Hurn was used by the RAF beginning in March 1941 as a satellite to RAF IbsleyRAF Ibsley
RAF Station Ibsley is a former World War II airfield in Hampshire, England. The airfield is located near the village of Ibsley, approximately north of Ringwood; about southwest of London...
. The Communications Research Establishment's 1425 Flight with Liberators from RAF Honeybourne
RAF Honeybourne
RAF Honeybourne was a World War II Royal Air Force airfield near Honeybourne in Worcestershire, England.The base was operational from 1941 to 1946 and was home to the No.24 Operations Training Unit. In July 1948 the site was closed and much has reverted to farmland. The runways were lifted in...
appears to have been the first unit to move into Hurn in November 1941, but following the extension of the runways, perimeter track and more hardstands in May 1942, Hurn became a major base for support squadrons for the airborne forces.
The first was No. 297 with Whitleys
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...
in June 1942, and over the next 20 months Hurn was host to the Albemarles
Armstrong Whitworth Albemarle
The Armstrong Whitworth A.W.41 Albemarle was a British twin-engine transport aircraft that entered service during the Second World War.Originally designed as a medium bomber that could be built by non-aviation companies without using light alloys, the Albemarle never served in that role, instead...
, 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...
, Horsas
Airspeed Horsa
The Airspeed AS.51 Horsa was a British World War II troop-carrying glider built by Airspeed Limited and subcontractors and used for air assault by British and Allied armed forces...
and Hadrians of Nos. 295, 296 and 570 Squadrons and other units tasked with airborne forces' activities.
In common with other airfields in the area, Hurn was required for support of the cross-channel invasion
D-Day
D-Day is a term often used in military parlance to denote the day on which a combat attack or operation is to be initiated. "D-Day" often represents a variable, designating the day upon which some significant event will occur or has occurred; see Military designation of days and hours for similar...
and RAF Transport Command units were moved out in February and March 1944 so that tactical fighter units could be moved in. The newcomers were Typhoons and in the ensuing weeks Hurn became one of the major Hawker Typhoon
Hawker Typhoon
The Hawker Typhoon was a British single-seat fighter-bomber, produced by Hawker Aircraft. While the Typhoon was designed to be a medium-high altitude interceptor, and a direct replacement for the Hawker Hurricane, several design problems were encountered, and the Typhoon never completely satisfied...
bases in southern England, often hosting six operational squadrons. Additionally, two de Havilland Mosquito
De Havilland Mosquito
The de Havilland DH.98 Mosquito was a British multi-role combat aircraft that served during the Second World War and the postwar era. It was known affectionately as the "Mossie" to its crews and was also nicknamed "The Wooden Wonder"...
-equipped night fighter squadrons were also present for much of this period.
USAAF use
Hurn was known as USAAF Station AAF-492 for security reasons by the USAAF during the war, and by which it was referred to instead of location. It's USAAF Station Code was "KU".422d Night Fighter Squadron
On 28 June 1944, Northrup P-61 Black WidowP-61 Black Widow
The Northrop P-61 Black Widow was the first operational U.S. military aircraft designed specifically for night interception of aircraft, and was the first aircraft specifically designed to use radar. It was an all-metal, twin-engine, twin-boom design developed during World War II...
night fighters of the 422d Night Fighter Squadron arrived from RAF Scorton
RAF Scorton
RAF Scorton was a satellite station of RAF Catterick during World War II. It was located near the village of Scorton in North Yorkshire, England...
, where their crews had been tutored in this particular aspect of air combat by the RAF. The Black Widow was a purpose-designed night fighter but, like most warplanes of its time, was not without its 'teething troubles'. The detachment commenced operational flying on 3 July only to return to Scorton a week later.
397th Bombardment Group
On 5 August the 397th Bombardment Group arrived from RAF RivenhallRAF Rivenhall
RAF Station Rivenhall is a former World War II airfield in Essex, England. The airfield is located approximately south-southeast of Braintree; about northeast of London...
, equipped with Martin B-26 Marauders
B-26 Marauder
The Martin B-26 Marauder was a World War II twin-engine medium bomber built by the Glenn L. Martin Company. First used in the Pacific Theater in early 1942, it was also used in the Mediterranean Theater and in Western Europe....
. The group consisted of the following operational squadrons:
- 596th Bombardment Squadron (X2)
- 597th Bombardment Squadron (9F)
- 598th Bombardment Squadron (U2)
- 599th Bombardment Squadron (6B)
The group's identification marking was a yellow diagonal band across both sides of the vertical tailplane.
Although moving from Rivenhall, the group arrived without ceasing operations and flew 72 missions from Hurn before moving to the Advanced Landing Ground at Gorges, 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...
, (A-26) on 19 August, with the last departures on the 30th and 31st. Three Marauders were lost during the month's stay.
On the continent, the 397th struck enemy positions at St Malo and Brest
Brest, France
Brest is a city in the Finistère department in Brittany in northwestern France. Located in a sheltered position not far from the western tip of the Breton peninsula, and the western extremity of metropolitan France, Brest is an important harbour and the second French military port after Toulon...
and bombed targets in the Rouen
Rouen
Rouen , in northern France on the River Seine, is the capital of the Haute-Normandie region and the historic capital city of Normandy. Once one of the largest and most prosperous cities of medieval Europe , it was the seat of the Exchequer of Normandy in the Middle Ages...
area as Allied armies swept across the Seine
Seine
The Seine is a -long river and an important commercial waterway within the Paris Basin in the north of France. It rises at Saint-Seine near Dijon in northeastern France in the Langres plateau, flowing through Paris and into the English Channel at Le Havre . It is navigable by ocean-going vessels...
and advanced to the Siegfried Line
Siegfried Line
The original Siegfried line was a line of defensive forts and tank defences built by Germany as a section of the Hindenburg Line 1916–1917 in northern France during World War I...
. The group began flying missions into Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
in September, attacking such targets as bridges, defended areas, and storage depots.
The 397th struck the enemy's communications during the Battle of the Bulge
Battle of the Bulge
The Battle of the Bulge was a major German offensive , launched toward the end of World War II through the densely forested Ardennes mountain region of Wallonia in Belgium, hence its French name , and France and...
(December 1944-January 1945) and received a Distinguished Unit Citation for a mission on 23 December 1944 when the group withstood heavy flak and fighter attack to sever a railway bridge at Eller, a vital link in the enemy's supply line across the Moselle
Moselle
Moselle is a department in the east of France named after the river Moselle.- History :Moselle is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790...
.
The group continued to support the Allied drive into Germany until April 1945, being stationed at Venlo
Venlo
Venlo is a municipality and a city in the southeastern Netherlands, next to the German border. It is situated in the province of Limburg.In 2001, the municipalities of Belfeld and Tegelen were merged into the municipality of Venlo. Tegelen was originally part of the Duchy of Jülich centuries ago,...
, Holland (Y-55) on VE-Day. It returned to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
during December 1945-January 1946, being inactivated at Camp Kilmer, New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
on 6 January 1946.
With the departure of the 397th, Hurn was used as a transitory airfield shipping personnel and materiel to France during September, but the following month the airfield was relinquished by the USAAF and returned to the RAF.
The airfield was closed by the RAF in October 1944 and turned over for civil use.
Civil use
With the facility released from military control, its good approaches attracted British Overseas Airways CorporationBoac
Boac may refer to:* Boac, Marinduque, a municipality in the Southern Philippines* Boac , an American rapper* British Overseas Airways Corporation, a former British state-owned airline...
(BOAC), which transferred operations there from their main wartime base near Bristol
Bristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
. Hurn gradually assumed importance as the main airport for the London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
area until Heathrow was opened as London's airport in 1946. Other civil airlines which used Hurn were KLM, Pan Am and Sabena
Sabena
SABENA was the national airline of Belgium from 1923 to 2001, with its base at Brussels National Airport. After its bankruptcy in 2001, the newly formed SN Brussels Airlines took over part of SABENA's assets in February 2002, which then became Brussels Airlines...
.
In the 1950s Vickers Armstrong
Vickers Armstrong
Vickers-Armstrongs Limited was a British engineering conglomerate formed by the merger of the assets of Vickers Limited and Sir W G Armstrong Whitworth & Company in 1927...
built a factory complex on the north-western side of the airfield, producing Viscount
Vickers Viscount
The Vickers Viscount was a British medium-range turboprop airliner first flown in 1948 by Vickers-Armstrongs, making it the first such aircraft to enter service in the world...
airliners and Varsity
Vickers Varsity
-See also:-References:NotesBibliography* Andrews, C.F. and E.B. Morgan. Vickers Aircraft since 1908. London: Putnam, 1988. ISBN 0-85177-815-1.* Ellis, Ken. Wrecks & Relics. Manchester, UK: Crecy Publishing, 21st edition, 2008. ISBN 9-780859-791342....
trainers. Aircraft production ceased in the 1970s but other aviation associated business continued.
Sixty years on from the days of the Ninth Air Force, Hurn is used for private and commercial flying, the latter on an increasing scale over the last decade. The former factory sites are now used by light industry as well as some aircraft servicing.