RAF Newmarket
Encyclopedia
RAF Newmarket was an RAF
station near Newmarket, Suffolk
, England
, near the border with Cambridgeshire
.
The RAF station was actually a grass-strip on Newmarket's
Rowley Mile Racecourse http://www.newmarketracecourses.co.uk. The grass strip is still used by light aircraft today.
and Frankie Dettori
. The plane was headed for Goodwood
in Sussex
. Cochrane received the Queen's Commendation for Bravery
in 2002 for saving Dettori's life.
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...
station near Newmarket, Suffolk
Suffolk
Suffolk is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in East Anglia, England. It has borders with Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south. The North Sea lies to the east...
, 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...
, near the border with Cambridgeshire
Cambridgeshire
Cambridgeshire is a county in England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the northeast, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and Northamptonshire to the west...
.
The RAF station was actually a grass-strip on Newmarket's
Newmarket Racecourse
The town of Newmarket, in Suffolk, England, is the headquarters of British horseracing, home to the largest cluster of training yards in the country and many key horse racing organisations. Newmarket Racecourse has two courses - the Rowley Mile Course and the July Course. Both are wide, galloping...
Rowley Mile Racecourse http://www.newmarketracecourses.co.uk. The grass strip is still used by light aircraft today.
2000 aircraft crash
In June 2000, a Piper Seneca plane crashed on take off, killing the pilot and injuring jockeys Ray CochraneRay Cochrane
Ray Cochrane is a retired horse racing jockey and current sports agent.He was the winning jockey in three of the five British Classic Races: the Oaks Stakes, 1,000 Guineas Stakes and Epsom Derby Stakes...
and Frankie Dettori
Frankie Dettori
Lanfranco "Frankie" Dettori, MBE is an Italian horse racing jockey and celebrity. Dettori has been Champion Jockey on three occasions and has ridden the winners of more than 500 Group races.. He has had many successes in his role of stable jockey to Godolphin Racing...
. The plane was headed for Goodwood
Goodwood Racecourse
Goodwood Racecourse is a horse-racing track five miles north of Chichester, West Sussex, in England controlled by the family of the Duke of Richmond, whose seat is nearby Goodwood House...
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...
. Cochrane received the Queen's Commendation for Bravery
Queen's Commendation for Bravery
The Queen's Commendation for Bravery is one of the United Kingdom awards granted for bravery entailing risk to life and meriting national recognition, but not at the level of the Queen's Gallantry Medal. The award may be granted posthumously and is not restricted to British subjects...
in 2002 for saving Dettori's life.
Operational units and aircraft
- No. 2 Squadron RAFNo. 2 Squadron RAFNo. 2 Squadron of the Royal Air Force is currently one of two RAF squadrons operating in the reconnaissance role with the Tornado GR4A and GR4 and is based at RAF Marham, Norfolk.No. II Squadron holds claim to being "the oldest heavier-than-air flying machine squadron in the world", along with No...
detachment (1943) - North American Mustang IP-51 MustangThe North American Aviation P-51 Mustang was an American long-range, single-seat fighter and fighter-bomber used during World War II, the Korean War and in several other conflicts... - No. 75 Squadron RAFNo. 75 Squadron RAFNo. 75 Squadron of the Royal Air Force operated as a bomber unit in World War II, before being transferred to the Royal New Zealand Air Force in 1945.-First World War, Royal Flying Corps, Home Defence Squadron :...
(1942-1943) - Short Stirling I & IIIShort StirlingThe Short Stirling was the first four-engined British heavy bomber of the Second World War. The Stirling was designed and built by Short Brothers to an Air Ministry specification from 1936, and entered service in 1941... - No. 99 Squadron RAFNo. 99 Squadron RAFNo. 99 Squadron of the Royal Air Force was a bomber squadron in both first and second world war. At present it operates the Boeing C-17 Globemaster III from RAF Brize Norton, the RAF's air transport hub. The squadron was the first RAF unit to receive the Avro Aldershot, Handley Page Hyderabad,...
(1939-1941) - Vickers Wellington I, IA & ICVickers WellingtonThe 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... - No. 107 Squadron RAFNo. 107 Squadron RAFNo. 107 Squadron RAF was a bomber unit in the RAF in both World War I and World War II and during the Cold war was operational on Thor Intermediate Range Ballistic Missiles.-Formation and World War I:...
detachment (1939-1941) - Bristol Blenheim I & IVBristol BlenheimThe Bristol Blenheim was a British light bomber aircraft designed and built by the Bristol Aeroplane Company that was used extensively in the early days of the Second World War. It was adapted as an interim long-range and night fighter, pending the availability of the Beaufighter... - No. 138 Squadron RAFNo. 138 Squadron RAFNo. 138 Squadron RAF was a squadron of the Royal Air Force that served in a variety of roles during its career, last disbanded in 1962. It was the first 'V-bomber' squadron of the RAF, flying the Vickers Valiant between 1955 and 1962....
(1941) - Westland Lysander IIIAWestland LysanderThe Westland Lysander was a British army co-operation and liaison aircraft produced by Westland Aircraft used immediately before and during the Second World War...
& Armstrong Whitworth Whitley VArmstrong Whitworth WhitleyThe 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... - No. 161 Squadron RAFNo. 161 Squadron RAFNo. 161 Squadron was a highly secretive unit of the Royal Air Force tasked with missions of the Special Operations Executive during the Second World War. Their primary role was to drop and collect secret agents and equipment into and from Nazi-occupied Europe...
(1942) - Westland Lysander IIIAWestland LysanderThe Westland Lysander was a British army co-operation and liaison aircraft produced by Westland Aircraft used immediately before and during the Second World War...
, Lockheed Hudson ILockheed HudsonThe Lockheed Hudson was an American-built light bomber and coastal reconnaissance aircraft built initially for the Royal Air Force shortly before the outbreak of the Second World War and primarily operated by the RAF thereafter...
& Armstrong Whitworth Whitley VArmstrong Whitworth WhitleyThe 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... - No. 453 Squadron RAAFNo. 453 Squadron RAAFNo. 453 Squadron is a Royal Australian Air Force air traffic control unit. It was first was formed at Bankstown in New South Wales on 23 May 1941 during World War II and was disbanded in March 1942 after suffering heavy losses in combat during the Battle of Malaya...
(1943 for one week) - Supermarine Spitfire VBSupermarine SpitfireThe 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...