RAF Breighton

RAF Breighton Breighton Airfield
Breighton Airfield and Aeroplane Museum
IATA: none – ICAO: EGBR
Summary
Owner	Air Ministry 1940-1964 Private 1964-Present
Operator	Royal Air Force 1940-1964 Private 1964-Present
Location	Breighton, East Riding of Yorkshire
Built	1940
In use	1942-1964
Elevation AMSL	20 ft / 6 m
Coordinates	53°48′07″N 000°54′49″W / 53.80194°N 0.91361°WCoordinates: 53°48′07″N 000°54′49″W / 53.80194°N 0.91361°W
Map
EGBR Location in East Riding of Yorkshire
Runways
Direction Length Surface ft m 11/29 0 0 Grass 00/00 0 0 Asphalt 00/00 0 0 Asphalt 00/00 0 0 Asphalt

Royal Air Force Breighton or more simply RAF Breighton is a former Royal Air Force station located near to the village of Breighton, East Riding of Yorkshire, England which is now Breighton Airfield.

History

The airfield was built between 1940 and 1942 for No. 1 Group RAF,^[1] its first residents were the No. 460 Squadron RAAF.^[2]

From 1959 to 1963, as part of Project Emily, the base was a launch site for three nuclear-armed PGM-17 Thor intermediate-range ballistic missiles, operated by No. 240 Squadron RAF.^[3]

The base closed in March 1964, when the last active unit (which operated the Bristol Bloodhound air-defence missile) withdrew.^[4]

Squadrons

Squadron	Equipment	From	To	To	Notes
No. 78 Squadron RAF	Handley Page Halifax II/III/VI Douglas Dakota	16 June 1943	20 September 1945	RAF Almaza	[5]
No. 112 Squadron RAF	Bristol Bloodhound I	7 November 1960	31 March 1964	Disbanded	[6]
No. 240 Squadron RAF	PGM-17 Thor	1 August 1959	8 January 1963	Disbanded	[3]
No. 460 Squadron RAAF	Vickers Wellington IV Handley Page Halifax II Avro Lancaster I/III	4 January 1942	14 May 1943	RAF Binbrook	[2]

Units

• No. 20 Blind Approach Training Flight RAF.^[7]
• No. 35 Maintenance Unit RAF.^[7]
• No. 103 FRS.^[7]
• No. 207 Advanced Flying School RAF.^[7]
• No. 460 Con Flight RAF.^[7]
• No. 1520 (Beam Approach Training) Flight RAF.^[7]
• No. 1656 Heavy Conversion Unit RAF.^[7]
• No. 2716 Squadron RAF Regiment.^[7]
• No. 2797 Squadron RAF Regiment.^[7]

Current use

Mustangs Flying During Breighton Airshow

The original runways are covered in buildings but the outline of the runways, taxiways and dispersal stands are clearly visible using satellite imagery.^[4]

A part of the airfield is currently used by the Real Aeroplane Company to house and maintain private and historic aircraft and a home for the Breighton Flying Club which uses a separate grass runway located within the original airfield grounds.^[1]

Five people were injured in a helicopter crash at the airfield on 17 July 2016.^[8]

References

Citations

1. "Airfield history". The Real Aeroplane Company. Retrieved 27 September 2012.
2. Jefford 1988, p. 93.
3. Jefford 1988, p. 76
4. Delve 2006, p. 50.
5. Jefford 1988, p. 48.
6. Jefford 1988, p. 56.
7. "Breighton - Units". Airfields of Britain Conservation Trust. Retrieved 4 June 2016.
8. "Five casualties after helicopter crash". BBC News. Retrieved 17 July 2016.

Bibliography

• Delve, Ken. The Military Airfields of Britain; Northern England. Marlborough, Wiltshire, UK: Crowood Press, 1988. ISBN 1-86126-809-2.
• Jefford, C.G, MBE,BA ,RAF (Retd). RAF Squadrons, a Comprehensive Record of the Movement and Equipment of all RAF Squadrons and their Antecedents since 1912. Shrewsbury, Shropshire, UK: Airlife Publishing, 1988. ISBN 1-84037-141-2.

External links

• Real Aeroplane Company