| Summary : A former military airfield, begun in 1929 and expanded under the RAF expansion programme of the late 1930s, further expanded in 1942 for heavy bomber aircraft. During its pre-war and Second World War phases it was mainly used by Operational Training Units, paricularly in for instruction in air gunnery and bombing (the actual ranges were at Donna Noooks Lincolnshire, and Skipsea on the east Yorkshire coast). In 1934 it was designated as Number 1 Armamament Training Camp, redesignated in 1944 as the Central Gunnery School. After the war the base was all but closed, remaining as a relief landing ground until 1947. It reopened in 1959 as a `Thor' ballistic missile base (operated by 226 Squadron). It was de-activated in 1963. By 1999 much of the airfield runway layout was intact but covered with industrial and agricultural buildings. A number of the features, mainly the defences of the airfield have been recorded as seperate records: please see child records TA 14 NW 38 to TA NW 51 and TA 14 NW 59 to TA 14 NW 61. |
More information : (TA 1339 4873) RAF Catfoss Military Airfield.
This airfield, situated to the east of of Brandesburton on an area of
flat land, has been in use since before the Second World War, and was enlarged in 1942. All the surviving structures on the site are recognisably military, and either show the attractive 1930's
`expansion period' design, or that of the more standard `austerity
period'.
The airfield started life in the early 1930's as a simple grass
airstrip, but the site was massively expanded in 1942 with three
concrete runways being built to accommodate the heavier aircraft of the period.
In the event of an invasion, the capture of an airfield would be very
high on the list of the invaders' priorities. Therefore, Catfoss was
very heavily defended, being surrounded by by pillboxes and even
having its own six pounder gun. The importance of the airfield is
demonstrated by the much thicker concrete used in comparison to the pillboxes situated nearer the coast, up to a foot thicker than the standard army pillbox. Some of the 1940 defences still survive but many were swept away in the expansion of 1942 as the RAF began its major offensives.
The airfield was closed after the war, only to re-open as an inter-
continental ballistic missile site in 1959 with Thor missiles. This
was the last period of operation for the airfield and it was
de-commisioned in 1963.
When the site was surveyed by the Fortress Studies Group in 1992 many of the original buildings still survived, and were in good condition; these are described separately (see parent-child relationship).
(1-1a-1b)
Catfoss Airfield, TA 135485. The source gives a statistical profile of the site as it was in 1944, also included is a small sketch plan of the location. (2)
RAF Catfoss began in 1929 and was expanded under the RAF expansion programme of the late 1930s. It was briefly known as "Bridlington (Catfoss) Summer Camp" but the shorter name was quickly adopted. During its pre-war and Second World War phases it was mainly used by Operational Training Units, often visiting from their normal bases for the duration of a training course, paricularly in for instruction in air gunnery and bombing (the actual ranges were at Donna Noooks Lincolnshire, and Skipsea on the east Yorkshire coast). In 1934 it was designated as Number 1 Armamament Training Camp, redesignated in 1944 as the Central Gunnery School. In addition, air crews that made emergency landings at the nearby Carnaby airfield were often temporarily housed at Catfoss until repairs could be made. After the war the base was all but closed, remaining as a relief landing ground until 1947. It reopened in 1958-1959 as a `Thor' ballistic missile base (operated by 226 Squadron). The missiles were withdrawn in 1963 and the base closed. By 1999 much of the airfield runway layout was intact but covered with industrial and agricultural buildings. Many buildings survived in 1999, reused for industrial and manufacturing purposes.The source contains plans of the base in 1929 and in about 1937. (3)
RAF Catfoss airfield, TA 135 485, extant but condition unknown. (4) |