Everything about Raf Coltishall totally explained
The former
Royal Air Force Station Coltishall, more commonly known as
RAF Coltishall, was a
Royal Air Force station, a
military airbase, 10 miles North-North-East of
Norwich, in the
English county of
Norfolk,
East Anglia, from 1938 to 2006.
It was a fighter base in the
Second World War and afterwards a base for night fighters then ground attack aircraft until closure.
After longstanding speculation, the future of the station was sealed once the
Ministry of Defence announced that the
Typhoon, a rolling replacement aircraft, displacing the ageing
Jaguars, wouldn't be based there. The last of the Jaguar squadrons left on
1 April 2006 and the station finally closed, one month early and
£10 million under budget, on
30 November 2006.
The station
motto was
Aggressive in Defence. The station crest is a stone tower surmounted by a mailed fist grasping three bind bolts (arrows), which symbolised a position of strength in defence of the homeland, indicative of the aggressive spirit which Coltishall fighter aircraft were prepared to shoot down the enemy.
History
Work on
RAF Coltishall was started in February 1939. The airfield, then known as Scottow Aerodrome, was initially built as a bomber base, on land near Scottow Hall. Following the established tradition, the station would have been named after the nearest
railway station, which would have made it RAF Buxton, but to avoid possible confusion with
Buxton, Derbyshire, it was named after the local
village of
Coltishall instead. The airfield was completed and entered service in May 1940 as a fighter base. The first aircraft movement at Coltishall was a
Blenheim IV L7835 flown by
Sergeant RG Bales and Sergeant Barnes.
During the Second World War, Coltishall operated the
Hawker Hurricane, and a notable Coltishall fighter pilot was
Douglas Bader. It later became home to
night fighters. At the same time the
Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm operated aircraft from RAF Coltishall over the
North Sea. At the end of the war Coltishall was briefly given over to
Polish squadrons until they returned home.
In the
1950s, RAF Coltishall was a designated a V Bomber dispersal base, whereby the bombers of the
V-force aircraft, the
Vulcan,
Victor and
Valiant, could use in the event of their home base being damaged by enemy action.
Post-war, the station was home to a variety of units and aircraft including
Mosquitos,
Javelins,
Lightnings and - from 1963 - the Historic Aircraft Flight (now known as the
Battle of Britain Memorial Flight). The last Lightnings left Coltishall in
1974 and were replaced by the
Anglo-French SEPECAT Jaguar. The first Jaguar squadron,
No. 54 Squadron RAF, arrived at Coltishall on
8 August 1974. These Jaguars came from the frontline stations in
RAF Germany, when they were being re-equipped with the new
Panavia Tornado.
In terms of fixed wing aircraft, the station was exclusively a Jaguar station from then on, and some of the station's pink painted Jaguars participated in the 1991
Gulf War Operation GRANBY and
Operation Warden, without sustaining a single loss of man or machine, and in subsequent operations over
Balkans (
Operation Deny Flight)) and then later
Iraq once more. Coltishall was also home to the yellow
Search And Rescue (SAR) helicopters of
202 Sqn (
Sea King) and latterly
22 Sqn (
Wessex), but under subsequent reorganisation, the SAR operations were moved to
RAF Wattisham, in
Suffolk where they remain.
Coltishall eventually became the last surviving operational RAF airbase from World War 2, and a visible remnant in the form of a Second World War
revetment still stands on the North-West
taxiway.
With the anticipated arrival of the
Eurofighter Typhoon in the RAF, the gradual retirement of the Jaguar force began. Coltishall wasn't chosen as a future Typhoon base for a number of reasons, and so, with no future RAF role for Coltishall, the station was earmarked for closure.
The
Ministry of Defence, in the
Delivering Security in a Changing World review, announced that the station would close by December 2006. The first two Jaguar squadrons to disband,
No. 16 Squadron RAF and
No. 54 Squadron RAF, did so on
11 March 2005. The final Jaquar squadrons departed on
1 April 2006, when
No. 6 Squadron RAF transferred to
RAF Coningsby, but was subsequently disbanded on
31 May 2007 (to await delivery of the
Eurofighter Typhoon at
RAF Leuchars in
Scotland), and
No. 41 Squadron RAF transferred to
RAF Coningsby in OCU role. The final front line RAF movement from the station was by Jaguar XZ112, piloted by Jim Luke, on
3 April 2006.
Of the final
gate guardians, the replica Hawker Hurricane was transferred to High Wycombe, and the Jaguar was formally named the
Spirit of Coltishall, and was subsequently transferred to the grounds of
Norfolk County Council (External Link
), where she's dedicated to the memory of all those who served at Coltishall.
Some limited flying from light aircraft including those of the Coltishall Flying Club did continue after the end of RAF flying operations, until October 2006. While
1 April 2006 saw the disbandment parade for the station, it didn't actually disband and finally close until
30 November 2006. Associated facilities such as the Douglas Bader
Primary School have also closed. The final day of the station saw the gates being opened to the public - anybody with photographic ID was welcomed onto the station to have a look around and view the final closing ceremony, which saw a
flypast by four RAF Jaguars, and a solitary
Hawker Hurricane from
Duxford.
On
30 November 2006, RAF Coltishall was officially handed over to
Defence Estates (the MoD agency responsible for all UK Military sites) who are to handle the disposal of the site, and will be formally known as MoD Coltishall until its ultimate disposal. During January 2007, the
Home Office expressed an interest, and in early February earmarked the site for potential use as an immigration detention facility, but this was subsequently ruled out. In December 2007, fresh reports in the media suggest the site will be used as a
prison, but this has angered local residents who have not been informed of the disposal progress.
In July 2007 a petition was set up on the
10 Downing St website by Jeremy Godwin to campaign for Coltishall to be reopened as a Civil Airfield.
More than one year on from the official closure, the official fate of the former RAF airbase has yet to be decided.
Coltishall Station Commanders
Coltishall aircraft
Some 40-plus different types of aircraft have operated out of Coltishall at some point in its history, among these:
Resident Squadron aircraft
Supermarine Spitfire
Hawker Hurricane
Bell P-39 Airacobra I
Supermarine Walrus
Westland Whirlwind I
Westland Lysander III
Bristol Blenheim IVf
Hawker Typhoon Ia
Avro Anson
Hawker Tempest V
de Havilland Mosquito NF30 & NF36
P-51 Mustang III
Gloster Meteor NF11
de Havilland Vampire NF10
de Havilland Venom NF2
Hawker Hunter F6
English Electric Canberra PR9
Gloster Javelin FAW9(R)
English Electric Lightning
SEPECAT Jaguar
non-resident aircraft
operated by Detachments from other squadrons:
Bristol Beaufighter If (604 Sqn AuxAF Det),
Douglas A-20 Havoc I (93 Sqn Det),
Bristol Beaufort I (22 Sqn Det),
Boulton Paul Defiant I (151 Sqn Det),
SAR Air/sea Rescue squadron detachments:
Sycamore HR14
Westland Wessex HAR2
Westland Whirlwind (helicopter)
Westland Sea King HAR3
Albacore I (No. 841 NAS)
Fairey Swordfish (841 NAS)
de Havilland Sea Hornet NF21 (No. 809 NAS),
Fairey Gannet AEW3 (No. 849 NAS)
BBMF
As home to the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight, a sole Avro Lancaster bomber operated out of Coltishall post war.
Coltishall Squadrons
No. 1 Squadron RAF; Spitfire LFIXb,F21
No. 3 Squadron RAF
No. 6 Squadron RAF; Jaguar GR1/1A/1B, T2/T2A, GR3/3A, T4/T4A (November 1974 - April 2006)
No. 16 Squadron RAF (? - March 2005) (Squadron Standard now laid up in Notre-Dame Cathedral Saint-Omer, France)
No. 22 Squadron RAF; Beaufort I,II, Whirlwind HAR2,HAR10, Wessex HAR2
No. 23 Squadron RAF; Mosquito NF36, Vampire NF10, Venom NF2,NF3, Javelin FAW4,FAW7,FAW9R
No. 25 Squadron RAF; Mosquito VI,XVII,NFXXX
No. 29 Squadron RAF; Beaufighter IF,VIF
No. 39 Squadron RAF; Canberra T4,PR7,PR9
No. 41 Squadron RAF; Javelin FAW4, Jaguar GR1/1A/1B, T2/T2A, GR3/3A, T4/T4A (1976 - April 2006)
No. 42 Squadron RAF; Beaufort I,II
No. 54 Squadron RAF (also known as No. LIV Squadron RAF); Jaguar GR1/1A/1B, T2/T2A, GR3/3A, T4/T4A (August 1974 - March 2005) (Squadron Standard now laid up in Norwich Cathedral)
No. 56 Squadron RAF; Typhoon Ia,Ib
No. 64 Squadron RAF; Spitfire I,Vb,LEVc
No. 66 Squadron RAF; Spitfire I
No. 68 Squadron RAF; Beaufighter IF,VI, Mosquito XVII,XIX,XXX
No. 72 Squadron RAF; Spitfire I
No. 74 Squadron RAF "Tigers"; Spitfire IIa, Hunter F6, Lightning F1,F3 (1940, 1960-1966)
No. 80 Squadron RAF; Tempest V
No. 85 Squadron RAF; Meteor NF11
No. 93 Squadron RAF; Havoc I
No. 118 Squadron RAF; Spitfire Vb
No. 124 Squadron RAF; Spitfire XI
No. 125 Squadron RAF; Mosquito XIV,XXX
No. 133 Squadron RAF (American Eagle Squadron formed 1941); Hurricane IIb
No. 137 Squadron RAF; Whirlwind I
No. 141 Squadron RAF; Mosquito NF36, Meteor NF11, Venom NF3, Javelin FAW4
No. 151 Squadron RAF; Hurricane I,IIb,IIc, Defiant I
No. 152 Squadron RAF; Spitfire IIa
No. 154 Squadron RAF; Spitfire Va,Vb
No. 167 Squadron RAF; Spitfire Vb,Vc
No. 195 Squadron RAF; Typhoon Ib
No. 202 Squadron RAF; Whirlwind HAR10, Sea King HAR3
No. 222 Squadron RAF; Spitfire Ia,IIa,IIb
No. 226 Squadron RAF OCU; Lightning F1,F1A,F3,T4,T5,T55
No. 228 Squadron RAF; Whirlwind HAR10
No. 228 Squadron RAF OCU; Mosquito (various), Meteor (various)
No. 229 Squadron RAF; Spitfire XI,XVI
No. 234 Squadron RAF; Spitfire Vb,Vc
No. 266 Squadron RAF; Typhoon Ia,Ib
No. 242 Squadron RAF; Hurricane I
No. 255 Squadron RAF; Beaufighter IIF
No. 257 Squadron RAF; Hurricane I,IIa,IIb,IIc
No. 264 Squadron RAF; Mosquito NF36
No. 274 Squadron RAF; Tempest V
No. 275 Squadron RAF; Sycamore HR13,HR14
No. 278 Squadron RAF; Lysander IIa, Walrus I,II, Anson I
No. 288 Squadron RAF; Hurricane I, Defiant TT II/III
No. 303 Polish Fighter Squadron; Spitfire IX, Mustang IV (1944, 1945)
No. 306 Squadron RAF; Mustang III
No. 307 Squadron RAF; Mosquito XXX
No. 309 Squadron RAF; Mustang III,IV
No. 312 Squadron RAF; Spitfire XI
No. 315 Squadron RAF; Mustang III
No. 316 (Polish) Squadron RAF; Mustang III
No. 318 Squadron RAF; Spitfire IX
No. 409 Squadron RAF; Beaufighter VI
No. 453 Squadron RAF; Spitfire IX
No. 488 Squadron RAF; Beaufighter II
No. 601 Squadron Royal Auxiliary Air Force;
No. 602 Squadron RAF; Spitfire IX,XVI
No. 603 Squadron RAF; Spitfire XVI (1945)
No. 604 Squadron RAF; Beaufighter I
No. 610 Squadron RAF; Spitfire Vb,Vc
No. 611 Squadron RAF; Spitfire IX
No. 616 Squadron RAF; Spitfire I
No. 659 Squadron RAF;
No. 809 Squadron FAA; Sea Hornet F20,NF21
No. 841 Squadron FAA; Albacore I, Swordfish I,II
No. 849 Squadron FAA; Gannett AEW3,COD4,T5
No. 1439 Flight RAF; Lysander II,III, Henley III
HAF/BBMF RAF; Hurricane IIc, Spitfire IIa,Va,PRXIX, Lancaster B1
Air Fighter Development Squadron; Javelin (various), Hunter (various), Lightining (various)
346th Fighter Group; Spitfire Vb, Bell Airacobra
Mandrel Screen Unit; Defiant II
Fighter Interception Unit; Mosquito (various)
Night Fighter Development Unit; Mosquito (various), Firefly IFurther Information
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