RAF Little Rissington (EGVL) is an RAF
AerodromeAn aerodrome or airfield is a term for any location from which aircraft flight operations take place, regardless of whether they involve cargo or passengers or neither....
and former
RAF stationA Royal Air Force station is a permanent Royal Air Force operations location. Many RAF stations are aerodromes, or airbases, being the home to one or more flying squadrons. Other RAF stations are training units, administrative units, headquarters , or carry out ground-based operational tasks...
in
GloucestershireGloucestershire is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn, and the entire Forest of Dean....
,
EnglandEngland 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 and the North Sea to the east, with the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. It was once home to the
Central Flying SchoolThe Central Flying School is the Royal Air Force's primary institution for the training of military flying instructors. It was established at Upavon Aerodrome, near Upavon, Wiltshire in 1912, and is the longest existing flying training school. The CFS's first commandant was Captain Godfrey Paine...
, the
Red PelicansThe Red Pelicans, were the official aerobatics display flyers of the Royal Air Force before the Red Arrows took over the role in 1965. The Red Pelicans flew the BAC Jet Provost aircraft.-History:...
and the
Red ArrowsThe Red Arrows, officially known as the Royal Air Force Aerobatic Team, is the aerobatics display team of the Royal Air Force, based at RAF Scampton, Lincolnshire, UK...
.
Built during the 1930s, the station was opened in 1938 and closed in 1994. The married-quarters and main technical site were sold in 1996 (the former becoming the village of
Upper RissingtonUpper Rissington is a village and civil parish in the Cotswold district of Gloucestershire, England, located about two-and-a-half miles east of Bourton-on-the-Water...
), but the aerodrome has been retained by the
Ministry of DefenceThe Ministry of Defence is the United Kingdom government department responsible for implementation of government defence policy and is the headquarters of the British Armed Forces....
and remains active along with the southern technical sites, under the operational control of HQAC at RAFC Cranwell.
It is now home to; 637
Volunteer Gliding SquadronVolunteer Gliding Squadrons are Royal Air Force flying training units, operating military Viking TX.1 and Vigilant T.1 gliders to train Air Cadets from the Combined Cadet Force and the Air Training Corps....
who provide elementary flying training for
Combined Cadet ForceThe Combined Cadet Force is a Ministry of Defence sponsored youth organisation in the United Kingdom. Its aim is to "provide a disciplined organisation in a school so that pupils may develop powers of leadership by means of training to promote the qualities of responsibility, self reliance,...
and
Air Training CorpsThe Air Training Corps is a cadet organisation based in the United Kingdom. It is a voluntary youth group which is part of the Air Cadet Organization and the Royal Air Force . It is supported by the Ministry of Defence, with a regular RAF Officer, currently Air Commodore Ian R W Stewart, serving...
cadets; the
Home OfficeThe Home Office is the United Kingdom government department responsible for immigration control, security and order. As such it is responsible for the police, United Kingdom Borders Agency and MI5. It is also in charge of government policy on security-related issues such as drugs, counter-terrorism...
Experimental Still-Air Fire Test Facility; and the aviation maintenance company, Devonair.
RAF Little Rissington (EGVL) is an RAF
AerodromeAn aerodrome or airfield is a term for any location from which aircraft flight operations take place, regardless of whether they involve cargo or passengers or neither....
and former
RAF stationA Royal Air Force station is a permanent Royal Air Force operations location. Many RAF stations are aerodromes, or airbases, being the home to one or more flying squadrons. Other RAF stations are training units, administrative units, headquarters , or carry out ground-based operational tasks...
in
GloucestershireGloucestershire is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn, and the entire Forest of Dean....
,
EnglandEngland 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 and the North Sea to the east, with the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. It was once home to the
Central Flying SchoolThe Central Flying School is the Royal Air Force's primary institution for the training of military flying instructors. It was established at Upavon Aerodrome, near Upavon, Wiltshire in 1912, and is the longest existing flying training school. The CFS's first commandant was Captain Godfrey Paine...
, the
Red PelicansThe Red Pelicans, were the official aerobatics display flyers of the Royal Air Force before the Red Arrows took over the role in 1965. The Red Pelicans flew the BAC Jet Provost aircraft.-History:...
and the
Red ArrowsThe Red Arrows, officially known as the Royal Air Force Aerobatic Team, is the aerobatics display team of the Royal Air Force, based at RAF Scampton, Lincolnshire, UK...
.
Built during the 1930s, the station was opened in 1938 and closed in 1994. The married-quarters and main technical site were sold in 1996 (the former becoming the village of
Upper RissingtonUpper Rissington is a village and civil parish in the Cotswold district of Gloucestershire, England, located about two-and-a-half miles east of Bourton-on-the-Water...
), but the aerodrome has been retained by the
Ministry of DefenceThe Ministry of Defence is the United Kingdom government department responsible for implementation of government defence policy and is the headquarters of the British Armed Forces....
and remains active along with the southern technical sites, under the operational control of HQAC at RAFC Cranwell.
It is now home to; 637
Volunteer Gliding SquadronVolunteer Gliding Squadrons are Royal Air Force flying training units, operating military Viking TX.1 and Vigilant T.1 gliders to train Air Cadets from the Combined Cadet Force and the Air Training Corps....
who provide elementary flying training for
Combined Cadet ForceThe Combined Cadet Force is a Ministry of Defence sponsored youth organisation in the United Kingdom. Its aim is to "provide a disciplined organisation in a school so that pupils may develop powers of leadership by means of training to promote the qualities of responsibility, self reliance,...
and
Air Training CorpsThe Air Training Corps is a cadet organisation based in the United Kingdom. It is a voluntary youth group which is part of the Air Cadet Organization and the Royal Air Force . It is supported by the Ministry of Defence, with a regular RAF Officer, currently Air Commodore Ian R W Stewart, serving...
cadets; the
Home OfficeThe Home Office is the United Kingdom government department responsible for immigration control, security and order. As such it is responsible for the police, United Kingdom Borders Agency and MI5. It is also in charge of government policy on security-related issues such as drugs, counter-terrorism...
Experimental Still-Air Fire Test Facility; and the aviation maintenance company, Devonair. The airfield is also used by the forces as a relief landing ground, training area and parachute dropping area. In previous years, the
Royal Air ForceThe Royal Air Force is the United Kingdom's air force, the oldest independent air force in the world. Formed on 1 April 1918, the RAF has taken a significant role in British military history ever since, playing a large part in World War II and in more recent conflicts.The RAF operates almost 1,109...
estate has been used as a film set: including
The Avengers (film)The Avengers is a 1998 American film adaptation of the British television series of the same name from the 1960s.The film was directed by Jeremiah Chechik...
, part of the ice chase in
Die Another DayDie Another Day is the twentieth spy film in the James Bond series, and the fourth and last to star Pierce Brosnan as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond. In the pre-title sequence, Bond leads a mission to North Korea, during which he is found out and, after killing a rogue North Korean colonel, he...
and the
Thunderbirds (film)Thunderbirds is a 2004 science fiction-adventure film based upon the television series of the same name of the 1960s, directed by Jonathan Frakes....
.
History
RAF Little Rissington Aerodrome 2006. |
RAF Little Rissington Main Site 2006. |
CFS Watch Tower behind the Aerodrome Identifier. |
The beginning: 1930s into war
During the build-up to the Second World War, the
Air MinistryThe Air Ministry was formerly a department of the British Government with the responsibility of managing the affairs of the Royal Air Force, existing from 1918 to 1964...
began constructing major airfields across the
United KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...
under what was known as the Expansion Period. RAF Little Rissington was one of these airfields.
Royal Air Force Station Little Rissington officially opened in 1938, comprising the domestic site and a grass airfield. During 1942, three asphalt runways were laid. Extra land was added to accommodate Sites A to E. Later in the war, the main runway 05/23 was extended northerly (later to become the main runway for instrument landings), 09/27 and 14/32 were extended easterly and south-easterly respectively.
Up to 1945 the station accommodated No. 6 Service Flying Training School and No. 8 Maintenance Unit. No. 8 Maintenance Unit was originally designated No. 8 Aircraft Storage Unit (ASU), however as the Second World War increased its momentum, so did the number of aircraft being stored. During the mid-1940s dispersal areas began openly storing aircraft, that had arrived straight from the manufacture. Due to security concerns, the level of security protection stepped up during the war, including the Station's own fighter force of several Spitfires. Later in the war, various satellite airfields were used to spread out the increased number of aircraft.
Central Flying School: 1946 to 1976
1946 the
Royal Air ForceThe Royal Air Force is the United Kingdom's air force, the oldest independent air force in the world. Formed on 1 April 1918, the RAF has taken a significant role in British military history ever since, playing a large part in World War II and in more recent conflicts.The RAF operates almost 1,109...
Central Flying SchoolThe Central Flying School is the Royal Air Force's primary institution for the training of military flying instructors. It was established at Upavon Aerodrome, near Upavon, Wiltshire in 1912, and is the longest existing flying training school. The CFS's first commandant was Captain Godfrey Paine...
moved to Little Rissington. The airfield also became the home to the RAF's aerobatics teams which included the
Red PelicansThe Red Pelicans, were the official aerobatics display flyers of the Royal Air Force before the Red Arrows took over the role in 1965. The Red Pelicans flew the BAC Jet Provost aircraft.-History:...
and later the
Red ArrowsThe Red Arrows, officially known as the Royal Air Force Aerobatic Team, is the aerobatics display team of the Royal Air Force, based at RAF Scampton, Lincolnshire, UK...
. The airfield was expanded during this period, and a new fire station and control tower were built.
Imjim Barracks: 1977 to 1979
After CFS's departure, the airfield was used by the
ArmyThe British Army is the land armed forces branch of the British Armed Forces. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdoms of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England and Scotland and...
, and with the arrival of the
Royal Irish RangersThe Royal Irish Rangers was a regular infantry regiment of the British Army.- Creation :...
Little Rissington became "Imjim Barracks".
USAF(E) RAF Little Rissington: 1981 to 1993
With the arrival of the
United States Air ForceThe United States Air Force is the aerial warfare branch of the U.S. armed forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on 18 September 1947 under the National Security Act of 1947 - 80 P.L....
in Europe, Little Rissington became the largest military contingency hospital in Europe. The aerodrome was cleared for
C-130 HerculesThe Lockheed C-130 Hercules is a four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft built by Lockheed. Capable of takeoffs and landings from unprepared runways, the C-130 was originally designed as a troop, medical evacuation, and cargo transport aircraft...
and C5 Galaxies. During the
Gulf WarThe Persian Gulf War , known also as the Gulf War, the First Gulf War,or often as the Second Gulf War and by Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein as The Mother of all Battles, or commonly as Desert Storm, for the military response...
, Little Rissington was held on its highest readiness state for several decades as it prepared for casualties. The USAF left Little Rissington in 1993 and it was handed back to the
Royal Air ForceThe Royal Air Force is the United Kingdom's air force, the oldest independent air force in the world. Formed on 1 April 1918, the RAF has taken a significant role in British military history ever since, playing a large part in World War II and in more recent conflicts.The RAF operates almost 1,109...
.
The draw down: 1994 to 2005
Little Rissington was identified as surplus to requirements in the Government's "
Options for ChangeOptions for Change was a restructuring of the British Armed Forces in 1990, aimed at cutting defence spending following the end of the Cold War....
" package and the entire site was put up for sale. The domestic and main technical sites of the station were sold to a property developer and became a business park.
Revival: 2006 to present
Following a Defence Review, the planned disposal of RAF Little Rissington was stopped, and so the immediate future of the aerodrome was secured. Several buildings received some minor upgrades. At the end of 2006, an civilian aircraft maintenance firm called 'Devonair' moved in under an agreement with the Ministry of Defence.
Today, RAF Little Rissington remains active for elementary flying training, and aircraft maintenance. With the increasing reduction in military aerodromes, RAF Little Rissington is steadily becoming more active for military flying and ground training. Much of the original station is still almost untouched, though the control tower and several hangars have been demolished.
In 2008, RAF Little Rissington was designated a Core Site up to 2030, under the
Defence EstatesDefence Estates is an executive agency of the Ministry of Defence , in the United Kingdom, which is responsible for the built and rural estate. It is controls 2,400 square kilometres which is about 1% of the area of the UK .-Administration:...
Development Plan 2008. While nothing has yet been confirmed, RAF Little Rissington has been looked at to support various changes:
- Satellite for RAF Brize Norton
RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire, about 65 miles west north-west of London, England, United Kingdom, is the largest airbase of the Royal Air Force....
in supporting Project CATARA with C130 Hercules training and maintenance.
- Satellite for RAF Benson
RAF Benson is a Royal Air Force station near Benson in Oxfordshire, England. It is home to the Royal Air Force's support helicopters, the Aérospatiale Puma and the AW101 Merlin, known as the Puma HC.Mk 1 and the Merlin HC.Mk 3 and Mk 3a....
, to provide a relief landing ground for helicopter training, and potentially relief storage pending the future decision on the Lyneham estate.
Rumours of an underground hospital
It is a local belief that a nuclear-proof underground hospital built by the
United States Air ForceThe United States Air Force is the aerial warfare branch of the U.S. armed forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on 18 September 1947 under the National Security Act of 1947 - 80 P.L....
lies underneath RAF Little Rissington. This rumour has, however, never been verified. However, it is widely accepted that tunnels were dug during the Second World War for the
Royal Observer CorpsThe Royal Observer Corps was a civil defence organisation operating in the United Kingdom between 29 October 1925 and 31 December 1995, when the Corps' civilian volunteers were stood down....
. Whether this tunnel network was developed during the 1980s is unknown.
A bunker is attached to the Sick Ward/Medical Centre at the main technical site. It is commonly mistaken for the rumoured underground USAF(E) hospital. The ward/bunker is covered in earth for protection and to remove the need to move patients during air raids. It dates back to the station's construction in the 1930s. Consequently it is above the surface and it is not nuclear-proof. Photos can be found here (Flickr)
http://www.flickr.com/photos/hicksdesign/1407051318/.
Historic monuments
RAF Little Rissington is one of several MoD estates with an ancient monument. On the eastern side of the aerodrome there is a
Long barrowA long barrow is a prehistoric monument dating to the early Neolithic period. They are rectangular or trapezoidal earth mounds traditionally interpreted as collective tombs...
, dated to between 4000BC and 2400BC. During the Second World War, the
Air MinistryThe Air Ministry was formerly a department of the British Government with the responsibility of managing the affairs of the Royal Air Force, existing from 1918 to 1964...
built a large air-raid shelter into it to protect the service personnel working in the maintenance units. Under the MoD's obligation to preserve and protect the UK's ancient monuments on their estates, this particular monument has in recent years been subject to several inspections by
Defence EstatesDefence Estates is an executive agency of the Ministry of Defence , in the United Kingdom, which is responsible for the built and rural estate. It is controls 2,400 square kilometres which is about 1% of the area of the UK .-Administration:...
.
Flying training units
- No.6 Service Flying Training School (1938-1942), renamed No.6 Pilot-Advanced Flying Unit (1942-?)
- No.23 Blind Approach Training Flight (1941-1942), renamed No.1523 Blind Approach Training Flight (1942-1945)
- Royal Air Force Central Flying School
The Central Flying School is the Royal Air Force's primary institution for the training of military flying instructors. It was established at Upavon Aerodrome, near Upavon, Wiltshire in 1912, and is the longest existing flying training school. The CFS's first commandant was Captain Godfrey Paine...
(1946-1976)
- No.637 Gliding School (1976-2005), renamed No.637 Volunteer Gliding Squadron
Volunteer Gliding Squadrons are Royal Air Force flying training units, operating military Viking TX.1 and Vigilant T.1 gliders to train Air Cadets from the Combined Cadet Force and the Air Training Corps....
(2005-Present)
Aerobatics display units
- The Sparrows (1958)
- The Redskins (1959)
- The Red Pelicans
The Red Pelicans, were the official aerobatics display flyers of the Royal Air Force before the Red Arrows took over the role in 1965. The Red Pelicans flew the BAC Jet Provost aircraft.-History:...
(1960-1973)
- The Red Arrows
The Red Arrows, officially known as the Royal Air Force Aerobatic Team, is the aerobatics display team of the Royal Air Force, based at RAF Scampton, Lincolnshire, UK...
(1964-1976)
Overseas units
- United States Air Force - European Force (1981-1993)
- 20th Tactical Fighter Wing - (Lodging)