RAF Wormingford
Encyclopedia
Essex
Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...
, England. The airfield is located approximately 6 miles (9.7 km) northwest of Colchester
Colchester
Colchester is an historic town and the largest settlement within the borough of Colchester in Essex, England.At the time of the census in 2001, it had a population of 104,390. However, the population is rapidly increasing, and has been named as one of Britain's fastest growing towns. As the...
.
During World War I Wormingford was a landing ground designated for use by aircraft operating against Zeppelins. Reopened as a military airfield in 1942, it was used by both the Royal Air Force
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...
and United States Army Air Force. During the war it was used primarily as a fighter airfield. After the war, it was returned to agriculture
Today a small section of the old runway is used by the Essex and Suffolk Gliding club.
Overview
Wormingford was originally earmarked for an Eighth Heavy Bomb Group, being built byRichard Costain Ltd. and helped by a number of sub contractors during the period 1942/1943. The airfield had a 2,000-yard main runway on an E-W axis and two intersecting runways of 1,400 yards each along with the USAAF standard fifty hardstands, two T2 hangars, one each side of the airfield, Mark 11 lighting and temporary building accommodation for 2,900 personnel. The technical area was on the southern side of the airfield and the camp sites dispersed to the south and east in and around the village of Fordham.
However Wormingford was surplus to Eighth Air Force
Eighth Air Force
The Eighth Air Force is a numbered air force of the United States Air Force Global Strike Command . It is headquartered at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana....
requirements as a heavy bomber base and it was used instead as a fighter base.
362d Fighter Group
The 362d Fighter Group362d Fighter Group
The 362d Fighter Group is an inactive United States Army Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with Tactical Air Command, stationed at Biggs Field, Texas. It was inactivated on 3 August 1946....
arrived at Wormingford from Mitchel AAF New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
on 30 November 1943, being assigned to the 66th Fighter Wing of the VIII Fighter Command.
The group consisted of the following squadrons:
- 377th Fighter Squadron (E4)
- 378th Fighter Squadron (G8)
- 379th Fighter Squadron (B8)
The 362d FG flew its first mission, escorting B-24s that attacked V-weapon launching sites near the Pas de Calais on 8 February 1944. Until April 1944 the group engaged chiefly in escorting B-17/B-24 bombers that struck factories, railways, airfields, and other targets on the Continent. The group repeatedly attacked communications in northern France and in Belgium during Apr and May, in preparation for the invasion of Normandy
D-Day
D-Day is a term often used in military parlance to denote the day on which a combat attack or operation is to be initiated. "D-Day" often represents a variable, designating the day upon which some significant event will occur or has occurred; see Military designation of days and hours for similar...
.
The group moved to RAF Headcorn
RAF Headcorn
RAF Headcorn was a World War II airfield in Kent, England. The airfield was located approximately east-northeast of Headcorn; about southeast of London...
on 13 April 1944 when it was transferred to Ninth Air Force
Ninth Air Force
The Ninth Air Force is a numbered air force of the United States Air Force's Air Combat Command . It is headquartered at Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina....
.
55th Fighter Group
The 55th Fighter Group moved to Wormingford on 16 April 1944 to accommodate the arrival of a B-17 Heavy bomb group at RAF NuthampsteadRAF Nuthampstead
RAF Nuthampstead is a former World War II airfield in England. The airfield is located mostly in Hertfordshire between the villages of Nuthampstead and Anstey in Hertfordshire and Langley and Lower Green in Essex. The eastern part of the airfield including part of the East-West Runway, the Fuel...
. The 55th was under the command of the 67th Fighter Wing of the VIII Fighter Command. Aircraft of the 55th were identified by a green/yellow chequerboard pattern around their cowling.
The group consisted of the following squadrons:
- 38th Fighter Squadron (CG)
- 338th Fighter Squadron (CL)
- 343d Fighter Squadron (CY)
Originally flying P-38s, then converting to P-51
P-51 Mustang
The 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...
s in July the group attacked gun emplacements during the Saint-Lô
Saint-Lô
Saint-Lô is a commune in north-western France, the capital of the Manche department in Normandy.-History:Originally called Briovère , the town is built on and around ramparts. Originally it was a Gaul fortified settlement...
breakthrough in July 1944, and transportation facilities during the Battle of the Bulge, December 1944-January 1945
Battle of the Bulge
The Battle of the Bulge was a major German offensive , launched toward the end of World War II through the densely forested Ardennes mountain region of Wallonia in Belgium, hence its French name , and France and...
. The group also patrolled the air over the English Channel
English Channel
The English Channel , often referred to simply as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates southern England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest to in the Strait of Dover...
and bombed bridges in the Tours area during the invasion of the Continent
D-Day
D-Day is a term often used in military parlance to denote the day on which a combat attack or operation is to be initiated. "D-Day" often represents a variable, designating the day upon which some significant event will occur or has occurred; see Military designation of days and hours for similar...
in June 1944. The unit patrolled the Arnhem
Arnhem
Arnhem is a city and municipality, situated in the eastern part of the Netherlands. It is the capital of the province of Gelderland and located near the river Nederrijn as well as near the St. Jansbeek, which was the source of the city's development. Arnhem has 146,095 residents as one of the...
sector to support the airborne invasion of Holland in September 1944 along with strafing trucks, locomotives, and oil depots near Wesel when the Allies crossed the Rhine
Operation Varsity
Operation Varsity was a successful joint American–British airborne operation that took place toward the end of World War II...
in March 1945.
The unit received a Distinguished Unit Citation for eight missions to Germany between 3 and 13 September 1944 when the group not only destroyed enemy fighters in the air to protect the bombers it was escorting, but also descended to low levels, in spite of intense anti-aircraft fire, to strafe airfields and to destroy enemy aircraft on the ground. Received second DUC for operations on 19 February 1945 when the organization flew a sweep over Germany to hit railway tracks, locomotives, oil cars, goods wagons, troop cars, buildings, and military vehicles. The 55th Flew last combat mission on 21 April 1945.
The 55th Fighter Group moved to Kaufbeuren
Kaufbeuren
Kaufbeuren is an independent city in the Regierungsbezirk of Schwaben, southern Bavaria. The city is completely enclaved within the district of Ostallgäu.- Culture and Objects of Interest :* Townhall * Crescentiakloster...
Germany on 22 July 1945 as part of the occupation forces. It was assigned to United States Air Forces in Europe
United States Air Forces in Europe
The United States Air Forces in Europe is the United States Air Force component of U.S. European Command, a Department of Defense unified command, and is one of two Air Force Major Commands outside of the continental United States, the other being the Pacific Air Forces...
. While on occupation duty, the group trained with P-51
P-51 Mustang
The 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...
and P-80 aircraft. Inactivated in Germany on 20 August 1946.
Legacy
The United States Air Force
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States 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 September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...
55th Wing
55th Wing
The 55th Wing is a United States Air Force unit assigned to Air Combat Command. The unit is stationed at Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska....
in various designations, has been a front-line unit of Strategic Air Command
Strategic Air Command
The Strategic Air Command was both a Major Command of the United States Air Force and a "specified command" of the United States Department of Defense. SAC was the operational establishment in charge of America's land-based strategic bomber aircraft and land-based intercontinental ballistic...
and Air Combat Command
Air Combat Command
Air Combat Command is a major command of the United States Air Force. ACC is one of ten major commands , reporting to Headquarters, United States Air Force ....
more than 50 years.
The 55th Reconnaissance Group (Very Long Range, Mapping). was activated in 1948 and assigned to Strategic Air Command
Strategic Air Command
The Strategic Air Command was both a Major Command of the United States Air Force and a "specified command" of the United States Department of Defense. SAC was the operational establishment in charge of America's land-based strategic bomber aircraft and land-based intercontinental ballistic...
. Aircraft included RB-17's and B-29's and RB-29's. The USAF 55th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing was activated in 1950, and was bestowed the lineage, honors and history of the World War II USAAF 55th Fighter Group in 1952.
The 55th Wing is currently on active duty at Offut AFB Nebraska
Nebraska
Nebraska is a state on the Great Plains of the Midwestern United States. The state's capital is Lincoln and its largest city is Omaha, on the Missouri River....
.