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RAF Middleton St George

Summary

RAF Middleton St George is a former Royal Air Force (RAF) and Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) Bomber Command station during the Second World War. It was located in County Durham, 6 mi (9.7 km) east of Darlington, England. The station's motto was Shield and Deter.[2] The aerodrome remains active as Teesside International Airport.

RAF Middleton St George
RAF Goosepool
Middleton St George, County Durham in England
A crew of No. 78 Squadron RAF watch as engine adjustments are made to an Armstrong Whitworth Whitley bomber, Z6743, before they take off for a raid from Middleton St George.
RAF Middleton St George is located in County Durham
RAF Middleton St George
RAF Middleton St George
Shown within County Durham
RAF Middleton St George is located in the United Kingdom
RAF Middleton St George
RAF Middleton St George
RAF Middleton St George (the United Kingdom)
Coordinates54°30′33″N 001°25′46″W / 54.50917°N 1.42944°W / 54.50917; -1.42944
Grid referenceNZ375130[1]
TypeRoyal Air Force station
Site information
OwnerMinistry of Defence
OperatorRoyal Air Force
Royal Canadian Air Force
Controlled byRAF Bomber Command 1941-45
RAF Fighter Command
1945-47 & 1956-64
RAF Flying Training Command 1947-56
Site history
Built1939 (1939)
In useJanuary 1941 - April 1964 (1964)
Faterepurposed to Teesside International Airport
Battles/warsEuropean theatre of World War II
Cold War
Airfield information
Runways
Direction Length and surface
01/19 1,006 metres (3,301 ft) Concrete
05/23 2,291 metres (7,516 ft) Concrete
10/28 1,280 metres (4,199 ft) Concrete
RAF. Middleton St George August 1960

History edit

Second World War edit

Like many similar airfields; RAF Middleton St George was commissioned in 1938 in anticipation of WWII and opened in 1941 under the auspices of Bomber Command. Contrary to popular belief the airfield was never called RAF Goosepool, Goosepool being the name of the farm which made way for the airfield, with the name sticking amongst the local population.

Initial Squadrons based here were 76 Squadron with Handley Page Halifaxes and 78 Squadron which flew Armstrong Whitworth Whitleys.

In 1943 it was allocated to No. 6 Group, Royal Canadian Air Force. A sub-station was located at RAF Croft, Yorkshire although RAF Thornaby was closer yet never held sub-station status.[3] Canadian Squadrons based here were 419 "Moose" Squadron, which flew Vickers Wellingtons, Halifaxes, and Avro Lancasters, 420 "Snowy Owl" Squadron, which flew Wellingtons, and 428 "Ghost" Squadron, which flew Wellingtons, Halifaxes, and Lancasters.[4][5]

There are two stories of heroism linked with RAF Middleton St George, the most notable being that of Andrew Mynarski, a member of 419 Squadron, who was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross. It was bestowed for his actions on 13 June 1944, in a raid on Cambrai, France, in support of the Normandy landings. A statue of Mynarski was dedicated in 2005 outside the former Officers' Mess. The second belongs to William McMullen of 428 Squadron, who was killed during a routine training sortie on 13 January 1945 when his Lancaster crashed on the outskirts of Darlington after he remained with the aircraft to steer it away from houses, having ordered his crew to bail out. McMullen Road adjacent to the crash site was renamed in his honour.

A memorial garden for all aircrew at Middleton St George is also located near the Mess.[6]

Post war edit

After the war, the aerodrome changed hands regularly between Bomber Command, Fighter Command and Flying Training Command, serving various squadrons and units including No. 13 Operational Training Unit (OTU) using de Havilland Mosquitos, No. 2 Air Navigation School using Avro Ansons and Vickers Wellingtons, No. 205 Advanced Flying Training School (later rebranded No. 4 Flying Training School) using de Havilland Vampires and Gloster Meteors, 92 Squadron using Hawker Hunters, 264 Squadron (later rebranded No. 33 Squadron) using Gloster Meteors, the Javelin Instrument Rating Squadron (IRS) using Gloster Javelins and the Lightning Conversion Unit (LCU) (later rebranded the Lightning Conversion Squadron) using English Electric Lightnings. The IRS and LCS were later merged to form 226 Operational Conversion Unit (OCU).[7]

In 1962 Flying Officer Jean Oakes became the first woman to fly at over 1,000 mph (1,600 km/h). The Times of 14 September 1962 reported that a Lightning from RAF Middleton St George flew out over the North Sea, and at 35,000 feet (11,000 m), she took over the controls from Flight Lieutenant John Smith and flew up and down the north east coast at about Mach 1.6.[8]

The RAF left the station in 1964 and handed it over to the Ministry of Civil Aviation who reopened the site as a civil airport.[9] The airfield was named Tees-Side Airport until 1987, then Teesside International Airport until 2004 when it became Durham Tees Valley Airport before reverting to Teesside International in 2019.[10]

From 1968 to 1979, some of the former station buildings housed Middleton St George College of Education, a teacher training college.[11]

The officers' mess at the base was converted into the St George Hotel, complete with the RAF Middleton St George memorial room. The hotel was mothballed in late 2018; the museum is to be relocated in the future.[12][13]

The Sergeants' mess remains in use by Serco, who operate the International Fire Training Centre located on the site, and the Armoury currently houses a flying school, Scenic Air Tours and Flight Training.

Units and aircraft edit

Unit Dates Aircraft Variant Notes
Bomber Command No.4 Group RAF
No. 76 Squadron RAF 1941-1942 Handley Page HP.57 Halifax Mk.I Four-engined piston heavy bomber.[14]
Handley Page HP.59 Halifax Mk.II
No. 78 Squadron RAF 1941 Armstrong AW.38 Whitworth Whitley Mk.V Twin-engined medium bomber.[14]
1942 Handley Page HP.57

Halifax

Mk.II Four-engined piston heavy bomber.[14]
No. 1516 BAT Flight RAF 1941-1942 Airspeed AS.10 Oxford Mk.I Twin-engined training aircraft.
No. 1535 BAT Flight RAF 1942-1943 Airspeed AS.10 Oxford Mk.I Twin-engined training aircraft.
Bomber Command No.6 Group RCAF
No. 419 "Moose" Squadron RCAF 1942-1944 Handley Page HP.59 Halifax Mk.II Four-engined piston heavy bomber.[15]
1943-1945 Avro 683 Lancaster Mk.X Four-engined piston heavy bomber.[15]
No. 420 "Snowy Owl" Squadron RCAF 1942-1943 Vickers 417 Wellington Mk.III Twin-engined medium bomber.[15]
Vickers 440 Wellington Mk.X
No. 428 "Ghost" Squadron RCAF 1943-1944 Handley Page HP.59 Halifax Mk.II Four-engined piston heavy bomber.[15]
Handley Page HP.63 Halifax Mk.V
1944-1945 Avro 683 Lancaster Mk.X Four-engined piston heavy bomber.[15]
Fighter Command RAF
No. 13 Operational Training Unit RAF 1945-1947 De Havilland DH.98 Mosquito FB.VI Twin-engined fighter-bomber.
NF.II Twin-engined night fighter.
T.3 Twin-engined training aircraft.
No. 26 Gliding School Air Cadets 1946-1955 Slingsby T.7 Kirby Cadet TX.1 Training glider.
Slingsby T.21B Sedbergh TX.1 Training glider.
No. 28 Gliding School Air Cadets 1946-1948 Slingsby T.7 Kirby Cadet TX.1 Training glider.
TX.2
Flying Training Command RAF
No. 2 Air Navigation School RAF 1947-1950 Avro 652A Anson Mk.I Twin-engined multi-role aircraft.
Vickers 440 Wellington B.X Twin-engined medium bomber.[15]
1949-1950 Vickers 619 Wellington T.10
No. 205 Advanced Flying Training School RAF 1950-1954 De Havilland DH.100 Vampire FB.5 Single-engined fighter-bomber.
Gloster Meteor F.4 Twin-engined single-seat fighter.
T.7 Twin-engined two-seat training aircraft.
No. 4 Flying Training School RAF 1954-1956 De Havilland DH.100 Vampire FB.5 Single-engined fighter-bomber.
Gloster Meteor F.4 Twin-engined single-seat fighter.
T.7 Twin-engined two-seat training aircraft.
1955-1956 De Havilland DH.115 Vampire T.11 Single-engined training jet.
Fighter Command No.13 Group RAF
No. 92 Squadron RAF 1957-1961 Hawker Hunter F.6 Single-engined jet fighter/fighter-bomber.[16]
No. 264 Squadron RAF 1957 Gloster Meteor NF.14 Twin-engined jet night-fighter.[17]
Middleton St George Station Flight RAF 1957 Avro 652A Anson Mk.I Twin-engined multi-role aircraft.
De Havilland DH.115 Vampire T.11 Single-engined training jet.
Gloster Meteor T.7 Twin-engined two-seat training aircraft.
No. 33 Squadron RAF 1958-1962 Gloster Javelin FAW.7 Twin-engined jet fighter/interceptor.[18]
1960-1962 FAW.9
No. 645 Volunteer Gliding Squadron Air Cadets 1958-1960
Instrument Rating Squadron RAF 1961-1963 Gloster Javelin T.3 Twin-engined jet fighter/interceptor.[18]
Lightning Conversion Unit RAF 1961-1963 English Electric Lightning F.1 Twin-engined single-seat fighter-interceptor.
Lightning Conversion Squadron RAF T.4 Twin-engined two-seat fighter-interceptor.
No. 226 Operational Conversion Unit RAF 1963-1964 English Electric Lightning F.1 Twin-engined single-seat fighter-interceptor.
T.4 Twin-engined two-seat fighter-interceptor.

References edit

Citations edit

  1. ^ Birtles 2012, p. 41.
  2. ^ Pine, L.G. (1983). A dictionary of mottoes (1 ed.). London: Routledge & Kegan Paul. p. 212. ISBN 0-7100-9339-X.
  3. ^ Halpenny 1982, p. 54.
  4. ^ Delve 2006, p. 197.
  5. ^ "Stations-M". www.rafweb.org. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
  6. ^ Middleton St George Memorial Association: http://www.middleton-st-george-memorial-association.org/ ; The Wartime Memories Project: "RAF Middleton St George During the Second World War." https://wartimememoriesproject.com/ww2/airfields/airfield.php?pid=1804
  7. ^ Halpenny 1982, pp. 149–150.
  8. ^ Haley, William, ed. (14 September 1962). "Woman Flew JET at 1,125 mph". The Times. No. 55496. p. 10. ISSN 0140-0460.
  9. ^ Halpenny 1982, pp. 150–151.
  10. ^ Lloyd, Chris (24 January 2015). "Getting airborne at Middleton St George 50 years ago". The Northern Echo. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
  11. ^ Reunion website
  12. ^ "A Brief History of Middleton St George from 1800" (PDF). Middleton-st-george.org. p. 11. Retrieved 2 June 2018.
  13. ^ Teesside Live Website | [url=https://www.gazettelive.co.uk/news/teesside-news/everything-must-go-entire-contents-15542008
  14. ^ a b c Jefford 1988, p. 48.
  15. ^ a b c d e f Jefford 1988, p. 91.
  16. ^ Jefford 1988, p. 52.
  17. ^ Jefford 1988, p. 80.
  18. ^ a b Jefford 1988, p. 36.

Bibliography edit

  • Birtles, P. (2012). UK Airfields of the Cold War. Midland Publishing. ISBN 978-1-85780-346-4.
  • Delve, Ken (2006). The Military Airfields of Britain, Northern England: Co. Durham, Cumbria, Isle of Man, Lancashire, Merseyside, Manchester, Northumberland, Tyne & Wear, Yorkshire. Marlborough: Crowood Press. ISBN 1-86126-809-2.
  • Halley, James J. (1988). The Squadrons of the Royal Air Force & Commonwealth, 1918-1988. Tonbridge, Kent, UK: Air-Britain (Historians) Ltd. ISBN 0-85130-164-9.
  • Halpenny, Brue Barrymore (1982). Action Stations 4; Military Airfields of Yorkshire. Cambridge: Patrick Stephens ltd. ISBN 0-85059-532-0.
  • Jefford, C G (1988). RAF Squadrons. A comprehensive record of the movement and equipment of all RAF squadrons and their antecedents since 1912. Shrewsbury: Airlife. ISBN 1-85310-053-6.
  • Moyes, Philip J.R. (1976). Bomber Squadrons of the RAF and their Aircraft. London: Macdonald and Jane's (Publishers) Ltd. ISBN 0-354-01027-1.

External links edit

 
Wikimedia Commons has media related to RAF Middleton St. George.
  • 76 Squadron History
  • 78 Squadron history and current status
  • 419 Squadron History
  • 420 Squadron History
  • 428 Squadron History
  • 608 Squadron History

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