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RAF Waddington

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RAF Waddington
Summary
Airport typeMilitary
OwnerMoD
OperatorRoyal Air Force
ServesCity of Lincoln
LocationWaddington, Lincolnshire
Built1916
In use1937 - present
CommanderGroup Captain C Jones ADC MA RAF
Occupants
Elevation AMSL231 ft / 70 m
Websitewww.raf.mod.uk/rafwaddington
Map
EGXW is located in Lincolnshire
EGXW
EGXW
Location in Lincolnshire
Map
Runways
Direction Length Surface
ft m
02/20 9,000 2,743 Asphalt

RAF Waddington (IATA: WTN, ICAO: EGXW) is a Royal Air Force station in Lincolnshire, England.

History

Formation

Waddington opened as a Royal Flying Corps flying training station in 1916[1] until 1920, when the station went into care and maintenance.

It reopened as a bomber base on 12 March 1937, with squadrons flying the Bristol Blenheim and later Handley Page Hampdens.

Second World War

Avro Lancaster of 463 Sqn RAAF in 1944

In November 1940 it was the first station to receive the Avro Manchester heavy bomber.

44 Sqn was the first in RAF Bomber Command to fly operationally with the Lancaster on 2 March 1942 from Waddington.

On 17 April 1942 at around 3pm, six Avro Lancasters from 44 Sqn left in daylight for the MAN diesel engine (for U-boats) factory at Augsburg in southern Germany (Bavaria). Four Lancasters were shot down and Squadron Leader John Dering Nettleton received a VC, piloting R5508.[2] He survived due to the German fighters running out of fuel, and lack of daylight.

Cold War

In the Cold War, RAF Waddington became an Avro Vulcan V-bomber bomber base, with 83 Sqn being the first in the RAF to receive the Vulcan in May 1957. It continued in this role until 1984 when the last Vulcan squadron, No. 50, disbanded. From 1968, the UK nuclear deterrent was transferred to Polaris submarines, starting with HMS Resolution.

In August 1960, the station developed the sudsmobile technique to lay a 1,000 yd × 30 yd (914 m × 27 m) carpet of foam in around a half-hour for a wheels-up landing. Previously it had taken around three hours to lay a foam carpet on the runway. A Canberra from RAF Wyton landed wheels-up on 23 August 1960, with a Victor managing the same on 5 December 1960.[3]

The fiftieth anniversary of the RAF was celebrated at the base on 1 April 1968, mainly because the RAF's last flying Lancaster was based at the airfield from the mid-1960s until 1970, when moved temporarily to Hendon.

Falklands War

Operation Black Buck involved aircraft (three) and crews from the base (44 Sqn, 50 Sqn and 101 Sqn). The three Vulcan B2s were twenty-two years old, and were selected for their more powerful Olympus 301 engines. The complicated refuelling plan (14 Victor tankers) was only contemplated due to the belief of Sir Michael Beetham, then Chief of the Air Staff. Spare parts for the operation were requisitioned from scrapyards in Newark-on-Trent and military museums. Navigation came from the Delco Carousel inertial navigation system, never used previously by the RAF.

Later during 1982, there was a female peace camp outside the base for five months. At the beginning of 1982, the base had been designated to be closed, when the Vulcans would have left.

Tactical Fighter Meet 86 was held at the base in August 1986, which used RAF Spadeadam as a practice target.

Gate guardian

In 1993 the last RAF Avro Vulcan bomber, serialled XH558, was retired to Bruntingthorpe, Leicestershire. This aircraft has returned to display flying following prolonged refurbishment.

Airborne early warning

In the mid-1980s the base became home to a few NATO AWACS aircraft operating from their main base (with eighteen AWACS planes) at NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen in North Rhine-Westphalia on the Germany-Dutch border. The RAF used these aircraft until it had bought its own AWACS fleet, which were due to enter service in 1991.

During the 1991 Gulf War, American casualties were ferried through the base to the USAF Nocton Hall military hospital. The Electronic Warfare Operational Support Element (EWOSE - now known as the Air Warfare Centre) moved from RAF Wyton to Waddington in March 1995.

Present day

It is presently home to the RAF's Sentry and Raytheon Sentinel R1 ASTOR (Airborne STand-Off Radar) ground-surveillance/intelligence aircraft. The station is also home to No. 34 Expeditionary Air Wing.

There is an outdoor viewing area east of the A15 road close to the northern end of the long runway which was designed to accommodate V bombers. Short-term visits from different NATO and Swiss fighter squadrons, in the past, used to generate occasional additional noise and interest because the airfield was conveniently placed for offshore practice firing ranges above the North Sea. However with the closure of the aforementioned Air Combat Manoeuvring Instrumentation range these visits have ceased. Waddington also has a very active Force Development ethos, putting emphasis on the development of its busy personnel.

No. 34 Expeditionary Air Wing was formed at Waddington on 1 April 2006 encompassing most of the non-formed unit personnel on station. The EAW does not include the flying units at the station. The station commander is dual-hatted as the commander of the wing.

In 2002, the half-hour ITV programme Airbase documented life at the airfield. Elizabeth Simmonds, the Olympic swimmer, trained at the base's pool. The Nimrod MRA4 was due to be moved to the base from RAF Kinloss, but the whole fleet was cancelled.

Structure

The RAF Waddington structure as of March 2011 is as follows:[4]

E-3 Sentry (AWACS) of 8 Sqn on active duty in 2003
Raytheon Sentinel of 5 Sqn in 2007
  • Other auxiliary units
    • No. 26 Squadron RAF Regiment - Ground Based Air Defence. This unit disbanded in March 2008 following a tour in Afghanistan but was reformed in 2010 at RAF Honington.
    • No. 2503 Sqn - RAuxAF Regiment Force Sustainment
    • Sentry Maintenance Squadron (SMS) - including the Visiting Aircraft Handling Section (VAHS)[6]
    • The E-3D Software Support Team
    • The Red Arrows
    • Air Battlespace Training Centre
  • Air Warfare Centre
    • No 7006 Squadron RAuxAF
    • No 7010 Squadron RAuxAF
    • No 7630 Squadron RAuxAF

Former Squadrons

Former Station Commanders

F15s (visiting) and Sentry in November 2004

Waddington International Air Show

Inauguration in 1995

Waddington Air Show in 2002 with the Air Warfare Centre in the distance

The first RAF Waddington International Air Show was staged at RAF Waddington in 1995, after the event was moved down from RAF Finningley - an RAF station located east of Doncaster (now Robin Hood Airport Doncaster Sheffield) which was closed down in 1995. Since then the RAF Waddington International Air Show has developed into the largest of all Royal Air Force air shows. It regularly takes place on the first weekend in July, attracting over 130,000 visitors and representatives of Air Forces from all round the world. The main purpose of the show is to raise public awareness and understanding of the RAF and its role today. 85% of all proceeds from the event are distributed to the two main Service charities; the RAF Benevolent Fund and the RAF Association; the remaining 15% is donated to local worthy causes. Since the inaugural year 1995 the Air Show has raised over £2,500,000 for Service and local charities.

2010

Wing walking on a Boeing-Stearman Model 75 in July 2005

The 2010 Air Show took place over the weekend of 3 and 4 July. The main themes being 90 years since the first ever RAF air show, at RAF Hendon, 70th anniversary of the Battle of Britain and 35 years of Airborne Early Warning. The flying display included Vulcan XH558, many regular exhibitors and aircraft but also display teams that had never been to Waddington before, including the Turkish Stars and the Czech Saab JAS 39 Gripen and Alca L-159 display.

2011

The 2011 Air Show took place on 2 and 3 July, with the theme of Air Power - Past, Present and Future. Several indoor and outdoor exhibitions reflected this theme, including a new audio-visual experience in the main exhibition hangar. Visitors learned about the RAF's current operations abroad, the RAF's equipment and the RAF's personnel, devoted to their roles within the Royal Air Force. The USAF Display Team, The Thunderbirds, also took part.

Ground displays included over 100 aircraft, 250 trade stands, two exhibition hangars and the Military Village concept where all services display, the Waddington SERE (Survive, Evade, Resist, Extract) School display with its close RNLI association. Many clubs also featured in the Village demonstrating the diversity of hobbies and interests available to RAF personnel today.

Air ambulance

The Lincolnshire & Nottinghamshire Air Ambulance is based at the airfield, which began operating in 1994.

RAF Waddington Voluntary Band

RAF Waddington Voluntary Band is one of seven voluntary bands within the RAF and is proud to serve the station and the surrounding areas. Members of the band include RAF personnel as a second duty, dependants, civil servants and local civilians. As part of the station's musical heritage, Pink Floyd performed at the station's Raven Club on 20 April 1968.

See also

References

  1. ^ RAF Waddington website - history
  2. ^ Augsburg raid
  3. ^ Flightglobal 1960
  4. ^ Air Forces Monthly, April 2008 issue, pp. 44
  5. ^ RAF Website
  6. ^ RAF Website
  • Bruce Barrymore Halpenny Action Stations: Wartime Military Airfields of Lincolnshire and the East Midlands v. 2 (ISBN 978-0850594843)

News items

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