Faldingworth

Faldingworth Airfield was located two miles west of the A46, close to the small village of Newloft. The site was originally called Toft Grange, a decoy for RAF Hemswell. (Pic: Phil Bonner).

Built to Class ‘A’ standard, it opened in October 1943 under 1 Group. It has the standard three intersecting runways with the technical site to the north and communal and accommodation sites dispersed in fields behind. The usual three hangars, two T2s and a B1, were provided with the one T2 on the technical site, the other off the southern perimeter track. The B1 hangar was to the north of the site and the bomb stores located off the western perimeter track.

The airfield was used initially by 1667 Heavy Conversion Unit (HCU) which moved from Lindholme, Yorkshire with its Halifax and Lancaster aircraft in August 1943. The HCU prepared crews for operations with the heavier four-engined bombers in use with 1 Group. Also in 1943, Faldingworth became a satellite to Ludford-Magna, part of 14 Base. The HCU moved to Sandtoft in February 1944.

On 1 March 1944, the Polish 300 (Mazowiecki) Squadron arrived from Ingham. Originally equipped with Wellington bombers, they converted to Lancasters on arrival at Faldingworth. The squadron saw out the war at the airfield and was disbanded on 2 January 1947. The airfield site was retained as a maintenance unit for bomb storage and disposal and saw further use as a nuclear weapons store until the early 1970s.

Today much of the Cold War infrastructure remains, although its use by a private company prevents casual access.

There is a memorial to the Polish aircrews of Faldingworth on the eastern threshold of the east-west runway which can be viewed by prior arrangement. To the north of the site, a few of the WWII structures can be seen including the B1 hangar, station cinema and sick quarters.

Map: Faldingworth