Samlesbury Aerodrome

Infobox Airport
name = Samlesbury Aerodrome
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type = Private/Disused
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operator = BAE Systems
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location = Blackburn
elevation-f = 55
elevation-m = 17
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r1-number = 08/26
r1-length-f = 7,946
r1-length-m = 2,422
r1-surface = Grooved Asphalt
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Samlesbury Aerodrome is a disused airfield in Samlesbury near Blackburn in Lancashire. The aerodrome is owned by defence company BAE Systems who use the site for manufacturing of several aircraft types. currently BAE employ 3,000 people at the site but this is set to increase in the next 5 years.

The runway is still used by the Air Training Corps for glider training weather permitting and Lancashire Constabulary and Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service also use the runway for training.

History

The origins of the site, which was once an active aerodrome, date back to 1922 when it was proposed that a municipal airfield be constructed to serve the nearby towns of Blackburn and Preston; however, construction did not commence on the airfield until April 1939 - the construction was accelerated because of the Second World War, when the Air Ministry instructed the English Electric Company (EE) to proceed with the construction of flight shed number 1. The first of the Handley Page Hampdens built by EE made its maiden flight on 22 February 1940 cite book|title=Action Stations 3 Military airfields of Wales and the North-West|last=Smith|first=David J.|year=1981|page=157|publishers=Patrick Stephens|isbn=0-85059-485-5|] and by 1942 770 Hampdens had been delivered from Samlesbury. In 1940 a second factory was built and the runway was extended so construction of the Handley Page Halifax began. By 1945 all five main hangars and three runways had been completed. During the war the site was also home to No. 9 Group RAF who flew Hawker Hurricanes and Airspeed Oxfords from the site. By the end of the war over 3,000 bombers had been built and flown from Samlesbury.

After the war aircraft such as the Vampire, Canberra (which was English Electric's first wholly designed and built aircraft) and the Lightning were built on the site. The site has also produced parts for the Anglo-French Concorde and the ill-fated TSR2 project. When English Electric merged to become BAC and later British Aerospace it worked closely with the nearby sister plant at BAE Warton and the former BAE factory in Preston on building the Sepecat Jaguar and Panavia Tornado fighter aircraft.

BAE Systems Use

Today the Samlesbury facility is a high-technology BAE Systems manufacturing and aerospace facility. Spirit AeroSystems also occupy a small area of Samlesbury after the BAE Systems Aerostructures business was sold to Spirit AeroSystems in 2006. Spirit manufactures parts for the Airbus and other civil platforms at the facility.

The current site, which employs over 3,000 people, builds the fuselage and other parts for the Eurofighter Typhoon and other aircraft including the American F-35 Lightning II and the T-45 Goshawk. The site has also seen the construction of a large block to house BAE office staff. The airstrip itself still exists, serving aircraft of the 635 VGS Air Cadets Gliding Squadron using the Grob 109B motor glider, (known by the RAF as the Vigilant T1) although the runway is classed as inactive. During 2006 BAE Systems transferred ownership of the site to its Pension Fund Scheme. There are now ongoing plans to develop a high-tech aerospace business park on the airfield. Phase one of the building works began in November 2007, and will take a year to complete.

It currently has a Canberra PR.7 (WT537) and a Lightning F.53 (ZF580) as gate guards. The latter is painted in its RAF aircraft markings as worn after return from the Royal Saudi Air Force (RSAF) where it bore serial 53-672. This was returned to the UK around 1986 (with 2,305 flying hours) when British Aerospace sold Tornado aircraft to the RSAF as part of the Al Yamamah deal.

References

Bibliography

*Smith, David J., 'Action Stations - 3 Wales and the North-West', Patrick Stephens, 1981, ISBN 0-85059-485-5

ee also

*BAE Systems
*Spirit AeroSystems
*Warton Aerodrome