- Woodford, Greater Manchester
infobox UK place
country = England
static_
static_image_caption=
latitude= 53.339
longitude= -2.156
official_name= Woodford
population=
metropolitan_borough= Stockport
metropolitan_county=Greater Manchester
region= North West England
constituency_westminster=
post_town=
postcode_district =
postcode_area=
dial_code=
os_grid_reference= SJ895825
london_distance= convert|153|mi|km|0|abbr=on SEWoodford is situated in the south of the
Metropolitan Borough of Stockport inGreater Manchester ,England . It lies convert|5.2|mi|km|1 south ofStockport , convert|5.7|mi|km|1 north-northwest ofMacclesfield , and convert|10.7|mi|km|1 south-southeast ofManchester . It forms a semi-rural area of mainly ribbon development with open aspect to theSouth Pennines and the Peak District National Park. Forming the most southern point of Greater Manchester, it bordersCheshire countryside, and the majority of land use is agricultural. Woodford is bypassed and close to motorway links, providing access to nearby facilities.Woodford is an affluent area, with above average house prices,Fact|date=April 2007 and the majority of Woodford's inhabitants fall into type 1 in the ACORN classification scale, which represents the most affluent people in the
United Kingdom .BAE Woodford is the site of a factory and large airfield located to the south of the villages of Woodford &
Bramhall and is partly in Greater Manchester and partly in Cheshire. The initial small airfield was created from farmland during late 1924 by A.V.Roe & Company Ltd which later became a part of the Hawker Siddeley Group and is now part ofBAE Systems . On 3 April 2008 BAE Systems announced it would be losing 134 jobs from the Woodford site [ [http://www.themanufacturer.com/uk/content/8243/BAE_to__axe_600_engineering_jobs BAE to axe 600 engineering jobs] ]The major project during the mid 1930s to early wartime was the building of many thousands of twin-engined Avro Ansons for use as patrol aircraft, trainers and light transports. From 1941, over 4000 Lancaster bombers were built here and these formed the backbone of RAF Bomber Command. No.617 'Dambusters' Squadron flew the type on the famous raids against reservoirs in Germany, led by Wing Commander Guy Gibson VC.
The Lancasters were followed by Lincoln bombers and then from 1949 the Shackleton maritime reconnaissance aircraft. The delta-winged Vulcan four-jet nuclear bomber rolled from the Woodford factory between the mid 1950's and early 1960s. Vulcan B2 XM603 is preserved at Woodford for static show purposes.
From 1960 onwards, a series of civil airliners was built at Woodford, starting with the Avro/HS 748, then the BAe ATP, followed by the BAe 146 jet airliner.
Until 1998, a bi-annual air event was held at Woodford Aerodrome sponsored by RAFA. Now, as part of
BAE Systems Regional Aircraft , the airfield is the site of the company's Customer Training and Engineering department.Notable people
*
Christiano Ronaldo - Manchester United and Portugal player. [http://www.nowmagazine.co.uk/celebrity-news/248791/cristiano-ronaldo-buys-new-4-million-home/1/] [http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/article764112.ece]
*George Best - Former Manchester United playerReferences
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