RAF Rivenhall

Infobox Military Structure
name= Royal Air Force Station Rivenhall
USAAF Station 168
location= Located Near Silver End, Essex, England
coordinates=coord|51|51|19|N|000|38|23|E|


caption= Rivenhall airfield photographed in April 1944
type= Military airfield
code=RL
built=1943
builder=
materials=
height=
used=1944-1946
demolished=
condition=
ownership=
controlledby=United States Army Air Forces
Royal Air Force
garrison=Ninth Air Force
RAF Bomber Command
commanders=
occupants=363d Fighter Group
397th Bombardment Group
Nos. 295, 570 Squadrons
battles= European Theatre of World War II
Air Offensive, Europe July 1942 - May 1945 Location map|Essex
caption= RAF Rivenhall, shown within Essex
lat= 51.85
long= 0.63
width= 200

RAF Rivenhall was a World War II airfield in England two miles north of the Essex village after which it was named and near Witham about 0.9 mi northeast of Silver End. During the war it was used by the Royal Air Force and the United States Army Air Force Ninth Air Force as USAAF station 168.

Overview

Construction was begun in early 1943 with the runways, perimeter and hardstandings being built by Messrs W. & C. French and the buildings by Bovis Limited. Rivenhall was laid out with the standard three runways of the period, one of 6,000 ft and two of 4,200 ft. Building progress was slow during the autumn and winter of 1943, so much so that much of the accommodation and support installations were uncompleted when the first units of the USAAF arrived. The airfield, like others in the grouping, had first been allocated to the Eighth Air Force for heavy bomber use and eventually re-assigned to the 3rd Bomb Wing which became the nucleus of IX Bomber Command.

The airfield consisted of three runways of 6,000 ft (10-28), 4,200 ft (04-22), and 4,200 ft (16-34). 51 "Loop" type hardstands were constructed. Two T-2 hangars were constructed along with accommodations for 2,594 personnel.

USAAF Use

363d Fighter Group

On 22 January 1944, a squadron of the 363d Fighter Group arrived from RAF Keevil where it had been awaiting equipment. The group had been selected as the third in the ETO to be equipped with the new North American P-51B Mustang. The group consisted of the following operational squadrons:

* 380th Fighter Squadron (A9)
* 381st Fighter Squadron (B3)
* 382d Fighter Squadron (C3)

The first of its squadrons to arrive at Rivenhall, the 382nd, received Mustangs with which to begin training two days later. The other two squadrons of the group, the 380th and 381st, had arrived by the end of the first week of February.

Many of the Mustangs had already seen service with the 354th FG at RAF Boxted, having been withdrawn for modification and re-issued. The early model Mustangs had been employed in a tactical fighter reconnaissance role by the RAF and USAAF, and the same task was planned for the new P-51B. However, its exceptional endurance and good performance made the type ideal for long-range bomber escort duties which was the pressing need of the USAAF in Britain at this time.

Bad weather caused the 363rd FG's first combat mission to be abandoned, but this was achieved two days later on 24 February when 24 P-51Bs took off from Rivenhall for Belgium on bomber support. Thereafter, there was no gentle introduction to operations for the remainder of the Rivenhall pilots: this inexperienced organisation had some painful lessons ahead.

On 4 March, while supporting a raid over Germany, the group was surprised by an experienced Luftwaffe unit. This was probably the Luftwaffe's most successful interception of P-51s and 11 Mustangs failed to return to Rivenhall.

The 363rd continued to provide escort for Eighth Air Force heavy bombers, but prepared to go over to fighter-bomber work. This included dive-bombing and several practice sorties were despatched to dive-bomb targets in the Stour estuary. On two occasions, the Mustangs involved broke up attempting to pull out of the dive which led to re-examination of the technique employed.

During its stay at Rivenhall the 363rd flew 20 missions, had 16 aircraft missing in action, and was credited with shooting down 13 of the enemy. On 14 April 1944 as part of a general movement of Ninth Air Force fighter units in the Colchester area to the advanced landing grounds, the 363rd moved to RAF Staplehurst. The actual movement of all elements had begun two days previously.

397th Bombardment Group

On the day following the departure of the 363d, the first Martin B-26 Marauders of the 397th Bombardment Group arrived from RAF Gosfield. The group consisted of the following operational squadrons:

* 596th Bombardment Squadron (X2)
* 597th Bombardment Squadron (9F)
* 598th Bombardment Squadron (U2)
* 599th Bombardment Squadron (6B)

The group's identification marking was a yellow diagonal band across both sides of the vertical tailplane.

Over the next few days, more than 60 'bare metal' B-26s were to be seen on the Rivenhall hardstands. Although fresh from the training grounds in south-eastern United States, and having only reached the UK early in April. the 347th undertook its first combat mission on 20 April: an attack on a Pas de Calais V-1 site.

During its tenure of Rivenhall the 397th undertook 56 bombing missions, 32 of them attacks on bridges. Other targets were enemy airficlds, rail junctions, fuel and ammunition stores, V-weapon sites and various military installations in France and the Low Countries. During these missions a total of 16 B-26s were missing in action and several others wrecked in crash-landings at the base.

Early in August, officially on the 5th, the 397th transferred from Rivenhall to RAF Hurn in Hampshire, to give the Marauders a better radius of action as the break-out of the Allied forces from the Normandy beachhead meant that potential targets were receding.

RAF Bomber Command Use

In early October, Short Stirlings of the RAF's No. 295 Squadron took up residence with most of its operations consisting of supply drops to Norwegian resistance forces and similar activities over Holland and Denmark. On 24 March 1945, the unit took part in Operation Varsity, the crossing of the Rhine.

Early in April another Stirling squadron arrived. No. 570, which joined No. 295 in night operations in support of resistance forces in occupied countries. Both squadrons were disbanded at Rivenhall in January 1946 whereupon the station was held on a care and maintenance basis.

Rivenhall continued to be one of the busiest airfields in the UK until January 1946 when its squadrons moved to RAF Shepherds Grove, situated 12 miles northeast of Bury St. Edmunds.

After its usefulness as a flying airfield ended, Rivenhall was used to house Polish servicemen released from PoW camps who did not want to return to their homeland.

Civil Use

Upon its release from military use, in June 1956, Marconi leased part of the airfield and within ten years had taken over most of the surviving buildings. The main runway has for many years been used by GEC for radar experiments. Several airfield buildings survive including the station cinema and power house. Two runways and several hardstandings are intact but most of the third runway was removed for hardcore for use on the A-12 Witham bypass.

ee also

* List of RAF stations
* USAAF Ninth Air Force - World War II
* 363d Training Group
* 397th Bombardment Wing

References

* Freeman, Roger A. (1994) UK Airfields of the Ninth: Then and Now 1994. After the Battle ISBN 0900913800
* Freeman, Roger A. (1996) The Ninth Air Force in Colour: UK and the Continent-World War Two. After the Battle ISBN 1854092723
* Maurer, Maurer (1983). Air Force Combat Units Of World War II. Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History. ISBN 0892010924.
* [http://www.armyairforces.com/dbgroups.asp?Group=184] ArmyAirForces.com 363d Fighter Group
* [http://www.armyairforces.com/dbgroups.asp?Group=218] ArmyAirForces.com 397th Bombardment Group (Medium)
* [http://home.att.net/~jbaugher/usafserials.html] USAAS-USAAC-USAAF-USAF Aircraft Serial Numbers--1908 to present

External links

* [http://www.rivenhall.org.uk/default.asp?pg=history+of+rivenhall+airfield Rivenhall - A History of an Essex Airfield]
* [http://www.forgottenplaces.co.uk/Explores/Rivenhall%20081006/RAF%20Rivenhall/index.html Rivenhall Airfield Pictures 2006]
* [http://www.multimap.com/map/photo.cgi?client=public&X=582500&Y=220000&width=700&height=400&gride=580000&gridn=220000&srec=0&coordsys=gb&db=freegaz&pc=&zm=0&scale=50000&multimap.x=304&multimap.y=142 Aerial Photo of RAF Rivenhall from Multimap.Com]