RAF Charmy Down

Infobox Military Structure
name= Royal Air Force Station Charmy Down
USAAF Station 487
location= Located Near Bath, Somerset, United Kingdom
coordinates=coord|51|25|46|N|002|20|50|W|


caption= Oblique photo of Charmy Down Airfield, England taken 20 October 1943
type= Military airfield
code=CH
built=1941
builder=
materials=
height=
used=1941-1946
demolished=
condition=
ownership=
controlledby=Royal Air Force
United States Army Air Forces
garrison=RAF Fighter Command
Ninth Air Force
commanders=
occupants=No. 87 Squadron RAF
422d, 423d and 425th Night Fighter Squadrons
battles= European Theatre of World War II
Air Offensive, Europe July 1942 - May 1945 Location map|Somerset
label =
lat = 51.3809
long = -2.3603
caption = Map showing the location of RAF Charmy Down within Somerset.
float = right
background = white
width = 200

RAF Charmy Down was a World War II airfield in England located approximately three miles north of the centre of Bath, Somerset on a flat top hill between the A46 and Catherine's Brook. During the war it was used by the Royal Air Force and United States Army Air Force Ninth Air Force as USAAF station 487.

Overview

Charmy Down airfield was opened late in 1940 and originally had a grass surface with landing strips of 4,125ft, both south-east to north-west and north-east to south-west. The airfield soon gained a 50ft wide tarmac perimeter track and 39 aircraft dispersal points. These were 12 double pens and 15 single standings. Eventually, 12 Blister hangars were erected round the site.

Although reasonably free draining, hard-surfaced runways were put down in 1941. The three hard surfaced runways consisted of three of 4,350 ft (13-31), 4,050 ft (17-25), and 2,799 ft (01-19).

RAF Fighter Command Use

The first occupants of Charmy Down was No. 87 Squadron RAF, with night-fighting Hawker Hurricanes, Then, in the summer of 1941, Defiants appeared and Whirlwinds and Turhinlite Havocs were to be seen the following year. A Supermarine Spitfire OTU took over in 1943 and stayed until the airfield was turned over to the USAAF.

USAAF Use

4th Tactical Air Depot

With good road connections and its close proximity to Bristol and Avonmouth, Charmy Down appeared to be a good location for a USAAF depot airfield to which materials arriving at these ports could be transported by road and then flown out, and it was acquired by the Tactical Air Depot Area.

Service groups were deployed there late in 1943 to operate the 4th Tactical Air Depot, which was intended to repair, modify and maintain Allison-engined fighter types, primarily Lockheed P-38 Lightnings and North American P-51 Mustangs. For unrecorded reasons, it was decided to transfer this operation to Kingston Bagpuize early in 1944, possibly for better local logistics and communications in the Oxford area. Nevertheless, IX Air Force Service Command activities continued at Charmy Down until the autumn of 1944.

422d, 423d and 425th Night Fighter Squadrons

The Ninth Air Force was scheduled to receive three night fighter squadrons with a mission to effect night air defence of US air bases when these were established on the Continent. Charmy Down was selected as a base for these squadrons which would arrive individually, not as part of a group, and were to be equipped with the new Northrup P-61 Black Widow.

Personnel of the 422d Night Fighter Squadron arrived first on 7 March 1944 and had their aircrews posted to various RAF night fighter and signal schools for theatre indoctrination. Meanwhile, as there was no sign of the P-61s. the pilots kept up their flight time on Cessna UC-78s and other communication types.

On 18 April, the men of the 423d Night Fighter Squadron joined the 422nd at Charmy Down and their aircrew also undertook training at RAF installations white the wait for P-61s continued. On 6 May the 422nd NFS was sent to the RAF night fighter Operational Training Unit at RAF Scorton in North Yorkshire where they eventually received the first of their Black Widows later that month.

Meanwhile, the 423rd NFS continued to wait for aircraft at Charmy Down. As its aircrews had trained in the United States on the Douglas P-70, (the night-fighter version of the Douglas A-20 Havoc), in the absence of sufficient P-61s, the Ninth Air Force decided to use the 423rd personnel to form a night photographic unit equipped with A-20s. To this end, the 423rd NFS was assigned to the 10th Reconnaissance Group on 10 May and was redesignated as the 155th Photographic Reconnaissance Squadron. The squadron was transferred to RAF Chalgrove.

Soon after, on 26 May the third night fighter squadron, the 425th Night Fighter Squadron arrived at Charmy Down and underwent the same preliminary training as the 422d and 423d squadrons. On 12 June the squadron left to join the 422nd NFS at RAF Scorton‎ where its aircrews were able to fly the P-61.

The original plan had been for all three night fighter squadrons to be on combat status with P-61s by D-Day, due to lack of equipment none of the squadrons or P-61s were ever based at Charmy Down.

IX Troop Carrier Service Wing

During the spring of 1944 a IX Troop Carrier Service Wing (Provisional) was set up at Charmy Down to support troop carrier units in south-west England and this unit remained until September. The station was also used for clandestine operations over occupied France during this period. When IX Air Force Service Command finally packed its bags in October 1944. the RAF used Charmy Down for advanced pilot training, the prevalent aircraft being the Airspeed Oxford.

Postwar Use

After the end of hostilities in Europe. there was little flying from the station although it was not officially closed until October 1946.

Civil Use

With the facility released from military control, the airfield stood intact yet disused for many years. Eventually the hangars and runways were removed. Most of the perimeter track still remains, as do several of the derelict buildings, including the control tower.

ee also

* List of RAF stations
* USAAF Ninth Air Force - World War II

References

* Freeman, Roger A. (1994) UK Airfields of the Ninth: Then and Now. After the Battle ISBN 0900913800
* Maurer, Maurer (1983). Air Force Combat Units Of World War II. Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History. ISBN 0892010924.

External links

* [http://www.multimap.com/map/photo.cgi?client=public&X=377500&Y=170000&width=700&height=400&gride=375000&gridn=165000&srec=0&coordsys=gb&db=freegaz&pc=&zm=0&scale=50000&multimap.x=233&multimap.y=188 Airphoto of RAF Charmy Down from Multimap.com]