Royal Air Force Mepal or more simply RAF Mepal is a former Royal Air Force station located 0.7 miles (1.1 km) south of Mepal, Cambridgeshire, England and 5.9 miles (9.5 km) west of Ely, Cambridgeshire. Construction commenced in July 1942 and opened in June 1943.[2][3]
RAF Mepal | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mepal, Cambridgeshire in England | |||||||||||
 | |||||||||||
  RAF Mepal Shown within Cambridgeshire  RAF Mepal RAF Mepal (the United Kingdom) | |||||||||||
| Coordinates | 52°23′44″N 000°07′11″E / 52.39556°N 0.11972°E | ||||||||||
| Type | Royal Air Force Station | ||||||||||
| Code | MP[1] | ||||||||||
| Site information | |||||||||||
| Owner | Ministry of Defence | ||||||||||
| Operator | Royal Air Force | ||||||||||
| Controlled by | RAF Bomber Command * No. 3 Group RAF | ||||||||||
| Site history | |||||||||||
| Built | 1942 | ||||||||||
| In use | June 1943 - 1963 | ||||||||||
| Battles/wars | European theatre of World War II | ||||||||||
| Airfield information | |||||||||||
| Elevation | 24 metres (79 ft)[1] AMSL | ||||||||||
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| Other airfield facilities | Runway information[2] | ||||||||||
History
editMepal first hosted No. 75 (NZ) Squadron RAF flying Short Stirlings and later Avro Lancasters.[4]
- Tiger Force
It was used towards the end of the Second World War to prepare Avro Lancaster bombers squadrons such as No. 44 (Rhodesia) squadron for use in Tiger Force which was to bomb Japan.[5]
- Thor missiles
From 1957 PGM-17 Thor missiles were based at the airfield in the north east corner.[2][6]
The following units were also here at some point:[4]
Current use
editVery little remains of the original site, most of it razed to the ground after the USAF and the Thor missiles left. The site is now the Elean business park and is home to the world's only straw burning power station and a few manufacturing and warehousing operations. A small memorial plaque is in place at the entrance to the site.
See also
editReferences
editCitations
edit- ^ a b Falconer 2012, p. 141.
- ^ a b c "Bomber Command – Mepal". Ministry of Defence – Royal Air Force. Retrieved 24 April 2012.
- ^ "Mepal". Control Towers. Retrieved 24 April 2012.
- ^ a b "Mepal". Airfields of Britain Conservation Trust. Retrieved 24 April 2012.
- ^ "RAF Mepal". Air of Authority – A History of RAF Organisation. Retrieved 24 April 2012.
- ^ "RAF Mepal Thor Missile Site". English Heritage – Pastscape. Retrieved 24 April 2012.
Bibliography
edit- Falconer, Jonathan (2012). RAF Airfields of World War 2. UK: Ian Allan Publishing. ISBN 978-1-85780-349-5.
External links
edit
Media related to RAF Mepal at Wikimedia Commons