RAF Honeybourne

RAF Honeybourne
IATA: none – ICAO: none
Summary
Airport type	Military
Owner	Air Ministry
Operator	Royal Air Force
Location	Honeybourne
Built	1940
In use	1940/1 - 1946/7
Elevation AMSL	177 ft / 54 m
Coordinates
Map
RAF Honeybourne Location in Worcestershire
Runways
Direction Length Surface ft m 04/22 4,200 1,280 Asphalt 10/28 3,940 1,200 Asphalt 16/34 3,940 1,100 Asphalt

Royal Air Force Honeybourne or RAF Honeybourne was a Royal Air Force station located 0.6 miles (0.97 km) south of Honeybourne, Worcestershire, England and 4.6 miles (7.4 km) east of Evesham, Worcestershire, England

The station was operational from 1940 or 1941 to 1946 or 15 November 1947.

Station history

RAF Honeybourne had five hangars there was one J Type and 4 T2's. The airfield used a mixture of temporary and permanent accommodation and on 1 December 1944 there were 1973 males and 382 females located at the airfield.

The airfield was home to No. 24 Operational Training Unit RAF (OTU) which used Vickers Wellingtons and Armstrong Whitworth Whitleys from 15 March 1942 until July 1945 flying many operational bombing and leaflet dropping operations.

A number of units based from Ferry Command were based including a ferry training unit using Lockheed Hudsons and Bristol Beauforts were based at the airfield between November 1941 and March 1942, and 1425 Flight using Liberators between November 1941 and April 1942.

Post WW2

The airfield was also temporarily home to No. 21 OTU flying Wellingtons from RAF Enstone from August 1945 for two months because the runways at their home base were being repaired. From October 1945 until 1946 107 Sub Storage Unit from No. 8 Maintenance Unit used the airfield for storing Wellingtons and General Aircraft Hamilcar gliders.

The role of the airfield after the war changed with the reduction of flying movements and with a slight change in what the units did on the airfield when No. 107 Sub Storage Unit from 1947 began to collect no longer needed Wellingtons which were then scrapped and taken to Weston Subedge goods yard (which was near to the south-western corner) where the railway would take them to the necessary destination.

Accidents and incidents

7 August 1940 Handley Page Hampden P2086 of 4 Ferry Pilots Pool stalled attempting to force land after an engine failure.

24 December 1941 Bristol Blenheim L8663 of Ferry Training Unit stalled on approach.

10 March 1942 Lockheed Hudson V8995 of the Ferry Training Unit spun into ground.

20 July 1943 Avro Anson DJ242 of 24 OTU undershot landing.

14 May 1944 Armstrong Whitworth Whitley N1436 of 24 OTU stalled on overshoot.

6 January 1945 Vickers Wellington HE633 of 24 OTU crashed on take off when an engine failed.

28 April 1947 Wellington JA349 was hit by Wellington LR130 while parked.

Current use

In July 1948 the site was closed and much has reverted to farmland with runways being removed in 1968.

Since then, the airside area has evolved into the Honeybourne Airfield Trading Estate with the five hangars being used for different purposes.

External links

• BBC History- Life in the Womens Auxiliary Air Force
• Map which clearly shows the airport outline