RAF Little Staughton

Royal Air Force Little Staughton or more simply RAF Little Staughton is a former Royal Air Force station located 1.7 miles (2.7 km) south of Great Staughton, Cambridgeshire and 4.2 miles (6.8 km) west of St Neots, Cambridgeshire, England.

RAF Little Staughton
RAF Staughton Moor
USAAF Station 127
Little Staughton Airfield

Formerly disused WW2 runway
Summary
Airport typeMilitary(formerly) Private
OwnerAir Ministry(Formerly) IAE Ltd
OperatorFormerly
United States Army Air Forces
Royal Air Force
United States Air Force
Currently
IAE Ltd
LocationLittle Staughton, Bedfordshire
Built1941 (1941)
In use1942–1947 (1947)
2021-present
Elevation AMSL207 ft / 63 m
Coordinates52°14′40″N 000°21′42″W
Websitehttps://www.iae.org.uk/little%20staughton%20airfield.htm
Map
RAF Little Staughton/Little Staughton Airfield is located in Cambridgeshire
RAF Little Staughton/Little Staughton Airfield
RAF Little Staughton/Little Staughton Airfield
Location in Cambridgeshire
Runways
Direction Length Surface
ft m
06/24 3,024 922 Asphalt

Station history

Aerial photograph of Little Staughton airfield looking north, the technical site and barrack sites are to the right, 10 February 1944.

The airfield was first handed over to the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) in 1942.[1]

  • 1st Bomb Wing USAAF[1]
    • 2nd Advanced Air Depot USAAF[1]

RAF Little Staughton was returned to the Royal Air Force (RAF) on 1 March 1944[1]

The airfield was placed into care and maintenance in 1945, and during the 1950s the United States Air Force extended the runway for use by jet aircraft in emergency circumstances. However, in the late 1950s they moved out.[1]

At some point the runway was shortened on the south end to the southmost taxiway with the land converted into a field.

See also

Current use

The site is mainly for farming with the hangars used for various uses.[2] In January 2020, Little Staughton Airfield and Industrial Park applied for planning permission to develop the site to re-open the airfield.[5] By December 2021 IAE had constructed a new hangar and re-opened half of the runway.[6] There is also a solar farm and an industrial estate reusing the old airfield buildings.

Because of the lack of redevelopment most of the Military Buildings remain including the control tower, the Airfield battle HQ, a T2 hangar and a variety of smaller buildings, some of which are in an area called 'little america' as it was the sight of the American accommodation blocks, which is to the south of the airfield[7]

References

Citations

  1. "Little Staughton". Royal Air Force. Archived from the original on 26 October 2012. Retrieved 6 November 2012.
  2. "Little Staughton II (Staughton Moor)". Airfields of Britain Conservation Trust. Retrieved 7 November 2012.
  3. Jefford 1988, p. 55.
  4. Jefford 1988, p. 97.
  5. Makey, Julian (14 January 2020). "World War Two bomber base could resume flying if new plans are given the go-ahead". The Hunts Post. Retrieved 1 March 2020.
  6. "IAE - About Us". www.iae.org.uk. Retrieved 8 August 2023.
  7. "Little Staughton". UK Airfields. Retrieved 9 August 2023.

Bibliography

  • Jefford, C G (1988). RAF Squadrons. A comprehensive record of the movement and equipment of all RAF squadrons and their antecedents since 1912. Shrewsbury: Airlife. ISBN 1-85310-053-6.
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