Former RAF Woodhall Spa

 abandoned / shut down, RAF - Royal Air Force, closed / former military, historical layer / disappeared object

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This airfield was built to Class A standard and was located a mile south of Woodhall Spa village between the B1192 Woodhall Spa to Tattershall Thorpe road and the LNER Boston to Lincoln line. Built in 1941, the lengths of the three concrete runways were increased in the later stages of construction, the main 06-24 to 2,075 yards, the 18-36 to 1,410 yards and the 12-30 to 1,415 yards. A concrete perimeter track served the runway ends and 36 pan type hardstandings and one loop. The technical site was located towards Tattershall Thorpe between runway heads 30 and 36 with one Type T2 hangar and there was another T2 near the station main entrance on the south-west side with a B 1 close by to the north. Bomb stores lay beyond the north perimeter in woodland between runway heads 18 and 24. The dispersed camp was south, mostly in Tattershall Thorpe parish, consisting of two communal, six domestic sites and sick quarters.

Opened as a satellite station for Coningsby, Woodhall Spa was first used by No. 106 Squadron Hampdens when the parent station suffered winter water logging. No. 97 Squadron and its Lancasters removed from Coningsby to Woodhall Spa's paved surfaces in March 1942, the squadron having only just converted to Lancasters. It flew its maiden mission with the type from the new station on March 20/21. The squadron operated from Woodhall Spa until mid-April 1943 when it was selected to transfer to No. 8 Group and develop pathfinder techniques.

The day after departing for Bourn, a detachment from No. 97 was left behind to form No. 619 Squadron, which flew its first raid on June 11/12. It stayed until January 1944 when it moved to Coningsby 31/z miles to the south. This was an exchange of stations with No. 617 Squadron which was pioneering the use of special weapons and tactics, notably the l2,000 lb and 22,OOOlb bombs. The reason for the move is understood to be because No. 617 required more dispersals and Coningsby was only a two squadron station.

In April 1944 another specialist squadron, No. 627 equipped with Mosquitos, arrived from Oakington and No. 8 Group to furnish No. 5 Group with its own pathfinders. It was acting as Master Bomber m one of No. 627's Mosquitos that Wing Commander Guy Gibson lost his life on the night of September 19/20, 1944 in a sortie from Woodhall Spa. Wing Commander J. B. Tait took over in July, the former commander of No. 617, Wing Commander Leonard Cheshire, the other famous Master Bomber, being awarded the Victoria Cross for his record of gallant actions and leadership.

The two elite squadrons operated from Woodhall Spa up until the end of hostilities. No. 617 was moved to Waddington in June and No. 627 was re-numbered No. 109 Squadron on October 1, 1945 and moved to Wickenby. Operational losses from Woodhall Spa amounted to 91 aircraft, 74 Lancasters and 17 Mosquitos.

Care and maintenance followed and this was soon reduced to a caretaker party as Woodhall Spa became one of several `mothballed' airfields left to decay. However revival came in 1960 when it was selected as a base for a Bloodhound ground-to-air missile site for the defence of the Lincolnshire's V-bomber stations. The first operating unit was No. 222 Squadron, replaced by No. 112 Squadron with a new mark of Bloodhound four years later. The missiles were removed in 1965 but the site was retained for exercises. The RAF continues to hold part of the airfield as a satellite to Coningsby, albeit for component servicing and storage. There is a No. 617 Dambuster Squadron memorial at Woodhall Spa.