RAF Polebrook
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Royal Air Force Station Polebrook USAAF Station 110
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| Located Near Oundle, Northamptonshire, United Kingdom | |
 RAF Polebrook - August, 1948 |
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| Type | Military Airfield |
| Coordinates | |
| Location code | PK |
| Built | 1940 |
| In use | 1941-1948,1959-1963 |
| Controlled by | Royal Air Force United States Army Air Forces |
| Garrison | RAF Bomber Command Eighth Air Force |
| Battles/wars | European Theatre of World War II Air Offensive, Europe July 1942 - May 1945   Map showing the location of RAF Polebrook within Northamptonshire.
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RAF Polebrook is a former World War II airfield located 3.5 miles east-south-east of Oundle, Northamptonshire, UK. The airfield was built on Rothschild estate land starting in August 1940. It was also notable as the base from which the United States Army Air Forces Eighth Air Force carried out its first bombing mission in 1942, and from which Major Clark Gable flew combat missions in 1943.
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[edit] Origins
RAF Polebrook was the first airfield to be completed out of a number in the Northamptonshire/Huntingdonshire area which were laid down for RAF Bomber Command during late 1940 and early 1941.
Like other airfields in the construction program at the time, Polebrook was built by George Wimpey & Co., Limited. The initial construction was of three runways, the concrete runway lengths were 08-26 at 1,280 yards, 14-32 at 1,200 yards and 02-20, 1,116 yards. In addition, thirty square hardstands most on the eastern side, were reached by very long access tracks.
The weapons store was unusual in that it lay within the perimeter track at the southern end. One Type J and two Type T-2 hangars were erected on the technical site outside the northern perimeter with the domestic sites dispersed in woodland beyond.
[edit] RAF Bomber Command use
One of the first units to operate from the airfield was 90 Squadron, RAF, which carried out operational trials from June 1941 to February 1942. Several of the hardstands and taxiways were still under construction when the squadron arrived.
90 Squadron was equipped with the American B-17C, called "Fortress 1" by the RAF. Although the US Army Air Force did not consider the B-17C as being combat ready (the E-version was already under procurement as the result of combat reports from Europe), the RAF was sufficiently desperate in 1941 that these planes were immediately pressed into front-line service.
No. 90's Fortress's were used for very high-altitude attacks in daylight, the first operation from Polebrook being flown on July 8, 1941 when three Fortresses were dispatched on a raid to Wilhelmshaven. Engine trouble forced one of the planes to divert to a second target, but the other two went on to attack the naval barracks at Wilhelmshaven from an altitude of 30,000 feet. Unfortunately, the planes were not able to hit anything from such extreme altitudes. In addition, their crews found that the temperatures at this altitude were so cold that their defensive machine guns froze up when they tried to fire them. However, all planes returned safely to base.
Their last raid launched from Polebrook was on September 2, 1941. RAF Fortresses had flown 22 attacks against targets such as Bremen, Brest, Emden, Kiel, Oslo, and Rotterdam. A total of 39 planes had been dispatched, out of which eighteen planes had aborted and two had been forced to bomb secondary targets because of mechanical problems. Eight Fortresses had been destroyed in combat or lost in accidents. Discouraged by these losses, the RAF decided to abandon daylight bombing raids over Europe.
Although two Fortresses were missing from operations, the only loss resulting from a raid flown from Polebrook involved a badly battle-damaged aircraft that crash landed at a south-coast airfield.
As a result of RAF experience with the Fortress, it was determined that there was a need for vast improvements in defensive gunnery, a need for operating the Fortresses in greater numbers in tighter formations for better defensive firepower, and a need for better and more intensive crew training. Nevertheless, their British crews generally were quite pleased with the Fortress I, regarding it as easy to fly, very maneuverable, and aerodynamically stable in the bomb run.
While at Polebrook, No. 90 was then the sole operational squadron assigned to No. 8 Group and, before it was disbanded on February 12, 1942, its remaining aircraft and crews were only involved in experimentation and training.
The short runways at Polebrook were found to be quite unsatisfactory for the operation of the heavy-loaded, four-engine B-17. In 1942, the main runway was extended to 1,950 yards and the secondary runways to 1,400 yards each. In addition, additional hardstands were constructed, increasing the total number from 30 to 50. This enlargement resulted in the unusual situation that the ammunition storage area was inside the extended perimeter track. The living and communal sites were dispersed in woodlands north of the airfield. They provided accommodations to about 2,000 personnel.
[edit] USAAF use
From 12 December 1943 though 12 June 1945, Polebrook served as headquarters for the 94th Combat Bombardment Wing of the 1st Bomb Division.
[edit] 97th Bombardment Group (Heavy)
On June 28, 1942, RAF Polebrook was officially turned over to the USAAF and the airbase became the base of the 97th Bombardment Group, the first USAAF heavy bomber organization to arrive in the UK. It was designated USAAF Station 110.
The 97th BG was assigned to the 1st Combat Wing, at RAF Bassingbourn. It's operational squadrons were divided between Polebrook and RAF Grafton Underwood:
- 340th Bomb Squadron (RAF Polebrook)
- 341st Bomb Squadron (RAF Polebrook)
- 342d Bomb Squadron (RAF Grafton Underwood)
- 343d Bomb Squadron (RAF Grafton Underwood)
Combat operations by the USAAF began on August 17, 1942, when the 97th BG flew the first Eighth Air Force heavy bomber mission of the war, attacking the Rouen-Sotteville marshalling yards in France. The lead aircraft of the group, Butcher Shop, was piloted by the Group Commander, Colonel Frank A. Armstrong, and squadron commander Major Paul W. Tibbets (who later flew the Enola Gay to Hiroshima Japan on the first atomic bomb mission). In the leading aircraft of the second flight, Yankee Doodle, flew General Ira C. Eaker, the commanding general of the Eighth Air Force Bomber Command.
The 97th BG conducted a total of 14 missions from Polebrook, attacking airfields, marshalling yards, industries, naval installations, and other targets in France and the Low Countries.
The group sortied 247 aircraft, dropped 395 tons of bombs on Nazi-controlled territory, and lost 14 aircraft. On October 21, 1942, the 97th Bomb Group was transferred to the Twelfth Air Force in the Mediterranean theater and Polebrook was unoccupied until April 1943.
[edit] 351st Bombardment Group (Heavy)
On April 15, 1943, the 351st Bomb Group arrived at RAF Polebrook. It was assigned to the 94th Combat Wing, also at Polebrook. The group tail code was a "Triangle J". It's operational squadrons were:
- 508th Bomb Squadron (YB)
- 509th Bomb Squadron (RQ)
- 510th Bomb Squadron (TU)
- 511th Bomb Squadron (DS)
The 351st's first completed combat mission took place on May 14, 1943, when 18 B-17's targeted a German Luftwaffe airfield at Kortrijk, Belgium. As the war progressed, the 351st operated primarily against strategic objectives in Germany, striking such targets as ball-bearing plants at Schweinfurt, communications at Mayen, marshalling yards at Koblenz, a locomotive and tank factory at Hannover, industries at Berlin, bridges at Cologne, an armaments factory at Mannheim, and oil refineries at Hamburg.
The group also struck harbor facilities, submarine installations, airfields, V-weapon sites, and power plants in France, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Norway.
The 351st Received a Distinguished Unit Citation for performance of 9 October 1943 when an aircraft factory in Germany was accurately bombed in spite of heavy flak and pressing enemy interceptors. It received another DUC for its part in the successful attack of 11 January 1944 on aircraft factories in central Germany. The group participated in the intensive air campaign against the German aircraft industry during Big Week, 20-25 Feb 1944.
In addition to its strategic missions, the group often operated in support of ground forces and attacked interdictory targets. Bombed in support of the Battle of Normandy in June 1944 and the St Lo breakthrough in July. The group hit enemy positions to cover the airborne attack on the Netherlands in September 1944. Struck front-line positions, communications, and airfields to help stop the German counteroffensive in the Battle of the Bulge, Dec 1944-Jan 1945. Flew missions in support of Operation Varsity, the airborne assault across the Rhine in March 1945.
In 1944 Polebrook also became the headquarters of the 94th Combat Wing, which controlled the 351st, the 457th Bomb Group at RAF Glatton and the 401st Bomb Group at RAF Deenethorpe.
The 351st conducted routine 8th Air Force missions from RAF Polebrook until the end of the war. The unit completed 311 combat missions from Polebrook. The 351st lost 175 B-17's and their crews. The gunners in the Group fired off 2,776,028 rounds of ammunition and were credited with destroying 303 enemy aircraft. The 509th Bomb Squadron completed 54 consecutive missions without losses between June 1943 to January 1944.
The unit returned to the US soon after V-E Day with the air element leaving May 21 and the ground echelon sailing June 25. Reassigned to Sioux Falls AAF, South Dakota during August 1945. the 391st Bomb Group was inactivated on 28 August 1945.
RAF Polebrook was subsequently returned to the RAF on August 28, 1945, and the base was placed on care and maintenance status.
[edit] Medal of Honor
Two members of the 351st, Lt. Walter E. Truemper and S/Sgt. Archibald Mathies, were posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor. On a mission to Leipzig, Germany, February 20, 1944 their B-17 Ten Horsepower was attacked by German fighters. The co-pilot was killed and pilot Lt. Clarence Nelson was badly wounded. Truemper and Mathies flew the badly damaged B-17 back to England where the remainder of the crew bailed out, then attempted to land the plane to save the life of the unconscious pilot. On their third attempt Ten Horsepower crashed on final approach and all three airmen were killed.
Legacy
During the Cold War, the United States Air Force Strategic Air Command 351st Strategic Missile Wing stood alert with Minuteman I and later, Minuteman II ICBMs starting in 1963 at Whiteman AFB Missouri. The wing was bestowed the lineage, honors and history of the World War II USAAF 351st Bomb Wing upon activation.
The 351st SMW won the SAC missile combat competitions and Blanchard Trophy in 1967, 1971, and 1977. Named as SAC's "best Minuteman wing" in 1972. It stood down from alert and was deactivated in 1995.
[edit] Hollywood at Polebrook
During much of 1943, Major Clark Gable was stationed at Polebrook to produce a recruiting film for aircraft gunners. While there, he flew five combat missions as an observer. Much of the film was shot by MGM cinematographer Andrew McIntyre, who not only accompanied Gable, but who also enlisted with him in the USAAF.
Gable’s first combat mission occurred on 4 May 43 flying with Capt W.R. Calhoun from the 303rd Bomb Group at Molesworth in the lead aircraft nicknamed ‘Eight Ball II’ [SN#41-24635] and targeting Antwerp, Belgium. His second mission was on 15 Jun 43 flying with Lt. Theodore. Argiropulos from the 351st Bomb Group at Polebrook in the aircraft ‘Argonaut III’ [SN# 42-29851] and targeting Villacoublay, France. His third combat mission occurred on July 24, 1943 flying with Lt.Col . Robert W. Burns from the 351st Bomb Group at Polebrook in ‘Argonaut III’ [SN# 42-29851] and bombing Heroya, Norway. His fourth combat mission occurred 12 Aug 43 flying with Capt John B. Carraway from the 351st Bomb Group in the aircraft ‘Aint It Gruesome’ [SN# 42-29863] and hitting the secondary target of Bochum, Germany. Gable had somehow wedged himself in behind the top turret gunner for a better view as fighters made five passes, killing one man, wounding seven others, and damaging eleven 351st Bomb Group planes. At one point a 20-mm shell came through Aint It Gruesome's floor, cut off the heel from Gable's boot, and exited one foot from his head, all without exploding. Afterward, the crew noticed the fifteen holes in the aircraft, and Gable noticed his boot. Brushing off concern with reporters, Gable claimed, "I didn't know it had happened. I didn't know anything about it until we had dropped eleven thousand feet (and could get off oxygen and look around). Only then did I see the hole in the turret." Gable's fifth and last combat mission occurred on 23 Sept 43, targeting Nantes, France with Maj John Blaylock as pilot flying ‘The Dutchess’ [SN# 42-29925].
Clark Gable was awarded the Air Medal on October 4, 1943 for completing five combat missions and left the 351st BG on November 5, 1943 returning to the US with over 50,000 ft of 16mm film. In 1944, the film ‘Combat America’ was shown in theaters.
[edit] Thor Missile use by RAF Bomber Command
Post-war the station came under No. 273 Maintenance Unit and the airfield was kept in usable state until October 1948 when it was closed. RAF Polebrook was kept in caretaker status until 1959. However, No. 130(SM) Squadron was formed at what was retained for RAF use at Polebrook to operate three Thor missile emplacements which were constructed in the center of the former airfield area.
The Thor missiles were operational until August 1963, when the rockets were removed and the unit disbanded.
[edit] Civil Use
With the end of military control, the remnants of RAF Polebrook were sold back to the Rothschild estate in 1967 and the St Ives Sand and Gravel company broke up all concrete apart from the ends of runways 02 and 32 during the next decade.
Today, the airfield has few reminders of its wartime past. There is a memorial and some old buildings remaining. Also the massive J-style Hangar at Polebrook exists and is still in use for agricultural purposes. The owners are very American friendly and very respectful of the hangar's place in history
[edit] See also
- List of RAF stations
- USAAF Eighth Air Force - World War II
- 97th Air Mobility Wing
- 351st Missile Wing
[edit] References
- Freeman, Roger A. (1978) Airfields of the Eighth: Then and Now. After the Battle ISBN 0900913096
- Freeman, Roger A. (1991) The Mighty Eighth The Colour Record. Cassell & Co. ISBN 0-304-35708-1
- Maurer, Maurer (1983). Air Force Combat Units Of World War II. Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History. ISBN 0892010924.
- Ravenstein, Charles A. (1984). Air Force Combat Wings Lineage and Honors Histories 1947-1977. Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History. ISBN 0912799129.
- Rogers, Brian (2005). United States Air Force Unit Designations Since 1978. Hinkley, England: Midland Publications. ISBN 1-85780-197-0.
- USAAS-USAAC-USAAF-USAF Aircraft Serial Numbers--1908 to present
[edit] External links
- 90 Squadron RAF and the Boeing bomber
- 97th Air Mobility Wing, USAF
- 351st Bombardment Group Website
- United States Army Air Forces - Polebrook
- Historic Polebrook Photo Gallery
