RAF Linton-on-Ouse

Royal Air Force Linton-on-Ouse or more simply RAF Linton-on-Ouse (IATA: HRT, ICAO: EGXU) is a former Royal Air Force station at Linton-on-Ouse in North Yorkshire, England, 10 miles (16 km) north-west of York. It had satellite stations at RAF Topcliffe and Dishforth Airfield (British Army). The station opened in 1937. With the transfer of pilot training to RAF Valley on Anglesey in 2019, the station closed in 2020. In February 2021, the MOD confirmed that no alternative military use had been identified for the site and that it would therefore be sold. History RAF Linton-on-Ouse opened on 13 May 1937 as a bomber airfield and was the home of No. 4 Group RAF until 1940. The base's first commander was Wing Commander A. D. Pryor. When the Second World War began, bombers were launched from Linton to drop propaganda leaflets over Germany and the base was eventually used to launch bombing raids on Norway, The Netherlands, Germany, and Italy. Linton was one of 11 stations allocated to No. 6 Group, Royal Canadian Air Force during the war. In May 1941 the station was bombed by the Luftwaffe resulting in the death of 13 airmen including the station commander, Group Captain Garroway. A York Press article refers to the 'mystery' of how Garroway was killed – the station's record books state he was directing firefighting when he met his death, not taking shelter. His son, who was also in the RAF, was later killed in action. At the end of the war the station was involved with transporting passengers and freight back to the UK. After which it became a Fighter Command station operating the Gloster Meteor, Canadair Sabre and Hawker Hunter until it was closed and put under care and maintenance in 1957. On 9 September 1957, the base was reopened as the home of No. 1 Flying Training School (FTS) and was responsible for training pilots for both the RAF and the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm. In October 1975 Headquarters No. 23 Group RAF disbanded at the station. Between March 1979 and March 1980 the BBC filmed episodes 4, 5 and 6 of the Fighter Pilot series at the base. The series aired in 1981. In 1985, engineering and supply services were contracted out to private firms. The contract for this was held by Babcock International. Between 1992 and 1994 the Chief Flying Instructor was Wing Commander Paul McDonald (later Group Captain), author of several books including his memoirs, 'Winged Warriors – The Cold War from the Cockpit' in which he describes his tour at RAF Linton-on-Ouse. Following his retirement from regular service, Paul McDonald returned to the station as a Tucano simulator instructor. No. 1 Flying Training School was the last RAF Unit to operate the BAC Jet Provost T3A and T5A which were replaced in 1993 by the Short Tucano T1. In 1999 the entire NCO married quarter site at Linton Woods were purchased by The Welbeck Estate Group and underwent a major upgrade. No. 72(R) Squadron provided Basic Fast Jet Training (BFJT) at Linton-on-Ouse on the Short Tucano T1 before the Squadron's move to RAF Valley in November 2019. The Yorkshire Universities Air Squadron relocated to RAF Linton-on-Ouse from RAF Church Fenton in 2014. YUAS operated the Grob Tutor T1 aircraft. The station also housed a memorial room (limited public opening) which recounts the history of the base and the units which have been associated with it. Drawdown and closure In October 2014, it was confirmed by the Ministry of Defence (MOD) that basic fast-jet training would move from Linton-on-Ouse to RAF Valley in Anglesey in 2019. The move was part of the UK Military Flying Training System (UKMFTS) which saw the Beechcraft Texan T1 replace the Tucano T1 in the basic fast-jet training role. At that time, the MOD did not confirm what future role Linton-on-Ouse would have, but in July 2018, it was stated that the RAF would vacate the base by 2020 and it would be disposed of completely. However, in March 2019, the MOD indicated it was considering options for other defence uses for the site, before a final decision was made. Flying training ceased in October 2019, when the final student pilots graduated and training fully relocated to Valley. The final flying unit to depart was the Yorkshire Universities Air Squadron, which relocated to RAF Leeming on 1 December 2020. The MOD notified the Civil Aviation Authority that the aerodrome would close on 18 December 2020. In February 2021, the MOD confirmed that no alternative military use had been identified for the site and that it would therefore be made available for sale by the end of 2023. In August 2021, the station was used to support COVID-19 countermeasures for personnel returning from Afghanistan on Operation Pitting. Proposed processing centre for asylum seekers In April 2022, the government announced its intention to convert the camp into a reception, accommodation and processing centre for asylum seekers, as a way of defraying the £4.7 million per day cost of hotels being used. The plan was met by resistance from local residents who claim that asylum seekers will outnumber existing residents. The press has used the moniker "Guantánamo-on-Ouse" to describe the proposal, in reference to the Guantanamo Bay detention camp. However, on 9 August 2022, the government backtracked on this policy, with Defence Secretary Ben Wallace stating this plan would now not go ahead. Motorsport In the summers of 1960 and 1961, the perimeter track and parts of two runways were used to form the 1.7 mile, Linton-on-Ouse circuit, on what was still an operational RAF base, with the racing organised by the Northern branch of the British Racing and Sports Car Club. The 1960 meeting was held in torrential rain and Tony Hodgetts recalls blue sparks coming off his fingers as he cranked the field telephone which was used by the marshals to communicate with race control. The meeting was dominated by Jimmy Blumer in his Cooper Monaco T49. The final meeting in 1961 was marred by a fatal accident to a flag marshal. The driver of the Formula Junior car involved was a serving RAF officer and, following the inquest into the death of the marshal, the venue was no longer available. After this sad incident and a near fatality to another flag marshal at Full Sutton Circuit, Tony Hodgetts and Garth Nicholls started a campaign which resulted in flag marshals working face to face instead of back to back, a system which is still in use and is considerably safer. List of station commanders 13 May 1937, Flight Lieutenant C L Dook 29 Jul 1937, Flight Lieutenant G F M Warner 20 Apr 1938, Wing Commander A D Pryor Jun 1940, Group Captain R Ivelaw-Chapman 1941, Group Captain F M F Garraway (killed in bombing raid 10 May 1941) 1941, Group Captain J R Whitley (shot down and evaded) 1943, Group Captain D E L Wilson RAAF 15 Jun 1943, Group Captain D M Edwards RCAF 1943, Group Captain W A Jones RCAF 1944, Group Captain A L Annis RCAF 1945, Group Captain W P Pleasance 1946, Group Captain H J Maguire 1947, Wing Commander H B Johnson 1948, Group Captain F L White 1948, Group Captain A C P Carver 1949, Group Captain F S Stapleton 1950, Group Captain A F Anderson 1952, Group Captain M G F Pedley July 1954, Group Captain D. F. Spotswood 1956, Group Captain W Pitt-Brown 1957, Group Captain W C J Brain 1957, Group Captain L W G Gill 23 May 1960, Group Captain J L W Ellacombe 1962, Group Captain R L Fuller 28 Feb 1965, Group Captain R H Compton 1967, Group Captain J H Lewis 1 May 1970, Group Captain R G Price 28 Apr 1972, Group Captain J L W Towler 1974, Group Captain R J Bannard 1976, Group Captain R B Gubbins 1977, Group Captain B J Westoby 1979, Group Captain R H Wood 8 May 1981, Group Captain Don I. Oakden 1983, Group Captain P J Kemp 1985, Group Captain G H Rolfe 1988, Group Captain J A Prideaux 1990, Group Captain P J Gooding 1992, Group Captain T Eeles, Author 'A Passion for Flying' 1994, Group Captain D H Milne Smith 1996, Group Captain R M Thomas Jul 1998, Group Captain G H Edge 15 July 2000, Group Captain Ken L. Cornfield, born November 1955, attended King Edward's Birmingham, studied Geography at St John's College, Cambridge from 1974–77 6 Dec 2002, Group Captain D I Harrison 2005, Group Captain A Sudlow 1 Dec 2006, Group Captain M W G Hopkins 2009, Group Captain M Longstaff Aug 2010, Group Captain T W Jones 22 June 2012, Group Captain David G. Cooper, former Tornado pilot October 2014, Group Captain Ian Laing November 2016, Group Captain Keith Taylor November 2019, Wing Commander Howard Newbould Units The following squadrons were here at some point: Units November 2008 incident In early November 2008 Wing Commander Paul Gerrard, who was based at the station, was involved in an unusual mid-air rescue. Sixty-five-year-old Jim O'Neill was flying a four-seater Cessna 182 from Scotland to Essex after a family holiday, when he had a stroke which caused temporary blindness. Gerrard was on a training flight, and after being alerted to the situation, located O'Neill's aircraft and over a 45-minute period, guided O'Neill to a safe landing at Linton. See also List of Royal Air Force stations References Bibliography Birtles, P. (2012). UK Airfields of the Cold War. Midland Publishing. ISBN 978-1-85780-346-4. Delve, Ken. The military airfields of Northern England – County Durham, Cumbria, Isle of Man, Lancashire, Merseyside, Manchester, Northumberland, Tyne & Wear, Yorkshire. Marlborough, Wiltshire, UK: Crowood Press, 2006. ISBN 1-86126-809-2. Dunmore, Spencer and William Carter. Reap the Whirlwind: The Untold Story of 6 Group, Canada's Bomber Force of World War II. Toronto, Ontario, Canada: McLelland and Stewart Inc., 1991. ISBN 0-7710-2924-1. Falconer, Jonathan (2012). RAF Airfields of World War 2. UK: Ian Allan Publishing. ISBN 978-1-85780-349-5. External links Official website UK Military Aeronautical Information Publication – Linton-on-Ouse (EGXU)