page_title: RAF Welford
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: RAF Welford / History
caption_attribution_description: English: Aerial photograph of Welford Airfield, England.
context_page_description: Royal Air Force Welford or more simply RAF Welford is an active Royal Air Force station in Berkshire, England RG20 7EX. The station is located approximately 6 miles northwest of Newbury; about 50 miles west-southwest of London
  Opened in 1943, it was used during the Second World War by both the Royal Air Force and United States Army Air Forces. During the war it was used primarily as a transport airfield. After the war it was closed in 1946 and placed in reserve status. As a result of the Cold War, the station was reopened in 1955 as a munitions depot by the United States Air Force
  Today it is one of the largest ammunition compounds for the United States Air Force in Western Europe for heavy munitions. One description states RAF Welford comprises 806 acres and is bordered by a 31,680 foot fence-line. They are home to the U.S. Air Forces in Europe’s second largest munitions hub. The installation currently maintains 15,000 bombs; over a $160 million stockpile.
caption: RAF Welford, May 1944. The CG-4 Gliders and C-47s of the 435th Troop Carrier Group trying to find room with the aircraft being parked wherever space can be found, one month before the D-Day invasion of France.
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