Manston
*MANSTON: Military aerodrome and later joint civil aerodrome later regional airport
Note: This picture (2009) was obtained from Google Earth ©
(In WW1 also known as and/or spelt MANSTONE it seems) Later known as LONDON MANSTON AIRPORT and later still KENT INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT
Note: All pictures by the author unless specified.
A picture taken by a friend as the author prepares to 'land long' in a Cessna 172. Landing at MANSTON for a first visit was always a tad challenging in a light aircraft as, when you get much lower, the massive expanse on either side makes it tricky to judge the height at which to cut the power and flare. This did get easier on subsequent visits and the trick seemed to be that it was easier to land nicely by looking out of the side window.
ICAO code: EGMH IATA code: MSE
Note: This image with map, was kindly provided by Mr Michael T Holder
Military users: WW1: Initially tiny 20 acre RNAS Home Defence sub-station to WESTGATE seaplane station and replacing WESTGATE aerodrome in early 1916. Then enlarged to 40 acres to become a RNAS Home Defence Flight Station in it’s own right. Soon after it was developed into a huge site for the time becoming a RNAS/RAF Flying School from 1916 to (?) and RAF Marine Operations Station from 1918 to 1920.
3 Wing (RNAS)
Note: To quote from Chaz Bowyer in his most excellent book For Valour - The Air VCs, regarding the chapter on Richard Bell-Davies; "In early June 1916 Davies received notification from the Admiralty that his former unit, 3 Wing RNAS, was to be re-formed, for service in France as the nucleus of the first-ever British strategic bombing formation."
"Formed at Manston aerodrome, Kent, the new 3 Wing was commanded by Captain W.L. Elder RN, and Davies was appointed as chief of flying operations. The majority of the air crews were Canadians, while equipment was originally intended to be 20 Sopwith 1½ Strutter two-seaters and 15 Short bombers; an establishment which was scheduled to be complete by 1 July 1916."
"In the event, the shortage of aircraft within the RFC in France for air support of the first battles of the Somme that summer led to large diversion of aircraft from 3 Wing to the hard-pressed RFC units, and by the end of August 3 Wing could only muster a total of 22 aircraft."
1918 to 1939: RAF (Bomber Command only?)
9 (IX) Sqdn (Vickers Vimys later Vickers Virginias and later still Handley Page Heyfords)
48 & 206 Sqdns (Avro Ansons)
58 Sqdn (Vickers Virginias)
79 Sqdn (Hawker Hurricanes)
2 (Army Co-operation) Sqdn (Bristol Fighters & Vickers Virginias)
A MIKE CHARLTON GALLERY
Notes: These pictures from postcards were very kindly sent by Mike Charlton who has an amazing collection: See, www.aviationpostcard.co.uk
I might well be wrong but I think the Spitfire TB752 served as a 'Gate Guardian' for RAF MANSTON from 1956 to 1979. It appears it was restored at one stage by the Medway Branch of the RAes.
The fourth picture of the Spitfire TB752 appears to have a story attached. It clearly wasn't positioned as a 'gate guardian', being unsecured apart from a chock on the left-hand undercarriage. Was it perhaps wheeled around to this position for a picture just before RAF MANSTON closed in 1996? If anybody can kindly offer advice, this will be most welcome.
NOTE: In February 2018 Mike Charlton very kindly sent me these two pictures from postcards of Concorde making a visit. I was astonished - Concorde at MANSTON!
However, after a bit of delving around on the inter-web it appears to reveal that Concorde visited in 1993, 1999 and 2000. And it appears, on at least one visit, if not all, several flights were made. It also seems that not all, (if any?), involved going supersonic. Judging by the KIA (Kent International Airport) ground equipment in the these pictures, and the name on the terminal building in the second, I imagine these pictures date from 1999/2000.
On closer inspection I note that in the first picture British Airways are providing the mobile stairs for passengers, whereas in the second they are KIA equipment. Indicating I suppose that these pictures were taken on two seperate occassions, presumably the second picture being taken after the first. Perhaps somebody can kindly offer advice. The baggage loading truck in the second picture appears to be being used to plug in the APU (Auxillary Power Unit) cable.
There is quite a lot of stuff aviable, including videos, on the web of Concorde visiting MANSTON. Well worth a look. This 'trawl' also revealed that in July 2013 British Airways stationed an Airbus A380 here for three weeks for crew training.
Seventh picture: Mike Charlton came across this and the following picture quite a bit later and kindly sent them in April 2018. The Westland Wallace was a development of the Wapiti and served with the RAF from 1933 until 1943. It appears that 104 were built, plus another 68 that were converted from Wapitis. But, can anybody kindly identify the twin-engine aircraft in the background?
Eighth picture: The Handley Page Heyford, to me at least, looks like an absolute beast and very antiquated - more like something from WW1. It was in fact introduced into RAF service in 1934 and served until 1941. A total of 125 were built and twelve front line squadrons were equipped with them, for use as a heavy night bomber. It appears that the method of attaching the fuselage to the top wing was to enable the aircraft to be re-armed with bombs with the engines still running - so there was a sensible reason!
It did mean though, as can so clearly be seen, that the pilots sat over seventeen feet from the ground, and I suspect that in those days, this took a bit of getting used to initially? Seen beyond is an Avro Anson with a gun turret mounted on the fuselage, a type employed by Coastal Command.
* Battle of Britain RAF Station 11 Group
(10th July 1940) 600 Sqdn [Bristol Blenheims] (still based here 1st August 1940)
41, 54 & 74 Sqdns (Vickers-Supermarine Spitfires)
56 Sqdn (Hawker Hurricanes)
WW2: RAF Fighter Command 11 Group Bomber Command 2 Group
Forward Airfield also Bomber Command emergency runway.
Fleet Air Arm: 841 Sqdn (Fairey Albercores)
18, 21 & 101 Sqdns (Bristol Blenheims)
604 Sqdn (Gloster Gladiators)
54 & 151 Sqdns (Hawker Hurricanes)
No.1, 54, 74, 91, 92, 118, 124, 229, 331 (Norwegian*) & 504 Sqdns (Vickers-Supermarine Spitfires)
29 Sqdn (Bristol Beaufighters later DH Mosquitos)
137 Sqdn (Westland Whirlwinds)
3 & 609 Sqdns (Hawker Typhoons)
256 & 605 Sqdn** (DH Mosquitos)
616 Sqdn (Gloster Meteors),
1401 Met. Flt (Spitfires)
1001 & 1027 Servicing Wing HQs
USAAF: 365th Fighter Sqdn (Republic P-47 Thunderbolts)
Post 1945: RAF
29 Sqdn (de Havilland Mosquitos)
148 Sqdn (Vickers Valiants)
Note: 148 Squadron was based at RAF MARHAM (NORFOLK) and MANSTON was one of two dispersal airfields to be used when the 'Cold War' appeared to be heating up. The other dispersal airfield was TARRANT RUSHTON (DORSET). The reason being that it would be impossible for the three MARHAM Squadrons to get airborne in five minutes. The other two Valiant bomber Squadrons at MARHAM had other dispersal airfields to use.
Please see my article 'V Force' for a list of the main 'V' Bomber bases and their dispersal airfields spread around the UK.
USAF base – 1950s (Examples only given)
USAF Strategic Air Command bomber base (Boeing B-47 Stratojets and Convair B-36s)
12th Fighter-Escort Wing 123rd Fighter-Bomber Wing
Air National Guard: 156th, 165th & 167th Fighter-Bomber Sqdns (Republic F-84 Thunderjets)
406th Fighter-Bomber Wing:
512th, 513th & 514th Fighter-Bomber Sqdns (Republic F-84 Thunderjets then North American F.86F Sabres). It appears this USAF regime ended in May 1958
1960: ATC Gliding and 1 AEF (DHC.1 Chipmunks)
RAF 22 Sqdn (Westland Wessex)
617 VGS
1975: RAF (Westland Whirlwinds)
1990: RAF Military Emergency Diversion Aerodrome
Civil operator: 2001: London Manston Airport
British airline user: Air Ferry
Foreign airline user: Post 1945: Iran Air
Car Ferry: Circa 1960: Silver City
THE AIR FERRY GALLERY
Note: These pictures from postcards were also kindly sent by Mike Charlton.
First picture: It is quite possible that this picture shows the entire Air Ferry fleet in 1963 shortly after operations commenced at MANSTON, with two Vickers VC-1 Vikings and two Douglas DC-4s, (probably civiliansed C-54s?).
The airline operated charter, scheduled and all-cargo services. Scheduled services were initially to Le Touquet (France), Ostende (Belgium) and Verona (Italy). Later a third DC-4, more Vikings, a Bristol 170 Freighter and two Douglas DC-6As were added. In October 1964 Air Ferry was acquired by Air Holdings, who owned BUA, but it appears they kept the Air Ferries trading name going until 1968.
It appears the Air Ferry fleet in 1965 was: 3 x Douglas DC-4, 5 x Vickers VC.1 Vikings and one Bristol 170 Freighter. In 1968 it was 2 x Vickers 812 Viscounts, 2 x Douglas DC-4s and two Douglas DC-6As.
Charter/air taxi: Post 1945: Air Ferry, Invicta Airways, Silver City
Note: This picture from a postcard was also kindly sent by Mike Charlton and it has an interesting quirk or two in its history. Ex HZ-AAG (Saudi Arabian Airlines), it was registered in the UK on the 28th February 1964 to British Eagle International Airlines at HEATHROW until the 10th Sugust 1967. It then went to Invicta Airways at MANSTON until the 17th February 1969. It was then registered to British Midland Airways (at EAST MIDLANDS) from the 24th February 1969 until the 6th July 1969. For just six months - I wonder what that was all about? Was it an early example of a buy-back arrangement?
It then went back to Invicta, now called Invicta International Airlines, at MANSTON from the 7th August 1969 until the 18th April 1972 when it was sold to South Africa as ZS-IRE. Being very anoraky I suppose, I found that looking into the history of this aircraft it was described variously as being a C-54A, C-54E and a C-54R (when in Saudi Arabia) and a DC-4. The Douglas C-54 was a U.S. military variant of the DC-4 civil airliner, and a great number were converted back to civilian specifications after WW2.
It is also clear when looking into its history that although described as a '80-seater' in the caption, Invicta used their aircraft for both passenger and freight operations. Indeed, as a lad living alongside LAP (London Airport), I was invited into a DC-4 (or C-54) registered in Luxembourg and employed on services to South Africa, which had undergone a replacement of all four engines by Fields Aviation. All the seats were folded up and stowed almost upright on both sides, and the four old engines were secured along the centre. Perhaps Invicta used the same method - or were the seats removed - which has been common practice in more recent times for some overnight freight operations in Europe?
Flying club/school: Post 1945: TG Aviation, Thanet Flying Club
Gliding: 1990: Taking place daily it seems but gliding operations terminated in 19?
Maintenance: Post 1945: Invicta
Pleasure flights: Pre 1940: Avro Transport Co
Location: N of A253, 2nm W of Ramsgate
Period of operation: 1916 to 2014 (Will it reopen?)
Note: Despite being officially closed, helicopter sight-seeing flights were being conducted in 2017 at least.
Site area: WW1: Initially 20 acres soon 40 acres in 1916. Later developed to, (for a WW1 aerodrome), a massive 680 acres 1829 x 1829
Runways: WW2: 06/24? 2743 hard with 457 grass extensions at both ends according to one respected source ostensibly working from official records but surely the headings cannot be correct as it must be very obviously the same runway used today. It seems somebody got confused by the much shorter grass runway probably also then in place?
Circa 1950: 11/29 2743x229 (It appears the hard ‘over-run’ areas on each side of the runway were included in the overall dimensions in those days)
Circa 1960: 11/29 2752x61 hard 06/24 1673x46 grass
Note: These maps are reproduced with the kind permission of Pooleys Flight Equipment Ltd. Copyright Robert Pooley 2014.
1990: 11/29 2752x61 hard 06/24 792x46 grass (Discontinued in 1998/99?)
2000: 10/28 2752x61 hard
NOTES: In WW1 a RNAS flying training school was based here using Avro 504Bs.
AN AIR VC CONNECTION
In his excellent book For Valour, The Air VCs, Chas Bowyer includes this in his account of Richard Bell-Davies VC: “In early June 1916 Davies received notification from the Admiralty that his former unit, 3 Wing RNAS, was to be re-formed, for service in France as the nucleus of the first-ever British strategic bombing formation. Formed at Manston aerodrome, Kent, the new 3 Wing was commanded by Captain W. L. Elder RN, and Davies was appointed as chief of flying operations. The majority of its air crews were Canadians, while equipment was originally intended to be 20 Sopwith 1½ Strutter two-seaters and 15 Short bombers; an establishment which was scheduled to be complete by 1 July 1916.”
It is, I think, very interesting to learn that when WW1 commenced the aeroplane was mostly viewed as being of dubious value to the war effort, but, in just two years the creation of a strategic bombing formation was already in place. It didn’t go to plan however and as Chas Bowyer tells us: “In the event, the shortage of aircraft within the RFC in France for air support of the first battles of the Somme that summer led to a large diversion of aircraft from 3 Wing to the hard-pressed RFC units, and by the end of August 3 Wing could only muster a total of 22 aircraft.”
They moved to Luxeuil at the end of June 1916 and commenced operations on the 30th July. To give it it’s full name, Luxeuil-les-Bains in the Haute-Saône region of north-east France, is roughly 50 miles (80km) WNW of Mulhouse. This location meant that bombing raids were easily possible into Germany, especially the steel production plants in the Saar region. Just how much damage the feeble bombs they carried could actually do to major industrial plants is questionable at best, but, as with the ‘Zeppelin threat’ airships over England, the propaganda value was immense in those times. Indeed, just as with the highly applauded ‘Dam-busters’ raid in WW2, which actually achieved negligible results in disrupting the German industrial war effort, the propaganda value by far exceeded the damage caused.
BETWEEN THE WARS
The Avro Transport Co pleasure flying activities commenced either in 1919 or 1920.
In 1926 No.2 (Army Co-operation) Squadron played host to the newly formed Oxford University Air Squadron for their summer camp ‘air experience’ in Bristol Fighters and Vickers Virginia bombers. It was a great success and the Oxford UAS returned for the next five years. In the early to mid 1930s No. 2 (Army Co-operation) Squadron operated Armstrong Whitworth Atlas types here.
Was 48 Squadron based here the first to be operating the Avro Anson? It is hard to bear in mind that when it entered service in 1936 the venerable Anson was an advanced type in many respects, not least for having a retractable undercarriage. The retraction of which was an onerous task, (in the earliest types at least), requiring 140 turns of a wheel. Which is why the ‘cart’ was usually left down on shorter flights.
THE WW2 EPISODE
In WW2 was this the longest hard runway in the UK measuring 3657 metres with the grass extensions? I still have the grass only runway at RAF WITTERING as being 4118 metres long as the longest ever runway in the UK. But, I’ll ask again, was that runway at RAF WITTERING actually the longest runway ever in the UK? I’ve double-checked this but it does seem to be correct?
CAN YOU MAKE SENSE OF IT?
604 Squadron had been flying Blenheims based at NORTH WEALD then NORTHOLT before being sent here - to fly Gladiators! It is of course now often maintained that the upper echelons of the RAF and the Air Ministry at the start of WW2 were mainly manned at a senior level by idiots, buffoons and generally utterly incompetent individuals. And, depending on what accounts of history you decide to read, a fact of life Winston Churchill was keenly aware of. Hence the decision to put Dowding and Parkes in the ‘front-line’ for the Battle of Britain (11 Group) Fighter Command and ‘Bomber’ Harris to take care of Bomber Command was critical. And, without too much doubt, exactly the correct course of action.
A CLASH ON THE FIRST DAY OF THE BATTLE OF BRITAIN
In his excellent book Wings Patrick Bishop gives this account: “It turned into a busy day. There were eight convoys at sea. The biggest, code-named ‘Bread’, was rounding the North Foreland at about 10 a.m. when it was spotted….by a Dornier reconnaissance aircraft….accompanied by thirty Messerschmitt 109 fighters. These were the Luftwaffe’s quickest, nimblest aeroplanes, the equal of the Spitfire and faster than the Hurricane. Their objective, apart from protecting the lone recce plane, was to pick a fight with the British defenders.”
“Fighter Command obliged. Six Spitfires of 74 Squadron took off from Manston…and raced to intercept. They concentrated first on the bomber – a mistake. The Me 109s pounced and a series of wheeling dogfights developed that brought the aircraft over Margate, where the citizens got the first of many ringside seats at an air battle. Two Spitfires were damaged, but their pilots were unhurt and managed to make it back to Manston. None of the Messerschmitts was shot down and the Dornier limped back across the Channel to make a crash-landing.” As pointed out elsewhere, numerical superiority could be a disadvantage in ‘close combat’ as they probably got in each others way.
MORE ABOUT WW2 DUTIES
During WW2 MANSTON was also a major diversion airfield, later equipped with FIDO, for aircraft returning from raids with either severe damage and/or seriously injured crew members. But, it was also an operational airfield with various squadrons attached. A navigation course was being held there for Fighter Command at one time.
In early 1942 one of these ‘detached’ was a Fleet Air Arm Squadron flying Swordfishes. During ‘The Channel Dash’ incident by three major German warships in February 1942, (the battle cruiser Prinz Eugen and battleships Gneisenau and Scharnhorst), six Swordfishes were instructed to attack. Spitfires from 72 Squadron GRAVESEND were instructed to provide fighter cover. To cut a long story short this incident, even today, still raises the question about the definition of suicide missions conducted by allied forces. With hindsight this was certainly a suicide mission for the six Swordfish crews, (although five crew members did survive - which seems a miracle?). It is recorded that the German seamen could not believe the relentless but obviously hopeless way the Swordfish crews pressed on with the attack.
Was the earlier attack by Swordfish which swung the sinking of the Bismark perhaps uppermost in the minds of these Fleet Air Arm crews? When the Germans hadn’t accounted for aircraft attacking, travelling so slowly!
The way the Germans organised sending these three warships from Brest up through the Channel and on into the North Sea unscathed, (making the most of inclement weather conditions), made a total mockery of British intelligence and the defensive measures in place along the coast. Needless to say the incident was ‘hushed up’ at the time and has largely remained so even today. Except of course, the German Navy was, by doing this, retreating.
SOURCES OF INFORMATION
Much of my information has come from, (in aviation circles at least), relatively obscure sources. For example; In October 2010 a friend who was moving abroad and doing the inevitable ‘sort out’ gave me three books which he thought would interest me, all involving KENT. One was East Kent at War (Britain In Old Photographs) by David Collyer and this included several items of aviation interest. One especially was a photo of 137 Squadron’s pilots standing in front of three of their Westland Whirlwinds claimed to be taken at MANSTON.
The caption is; “A new aircraft introduced into service was the twin-engined Westland Whirlwind, found to be more effective for attacking ground targets than for intercepting enemy aircraft. Equipped with its four 20mm cannon in the nose, supplemented by rockets under the wings, No. 137 Squadron’s Whirlwinds, based at RAF Manston from September 1942 until June 1943, proved invaluable in attacking enemy airfields, road convoys and railway traffic in preparation for D-Day.”
What is especially interesting is that this author described the Whirlwind as being a “new” aircraft. In fact it first flew in October 1938 and came into service in June 1940. It was arguably the most advanced fighter design of its day but plagued by being assigned Rolls Royce Peregrine engines which severely limited performance at altitude. The history of this aircraft is absolutely fascinating and, (just like the Martin-Baker MB.5 many claim), if the resources it deserved had been allocated to it, would have been a very formidable weapon indeed. As several people have pointed out the airframe design of the Gloster Meteor bears a striking resemblance to the Whirlwind.
INTACT ENEMY AIRCRAFT
David Collyer also has a picture of an intact Messerschmitt Bf109G-6, one of two which landed here after running low on fuel on the 20th July 1944 and adds, although not giving any time frame; “Another Bf109 is supposed to have deliberately crash-landed near Margate by its defecting pilot; while two Dutchmen flew their Fokker seaplane over to Thanet and landed at Broadstairs, and a Frenchman arrived in his Caudron Geoland transport on the beach near Dungeness.” I seem to recall reading of a Focke-Wolf Condor landing at LYDD early in the war? There have of course been many instances of aircraft landing for various reasons in enemy territory and remaining intact, and/or pretty much intact and it was often if not usually by this means that very useful information was acquired, by boffins and test pilots on both sides of the conflict.
For years Eric “Winkle” Brown has been giving talks about test flying captured German aircraft in WW2 and devising better ways to combat each type. One story I liked was test flying the Messerschmitt Me206 which had jet engines ‘lifed’ at 25 hours – only they had no idea how much time was left!
Talking of that era the Gloster Meteor F1 fighters based at MANSTON were deployed there on urgent duties whilst still ‘working-up’ to help counter the V1 flying bomb menace. The Meteor could match the V1 in level flight and 616 Sqdn pilots developed a technique of toppling the V1s by placing their wingtips beneath the V1 wing and suddenly rolling, flicking the V1 into a dive. It appears this was much safer than flying behind and shooting it down. If the V1 exploded, which it normally did, these pilots would the face having to fly through the debris.
THE HIGHEST SCORERS
*It is claimed that during 1943 whilst in 11 group 331 (Norwegian) Squadron were the highest scoring. As pointed out elsewhere, without pilots and aircrew from foreign countries, (and especially the Dominions of course), the RAF didn’t stand a chance of getting anywhere near their part of the victory in WW2. And that is a fact we British are still far from accepting, let alone applauding, even today.
**Regarding the threat of the V.1 flying bombs I think this part of the DH Mosquito history from Britain’s Greatest Aircraft by Robert Jackson is well worth quoting: “In June 1944, the home-based night fighter squadrons were suddenly pitched into a defensive battle against the first of Hitler’s ‘revenge weapons’ – the V-1 flying bomb. The Mosquitoes opened their score against the V-1s on the night of 15/16 June, when a Mosquito VI of No.605 Squadron from Manston (Flight Lieutenant J.G. Musgrave and Flight Sergeant Sanewell) exploded one over the Channel.
Four Mosquito squadrons – Nos 96, 219, 409 and 418 – were assigned exclusively to anti-flying bomb operations, known as Diver patrols, and were joined later in June by Nos 85, 157 and 456. Other squadrons operated against the V-1s on a part-time basis, as priority was given to patrolling the Normandy beachhead. Between them, the seven full-time anti-Diver Mosquito squadrons claimed 471 flying bombs, while the part-timers claimed 152 to give a combined total of 623, or about one-third of the RAF’s total claim against the V-1s.”
Without any doubt the concept of ‘total war’ with terror weapons was invented by Hitler and his acolytes and, putting it very simply, in response the atomic bomb came about, which in effect put paid to anybody having any ideas regarding colonial conquest by military means. Thus so ended something like a five thousand year period in human history. Sheer military strength and prowess so longer counted, the ability to deliver atomic weapons was paramount. It took a while for those in power to realise that totally destroying the human habitation of the entire world, (the military scientists wanted to do this several times over), wasn’t much of a bright idea.
ANOTHER ASPECT OF WW2 OPERATIONS AT MANSTON
Once the so-called ‘Battle of Britain’ period was over, and the probability of large bomber attacks had greatly diminished, MANSTON could once again became a major base for attacking German forces on the ground in the occupied countries. As Patrick Bishop describes in his book Wings: “Much of this would involve using fighters and fighter-bombers in a ground attack role. Ever since the Battle of Britain the RAF had been engaged in sweeps across the Channel tomaintain an offensive against tactical targets, using Spitfires and Hawker Typhoons.” I think that is not usually remembered today that the later types of Spitfire were every bit as effective as a fighter-bomber in the ground attack role as were the earlier versions were as pure fighters.
“In 1943 the trains that supplied the occupation forces in France and Belgium were a favourite target. One of the masters of the art of ‘train-busting’ was Roland Beamont, a brilliant aviator who had fought with Fighter Command in the summer of 1940 and now commanded 609 Squadron, based at Manston, perched on the North Foreland in Kent. It specialized in night attacks, when most movements were made to avoid the attentions of the daytime Spitfire sweeps.” 609 Squadron flew Hawker Typhoons. “Goods trains were raked from stem to stern. The armoured flak wagons hitched to the back of trains failed to provide much protection. In reaching its first century of ‘busted’ trains, the squadron only lost two pilots.”
ROLAND BEAMONT
The career of Roland Prosper ‘Bee’ Beamont is well worth investigating and very interesting. He flew Hurricanes in the ‘Battle of France’ in 1939 and, as mentioned, during the ‘Battle of Britain’. He was awarded a DFC in June 1941 but soon after court-martialled for transporting a WAAF in his ‘single-seat’ Hurricane to a dance at another RAF station and “severely admonished”. In December that year he was posted to Hawker at LANGLEY (BERKSHIRE) as a test pilot but resumed operational flying in July 1942 with 609 Squadron. He returned to Hawker to test fly the Tempest in 1943 and returned to operations in 1944 when he was shot down on his 492nd operational mission.
After WW2 he eventually became the Chief Test Pilot for English Electric flying the Canberra,Lightning and TSR.2. All three of which are very strong contenders for the title of “The Most Brilliant Military Aircraft Design” since WW2.
THE GROUND ATTACK ROLE
It appears that after WW1 the newly formed RAF tried to distance itself from the ‘ground-attack’, ‘air-support’ and Army co-operation roles which was so much a major factor in using aeroplanes in WW1. As Rowland White explains in his book Desert Storm: “The neglect stemmed from the junior service’s need to justify its existence as a separate service. After the folding of the Army’s Royal Flying Corps and the Royal Navy Air Service into the new Royal Air Force at the end of the Great War, the Air Force had to, in carving out its independence, find roles that were unique and particular to it, such as air defence and strategic bombing. Unless those two roles were demonstrated to be essential to the nation’s security, then the RAF wasnothing more than an appendage to the Army and Navy. So it was here that it concentrated its resources.”
Given a view of Europe this was very much the case, but I do think the role the RAF was performing in the Middle East, and a bit beyond, in the 1920s and 30s, often if not usually with obsolete types of WW1 vintage, provides a different picture. It was in this region that ‘Close Support’ was being provided to the British Army in occupation and other duties designed to quell the native tribes from resisting?
AN EXTRAORDINARY CONCLUSION?
By the 1920s the general opinion of experts was, “The bigger its fleets of interceptors and heavy bombers the more self-evidently necessary it was." By contrast, the RAF view, delivered in the 1930s at Camberley Staff College, was that the aeroplane ‘was not a battlefield weapon’.” One might now wonder just how utterly stupid and ignorant those people were? Plus of course, these certifiable idiots were in the upper officer class of the RAF. But, as pointed out elsewhere in this Guide, by todays standards, if given a modern IQ test, most of the senior officers and administrators in government, would rank as morons.
“And so between the wars, unlike in Germany and Russia, the art of close air support was allowed to wither on the vine. While the Luftwaffe used the Junkers Ju-87 Stuka to devastating effect in its Blitzkrieg campaigns and the Russian factories mass-produced the armoured Il-2 Shturmovik, the RAF entered the Second World War with no dedicated ground attack aircraft of any kind, nor any tactics for employing them.” It took about three years during WW2 before the RAF had a very effective ground-attack type, the Hawker Typhoon, but, the Hawker Hurricane did a very good job during the interim period.
NOTE: It is, in more recent years, often claimed that when WW2 was declared the RAF was unprepared and lacked suitable aircraft, especially for the bombing campaign. It wasn’t. The early versions of the Hurricane and Spitfire were well up to the task. As were the RAF bombers, easily as capable as those the Luftwaffe were using – except that the Luftwaffe had a huge amount more.
THE HAWKER TYPHOON
Typically in preparing this ‘Guide’ my perceptions were well adrift. I’d imagined the Typhoon had emerged towards the end of WW2. In fact the first flight was on the 24th February 1940 and it entered RAF service in 1941. At the time it wasn’t much good having limited capabilities except at low level. By a later stage in the war somebody had the good sense to see that a capable low-level strike aircraft was needed and in late 1942 Typhoons were equipped with bombs. About a year later Typhoons were equipped with RP-3 rockets and these really did change the picture, the Typhoon then becoming a most formidable ground-attack type.
A BIT MORE GROUND ATTACK HISTORY
Once again from Rowland White: “Perhaps unsurprisingly, it took RAF commanders who enjoyed some operational independence outside the European theatre of battle to devote themselves to it. In North Africa it was the leader of the Desert Air Force, Air Marshall Arthur ‘Mary’ Coningham who, from 1941, first employed fighters like Kittyhawks and Hurricanes in support of the Army. In Burma, Wing Commander Arthur Murland Gill led the Vultee Vengeance dive-bombers of 84 Squadron with such success that Mountbatten admitted that the Chindit Commander, Orde Wingate, was requesting them by name.”
“By D-Day, of course, the message had got through to the Air Ministry. War had forced the RAF to catch up and, while it continued to apply itself to air defence and strategic bombing, the destruction inflicted by rocket-armed Hawker Typhoons in Normandy in 1944 showed that it had learnt its lesson closer to the ground too. It had been a skill forged in war which, were it not for Britain’s involvement in a relay race of colonial conflicts following VJ Day, might again have been allowed to slip between the cracks.” It was at MANSTON that much of this expertise was gained, the airfield being so close to the Low Countries and north-east France.
“But while the Cold War RAF developed all-weather fighters, and, in the Valiant, Vulcan and Victor, three different strategic nuclear bomber designs for a global Third World War whichnever happened, in Malaya, Korea, Aden, Tanganyika, Indonesia and Oman a motley collection of British aircraft – whatever tended to be available – were flying operations against enemies that shot back. They were flying close air support – often carrying the same 3in rockets that had wreaked so much havoc fired from beneath the wings of the old Second World War Typhoons.”
ANOTHER ASPECT OF “BRITISH” FLYING SITES
This Guide is of course devoted solely to flying sites within the United Kingdom but we surely must bear in mind, (and much more so than in World War One), that when World War Two ended the RAF had a more extensive network of airfields spread across the world than ever seen before – or since, by a single Air Force. An achievement rarely acknowledged even at the time it would appear. Perhaps because it was all so mundane and perfectly normal when a large part of the World maps were still coloured pink to show the full extent of the British Empire.
I suppose it should be pointed out that the Dominions such as Australia and Canada etc did operate their own independent Air Forces and therefore had full control of their own airfields. This said, as I understand it, there was a great deal of co-operation in various projects and exercises and RAF aircraft were frequent visitors.
WORLD SPEED RECORD
With VE-Day on the 8th May 1945 marking the end of the war in Europe, and VJ-Day on the 9th August 1945 denoting the end of the war against Japan, it was perhaps hardly surprising that something was needed to celebrate this turn of events and to raise the spirits of the British people, who, quite frankly with most coping with severe rationing probably wondered quite what had actually been won? A few bright sparks in the RAF had realised that the Gloster Meteor was quite capable of achieving a new World Air Speed record. The previous record of 469 mph was held by Germany, this being achieved in 1939.
It is often recorded that on the 10th November 1945 Group Captain H J Wilson of 616 Squadron climbed into the cockpit of the Gloster Meteor F.3 EE455 named ‘Britannia’ and took off from here to commence the runs from Reculver to Herne Bay on the north shore of Kent. He succeeded too, at 606 mph. These ‘runs’ were done at a very low level, (films can be found on the internet).
However, in November 2017, Neil Jordan contacted me to say this flight was on the 7th November.
It should perhaps also be remembered that this stretch of coast was also used in the development of the ‘bouncing bomb’ designed by Barnes Wallis and used for the ‘Dam Busters’ raid by 617 Squadron on the night of 16/17 May 1943.
Picture by the author. A sad sight, as was the rest of the airport as far as could be seen. Such a shame to see such a valuable resource going to wrack and ruin.
THE POST WAR PERIOD
After WW2 MANSTON became a major diversion airfield for civil airliners in distress. The extra wide and long runway had foam laying and arrester gear. In the 1960s MANSTON was designated one of four MEDA (Master Emergency Diversion Airfields) in the UK. The other three were RAF GREENHAM COMMON (BERKSHIRE), RAF ALDERGROVE (NORTHERN IRELAND) and RAF MACHRIHANISH (ARGYLLSHIRE). Although even today runway 11/29 is listed as being 2752 metres long and 61 metres wide, this disguises the fact that this is only the licensed section of the paved area and the actual paved area is a whopping 229 metres wide!
A good friend sent me a map and notes from a publication circa 1960 and I think it is worth quoting: “Latest base for Silver City’s cross-Channel services. Manston is remembered as one of Britain’s greatest fighter airfields in two world wars. It was first used in 1917 by the Royal Naval Air Service, whose pilots shot down four of the 22 Gotha bombers which raided London in daylight on July 7 that year. In World War II, Manston-based aircraft destroyed 234 German aircraft and 161 flying bombs, sank 123 enemy ships and damaged a further 914. Manston also became the main emergency landing ground for returning Allied bombers and was equipped with FIDO to make possible landings even in thick fog. Since the war been used as a U.S.A.F. fighter base. Now, with one of the world’s longest runways and safety aids such as FIDO, it could well become equally famous as a major cross-Channel airport.”
The author of this account appears unaware that the IT (Inclusive Tour) holiday market, mostly charter traffic, was already going much farther afield. To Spain, Italy and Yugoslavia etc and short trips to Le Touquet, Ostend etc were already about to decline. Plus the RO-RO ferry revolution was getting going in Dover especially, (the first Dover-Calais service starting in 1953), soon putting paid to short-haul airborne car-ferry operations. The Aviation Traders Carvair, built around the obsolete Douglas DC-4/C-54 type was a most ingenious design to attempt to stem the RO-RO tide, and it worked for a while, flying from as far as Manchester to Basel and Strasbourg.
A MERGER
In 1969 British Midland Airways decided to merge with Invicta Airways, based here. The Invicta fleet comprised three Douglas C-54A Skymasters, G-ASEN, G-SPM and G-ASPN plus two Viscount 755’s, G-AOCB and G-AOCC. The reasons for the merger appear unclear today, but I imagine BMA were once more interested in the Inclusive Tour market regarding the Viscounts and freight operations regarding the Skymasters?
A REGULAR CUSTOMS CLEARANCE POINT FOR GA
Until closing in 2014 MANSTON has for many years become a regular transit point for much light GA traffic heading to and fro Europe. As said previously I’ve landed here a few times on European sorties and that huge runway is quite an experience to try and land on nicely in a light aircraft as it tries to swallow you up the closer you get. Along with LYDD I always found a friendly welcome and it was a nice place to take lunch while waiting for our flight plan to be approved. But, an airport of this size cannot possibly survive on a few private pilots dropping in, the military side of things was rapidly dwindling, and it was perhaps inevitable as its use as a major diversion emergency diversion had long since disappeared, that closure was the only viable option.
Note: On the 29th September 1992, Aussie Brown and I landed at MANSTON in the evening on the start of our tour of UK airports. I took a picture of our trusty steed, the Cessna 172 G-WACL framed by the Boeing 707-321B C5-GOC which was virtually in silhouette. What I now find interesting is that this Boeing appears to still be a passenger type, so presumably being overhauled at MANSTON as many old jet airliners were in those days.
Pictured in March 1990, presumably destined for air cargo operations to Africa?
COMMERCIAL OPERATIONS
Ever since the 1950s MANSTON has always struggled to survive, especially regarding commercial passenger operations. A few companies gave it a go but few lasted long. For example in the mid 1950s Air Kruise tried many options, including a service using DH Dragon Rapides and Herons to ELMDON (WEST MIDLANDS), but the enterprise was short-lived.
Air freight proved to be a better option, especially using very old and retired early jet airliners, (Boeing 707s and Douglas DC.8s), to Africa, supplemented more recently with Russian freighters.
I suppose for me, having watched most of the very first arrivals and departures by various airlines at Heathrow of their brand new Boeing 707s, (and a bit later DC-8s and Convair 880s and 990s of course), in the early 1960s, still seeing these incredibly strong and robust aircraft still in service at MANSTON some forty years later shipping freight to Africa, does have a heavy whiff of nostalgia. But, they’ll never be better than those earlier turbo-compound pistons powering the likes of Super Constellations and DC-7C’s in the tear-jerking nostalgia department!
AN INTERESTING DEVELOPMENT
In November 2011 an interesting news story broke. It appears that Iran Air could not obtain fuel at HEATHROW for their service to Tehran. Something to do with BP and Shell having considerable interests in the USA and American foreign policy forbidding the refuelling of Iranian aircraft. So, their aircraft took-off from HEATHROW and then landed at MANSTON to refuel for the return flight. Possibly the shortest flight sector performed anywhere in the world with large airliners(?), and of course an utterly barmy arrangement. I was quite surprised the “eco warriors” hadn’t picked up on this nonsense.
LAST GASP PICTURES
Note: These three pictures were obtained from Google Earth © dated 2013, not long before the airport closed - probably now it seems, for ever.
THE UNTHINKABLE HAPPENED
In 2014 it was announced that MANSTON would close. As a bystander this appears to make no sense whatsover and indeed, as a freighter base to serve Africa – ideal. And, as all the major airports serving London reach saturation point in the second decade of the 21st century, surely MANSTON has considerable future for long haul passenger potential? For example a high-speed rail link to a high density terminal, sharing the present train connections to ‘The Tunnel’ would cost but a fraction of the amount some are proclaiming needed to build another major airport in the Thames estuary to replace HEATHROW.
It was all to no avail of course, MANSTON did close. And was then earmarked to become an overflow truck park when Operation Stack and later Operation Brock came into play. In those days it was common for around 900 trucks a day to be arriving at Dover alone, so any major problem, such as Calais being blockaded, resulted in immediate long queues of trucks building up.
The British government led by Boris Johnson had the answer - Brexit. The severing of links to a large extent with the E.U. which came into force on the 31st January 2020. Almost immediately the flow of trucks dwindled to a trickle, no doubt slowly building up since, but of course the cost of everything being exported and imported rose dramatically, as did the cost of living. A trend far from finished. Needless to say the outbreak of Covid 19 has been a godsend for the British government, and has largely masked the effects of Brexit. Fortunately though, a great many of those so keen on Brexit, will be the hardest hit.
HOWEVER
Note: These four pictures were obtained from Google Earth ©. The reason for their inclusion after MANSTON closed as an airport, being solely due to the advice Graham Frost, (a great friend of this 'Guide'), given in January 2022. He told me that two helicopter operations had continued here. One being Helix Aviation, specialising in Bell helicopters, with their rather grandiose site called Gateway Heliport. It is of course nothing of the kind, and not even properly marked out. On the other side of MANSTON is Polar Helicopters, a training and hire operation. Looking altogether a much smarter facility.
MORE PERSONAL MEMORIES
My first flying memory of Manston was basically as a passenger. Having recently become a pilot and sitting in the back, I was of course taking a lot of interest in the proceedings. I had been invited on a day trip to Le Torquet with one of my instructors at Wycombe Air Centre, and we met up at STAPLEFORD in Essex where he was sharing the flying duties with a friend. The aircraft was the Piper PA-28R-180 Cherokee Arrow G-AWBA, which was the first Piper with a retractable undercarriage I had flown in. It was also my first flight across the English Channel in a light aircraft. We took off in rather foggy conditions from Stapleford and the situation became worse as we flew east. Fortunately my instructor friend and his friend both had instrument ratings and requested a PRA (Precision Radar Approach) into Manston. This was, needless to say, a very interesting experience for me, and it soon became clear that the young lady 'on the box' was probably in training. I say this because on a couple of occassions, my pilots corrected her heading advice! Something like; "Golf Bravo Alpha, steer five degrees left". "Manston Approach, shouldn't that be five degrees right?" We landed back at Manston on the way back to Stapleford.
I have flown into Manston a few times to clear Customs on a trip to Europe. The picture of the Cessna 182 G-IPRC is of a particularly fond memory. That year due to work we, my wife and together with Guy Browning, had to make a short trip and I elected we should visit Liege in Belgium. We arrived just after the Formula One Grand Prix at Spa had finished and all hell had broken loose. All the top drivers were being flown in by helicopter to board their executive jets and I noticed an empty spot right outside the GA terminal. I found it hilarious that the media throng could not work out who the hell we were!
MANSTON PICTURES
Note: All pictures by the author unless specified.
THE LATEST NEWS
In 2024 it was announced that a major airshow, The Manston International Air Show, will be held from the 16th to 17th August 2025, before a major £60 million scheme to renovate the airport starts in 2026. With the major economic boom in air travel coming about since the Covid 19 epidemic, in the southern parts of the UK at least, and airports now reaching peak capacity, these plans to reform MANSTON seem to clearly have much potential.
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