Andrewsfield
ANDREWSFIELD: Military aerodrome later civil private aerodrome
(Also known as SALING and GREAT SALING)
Note: All pictures by the author unless specified.
ICAO code: EGSL
Operated by: 1980s to 1990s: Andrewsfield Flying Club
2000: Andrewsfield Aviation
Military users: WW2: USAAF 8 th & 9th Air Forces
80th & 322nd Bomb Groups (Fortresses then Marauders)
October 1944: RAF Fighter Command 11 Group (Fighter – Forward Airfield)
19, 65, 122 & 129 Sqdns (North American P-51 Mustangs)
133 Polish Wing HQ 306 & 316 Polish Sqdns (Mustangs) 1002 Servicing Wing HQ
Flying schools: Andrewsfield Aviation, Delta Aviation
Maintenance: MK Aero Support
Location: 1nm N of A120, 4 nm WNW of Braintree
Period of operation: Military: 1943 to 1945 Civil: ? to present day
Note: This map is reproduced with the kind permission of Pooleys Flight Equipment Ltd. Copyright Robert Pooley 2014
Runways: WW2: 09/27 1920x46 hard 02/20 1280x46 hard
15/33 1280x46 hard
1990: 09/27 720x25 grass
2000: 09/27 799x36 grass (Divided into two parallel runways to ease over use problems especially during winter months)
NOTES: In their excellent book ESSEX: A Hidden Aviation History, Paul Bingley and Richard E. Flagg have this to tell us:
"In July 1942, the 819th Engineer Battalion (Aviation) of the US Army arrived in the village of Great Saling. When their work was done, it would become the first British airfield built entirely by American troops. The site of foreigners tearing up the Essex countryside quickly drew scorn from some locals, as one engineer observed: 'They knew we were to ruin their land - and when we had ruined it, we would then fly hundreds of aeroplanes from the base and low over their homes.'
It is of course a myth that the vast majority of people in the U.K. were all for supporting the war effort. Far from it. But of course so many had very bad memories of WW1 which of course had only ended twenty years before. Plus, very few had any idea about just how evil the Nazi regime in Germany would turn out to be.
In WW2 the runway surfaces are listed as concrete, tarmac and wood chippings. It appears that when the aerodrome opened on the 24th April 1943 it was named GREAT SALING but renamed ANDREWSFIELD on the 21st May 1943, not quite a month later. Does anybody know the reason? (See 'Comment' below). As mentioned elsewhere the adding of wood chippings was, it appears, an attempt at camouflage, and not very successful. It did however have a downside, because, when wet the runway became very slippery.
PERSONAL MEMORIES
My first visit by air to ANDREWSFIELD was on the 23rd May 1993 in the Cessna 172 G-AXBH from a flight from TOP FARM via CROWFIELD. Our next destination was RAYNE and we took off towards the east, but my very good friend Guy Browning, flying this sector, simply couldn't get the picture. At about 500ft I told him to get the nose down, reduce power and commence the approach; but he ignored my advice and continued climbing, so we overflew RAYNE and then struggled initially to re-orientate ourselves, due to the lack of major features in the area at that time.
To be fair to Guy he had never experienced anything remotely like this before, and climbing through 500ft was only halfway to a normal circuit height!
I hadn't planned for this happening, simply plotting a course from ANDREWSFIELD directly into RAYNE. Without much doubt my fault for not giving him a thorough breifing of what we had to expect. Thankfully, a kindly person on the radio at RAYNE offered assistance. Mainly it seemed by listening out, to hear us and to find where we were. No GPS in those days.
STANDING OUT
One memory stands out, and that was when I agreed to take some publicity photographs of the Letov Sluka microlight which had just appeared in the UK, in return to having a flight in it. This as on the 2nd November 1994 and the Sluka was G-MYRP.
Climbing into it was doubly interesting because it would be my first flight in a microlight, and, my first flight in a single seat type. My pre-flight breifing was - brief. "It goes up like a homesick angel," - and not much else really. Taxying to the end of the runway and doing the pre-flight checks felt distinctly odd, as there was really very little to actually check.
The other, for me, most unusual aspect was the lack of the need to slow down on base leg to land; as I very quickly discovered - you keep the power ON! But, it was after all an aeroplane and was very easy to handle, although surpringly heavy in roll for such a light type. The other feature was how very low you have to be to actually land, feeling like your bum is nigh on scraping the grass.
ANDREWSFIELD PICTURES
All taken by the author unless otherwise specified. And there will be more.
Note: The third picture is a very good illustration of why I was never much of a fan of low-wing types, despite having flown many of the PA-28 family for example. Being around six foot and with a 'classic' truck drivers physique, it was always quite a struggle to give the underneath of the wing, flaps and ailerons, and the undercarriage especially, a proper pre-flight inspection. But, I like to believe that even on wet grass I did not stint - although it was probably best if nobody else was around to hear my muttered opinions of the exercise.
MORE PERSONAL MEMORIES
In late 1999 I was given the job of collecting the Montgomerie-Bensen B8MR gyroplane G-BJAO from here for delivery to HENSTRIDGE airfield (SOMERSET). This was not the only gyroplane I transported and it might seem odd that the owners requested me to do the job, seeing as I operated a rather large truck. Much larger than required.
However, as these owners pointed out, the degree of expertise I had, and the comparitive safety of using such a large vehicle, amounted to very little in cost terms.
Rodney Johnson
This comment was written on: 2018-07-18 18:11:30Hi. I stumbled across your fascinating website via my search for info on my flying instructor at Stapleford - one Neville Browning! In your description of Andrewsfield, of which I was a founder member, you asked for further info as to why it was renamed Anderwsfield. Other people may have contacted you by now but here goes. It was renamed after USAAF General Andrews who was setting up the 8th's presence in Britain and was killed on a return flight to the US, where there is also a field called Andrewsfield named after him, as is the American way of naming their airfields after service personnel. Andrewsfield is the only example of of this occurring in the U.K. Hope it helps. Good luck with the site and happy motoring with your impressive truck!
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