Benson
BENSON: Military aerodrome (Previously OAKLEY WOOD?)
Note: The first two pictures are by the author. The third (2018) was obtained from Google Earth ©
Military users: WW2: RAF Bomber, Coastal and Training Commands
No.1 Photographic Reconnaissance Unit (Vickers-Supermarine Spitfires)*
12 OTU (Fairey Battles & Bristol Blenheims)
97 & 166 Sqdns (Armstrong Whitworth Whitleys)
103 Sqdn (Fairey Battles)
106 (PR) Group PRU & PRDU (Photo-Reconnaissance Development Unit)
540 Sqdn (de Havilland Mosquitos)
541 & 542 Sqdns (Vickers-Supermarine Spitfires)
544 Sqdn (de Havilland Mosquitos & Vickers-Supermarine Spitfires)
309 Ferry Training & Aircraft Despatch Unit (Miles Masters)
Post 1945: 58 (PR) Sqdn (DH Mosquitos)
82 (PR) Sqdn (Avro Lancasters +?)
540 Sqdn PRU (English Electric Canberras)
541 Sqdn PRU (Spitfires +?)
PRDU (Spitfires + ?)
RAF Transport Command
21 Sqdn (Scottish Aviation Twin Pioneers)
70, 105, 114, 215 & 267 Sqdns (Armstrong-Whitworth Argosys)
33 Sqdn (Their Blackburn Beverleys were seen visiting it appears)
60(R) Sqdn (Westland Wessex helicopters)
115 Sqdn & ATF (Avro Andovers)
RAF Queens Flight (DH Herons)
Later Queens Flight (Andovers, BAe 146s & Wessex helicopters)
London and Oxford UAS (6 AEF)
1998 snapshot: RAF Support Helicopters
33 Sqdn 17 x Puma HC 1
2011: 33 Sqdn (Puma helicopters)
78 Sqdn (Merlin helicopters)
2013: Oxford University Air Squadron Grob 115 Tutors
Gliding: 1997: 612 VGS (Gliding also listed in 1975)
Motor gliding: 2000s only?
Air Ambulance: Thames Valley Air Ambulance
This fabulous picture was obtained from the Thames Valley Air Ambulance web-site and shows their Eurocopter EC135 G-TVAL. Previously they operated G-HBOB. I cannot seem to ascertain when this operation moved to BENSON?
Location: E of A423 (now A4074), 1.5nm NE of Wallingford, roughly 10nm SSE of Oxford
Period of operation: 1939 to present day
Note: This map is reproduced with the kind pemission of Pooleys Flight Equipment Ltd. Copyright Robert Pooley 2014.
Runways: WW2: 02/20 1298x46 hard 06/24 1819x46 hard
1990/2000: 01/19 1823x46 hard
NOTES: When this airfield was constructed it involved the demolition, on the south side, of quite probably the most unusual and imaginative filling station and tea-room facility ever seen in the UK?
In WW2 the runway surfaces were listed as concrete with wood chippings. It seems the PRU Sqdns were based here from 1940/41. The Photo Recce operation at nearby MOUNT FARM was operated by the USAAF,
The ‘Gate Guardian’ at RAF BENSON in 2011 was a ‘plastic’ PRU Spitfire.
COASTAL COMMAND
*It came as quite a surprise to learn that in early 1942 (at least) No.1 PRU was part of No.16 Group, Coastal Command. Later they were transferred to 106 Group. If asked I’d have thought the obvious position would have been with Bomber Command, because, (and please correct me if I’m wrong), the majority of PR work was in providing information about targets to be bombed and the results after raids. It has been a cause of some ribaldry over the years, as some or many PR Spitfires were painted in a light pink scheme, but the boffins had determined this was a very effective high altitude camouflage. However, the "father" of photo-reconnaissance in the 1930s, the civilian Australian Sidney Cotton, when asked if he could perform spying missions over Europe requested a Lockheed 12A for his use and he had it painted a very light green for the same purposes. This was based at HESTON (LONDON) and when war broke out HESTON became the principal PR base and Cotton was given a military rank.
RAF BENSON
Along with nearby RAF MOUNT FARM operated by the USAAF later on, these were the main centres for Photo-Reconnaissance in WW2. The move from HESTON took place in December 1940. It is probably not fully realised today that the value of these operations, (and especially the skills of the ‘back-room’ staff interpreting the pictures taken), played a very large part in the eventual success of the Allied Forces in WW2. Indeed, many senior military Commanders when interviewed at the end of the war said that photo-reconnaissance was arguably the greatest single tool at their disposal.
It is therefore not too surprising to learn that the second Mosquito built, W4050, was a PR type and delivered to No.1 Photographic Reconnaissance Unit at RAF BENSON in July 1941. Nine production Mosquitos followed, the main point being that they could fly so much higher and faster that interception by enemy fighters could be pretty much ruled out. The first operational sortie was to Bordeaux in September 1941. The first Flight of three Mosquitos was allocated to operate from WICK (CAITHNESS)
The original equipment deemed suitable by the RAF Chiefs for photo-reconnaissance were the Westland Lysander and the Bristol Blenheim. The Lysander did fare reasonably well if the crew could spot an impending attack early enough as it was so slow and highly manoeuvrable it was very difficult indeed to shoot down. Flying a Blenheim however was tantamount to a suicide mission and, according to Taylor Downing in his excellent book Spies In The Sky; "The slow-moving aircraft, loaded up with its cameras, was an easy target for the German fighters, which were more than 100 mph faster, and the Germans began shooting down Blenheims in alarming numbers. Out of eighty-nine missions in the first four months of the war, sixteen Blenheims were shot down and each of their three-man crews were killed or - if they survived being shot down - captured."
A SCRAP OF INFORMATION
In 2011, on a visit to the village of Ewelme situated just NW of BENSON, (a gem in English history), my wife and I met a man in the village pub who told a singular story. He had worked for a man, then retired, who was once a master carpenter in the RAF at BENSON. He said that when King George VI died, the task of constructing the coffin was given to the carpenters section at BENSON. Because, the King’s Flight was based there.
It does seem that the connection between aviation and the British Royal family is not much appreciated or understood? In fact the British Royal family, possibly alone amongst all other Royal families in Europe (?), has had a long history of being directly involved and supporting aviation, both military and civil.
THE CANBERRA ARRIVES
The first examples of the PR.3 photo-reconnaissance Canberra’s were delivered here to No.540 Squadron in December 1952 but in March 1953 the squadron moved to RAF WYTON in HUNTINGDONSHIRE. Needless to say, at the height of the ‘Cold War’ it was vitally important for the RAF top brass to keep squadrons moving around as much as possible, a strategy developed before and during WW2, and obviously hindering the squadrons ability to become always operationally effective! As pointed out elsewhere – the question is - why?
TRANSPORT COMMAND
Starting operations in 1962 at least forty-eight Armstrong Whitworth Argosy C.1 freighters were based here. I am still at a loss to understand exactly why this position in OXFORDSHIRE was considered, from a logistical viewpoint for the Argosy, deemed ideal by the RAF top brass. Also, I’m still reeling from discovering, (if true?), that 21 Sqdn were operating Scottish Aviation Twin Pioneers from here. What possible use of this exemplary STOL aircraft could be derived by basing it here?
A VISIT
I still remember turning up here with my great friend Mike Parker who later became a notable aircraft engineer/technician on a bike trip exploring various aerodromes as spotters staying at Youth Hostels in the early sixties. (I now think we were probably aged fourteen?). With our telescopes stuck through the fence a stern military policeman appeared and severely admonished us for what seemed to be a serious spying offence or something similar. Did we realise he asked, that the Queens Flight was based here? Obviously intending this information to put considerable fear into us, I can’t now remember who answered but, bless him, he seemed totally taken aback when we said we’d already seen all the Queens Flight aircraft many times as we lived next to LONDON AIRPORT and we were much more interested in the Argosy aircraft of Transport Command of which several were in view.
I believe his next instruction to us was, “Bugger off.” Or words to that effect.
When I was at my height of aircraft spotting enthusiasm aged between twelve to fifteen the Cold War was at a very high tide mark. Generally speaking we knew that being caught with a telescope and a Civil Aircraft Markings book in our possession within five miles of a seriously operational RAF base probably meant being transported directly, without trial, to the Tower of London and having our heads cut off for treason. You may well scoff, but it was a bit like that – or so we thought. But, on that adventure, this was the only encounter I can recall of a sharp encounter with the military police. Security at civil sites was mainly somebody employed on the airfield, spotting us and telling us to clear off.
LIGHT AIRCRAFT
The idea that little GA aircraft were also based at many of these military sites never entered our heads. It was only many years later that I discovered this was often the case whilst researching this Guide, and discovered it was a long held tradition! In 1977 the Auster 6A G-APRO was based here.
BENSON AIR SHOW PICTURES
Note: These three fine pictures were kindly sent by Mr Peter Miller in November 2022.
NOTES: The Armstrong Whitworth AW.660 Argosy C.Mk.1 was for many years the backbone of RAF Transport Command, and as stated above, RAF BENSON was their main UK base. The Hawker Siddeley HS.125 Dominie T.1, XS739, would have been a visitor to the show.
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