Dunkeswell
DUNKESWELL: Military aerodrome, later gliding site, later civil aerodrome
Note: First picture by the author, taken through perspex. The third and fourth aerial views were obtained from Google Earth ©
Operated by: 1949 to ? Devon & Somerset Gliding Club
1967 Dunkeswell Aero Club
1981 Brendan Proctor
Military users: WW2: RAF Fighter Command 10 Group
RAF Coastal Command 19 Group
USNAC Fleet Air Wing 7
VB 103, 105 & (107) or 110? (PB4Y-I Liberators)
(Others say VP 103, 105 and 107?) See ‘Notes’
US First Army ‘VII’ Corps 4th Infantry Division Artillery
RAF Transport Command: No. 16 Ferry Unit
Note: This picture from a postcard was kindly sent by Mike Charlton who has an amazing collection. See; www.aviationpostcard.co.uk
Can anybody kindly suggest a likely date for this? I think it could be early 1980s perhaps?
Civil users: Since 1949? Gliding, GA private, business, training, microlight, maintenance, and parachuting
Flying schools: Devon School of Flying, Somerset Microlights
Gliding Club: Devon & Somerset Gliding Club (Before moving to NORTH HILL)
Note: 1981: Dunkeswell Gliding Club
Helicopter ops: A H Helicopter Services
Location: 5nm N of Honiton, 14nm NE of Exeter
Period of operation: Military 1942 (some say 1943) to 1949
Then civil to present day (but was this period continuous?)
Note: This map is reproduced with the kind permission of Pooleys Flight Equipment Ltd. Copyright Robert Pooley 2014.
Runways: WW2: 05/23 1829x46 hard 18/36 1345x46 hard
09/27 1161x46 hard
1990: 05/23 1301x46 hard 18/36 641x20 hard
09/27 775x46 hard
2000: 05/23 963x46 hard 18/36 641x20 hard
Note: Grass landing areas have also been made available. For example in 2017 at least, a grass runway had been designated to the left side of, and parallel to, the hard runway 04/22 according to the AAIB report EW/G2017/05/35.
NOTES: Construction of this airfield began in the winter 1941/42 by the well known firm George Wimpey, (of the very now non 'P C', ‘We Import More Paddies Each Year’ fame), and was originally intended to be used by 10 Group RAF Fighter Command. (Did 10 Group operate from here?). In May 1942 the airfield was transferred to RAF 19 Group Coastal Command. (What aircraft were they using?)
As said elsewhere perhaps the best decision I’ve ever made is to call this project a “Guide” and the wisdom of doing so has been borne out time and time again. Trying to get the history correct in at least some basic detail has often proved to be an almost impossible task, and exceedingly time consuming. Let’s take just one small example concerning this site which, I trust you’ll agree, should be very well documented and beyond any doubt as to the details in WW2?
Almost from the start various accounts vary. One source said that USN squadrons VB103, 105 & 107 moved in. Another stated these were VP103, 105 & 107. Hardly a cause for making a big issue about, obut then my very good friend Maurice J Wickstead published an article about DUNKESWELL history stating squadrons VB103,105 and 110 moved in. As Maurice has a reputation for getting details correct and being an acknowleged expert on DEVON aviation history, (plus much more regarding aviation and especially airline history), I asked him for his opinion and here is his answer:
(I have tried to eliminate some abbreviations and the airfield names are in my capitals)
479th Anti-submarine Group USAAF (4th, 6th, 19th and 22nd Squadrons); equipment B-17s.
4th & 19th at RAF St EVAL (under 19 Group Coastal Command) from 8th July 1943. (First Op: 13th July).
All four squadrons at DUNKESWELL from 6th August 1943 to the 11th November (?) 1943”.
He then goes on to give the history of Fleet Air Wing 7: “Formed Argentina, Nfld 8.43.
HQ Plymouth."
"PATROL WING ONE SQUADRONS"
VB-103: Formed San Diego 15.3.43, arrived St. EVAL 17.8.43 (first op 30.8.43), arrived DUNKESWELL mid-9.43
VB-105: Formed Norfolk VA in May 1943. (Previously VP-31 flying Canal Zone/Caribbean duties). In June 1943 based at Kindley Field in Bermuda, moving back to Norfolk, Virginia in late August 1943. They arrived at St EVAL in early September 1943 before moving to DUNKESWELL a week or so later.
VB-110: Formed Norfolk VA on the 18th July 1943. (From VP-203/209/211). Arrived St EVAL late in September 1943. Operational from DUNKESWELL from the 30th October 1943. Formed FAW-7 Patrol Group 2 along with VB-112 from Port Lyautey in north Africa.
“Note: Six searchlight equipped Liberators detached to FAW-7 DUNKESWELL from VB-114 Port Lyautey in early March 1944 until about February 1945 when VB103/105 & 110 were assigned their own searchlight aircraft. VB-114 then moved to the Azores.”
“Four MAD-equipped Catalinas detached from VP-63 to DUNKESWELL in about April 1945. Prior to that VP-63 had flown their Catalinas from PEMBROKE DOCK from late July 1943. Moved to Port Lyautey about December 1943.”
PATROL WING TWO SQUADRONS
VB-107: Originally VP-83 operating from Natal in Brazil. Renamed or renumbered VB-107 in June 1943 to commence south Atlantic operatons from Ascenscion Island. Arrived RAF UPOTTERY in January 1945. (My notes: RAF UPOTTERY was almost next door to DUNKESWELL).
Well, I did ask! Many thanks Maurice.
"THE CINDERELLA SERVICE"
The Britsh and American airmen who flew those long flights over the Atlantic have, to quite a large extent, been ignored. I sometimes suspect it was they who first coined the term, "Cinderella Service"?
If anybody today thinks these American Anti-Submarine duties over the Bay of Biscay (and RAF flights over the Atlantic Ocean of course) were a ‘soft touch’ compared to bombing sorties, they need to think again. They were long, exceedingly arduous and often very dangerous missions. Indeed, very often the most dangerous part of many missions was trying to get back to land somewhere if the ever fickle weather had closed in over Cornwall when the flight crews would have been very tired if not nigh on exhausted.
For another example, when these missions came to an end in the spring of 1945 FAW-7 squadrons had completed 6964 missions totalling 62,247 patrol hours flying in excess of 10.5 million miles. As one Admiralty observer pointed out, “....almost every pint of water in the Bay was covered every half hour.” The "Bay" was of course the Bay of Biscay.
Am I correct in believing this was the only UK base where the US Navy operated the PB4Y version of the Liberator?
Another note: It appears that six US Army Piper L-4 Grasshoppers were based here.
THE RAF TAKE OVER
In August 1945 control passed to RAF Transport Command and No.16 Ferry Unit were based here until March 1946 and used DUNKESWELL as a staging post to prepare and ferry surplus aircraft to foreign Air Force customers. It must have been a spotters delight in those days.
The RAF pulled out in February 1949 and the Devon & Somerset Gliding Club moved in for several years until moving sideways to nearby NORTH HILL. The site was then purchased by Westward Aviation and in 1967 leased to the Dunkewell Aero Club. Brendan Proctor bought the airfield in 1981 after the Aero Club went bankrupt.
In 2009 55 aircraft and 60 microlights were based here. In 2007 5,400 visitors flew in.
PERSONAL MEMORIES
I have visited DUNKESWELL in my truck twice when moving aeroplanes, (see below), and have flown here twice. The first occassion was on the 31st December 1989 when on holiday with my family. I'd passed my GFT earlier that year and was as keen as mustard to fly whenever possible.
A kindly instructor, Mr Thomas, agreed to let me try flying a Grumman AA5B (G-BLLT), a new type for me and very different from the Cessna 152 and 172 I was used to flying. The second flying visit was much later, on the 5th May 2008 when, after attending a Fly-In at BOLT HEAD, we decided to land here for a break (any excuse, and none needed) on the way back to ELSTREE in the Cessna 172 G-BDNU.
MOVING AN AEROPLANE
In November 2002 I was given the job of moving the Raj Hamsa X-Air Jabiru G-CBDW from DUNKESWELL to ESHOTT in NORTHUMBERLAND.
Don Sandom
This comment was written on: 2018-04-21 16:19:08Re. Liberator squadrons at Dunkeswll, I have seen reference to VP110 operating from there. Joe Kennedy Jr. flew with them (elder brother of late US President John F Kennedy). Present use, in addition to the Aero Club and Industrial units, includes the Nigel Mansell Go-kart track (supported in recent years by the eponymous 1992 Formula One World Champion).
Michael Holder
This comment was written on: 2020-05-05 14:59:02Dunkeswell was used as a RBS(Radar Bomb Scoring) site for the Vulcans in the late 60s using the UK low level route which passed close by. I think I had a few spectacular misses!
We'd love to hear from you, so please scroll down to leave a comment!
Leave a comment ...
Copyright (c) UK Airfield Guide
