Earls Colne
EARLS COLNE: Military aerodrome later civil aerodrome
Note: This picture (2018) was obtained from Google Earth ©
The outline of the WW2 airfield is still very clearly visible. And, indeed, the positions of all three runways can be discerned. The northernmost, 07/25 in WW2, still being used today.
Note: All pictures by the author unless specified. The fourth picture was taken in the setting sun as we approached to land after a long, tiring and very productive day, flying up to South Yorkshire to provide pictures for this Guide on the 25th June 2015. Lee Merritt was the pilot and I must say, having done this work for over twenty five years, of which he had no prior experience, he very quickly got the hang of it and did a very good job indeed.
Operated by: 1980s to 2000: Bulldog Aviation Ltd
2001: Anglian Flight Centres Ltd
Military users: WW2: USAAF (B.17 Fortress's and Martin Marauders)
From October 1944: RAF 38 (Airborne Forces) Group
38 Group Comms Flt (Airspeed Oxfords)
296 & 297 Sqdns (Halifaxs) 7 & 8 Glider Servicing Echelons (Horsas)
THE ESSEX & HERTS AIR AMBULANCE
Earls Colne is the base for the Essex and Hertfordshire air amulance service.
Flying schools: Anglian Flight Centres, Bulldog Aviation, Essex Flying School
Maintenance: Bulldog Aviation, Cavendish Aviation
Location: 1.5nm SW of Earls Colne vilage, 3nm SE of Halstead
Period of operation: Military: 1942 to 1947 Later civil to present day
(In 1977 and 1985 listed as being disused…but, there could have been some GA activity?)
Note: These two maps are reproduced with the kind permission of Pooleys Flight Equipment Ltd. Copyright Robert Pooley 2014.
Runways: WW2: 01/19 1829x46 hard 07/25 1280x46 hard
12/30 1280x46 hard
1995: 06/24 939x18 grass
(During winter and spring a grass taxiway parallel and south of main grass runway is redesignated as the main runway)
Note: In 2002 the main southern 06/24 grass runway was made hard again.
NOTES: I have to say that when I landed here many years ago, on the 10th April 1993 in the Piper PA-28 Archer (G-BEXW), that if told that this as once a major WW2 airfield I’d have been astonished to hear this. Almost nothing seemed to remain to prove this, the hard runways had totally disappeared. It would seem that USAAF were the first users and the airfield opened on the 1st September 1942, not 1943 as others report.
For example, take this account of EARLS COLNE produced by a chapter of the Royal Aeronautical Society in 1967: “Opened 1st September 1942. United States Air Force Fortresses and Marauders. October 1944, Royal Air Force Troop Transport using Halifaxes towing Horsa Gliders. Closed 31st January 1947”. Now then, doesn’t this appear to be both well informed and concise? When starting on my research I’d certainly have put this down as fact, but now I know better of course. The real rub is I can’t possibly go back to check every detail so have to live with the fact that I’m also undoubtably guilty of propagating false information. Or am I?
A COMPLEX SITUATION
Without any doubt, grappling with the complexities of WW2 history is fraught with pitfalls. It is I suppose perfectly possible that EARLS COLNE did open in 1942, but not for use by the USAAF.
My clue here was the date September 1942. The ‘Dam Busters’ raid took place on the night of 16/17 May 1943. It was apparently realised in ‘top government’ circles that this attack had much more propaganda value rather than providing any significant and lasting damage to German industry etc. Churchill apparently used the impressive aerial photographs taken the day after the attack to prove to the American Senate and Congress just how effective and determined the British were in their fight against Nazi Germany.
This is now said to be a crucial turning point in persuading the USA to use the UK as a ‘floating’ airfield and military base to prosecute the war against the Germans. Others say that the American government basically couldn’t care less if Germany invaded the UK. As the USA has nearly always been essentially an 'enemy' of Great Britain, (they did fight a war of Independance after all), if the Germans invaded us there were many advantages. I now think that for the purposs of this 'Guide' this subject needs to be looked at rather carefully.
There surely cannot be any argument that the American people were very much against any support for the UK, and that this was to some extent reflected in the US administration. However, from further research, it appears that President Roosevelt was very aware that the USA had to support the UK at some point, but he was tied down by political considerations.
But, it must also be mentioned that at one period, due to the US ignoring the threat, German U-boats played havoc along the eastern seaboard of the USA, sinking shipping at a great rate. Aided no end by the Americans refusing to impose a black-out along this coast anf thereby rendering shipping ideally silhouetted for attack.
A FAILURE TO COMPREHEND?
Although Hitler never understood why the British didn’t take his side, our paltry little collection of islands wasn’t of any importance anyway - we had no natural resources worth mentioning. Perhaps our Empire was of course, although mostly nigh on worthless to Nazi ambitions. The failure of the hitherto supreme Luftwaffe to dominate and effect the capture of the UK surely must have embarrassed if not humiliated both Hitler and his High Command - but they had much bigger fish to fry - Russia!
So there you have it. In September 1942 the Americans weren’t then even signed up to ‘Our’ war with Germany! In fact many doubt they were ever involved principally with a war against Germany thinking that basically the D-Day invasion was a means to get huge amounts of US troops staged across Europe, on the ground, to resist the Russian dominance of Europe. In other words, pretending to support the British war against the Nazi regime was just a convenient excuse to further their world agenda.
Today of course, here in the UK in so many ways, many people believe it does seem possible that we are soon about to become a satellite state of the USA, conveniently situated alongside Europe? I think I will reserve judgement on this as, since we became part of the EU and the end of the 'Cold War', American dominance in our affairs has waned to some extent.
BREAKING NEWS (WELL, IT WAS THEN)
Isn't it always the same. As soon as you think you might be getting to grips with things, something totally unexpected crops up to 'overturn the apple cart'. In 2016 the British public, by the narrowest of margins, elected that the UK should leave the EU, and our government decided to respect this decision, as they are duty bound to do of course. Then, in early 2017 came another 'bombshell' - the election in the USA of a new President, one Donald Trump. At the time of writing, (early 2017), who knows what will become of this?
Watch this space, as they say.
PERSONAL MEMORIES
Earls Colne now has a very significant part to play in my life. It was during moving his Vans RV.7A (G-EGSR) in my truck that Lee Merritt asked me what I would do when I retired. I told him about this 'Guide' project that I had been researching for some fifteen years and how finding somebody trustworthy (and affordable!) to construct a web-site was becoming something of a nightmare. Instantly he offered to construct this web-site for free, and offer endless back-up and advice, in return for not being charged to move his Vans to and from a spray shop in Kent. After forty five years in business I have never been offered such a wonderful deal and we have since become very good friends. It was very fitting that the last job I did in my truck before retiring was moving his Vans from Kent to Earls Colne on the 26th August 2014.
PICTURES
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