Haddenham
HADDENHAM: Military airfield (Relief Landing Ground) (Aka AYLESBURY THAME AIRPORT)
Later civil aerodrome or private company airfield, (possibly even regional airport?), later gliding site
Note: I took a picture of this picture a few years ago. In those days it was hanging on a wall in the Booker Gliding Club at WYCOMBE AIR PARK, and probably still is. As can be seen a number of heavy bombers, (Handley Page Halifax mostly I think), are on the aerodrome. But, was this picture taken during WW2 or afterwards?
Also known as THAME and later AYLESBURY (Thame)
ICAO code: EGTA
A MICHAEL T HOLDER GALLERY
LATER INFO
Later on, Mike Holder discovered this article published in the Bucks Herald on the 19th June 1936.
A GALLERY IN JUNE 2018
These pictures were taken by the author in June 2018 when it appeared that the gliding site was due to close fairly shortly and become yet another housing estate. The Booker Gliding Club had mostly retreated to Germany whilst the AeroExpo UK 2018 extravaganza was taking place at WYCOMBE AIR PARK, but a small contingent had remained in the UK seeking refuge at HADDENHAM. By great good fortune my dear friend James Roland was flying the Booker Gliding Club Piper PA-25 Pawnee G-BHUU for aero-tows and he arranged for me to have a flight in the Schleicher AS-K 13 G-HRAF, loaned from the gliding club at HADDENHAM to get some aerial shots.
This was, for me, a very interesting experience in several ways. This type first flew in July 1966, and despite the conditions not being favourable for gliding, after an aero-tow to around 2500 feet, my pilot George Darby, (the CFI at Booker Gliding Club), had no problem keeping us aloft for around thirty minutes and could easily have extended this.
Fifth picture: It looks imposssible? I would not have believed it either, but with a couple of specially constructed 'long-handled' wheeled contraptions, plus a small 'supermarket' type trolley base, and a certain amount of heaving and shoving, it was eventually placed in this hangar with the wings in place. There really are some very clever people in the gliding community.
Operated by:
Used as a RLG by London UAS (NORTHOLT) in 1937
WW2: Horden Richmond Aircraft Ltd (The design and manufacture of propellers)
1960s to 1980s: Airtech Ltd
1990: Hozelock Investments Ltd
2001: Upward Bound Trust Gliding Club
Charter: Post 1945: Aikman Airways
Gliding: Since 1970s?
Location: S & E of the A418, just NW of Haddenham, about 2.5nm NE to NNE of Thame town centre
Period of operation: 1937 (some say 1943) to - December 2020
Note: These maps are reproduced with the kind permission of Pooleys Flight Equipment Ltd. Copyright Robert Pooley 2014.
Runways: WW2: No information to date
1965: ENE/WSW 1082 grass N/S 853 grass
1990: 06/24 1000x107 grass
2001: 06/24 1000x100 grass
(The AAIB accident report EW/G2004/07/06 states the runway is 16/34? I think not!)
NOTES: Was this site the venue for Sir Alan Cobham’s THAME visit on the 17th June 1935?
OVERHAUL AND CONVERSION
Many light ex-RAF types were overhauled here for civilian use and some ‘heavy’ conversion work was also undertaken. British American Air Services for example had one of their Handley Page Halifax freighters converted into a tanker for the Berlin airlift
ATA FLYING SCHOOL
According to Ron Smith in his excellent book British Built Aircraft Vol.3 THAME was originally used by the Air Transport Auxiliary (ATA) as a training school using Percival Proctors and Harvards. (And, my note; Miles Magisters). He then goes on to say, “The RAF used gliders based here for radar research, the tow aircraft including some of the oldest aircraft in RAF service, including eleven Hector, three Hind, twelve Tiger Moth, and two Avro 504N, the latter still being in use at the end of 1941.” I thought I’d done well discovering the Avro 504N still being used at CHRISTCHURCH in HAMPSHIRE during 1940 towing Hotspur gliders on radar detection research duties. Is it possible to determine when this last venerable type was last used in military service?
One source says HADDENHAM was used in the later part of WW2 by the Glider Training Squadron from RINGWAY, CHESHIRE. So, possibly, they were here only to conduct the radar research flights?
Another source many years ago stated that medium and heavy bombers were assembled and/or repaired or converted here later in WW2. This I believe is correct but who carried out this work?
A PERSONAL MEMORY
I remember doing a precautionary landing here with an instructor after doing aerobatics in a Chipmunk because I noticed that the right wing fuel tank was reading empty! After landing the ‘cross-over’ valve or whatever it was freed itself and the fuel level equalised. Needless to say we flew home to WYCOMBE AIR PARK pretty straight and level to get it checked out.
In 1975 listed as being open to private aircraft. I don’t think this arrangement lasted for long and for many years HADDENHAM/THAME is considered to be a gliding only site.
In 2017 I paid a visit and could not recognise anything - a new industrial estate had been built, and was expanding. The only evidence I could find that gliding still kept going was this rather sorry little sign. The next year of course, see above, I had a marvelous opportunity to see so much more.
A BIT MORE INFO
In June 2023 Mr Graham Frost, a great friend of this 'Guide', discovered that the Perman HM.14 Pou-du-Ciel, G-ADPY, was based here. It was registered 30.03.37 according to the Civil Aircraft Register. Other sources state 02.02.36. It appears it was withdrawn from use around 1939.
Peter Chamberlain
This comment was written on: 2016-08-15 15:57:41Go to www.haddenhamairfieldhistory.co.uk
Reply from Dick Flute:
Hi Peter, Thank you for the link. Regards, Dick
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