Leiston

LEISTON: Military aerodrome (Also known as THEBERTON and SAXMUNDHAM)

Note:  All three of these pictures were obtained from Google Earth ©





 

Military users: WW2: 8th USAAF

358^th Fighter Group   (Republic P-47 Thunderbolts)

66^th Fighter Wing           357^th Fighter Group

362, 363 & 367 Sqdns   (North American P.51 Mustangs)

2nd Gunnery & Tow Target Flt      (Vultee A.35B Vengeances)

 

Manufacturing: Post WW2: CFM

 

Location: 3nm E of Saxmundham

Period of operation: 1943 to 1953

 

Runways: WW2: 06/24   1829x46   hard           13/31   1280x46   hard
                         18/36   1280x46   hard


 

NOTES: In WW2 the USAAF normally had four squadrons of bombers at each bomber base but only three squadrons of fighters at each fighter base. Why did this happen? The 358^th Fighter Group arrived from GOXHILL having completed their training and after completing just nineteen missions in 1944 they moved to RAYDON as part of the 9^th Air Force.

THE 357th
It is claimed the 357^th were the first USAF 8^th Air Force Fighter Group to be equipped with the North American P.51 Mustang, (having converted at RAYDON), and ended the war as the second highest scoring group in the entire 8^th Air Force! Ever better versions of the Mustang were employed, B, C, D and K variants and on average 50 aircraft were despatched for escort duties, sometimes up to 70 aircraft. In March 1944 this Group had the distinction of escorting the first USAF bombing raid to Berlin.

It is probably not fully realised by most youngsters just what a formidable long range fighter the later types of Mustang were. For example, as part of Operation FRANTIC on the 6^th August 1944 sixty-four Mustangs escorted ninety-seven B.17s to bomb the Focke-Wulf factory in Gdynia, Poland. The ‘force’ carried on to Piryatin in Russia to regroup and refuel - some seven and a half hours of utterly knackering flying! On the 8th August they attacked targets in Romania landing in Italy.

From a purely practical navigational point of view I find these accounts quite extraordinary - how did they find their destinations? Or, did the bombers also proceed to these destinations? In which case all they had to do was follow them. On the 10^th August they escorted C-47s on a medical evacuation flight before leaving on the 12^th to attack Toulouse before returning to LEISTON. This strikes me as being a quite exemplary feat, not least from the navigation involved even though little enemy opposition was encountered?

'CHUCK' YEAGER
It seems certainly worthwhile recording that flying in this Group was a certain young pilot, Lieut “Chuck” Yeager, who became an “ace” in one day on a mission to Bremen, (shooting down five aircraft), then shooting down a Me 262 shortly after. He was later to pilot the Bell X-1, (a design pioneered by Miles in the UK and “given” to the USAF), so the Americans could be the first to break the ‘Sound Barrier’.

A RED LETTER DAY
On the 14^th January 1945 this was a “red letter” day for the 357^th Group. Having been grounded for the previous seventeen days by bad weather they flew 56 Mustangs led by Col. Dregne to escort bombers to oil targets and encountered a mixed force of around 130 Bf 109s and FW 190s. During a fierce air battle over the Brunswick area 56 enemy fighters were claimed, (presumably later authenticated?), and this became the highest score ever recorded by an Eighth Air Force fighter group.

After fifteen months of 318 missions 592 claims of enemy aircraft destroyed were made, plus 118 damaged in aerial combat. Ground attacks on the return trip produced more results. On the debit side the 357^th lost 114 aircraft with about half of these pilots being killed, the remainder becoming POWs.


A MEMORY FROM 1967
Mr Graham Frost, a great friend of this 'Guide', tells us that when he made a visit in August 1967, the only aircraft to be seen was the Cessna 150F G-ATMY. This being previously registered in Sweden as SE-ETD.

CFM
In  1983(?) CFM (Cook Flying Machines) started production of the microlight Shadow here. A design which proved to be one of very few commercially successful British designs in terms of the numbers built during the latter half of the 20^th century. It is well worth looking up the history of this aircraft as it set many records and undertook some amazing long distance flights.

 

 

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