Limavady
LIMAVADY: Military aerodrome, later civil airfield
Military users: RAF Coastal Command 15 Group
53 Sqdn (Lockheed Hudsons)
172 & 612 Sqdns (Vickers Wellingtons)
Flying club/school: 1959 ‘snapshot’. North West Flying Group
Location: 2nm N of Limavady
Period of operation: Military: 1940 to 1945 Civil: 1950s & 60s only?
Runways: WW2: 17/35 1545x46 hard 08/26 1399x46 hard
13/31 1253x46 hard
NOTES: Perhaps barely remembered, let alone thought about today, this aerodrome once had 2115 RAF personnel based here plus 354 WAAFs making it a pretty serious base in its day.
172 Sqdn was notable for being amongst the first, if not the first, to start using the Leigh Light in conjunction with ASV radar. It is really quite interesting to read the history of the Leigh Light, which was a most ingenious idea, mounting a very powerful searchlight on a aircraft to spotlight the target, at night. Doubly effective when coupled with airborne radar to home in.
There was however one small snag, the searchlight was so bright it blinded the pilot! The sort of thing boffins can't predict - although it is 'common sense' to others. I cannot now remember what the solution was - did the pilots don sunglasses, or did they drop a glare-shield. And, for that matter, how did the gunner cope?
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