RAF Carew Cheriton

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
RAF Carew Cheriton
RAF / RNAS Pembroke
Airship SSZ17 LandingPembroke1917.jpg
Characteristics
Coordinates

51 ° 41 '26 "  N , 4 ° 48' 42"  W Coordinates: 51 ° 41 '26 "  N , 4 ° 48' 42"  W.
Height above MSL 28 m (92  ft )
Transport links
Distance from the city center 8 km west of Tenby
Street A477
Basic data
opening August 1915/1938
closure March 1920/1945
operator Royal Navy / Royal Air Force
Runways
06/24 965 m of asphalt
12/30 1040 m of asphalt
16/34 765 m of asphalt



i7

i11 i13

The last known as Royal Air Force Station Carew Cheriton , RAF Carew Cheriton for short , was a military airfield in the west of the Welsh county of Pembrokeshire between Tenby and Pembroke Dock . The area was initially operated during the First World War by the Royal Naval Air Service and from April 1918 by the newly established Royal Air Force , the latter being used again during the Second World War . Parts of the area including the former tower were preserved, the latter now houses a small museum.

history

The airfield was founded in 1915 as Royal Naval Air Station Pembroke , or RNAS Pembroke for short , and was initially a base for Submarine / Sea Scout Zero - and Coastal Class airship - airships that were used to observe the coasts and the Irish Sea . A 100 m long hall was used to accommodate the blimps . From April 1917, double-decker aircraft of the types Sopwith 1½ Strutter and Airco DH6 were added. With the establishment of the RAF, the airfield came under the control of the latter, which called it RAF Pembroke . The station was closed in 1920, the land sold in 1923 and the hangar dismantled.

In 1938 the construction of a new military airfield began on the site of the former airship port and was opened in 1939 as RAF Carew Cheriton . (RAF Pembroke was meanwhile the flying boat base in Pembroke Dock .). The first user was a Hawker Henley swarm of the 1st Anti Aircraft Co-operation Unit (AACU). The last user was in 1945 a swarm of the 587th Squadron, which also flew the Henley. In the intervening war years, the station was home to a number of different units with a wide variety of aircraft. These included Hurricane -type fighters and various twin-engine bomber types.

Todays use

The site is now used by the museum in the tower building as a commercial area and event site.

Web links