Motormouse
SOH-CM-2024
Another one I'm working on; on the north Norfolk coast was officially the RAF's smallest airfield in WW2; used for launching and recovery of DH82 / Queen Bee drones for the co-located trainee AA gunners to shoot at
from wiki ---->
'X' Flt, No 1 Anti-Aircraft Co-operation Unit were based at the station between 16 May and 14 September 1939, with 'T' Flt, No 1 Anti-Aircraft Co-operation Unit there between 25 February and 29 April 1942. No 6 Anti-Aircraft Co-operation Unit were based there between 7 December 1942 and 30 November 1943.[SUP][2][/SUP]
Associated with the anti-aircraft gunnery, the station operated the De Havilland DH-82B Queen Bee target drone aircraft, a radio-controlled target version of the Tiger Moth II.
Later reports suggest Miles Magister were also based there; the drones were catapult launched and if not shot down were recovered to the beach or the airstrip (anyone know if there is a model of a shore / ships' catapult anywhere?)
The camp remained open until 1958 in same role; and a cold war radio location station (parented by Neatishead) was established, using the former AA gun laying radars,
and later type 93 radar. This closed in 1996
it's today home to the Muckleburgh Military vehicle collection, the airstrip (code GB184) is PPR for light aircraft and it looks like the owners have a helipad on site too
ttfn
Pete
from wiki ---->'X' Flt, No 1 Anti-Aircraft Co-operation Unit were based at the station between 16 May and 14 September 1939, with 'T' Flt, No 1 Anti-Aircraft Co-operation Unit there between 25 February and 29 April 1942. No 6 Anti-Aircraft Co-operation Unit were based there between 7 December 1942 and 30 November 1943.[SUP][2][/SUP]
Associated with the anti-aircraft gunnery, the station operated the De Havilland DH-82B Queen Bee target drone aircraft, a radio-controlled target version of the Tiger Moth II.
Later reports suggest Miles Magister were also based there; the drones were catapult launched and if not shot down were recovered to the beach or the airstrip (anyone know if there is a model of a shore / ships' catapult anywhere?)
The camp remained open until 1958 in same role; and a cold war radio location station (parented by Neatishead) was established, using the former AA gun laying radars,
and later type 93 radar. This closed in 1996
it's today home to the Muckleburgh Military vehicle collection, the airstrip (code GB184) is PPR for light aircraft and it looks like the owners have a helipad on site too
ttfn
Pete
Last edited:
Actually my comment, while facetious, has more than an element of truth in it. My late father-in-law served in the RAF for 38 years, starting out as a gunner; he went from manning a Lewis gun in the back of a Hawker Hind to launching a Thor missile as part of Project Emily testing (he offered the key to my now ex-wife as the 'something old' for our wedding). Suffice to say his opinion of a lot of his colleagues in '39-'40 was not overly high. Takes all sorts I guess.