RAF Alconbury USAAF Station 102
Near Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire in England
RAF Alconbury's gate guardian, a full-scale model of a US Air Force F-5E Tiger II, seen during 2020 prior to removal to the former RAF Sculthorpe
Site information
Type	RAF station (US Visiting Forces)
Code	AY[1]
Owner	Ministry of Defence
Operator	US Air Force
Controlled by	US Air Forces in Europe – Air Forces Africa previously RAF Bomber Command[1] * No. 2 Group RAF * No. 3 Group RAF
Condition	Operational
Location
RAF Alconbury Shown within Cambridgeshire Show map of Cambridgeshire RAF Alconbury RAF Alconbury (the United Kingdom) Show map of the United Kingdom
Coordinates	52°21′48″N 000°13′22″W / 52.36333°N 0.22278°W / 52.36333; -0.22278
Grid reference	TL295795[2]
Area	497 hectares (1,230 acres)[3]
Site history
Built	1937 (1937)/38
In use	May 1938–1942 (Royal Air Force) 1942–1945 (US Army Air Forces) 1951 – present (US Air Force)
Battles/wars	European theatre of World War II Cold War
Garrison information
Occupants	423d Air Base Group
Airfield information
Identifiers	IATA: AYH, ICAO: EGWZ, WMO: 035620
Elevation	50 metres (164 ft)[1] AMSL
Runways Direction Length and surface 12/30 2,500 metres (8,202 ft) Asphalt 06/24 (WWII) 1,750 metres (5,741 ft) Concrete 12/30 (WWII) 1,235 metres (4,052 ft) Concrete 18/36 (WWII) 1,235 metres (4,052 ft) Concrete
Notes: Flying ceased in 1995

Royal Air Force Alconbury, or more simply RAF Alconbury, is an active Royal Air Force station near Huntingdon, England, that for many years was used by the USAF. The airfield is in the civil parish of The Stukeleys, close to the villages of Great Stukeley, Little Stukeley, and Alconbury. Flying operations are no longer based at the site, with most of the land, including the runway, having been sold in 2009 to become the new settlement of Alconbury Weald.

History

Opened in 1938 for use by RAF Bomber Command, the station was used from 1942 to 1945 by the United States Army Air Forces.^[4] It was occupied by the 93rd Bomb Group of the Eighth Air Force; visitors included King George VI, who visited the site and saw the Boeing B-17 Flying Fortresses there on 13 November 1942.^[4]

It was announced by The Pentagon on 8 January 2015 that RAF Alconbury and RAF Molesworth would be closing by 2020. Most of the units at Alconbury and Molesworth were to be moved to RAF Croughton in Northamptonshire, along with the personnel.^[5] The decision was later reverted on the grounds of cost-effectiveness, with RAF Alconbury remaining as a support base for the Joint Analysis Center.^[6]

United States Air Force use

• 85th Bombardment Squadron (1955-59)^[15][a]
  • North American B-45 Tornado
  • Douglas B-66 Destroyer
• 10th Tactical Reconnaissance Wing^[15] (1959-87)
  • Douglas RB-66 Destroyer
  • McDonnell Douglas RF-4C
• 527th Tactical Fighter Training Aggressor Squadron^[15] (1976-88)
  • Northrop F-5E Tiger II
• 10th Tactical Fighter Wing^[15] (1988-94)
  • Fairchild Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II

Based units

Units based at RAF Alconbury.^[18]

United States Air Force

United States Air Forces in Europe - Air Forces Africa (USAFE-AFAFRICA)

• 501st Combat Support Wing
  • Headquarters 501st Combat Support Wing
  • 423rd Air Base Group
    • 423rd Civil Engineer Squadron
    • 423rd Communications Squadron
    • 423rd Force Support Squadron
    • 423rd Medical Squadron
    • 423rd Security Forces Squadron

See also

• List of Royal Air Force stations
• United States Air Force in the United Kingdom

Notes

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to RAF Alconbury.

• 501st Combat Support Wing