A brief history as the site has been posted on DP many times before.
Upper Heyford opened as an airfield in 1918 and from then until its closure in 1994 had a long and varied career. The field started flying with the Royal Flying Corps and then was used by the Royal Airforce through the war. With the coming of the Cold War the base was taken over by the America’s Strategic Air Command (SAC) in May 1951. Runway lengthening took place with Boeing KB-29P’s tanker aircraft arriving in December 1951. In June 1953 the first Boeing B-47’s bombers arrived which would have made Upper Heyford a very noisy and smoky place to be. The B-47’s were nuclear capable and stayed until March 1965 when the SAC mission ended and the base was taken over by United States Air Force Europe (USAFE). McDonnell RF-101C Voodoo aircraft of the 66th Tactical Reconnaissance Wing then flew from the airfield until the squadron disbanded in April 1970.
Next came the 20th Tactical Fighter Wing with their General Dynamics F-111E fighter bombers. These were later joined by the ECM version of the F-111, the EF-111A which was a very powerful electronic countermeasures aircraft. It is reputed that four EF-111A’s flying over Europe could basically shut down all communications and radar coverage. EF-111A’s took part in the bombing of Libya - Operation El-Dorado Canyon in 1987 where an F-111F from Lakenheath was lost during the mission. I was at Upper Heyford the morning after this mission which was a surreal moment for me. The F-111’s of both varieties from Upper Heyford were used during the Gulf War in 1991 flying some missions as low as 200 feet using their terrain following radar.
With end of the Cold War Upper Heyfords days were numbered with the last three of the wings aircraft leaving on 7 December 1993. One F-111E - 68055- was flown to the Museum at Duxford where it resides today. Following closure the runways were used to house large numbers of unsold cars. Today the base is pretty much intact and is home to various commercial activities.
I remember well the air shows held at the base as it was like a little bit of America in England. Ice Cold Budweiser beer, proper burgers with friendly American crews stating such facts as “hey bud you look like you could use a burger and a beer” Very frequently I took up the offer. Some shots of the air shows held here in the 80’s can be found here -
http://airshowspast.fotopic.net/c1888439.html
The following photo’s were taken during a tour organised by the Airfield Research Group (ARG) (http://www.airfieldresearchgroup.org.uk/). Please do not under any circumstances try and get into any areas shown as security is very tight, you will be spotted and in all likelihoods arrested. For anyone with an interest in such subject matter as posted here, the ARG are worth looking into joining as they organise many tours that take in normally inaccessible areas of airfields.
The Control Tower - no access due to asbestos risk
Tower signage
Station flag poles
One of 48 hardened aircraft shelters (HAS) - designed to withstand bomb blasts in order to protect aircraft
Internal view of HAS
Not sure of its purpose - located in HAS
Motor for opening HAS doors
HAS control electrical control cabinet
Observation tower located within the HAS area
Taxi way signage
Avionics Building
Door signage in the Avionics Building
Wall art in the Avionics Building
Corridor within the Avionics Building
Electrical distribution board - Avionics Building
Self explanatory sign
Decontamination equipment
Shower head in decontamination unit
Some shots within the Hardened Command Centre
This board shows the final crews and aircraft sorties that flew from Upper Heyford
Aircraft munitions status board - note B61 & B57 at the top are nuclear weapons
Aircraft status board
You never know who's listening in
This map covered an entire wall but has mostly been removed
Phone contact listing
Not really sure what this does ??
The all important clock
One of the remaining hangars
This sign is located inside the Station HQ building
And to end - some of the superb wall art within the Station HQ building
Thanks for looking.
Upper Heyford opened as an airfield in 1918 and from then until its closure in 1994 had a long and varied career. The field started flying with the Royal Flying Corps and then was used by the Royal Airforce through the war. With the coming of the Cold War the base was taken over by the America’s Strategic Air Command (SAC) in May 1951. Runway lengthening took place with Boeing KB-29P’s tanker aircraft arriving in December 1951. In June 1953 the first Boeing B-47’s bombers arrived which would have made Upper Heyford a very noisy and smoky place to be. The B-47’s were nuclear capable and stayed until March 1965 when the SAC mission ended and the base was taken over by United States Air Force Europe (USAFE). McDonnell RF-101C Voodoo aircraft of the 66th Tactical Reconnaissance Wing then flew from the airfield until the squadron disbanded in April 1970.
Next came the 20th Tactical Fighter Wing with their General Dynamics F-111E fighter bombers. These were later joined by the ECM version of the F-111, the EF-111A which was a very powerful electronic countermeasures aircraft. It is reputed that four EF-111A’s flying over Europe could basically shut down all communications and radar coverage. EF-111A’s took part in the bombing of Libya - Operation El-Dorado Canyon in 1987 where an F-111F from Lakenheath was lost during the mission. I was at Upper Heyford the morning after this mission which was a surreal moment for me. The F-111’s of both varieties from Upper Heyford were used during the Gulf War in 1991 flying some missions as low as 200 feet using their terrain following radar.
With end of the Cold War Upper Heyfords days were numbered with the last three of the wings aircraft leaving on 7 December 1993. One F-111E - 68055- was flown to the Museum at Duxford where it resides today. Following closure the runways were used to house large numbers of unsold cars. Today the base is pretty much intact and is home to various commercial activities.
I remember well the air shows held at the base as it was like a little bit of America in England. Ice Cold Budweiser beer, proper burgers with friendly American crews stating such facts as “hey bud you look like you could use a burger and a beer” Very frequently I took up the offer. Some shots of the air shows held here in the 80’s can be found here -
http://airshowspast.fotopic.net/c1888439.html
The following photo’s were taken during a tour organised by the Airfield Research Group (ARG) (http://www.airfieldresearchgroup.org.uk/). Please do not under any circumstances try and get into any areas shown as security is very tight, you will be spotted and in all likelihoods arrested. For anyone with an interest in such subject matter as posted here, the ARG are worth looking into joining as they organise many tours that take in normally inaccessible areas of airfields.
The Control Tower - no access due to asbestos risk
Tower signage
Station flag poles
One of 48 hardened aircraft shelters (HAS) - designed to withstand bomb blasts in order to protect aircraft
Internal view of HAS
Not sure of its purpose - located in HAS
Motor for opening HAS doors
HAS control electrical control cabinet
Observation tower located within the HAS area
Taxi way signage
Avionics Building
Door signage in the Avionics Building
Wall art in the Avionics Building
Corridor within the Avionics Building
Electrical distribution board - Avionics Building
Self explanatory sign
Decontamination equipment
Shower head in decontamination unit
Some shots within the Hardened Command Centre
This board shows the final crews and aircraft sorties that flew from Upper Heyford
Aircraft munitions status board - note B61 & B57 at the top are nuclear weapons
Aircraft status board
You never know who's listening in
This map covered an entire wall but has mostly been removed
Phone contact listing
Not really sure what this does ??
The all important clock
One of the remaining hangars
This sign is located inside the Station HQ building
And to end - some of the superb wall art within the Station HQ building
Thanks for looking.
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