Unknown UK airfield

[jabberwok]

I thought I knew most UK airfields but one has come up which has me stumped.

Position is N53:11:07 W002:23:09. This is about 3nm north of Sandbach and the runway is just north of the M6 crossing a railway line. Runway ends remain visible but the rest has gone to grass - length approx 2900ft.
It isn't mentioned in any military records I have found but it was labelled as an airfield on OS maps around 1988.
The runway is just within one of the high-res areas in Google Earth - albeit a bit fuzzy. I'd post a Multimap reference but am not sure if this is OK on the forum.

Anyone with an old Pooley's? :rolleyes: I've tried the UK Airfield Catalogue site and it's not in that.

[scroggs]

RAF Cranage. Datum position N53.13 W002.24. Runways (PSP) 10/28 3860', 05/23 3240', 16/34 3000'.

Opened in 1940 with 2 School of Air Navigation (later the CNS). Became a fighter airfield for the defence of Liverpool, and 11(P) Advanced Flying Unit was based here for a while. The airfield closed for flying in 1945, but the USAF kept a support unit of some kind here until 1957, and during the war Vickers opened a factory producing Wellingtons at nearby Byley. The aircraft were towed to Cranage via a connecting taxiway.

The M6 cuts through the north-east corner of the airfield. On your Multimap picture, slew up one 'notch'. The main E-W runway starts just south of the large grass and tree covered area, which was the main domestic site (the large 'works' on that area is post-war). The 8 hangars were alongside the parallel section of taxiway to the north of that runway, which can be seen throughout its length as it curves up to the northern airfield boundary (still shown as a hedgerow) and the threshold of rwy 16. The southern taxiway also appears to be complete to where it met the southern threshold of rwy 05, which is as far as it ever went. The three runways intersected at the same place, which is approximately where the apex of the triangular field to the left of the M6 lies.

[ANW]

You won't find it in any period flight guides.

Not quite correct to say the 'rest has gone to grass' as that was the intention to meet planning requirements. You would be surprised what is under the grass, and how much it cost. :cool:

Nothing to do with the military, and your starting date of around 1988 is correct. Pity the new owner of the property has no interest whatsoever in aviation - a complete waste. :{

Sorry Scroggs, you've got the wrong location

[Conan the Librarian]

Fascinated by this one. If it is near Sandbach, would it have been anything to do with a decoy site for the Crewe marshalling yards? Will grab a looksie later on.
Conan
PS The Hack Green RSoG bunker must be in that vicinity too.
PPs And later yet... The PDA is showing the village of Cranage nearby, so it looks as though Scroggs is spot on - However, can't wait for ANW to spill his beans, so to speak.

[Jed A1]

RAF Cranage (or the former site of) is further North, on the same side of the motorway. I think the runways were all grass and never paved.

This looks like the place a gentleman of Middle Eastern Origin (I believe) kept a Citation, Golden Eagle and Hughes 500 from time to time.

Allegedly.

[jabberwok]

Sorry Scroggs but it's not Cranage. That was further north still. The Lat/Long I gave was smack in the middle of the runway.

This airfield is not in RAF listings and it isn't shown on wartime maps or in the RAF 1956 quarter mils.

ANW and Jed A1 seem to know something about the site but I'm puzzled as to the reluctance to confirm its identity. Is there a reason for this?

[ZH875]

Wasn't Cranage about 5Km further northwesterly around Puddinglake.

Hack Green is some 20Km South west (as the harrier flies) from the 'strange' airfield site.

[Saab Dastard]

On my trusty 1/2 mil there is a disused airfield named Grange just left of the M6, level with Holmes Chapel and north of Sandbach - could that be it?

SD

That was edition 28 - on 29 it's been corrected to Cranage. Just shows what out-of-date charts do for you

[cringe]

After reading about the same mystery elsewhere, I think ANW is correct. Location is next to Dawfields Farm.

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b142/cringe_/airfield2.jpg

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b142/cringe_/airfield1.jpg

[scroggs]

You won't find it in any period flight guides.
Not quite correct to say the 'rest has gone to grass' as that was the intention to meet planning requirements. You would be surprised what is under the grass, and how much it cost. :cool:
Nothing to do with the military, and your starting date of around 1988 is correct. Pity the new owner of the property has no interest whatsoever in aviation - a complete waste. :{
Sorry Scroggs, you've got the wrong location
Fair enough! The location fitted and the main runway does cross the M6. It is also almost fully visible on Multimap at the location given (although I used a fairly coarse position). Just trying to help!

JedA1 Cranage's runways were PSP (Pierced Steel Planking). This runway (or at least the touchdown areas) looks like it may have been constructed using a concrete version of something similar. The limited length of the runway, the lack of taxiways and the small size of what I presume is the hangar in the NW corner suggests that it was intended for light aircraft.

Scroggs

[diginagain]

A quick Google and...........

http://www.visualflight.co.uk/forums/post.asp?TOPIC_ID=4364&method=Reply

Post from Webb Aviation seems to clarify things, before the thread disappears into fantasy-land.

[scroggs]

You may have done, Mike, but this is nothing to do with the airfield referrred to in this thread! If you go back, you'll find a Multimap link to Arclid airfield and you can just about make out the hedgerow breaks where the decoy airfield was. This is quite a long way from either Cranage or Jabberwok's modern - though now disused - runway.

[jabberwok]

Fascinating - this airfield must be quite unique then.

Apart from having no name it must be one of very few private airfields built with a hard surface since the war - it must have cost a packet. What a pity it was operational for such a limited period.

On a side issue has anyone heard of an airfield at Teddesley Park? It's mentioned on a few web sites but without any hard evidence to back this up.

[ANW]

I say, this is fun! Never knew there were so many tall stories to be told about the place.

Now why has no one mentioned the little green men from Mars ..............

Yes, cringe, I am correct, as I've landed there back in 1987.

Shall I tell .............

[Conan the Librarian]

Now why has no one mentioned the little green men from Mars ..............

Simple. They all come from Warrington. ANW, your audience awaits... :}

Conan

[Atcham Tower]

<On a side issue has anyone heard of an airfield at Teddesley Park? It's mentioned on a few web sites but without any hard evidence to back this up.>

Teddesley Park was No 48 Satellite Landing Ground. Opened July 1941, parented by No 29 Maintenance Unit, RAF High Ercall for aircraft storage until it closed in Dec 45. Many aircraft types seen here, including Venturas, Hudsons and Avengers. Penkridge was another wartime airfield in this area. See Actions Stations Vol 3 for more info.

[jabberwok]

Yes please ANW, do tell and put us all out of our misery.

PM me if you your courage fails.. :O

[ANW]

Aw, Conan, you really are a spoil sport! Warrington and little green men? Many a true word spoken in jest. ;)

Jed A1 had the basic facts, if not the right wording. :ok:

This is what you can construct if you are mad keen on flying and want somewhere to play with your toys.

A certain individual of Pakistani extraction moved out of South Manchester having bought the house and surrounding farmlands around 1986. His main toys were kept at Manchester Airport. The helicopter was kept at this location: Dawfields. Wanting all the toys to be in one location, work commenced on constructing a hard runway, having first of all engaged a company which did a fantastic job in creating a herringbone drainage system across the grass fields. Plans for a row of hangars were prepared, but were never built.

The local council were not amused at the scale of the site. In fact one local resident, a retired wartime Group Captain was quoted as saying "what type of aircraft are you planning on bring in? Boeing 737s?" Despite large donations to, amongst others, the church organ fund, the council weren't keen. Meanwhile work continued with lorry loads of Buxton stone being trucked in. The council refused a full length hard runway, but relented with the hard touchdown thresholds. The entire strip was stoned, with a grassed over centre section. The cost was reputed to be around £1.5M at 1987/8 prices.

Apart from many helicopter movements, as I recall only one of the three fixed wing aircraft was ever trialled into the strip. The Citation never did make it and neither did the Cessna 340, which was made into a banana shape, landing on the driveway of a certain Stately Home - if you have an audience you may as well make a grand entrance, appropriately dressed for the occasion, of course. :O

Still he flew the Citation around the World, chartered Concorde for a jolly with all the celebs, his wife went off with some footballer or other, and ...............

Just someone having fun in their own backyard, playing with their toys. Simple as that.

[jabberwok]

Blimey - you could make a film out of that.. :hmm:

I agree with your original comment - what a waste..