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Originally Posted by
BEagle
RAF Faldingworth was never a missile site, but was a secure storage site for nuclear weapons until Polaris took over the dterrent commitment in 1969; Faldingworth closed in 1972.
The nearest Thor missile site to RAF Scampton was RAF Hemswell, just up the A15 from Scampton at Caenby Corner. The RAF left Hemswell in 1967, but in 1973 it became the temporary home for many Ugandan Asians who had been kicked out by the wretched Idi Amin - or rather 'His Excellency, President for Life, Field Marshal Al Hadji Doctor Idi Amin Dada, VC, DSO, MC, CBE, Lord of All the Beasts of the Earth and Fishes of the Seas and Conqueror of the British Empire in Africa in General and Uganda in Particular' as he liked to style himself.
The nearest missile site to RAF Scampton was RAF Dunholme Lodge, a couple of miles south just off the A15. From 1959-1964 it housed the Bloodhound missiles of 141 Squadron.
As for RAF Scampton itself, it is in a truly appalling state of decay. The Officers Mess was virtually left to rot and would cost a fortune to restore. A far cry from V-force or even CFS days...
When the RAF returned to Scampton, about 2001, I was under the impression that it was fully inhabitable. When I saw it in 2017, I was shocked at the state of the officers' mess, all hard board on the windows and building site fencing around it. There was a suggestion at one time that the mess could become something like a Travelodge or part of some other hotel chain.
FB