USAFE Hospital in UK hangar Q

[Shaft109]

This is a question that's been bugging me for a while about a hangar at a UK USAFE base that was converted to a hospital during the cold war.

Can someone tell me where this is please? I have searched but drawn a blank.

This is simply curiosity

Thanks.

[Load Gone]

Hi,

Try here?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RAF_Little_Rissington

Cheers

LG

[Shaft109]

That's the one, when I searched I made the mistake of looking only at the 'main' usafe bases, and not the detachments to other sites.

Ask and you shall find!

[wz662]

I was shown around the Rissington hospital whilst on the airfeild for an Air cadet gliding course. The American staff were proud of their facility but not as proud as the PSA staff who had fitted it out with imagination and cost saving installations. ie a flush toilet and shower head (few pennies) instead of the hospital standard sluce ( lots of pounds).
The number of patients expect to be handled weekly was stagering, in the several hundreds.
Overall a very creepy place row upon row of hospital beds covered in plastic, several with all the machines you expect in intensive care.

[REF]

I believe that Upwood had a C-type hangar that was converted into a hospital during the cold war, or was it the first Iraq war?
Couple of aerial shots here that I took;
http://www.airfields.fotopic.net/c1437044_1.html

I'd be very interested to know more about the site mentioned above at Framlingham, I live near there and have been to the airfield a few times, photos here;
http://www.airfields.fotopic.net/c1060105.html
If the place there is easy to find I woulnd't mind investigating further - does anyone have any contacts for it there?

Richard

[air pig]

The UK had many military hospitals in kit form instores at various sites during and after the 'cold war', it was reputed that Burtonwood had up to 10 in stock, remembering that most are tent cities.

Waddington in GW 1 had a large transit medical facility set up in the Mission Support hanger, with expansion of Nocturn Hall RAF hospital. Numerous other units where also activated from stock only requiring the deployment of staff from the US to the UK.

Read Duncan Campbell's book the 'Unsinkable Aircraft Carrier' detailing US forces in the UK during the cold war.

[Krystal n chips]

I think you can add Bicester to the list. I do recall going to the GC there during GW1 to be confronted by armed US Mil personnel guarding the facility.

[Always a Sapper]

Correct Krystal n chips, on the Domestic Site (Now DLO Caversfield) the old Bk Blks were converted into wards, the 'New' Junior Ranks (New, in that it was built in 1939 ish along with the 'H' type Bk Blks) was turned into theatres and ICU's.

The old Offrs Mess which became the Sgts Mess was left untouched and in a right state (Refurbed when DLO moved in), the new Offrs Mess up the road may well have been used as well, but I'm not sure on that, its now a care home.

Over the road on the Tech Site a lot of the Bldgs were used by the Americans, notably one of the 'C' Type Hangers which was refurbished and used as part of the US Complex, possibly as the Med Stores, and the old armoury/education Bldg was also used. In fact, judging by the exterior paint jobs and internal decs (lot of brown paint used lol) most of the Tech Site was used. The American Boy Scouts even used the Old Station HQ Bldg.

Around 1939 the original Med Centre on the Domestic Site was extended to include a Decontamination Area and Ward which was basically two hardened Bldgs partially covered with earth banks and lots of concrete, the Casualty Decontamination Bldg being attached via a covered passage to the Med Centre while the other Decontamination Bldg was a stand alone.