Which Aerodrome?
Chevvron
Well done. Bovingdon as it was in the summer of 1956.
I was serving with the Fighter Command Communications Squardon (FCCS) and the photo was taken from the cockpit of one of FCCS's Avro Ansons.
Background to Bovingdon
In 1956 RAF Bovingdon was quite a busy station housing both the Fighter Command and Coastal Command Communications Squadrons equipped with Avro Ansons and DH Devons. Servicing was carried out by civilan contractors with only a few RAF ground staff.
In addition the USAF 7531st Air Base Squadron had a detachment based here to service the frequent flights with personnel and freight to the USAF HQ 3rd AF in Ruislip from various USAF bases in Europe. USAF C47s and C123's were regular daily visitors. Also attached was a communications detachment from HQ 3rd AF in Ruislip to provide long-range ATC communications for the USAF. The USAF departed in 1962 and the RAF left the airfield in January 1969.
What used to be the airfield is now occupied by The Mount Prison. Hence my clue as to what you do with a horse - mount it of course!
Bovingdon VOR-DME (BNN), a major navaid for arrivals and departures from the London Terminal area including Heathrow, is still on part of what was the old airfield at Bovingdon. See snaps below.
It's all yours Chevvron - take it away!
Well done. Bovingdon as it was in the summer of 1956.
I was serving with the Fighter Command Communications Squardon (FCCS) and the photo was taken from the cockpit of one of FCCS's Avro Ansons.
Background to Bovingdon
In 1956 RAF Bovingdon was quite a busy station housing both the Fighter Command and Coastal Command Communications Squadrons equipped with Avro Ansons and DH Devons. Servicing was carried out by civilan contractors with only a few RAF ground staff.
In addition the USAF 7531st Air Base Squadron had a detachment based here to service the frequent flights with personnel and freight to the USAF HQ 3rd AF in Ruislip from various USAF bases in Europe. USAF C47s and C123's were regular daily visitors. Also attached was a communications detachment from HQ 3rd AF in Ruislip to provide long-range ATC communications for the USAF. The USAF departed in 1962 and the RAF left the airfield in January 1969.
What used to be the airfield is now occupied by The Mount Prison. Hence my clue as to what you do with a horse - mount it of course!
Bovingdon VOR-DME (BNN), a major navaid for arrivals and departures from the London Terminal area including Heathrow, is still on part of what was the old airfield at Bovingdon. See snaps below.
It's all yours Chevvron - take it away!
Well I remember that view from when 613 VGS detached there from Halton in about '67 and I was flying AEG in a Mk3 using runway 27! I did the first launch on the first detachment using the taxiway in front of those trees over to mid right; it was a weekday so we wern't allowed to use the runway.
I vividly remember on many occasions seeing Hercules departing from runway 22 from my home in nearby Chesham; they would appear over the horizon in a near 90 deg bank, 4 trails of black smoke behind them. Then of course we had The War Lover (B17s) 633 Squadron and Mosquito Squadron (both Mosquitos) all filmed there at various times between '61 and '67, with some sequences of The Battle of Britain in '67 too including the radio controlled Stukas.
I also scounged a couple of Anson flights from there; one was piloted by a guy with a badly scarred face (burns? Name of Colbourne?) whose takeoff technique was to hold it on the runway at full thottle then retract the gear without rotating!
Open House
I vividly remember on many occasions seeing Hercules departing from runway 22 from my home in nearby Chesham; they would appear over the horizon in a near 90 deg bank, 4 trails of black smoke behind them. Then of course we had The War Lover (B17s) 633 Squadron and Mosquito Squadron (both Mosquitos) all filmed there at various times between '61 and '67, with some sequences of The Battle of Britain in '67 too including the radio controlled Stukas.
I also scounged a couple of Anson flights from there; one was piloted by a guy with a badly scarred face (burns? Name of Colbourne?) whose takeoff technique was to hold it on the runway at full thottle then retract the gear without rotating!
Open House
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Not Lethbridge. The photos were taken in 1939. Here is an airside view of the same aerodrome. Note the administration building on the left. The previous photo was clearly taken taken from the control tower.
Last edited by evansb; 9th May 2008 at 05:51.
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No ideas at present; but isnt it a quaint airport. Manicured gardens, and Art-deco design, it posseses all of the halycon days of aviation long gone in Regional Hubs. The admin buidling includes a Met Ofice (pathway leading off to the 2 oclock on the first photo) and with a terminal built into the base of the tower, my nearest guess would be a United States, Regional Hub, probably now redundant or overlaid in masses of concrete. Reminds me of Braunschwieg in Germany, although I know for sure that it is not.
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Well stated, Tiger mate. The aerodrome was indeed an Eden-like back-water when the photo was taken, (check out the sewer grid on the main apron..) but it has now become an international gateway. The ramshackle collection of buildings on the right-hand side of the photo was a trade-mark of the site's development well into the mid-1960s. Here is an even earlier shot:
Last edited by evansb; 9th May 2008 at 18:14.
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Spot on, Tiger mate
The first scheduled flights from Vancouver B.C. were in fact international. The flight flew to/from Seattle, Washington. As the airport is built on a Fraser River delta, drainage has always been a problem, and dykes surround most of the island. Some spots are actually at or a few inches below sea level. You have control.
The first scheduled flights from Vancouver B.C. were in fact international. The flight flew to/from Seattle, Washington. As the airport is built on a Fraser River delta, drainage has always been a problem, and dykes surround most of the island. Some spots are actually at or a few inches below sea level. You have control.
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Thanks, that was quite a challenge, and it was the hangar in photo 1 that eventually gave the game away. Even after a visit to google earth I was not sure. Back in a min with the next challenge.
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The year is 1988 and we are in the Northern Hemisphere:
No prizes for the aeroplane and the photos are taken a few seconds apart. The grass really was that green!
A small hint to narrow down the search:
No prizes for the aeroplane and the photos are taken a few seconds apart. The grass really was that green!
A small hint to narrow down the search:
Last edited by Tiger_mate; 10th May 2008 at 06:13.
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Tiger_mate's challenge
A very interesting challenge. The presence of an RAF Puma and the very green airfield makes me think it is in the UK, however the clue aircraft I believe are F86 Sabres and F84 Thunderjets and therefore give me cause to think it is somewhere in Europe, but then the many roundabouts on the roads nearby brings me back to the UK.
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Short finals for 26 L actually, but very well done and quite correct.
Aalborg Denmark
The clues were in parallel runways both equipped with arrestor gear for military operations. The terrain is as flat as the Netherlands, which is where I expected some to venture to as a possible answer. The aircraft sadly do not exist anymore, but in the finest Cold War traditions, were placed as decoy aircraft to tempt a Soviet straffing run. The coastal location would have reduced the options.
TCF: You have control.
Aalborg Denmark
The clues were in parallel runways both equipped with arrestor gear for military operations. The terrain is as flat as the Netherlands, which is where I expected some to venture to as a possible answer. The aircraft sadly do not exist anymore, but in the finest Cold War traditions, were placed as decoy aircraft to tempt a Soviet straffing run. The coastal location would have reduced the options.
TCF: You have control.