Equally unfortunately the average "ticky tacky modern slum house" is generally way beyond the means of the majority of sub 40 year olds.

3000 jobs and in all probability sympathetic renovation of the existing hangars is the way forward.

Wonder if the main runway will be preserved for Dysons air ops?

140WP
Such was our first home in Valetta Gardens. Inside it was somewhat less stately, with a coal fired back boiler in the living room that also heated the one and only radiator in the main bedroom, and a coke fired stove in the kitchen that supplied hot water. These were serviced from a split coal/coke bunker, appropriate coal and coke scuttles, and appropriate separate forward ordering of both fuels.

Some 30 years later we were parked outside for a nostalgic look at our first home, being in good time to attend a local wedding. The front door opened and a Gurkha officer, satisfied of our bona fides by our stumbling explanations, invited us inside. A complete makeover and very house proud occupants had produced much improvement since our time. Principally of course was full central heating, though whether gas or oil fired I cannot recall.

I remember thinking back in our time that the property would have been a sound investment, close as it is to the M4. With the development cited here that must now be even more the case.

All the land on which the Service Families Accommodation (as it is now called), Anson Place, Blenheim Gardens, Valetta Gardens and Wellington Place, is still in the ownership of MOD. The properties were sold to Annington Homes in 1996 and they have a 200 year lease on that land. It will be SFA for many years to come.

Wrong HH. What the country needs is significantly less than the 300k per annum net migration number!

Without descending to JetBlast I'd say a lot of people disagree with you - the NFU, the catering trade, the building trade, the NHS, the IT industry, the care business, the Universities...............................

None of these can get British workers

I'm clearly younger than most, as my only memories of Hullavington are of flying in AEF Chipmunks circa 1990. It was a slightly surreal experience, as from entering to leaving the site you never saw another soul other than the pilots, groundcrew and your fellow cadets.

Chug, gas fired. However Son in Law ripped out upstairs toilet and bathroom floors, binned the unmentionable mess and fitted B&Q best, same in cloak room. No one said a word about the improvements.

The future for Hullavington airfield
 

The rumours that have been circulating around the village for the last year regarding the future of the airfield have now been laid to rest. The truth is out!
“Dyson has announced plans to begin work on a second technology campus, just a few miles away from its global headquarters in Malmesbury. The site is on former Ministry of Defence land at Hullavington.”
Always keen to liaise with the community - and just one day after the plans were made public - three representatives from Dyson, the agent, architect and estates manager, attended the March meeting of the Parish Council to give an indication of their plans for the future of the airfield.
The good news is that it will be developed with regard to its aviation heritage and that the hangars on the site will be retained, renovated and refurbished to be used for employment purposes. There will be several planning applications submitted to Wiltshire Council in the near future for this work, which is expected to take several years before it is fully completed.
At the moment, the airfield can still be used by villagers for walking, cycling etc. but this will have to be curtailed at some time in the future for security reasons.

RAF Hullavington in the 1940s - in the midst of WWII

My late father, after completing his QFI training, was posted to No 9 Service Flying Training School, RAF Hullavington, on the 5th of June 1939. He and my mother moved into No 3 O.M. Quarters in early February 1940, having lodged in rented accommodation prior to this in 'Little Gables', Kingston Langley. From letters to his parents and sister, thankfully kept so that I could trace the family history, I read,"We have a maid, an AGA cooker (which I like playing with!) and an enormous boiler for the hot water. Remus loves rushing up and down stairs. It took him two days to realise that this was home!". (Remus was their cocker spaniel.)

In another letter, dated 5th of March 1940, my father wrote, "I taxied onto another machine (a Hart) night flying the other night. Broke my prop and his tail. Managed to hush it up!" It would appear that accidents were not uncommon. On the 16th of March he wrote, "Things go on here as usual. We are just at the end of our night flying programme. One of the pupes, by himself, landed outside the aerodrome, hit a four inch thick tree (he did say he brushed something), came through three hedges, hopped over the road and landed on his back on the aerodrome. As usual he had not a scratch or a bruise. Another pupe took two soldiers up (without permission) in an Anson (twin engined 5 seater) and crashed. Smashed the aeroplane to bits and the three of them had two cuts and a few bruises between them! S'mazing, aint it?"

There is quite a lot of information in other letters he sent home about accidents, injuries and some fatalities, but there is one episode that - for me - stands out.

On the 12th of September my father flew - for the first time in this type of aircraft - a Hurricane II for 30 minutes for 'Station Defence'. (His first tour after gaining his pilot's wings in 1936 had been in Egypt where he had flown Hawker Demons in 64 (F) Fighter Squadron, so he had acquired a grounding in fighter tactics.) On Sunday the 15th of September 1940, at the height of what became known as the Battle of Britain, he wrote this letter following his second 30-minute flight in a Hurricane:

Dear Mother and Dad. I nearly got a Junkers 88 long range bomber yesterday!!!! We have a Hurricane we keep ready for Station defence and 3 of us are allowed to fly it. Very occasionally as we waste petrol!! Any way the Junkers came over the camp at about 5000' and as I was doing nothing at the time I grabbed by bike and pedalled off to the Hurricane with my brolly over my shoulder. Leaped in and started up and off. I chased away the way he had gone with my electric sights on and my guns ready. Of course I didn't catch him. He had had too good a start. I flew around at 12000 for a bit in case there was another one and then saw another Hurricane going past towards Swindon. I followed him in case he knew of something but there wasn't anything there. So I came back. Maybe I get one some day. The Hurricane is grand. Cruising at 200 and climbing at 160. I dived, quite gently, and got 360. No effort at all." (My father's 'brolly' was, of course, his parachute, and I have found a contemporary account of the Hurricane's performance that says, 'In September 1940 the more powerful Hurricane Mk IIa entered service. Its maximum speed was 342 mph.")

I missed all this excitement, not being born until July 1941 in near-by Malmesbury, six months before my father went off to RAF Marham and No 115 Squadron to be a flight commander on Wellington IIcs.

Just an observation that some readers may find interesting. Although my father had flown these and other authorised defence missions in the Station Hurricanes (and in Defiants with an air gunner on board), he did not qualify as a Battle of Britain pilot and thus entitlement to the BoB Clasp to the 1939 - 45 Star (war medal) as these flights were not under the control of Fighter Command. I understand that there were some 14 or so like him, one or two of whom actually 'downed' enemy aircraft.

I just think that my father's account of dashing off on a bicycle to leap into a fighter aircraft in which he had only 30 minutes experience, to engage with the enemy, has elements of bravado and confidence that for me epitomises the spirit of the age.

Nugget

Great post - highly enjoyable.

For those who know Hullavington - a visit to the village churchyard to the war graves plot is a sobering experience. Casualties in training probably as severe as on Ops.

A quiet walk around the airfield on a summers evening belies its active past.

Strangely when staying in the mess I often felt a 'presence' in several of the rooms I slept in. Not threatening but just 'there'.

Arc

Was there for a couple of days in '86; we were at camp at Rudloe but went to Hullavington to use the range.
SNCO i/c armoury proudly told us that despite many attempts, the SAS had never got into 'his' armoury.
Cadets at camp there had no range authorised personnel so we offered to supervise them. I was allocated an attractive female cadet of about 16 yrs old wearing coveralls for her 'first time' on a '303. After 5 rounds, she asked for a rest as it was a bit painful and she 'wasn't wearing any protection under her coveralls', thoughtfully pulling the seam apart for me to see!!
RAF Regt were in residence with APCs.

Nice range there. I used the SLR in 80/81.

I think the camp was 2 Sqn RAF Regiment at that time. Also parachuting on airfield from the Balloon (Yikes)

Arc

Arclite,
I think the war graves plot you refer to is in Stanton St. Quintin. Hullavington churchyard was closed in 1920/30's. We only have two First World War graves in Hullavington churchyard and all burials/cremations since the early 1920's have been in Hullavington cemetery, we have no war graves there.

Wiltshire Council web page Planning application 17/02344/FUL shows the plans for the first part of the development by Dyson. Hangars 85 and 86 will be renovated, refurbished and used for employment purposes - Research and Development. The masterplan, covering the whole of the airfield will be submitted in due course.
The airfield has looked so forlorn and neglected for the last few years, it will be good to see it lovingly restored.

Another news item that may be of interest - from the Wilts Gazette and Herald
"A stained glass window is being commissioned in St Giles Church, Stanton St Quintin, to commemorate the service of Women’s Auxiliary Air Force personnel who worked as flight mechanics, radio operators, drivers, clerks and cooks when RAF Hullavington was the Empire Central Flying School (ECFS).
Between 1942 and 1946 the ECFS was tasked with the responsibility of training pilots from Britain and the Allied nations.
The design features the former flight control tower and large hangar at Hullavington airfield with a series of Second World War aircraft such as Avro Ansons, Hurricane Harts, Airspeed Oxfords and Hawker Hurricanes, flying within radio frequency lines which symbolise a RAF roundel.
It shows members of the WAAF working on an Airspeed Oxford and contains many other WAAF symbols. In pastel shades, its design brings light into the church, whilst allowing the aerial scene to have a changing colour palette throughout the day.
A public appeal has been launched to raise money for this project and support would be greatly appreciated.
More details can be found at https://mydonate.bt.com/events/waafmemorialwindow.
Dr Fiona Baskett
Stanton St Quintin*

Thanks 140WP.

I think you are right. It's Stanton - my apologies. I can think of worse places to spend eternity.:)

Arc

140WP,

"....the airfield lovingly restored...." ??

It's going to be completely built over with a few of the C Type hangars "sympathetically" redeveloped for commercial use.

pr00ne

Time will tell - the master plan is being developed with Wiltshire Council at the moment.

I think that the C types will remain within the Barracks area.

I think that the hangars referred to on the planning are the Lamella Hangars on the airfield itself.

Arc

Arclite01
The Barracks area which includes the C type hangars, (behind the wire) is also to be sold, by 2029. The hangars in the current application are the old parachute packing hangars at D site next to Stock Wood

Article in the Gazette & Herald 9th March 2017:https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/?ui...1&disp=safe&zw

See Chugalug2 on next page for another link, apparently this one doesn't work!

Couldn't get your link to work, 140WP. I found this one from the G&H dated two days ago, ie the 14th March. Is it the same one?

Dyson submits plans for hangar conversions at Hullavington airfield (From The Wiltshire Gazette and Herald)

Some nostalgic pictures of the way things were:

RAF Hullavington

Chugalug2 - yes it is, sorry about that. The gallery pictures are a bit misleading because they show the grass covered hangars which were sold several years ago, and are now leased to M4 Karting, which are on the right as you turn off the A429 onto the road that leads to Wellington Place and Hullavington village

From 1955 to 57 Hullavington was home to the world's first ab initio jet training courses on the JP1 and 2. Worth a small blue plaque at a hitec innovation centre?

140 WP I don't think that the gallery is that misleading as there were some 15 hangars at Hullavington of which at least 8 were grass covered. Only two were outside the airfield boundary and it was these that were leased to M4 Karting.

Yes, you are correct. The Karting hangars are on A site, which is outside the airfield boundary but still included in the Conservation Area. The other six grass covered hangars are on B, C and E sites, although one of the ones at E site has had the grass covering removed.

Posted by another in March 2016 and now reality:

So - it will be electric cars!
Dyson to make electric cars from 2020 By Ian Pollock Business reporter, BBC News 26 September 2017

Sir James Dyson accused the mainstream car industry of polluting the world with diesel emissions
Dyson, the engineering company best known for its vacuum cleaners and fans, plans to spend £2bn developing a "radical" electric car.
The battery-powered vehicle is due to be launched in 2020.
Dyson says 400 staff have been working on the secret project for the past two years at its headquarters in Malmesbury, Wiltshire.
However, the car does not yet exist, with no prototype built, and a factory site is yet to be chosen.
Sir James declined to give further details of the project. "Competition for new technology in the automotive industry is fierce and we must do everything we can to keep the specifics of our vehicle confidential," he told staff in an email.
Important points that are undecided or secret include the firm's expected annual production total, the cost of the car, or its range or top speed.
Sir James said about £1bn would be spent on developing the car, with another £1bn on making the battery.
Analysis: Richard Westcott, BBC transport correspondent
It was a slightly unusual launch, but then, Sir James Dyson likes to be different.
In a small room above his swanky London shop he told us about his vision for a clean car.
First up, we were treated to an old clip of Blue Peter, from the 90s, where Anthea Turner interviewed him about his new device to clean soot from the exhaust of diesel vehicles... it was the cyclone from his vacuum cleaner, put to a different use.
"That is how long I have wanted to do this," he told us.
In fact he first hatched the idea in the late 1980s.
Since then, he has developed motors and batteries and now he is able to bring all that expertise together in a new, electric car.
He promised that it will be radical and different, because, as he put it, what is the point of making it like any other car?
And he promised that it will not be cheap.
I did ask how much it would be to put down a deposit... he told me he would have to think about it.
Further development work will take place at a former RAF base at Hullavington in Wiltshire, where staff will move to in February.
Sir James also said that his firm's car would look "radical and different", but will not be aimed at the mass market.
The motor is designed and ready to go, he said, but the firm is still designing the car.
Dyson's decision means it is joining the rush within the global car industry to develop and make electric cars.
Dyson hopes to challenge other electric car manufacturers such as Tesla
Some manufacturers such as Nissan, Tesla, Renault, BMW and Hyundai already manufacture them.
Others such as VW, Volvo, Mercedes, Honda and Jaguar Land Rover have announced plans to sell electric or hybrid versions of their existing petrol and diesel engine ranges.
VW, for instance, plans to spend 20bn euros (£17.5bn) by 2030 to develop its battery powered vehicles.
Sir James said he had been interested since 1990 in developing filtration technology to stop vehicle diesel emissions polluting the environment.
But as the motor industry had shown no interest in adopting this idea, he would instead join the fast-growing trend to make electric vehicles.

.."factory site yet to be chosen..."


This from a guy who does his manufacturing in the Far East, mainly Malaysia.

Chris Hazlewood and Andrew Gough from Dyson attended the Hullavington Parish Council meeting held on Wednesday 13th September to give an update on how development of the airfield is progressing.
The planning application for the two hangars, 85 and 86, near Stock Wood was submitted to Wiltshire Council on 13th March with an expected decision date of 12th June. However, Highways England asked for a three-month delay on 26th April and on 21st July, a further 3-month delay was requested by them, before a decision was made.
This was mainly because of work being done at Junction 17 and the impact that the Chippenham Gateway development will have on the motorway. WYG, the agents for Dyson, are currently working with Wiltshire Council on this matter.
Work on Hangar 86 that does not need planning permission is proceeding, mainly sorting out the inside of that hangar, getting rid of asbestos etc. Currently the doors of that hangar are resting on the airfield prior to being refurbished and replaced.
Work on Hangar 85 was halted because Greater Crested Newts were found on the site. A new sanctuary has been made for them to the south of the hangar and in due course they will be re-homed there.
Work has also started on Hangar 81 at E site (to the left of the Grittleton road as you leave the village). This hangar had the grass covering removed many years ago but this will be replaced as part of the refurbishment and the hangar will be used as a Research and Development area when refurbished, access to this area will be from the airfield.
This work does not need planning permission but an application for a Certificate of Lawfulness will be submitted.
Concern from a parishioner at the meeting, regarding the junction of the C31 with the A429, was raised, it is considered that this problem will be addressed when the Masterplan is submitted to Wiltshire Council.
Mention was also made about the proliferation of light aircraft flying over the airfield. This is because it no longer comes under Lyneham Control Zone and Area jurisdiction so anyone can fly over the airfield now!

I did my first ever Air Training Corps summer camp here with 140 Matlock sqn in August 1960.
5 years later I started my Nav. training at Cranwell & subsequently enjoyed nearly 30 years on Shacks & Nimrods. Happy days.

How strange to be planning on doing cutting edge state of the art research in refurbished asbestos ridden 82 year old buildings.

Just build from new, surely?

All asbestos is being stripped out and Dyson has stated that he will develop the airfield with respect to it's aviation heritage. Sounds good to me!

Hopefully this link will work and shows an artists impression of how Hangars 86 and 85 will look when refurbished.

http://unidoc.wiltshire.gov.uk/UniDo...VMLDk1NDU1OA==

I trained at Hullavington in 1964. A great place and excellent training. Really good Officers Mess. I believe it is now back in very safe hands. Good luck to him.

140WP,

That does look impressive, those D type hangars are quite impressive in their own right and certainly large.
I didn't realise that he was developing the remote hangar site. Wonder what will happen to the main site?

navstar1,

The Officers mess is, and remains, an Army Mess for the resident Army unit. Not sure if or when the main site is closing.

MOD stated that the Hullavington Barracks site would be sold by 2029 but rumours have it that it will be sold in about 5 years!

pr00ne The development of the main site will be revealed in the "Masterplan" Residents of Hullavington are eagerly awaiting to see this application when it is submitted to Wiltshire Council for planning permission. At the recent Parish Council meeting Chris Hazelwood said that it would take 10 years before the site was fully completed! Hope I am still around to see it!

140WP,

Thanks, interesting.

Earlier on you mentioned hangar 81, one of the grassed storage hangars, and it being converted for Research and Development use? I presume that is not as a part of the Dyson set up, a speculative conversion or for another customer?

It would be nice to think that at least some of the domestic site buildings will be preserved at least in their external appearance. I know that Hullavington is a standard expansion era RAF station, with standardised Georgian style buildings identical to those found at scores of stations up and down the country, and now in a myriad of uses, but I think I am right in saying that Hullavington is unique in that some of the key domestic buildings were built out of local material, in this case Cotswold stone?