Podington
Airfield![A bomber crew of the 92nd Bomb Group return to Podington following a mission flying B-17 Flying Fortresses to Wittenberg. A B-17 Flying Fortress (NV-K, serial number 42-29994) is visible in the background. Image stamped on reverse: 'Passed for Publication 23 Feb 1945' [stamp]. ' News Chronicle Copyright Picture' [stamp]. Printed caption on reverse: 'Crew back from Wittenberg.'](https://assets.americanairmuseum.com/s3fs-public/styles/wysiwyg_x2/public/freeman/media-379172.jpg.webp?itok=huReEqoF)
Tall man in center, fourth from Right, verified by son and grand-niece to be George E. O'Halloran from Wood Lake, NE, of 92nd Bomb Group, 327th SQ. Roger Freeman Collection
Info on George O'Halloran submitted by his grand-niece and confirmed by his son.
Object Number - FRE 735 - A bomber crew of the 92nd Bomb Group return to Podington following a mission flying B-17 Flying Fortresses to Wittenberg. A B-17 Flying Fortress...
Built originally to accommodate two RAF bomber squadrons, the first USAAF unit to occupy the base was the 15th Bomb Squadron in September 1942. Podington was then used as a satellite for nearby Chelveston. Work to lengthen the runways, although this was not wholly successful due to landscape problems: one of the runways remained 1,100 yards long, the shortest at any Eighth Air Force airfield. The 100th Bomb Group moved in for a short time in 1943, before being replaced by th 92nd Bomb Group. The 92nd left Podington at the end of the war in Europe, and the airfield was used by the Ministry of Defence for storage. After it was sold off in the 1960s, the airfield was developed into a home for drag racing, now known as 'Santa Pod'.
Connections
See how this entry relates to other items in the archive by exploring the connections below.
People
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 92nd Bomb Group 326th Bomb Squadron
- Highest Rank: Second Lieutenant
- Role/Job: Pilot
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 92nd Bomb Group 407th Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: 36015693 and O-687757
- Highest Rank: Second Lieutenant
- Role/Job: Co-Pilot
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 92nd Bomb Group 326th Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: 14041258
- Highest Rank: Technical Sergeant
- Role/Job: Top Turret Gunner
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 92nd Bomb Group 407th Bomb Squadron
- Highest Rank: Second Lieutenant
- Role/Job: Co-Pilot
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 92nd Bomb Group 326th Bomb Squadron
- Highest Rank: Second Lieutenant
- Role/Job: Pilot
Aircraft
- Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
- Nicknames: Ruthie ii
- Unit: 92nd Bomb Group 326th Bomb Squadron
![The nose art of a B-17 Flying Fortress nicknamed "Wabash Cannonball" of the 91st Bomb Group, featuring the Disney character "Goofy". On reverse: 'Not For Publication, For Personal Use Only, Passed by US Army Examiner 10143' [Stamp].](https://assets.americanairmuseum.com/s3fs-public/styles/teaser_thumb_x2/public/freeman/media-408143.jpg.webp?itok=Qz5O57CK)
- Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
- Nicknames: Wabash Cannonball, Target for Tonight
- Unit: 91st Bomb Group 322nd Bomb Squadron
- Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
- Nicknames: Flag ship
- Unit: 92nd Bomb Group 407th Bomb Squadron
- Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
- Nicknames: Phartzac
- Unit: 381st Bomb Group 388th Bomb Group 561st Bomb Squadron
- Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
- Unit: 92nd Bomb Group
Revisions
Connected aircraft records that have 'Podington' in their biography fields.
Barry Anderson, Army Air Forces Stations (Alabama, 1985) / Roger Freeman, Airfields of the Eighth Then And Now (London, 1978)
Roger Freeman, Mighty Eighth War Manual (London, 2001)
Michael Bowyer, Action Stations 6: Military Airfields of the Cotswolds and the Central Midlands (Cambridge, 1983)
