Staplehurst
AirfieldIWM, English Heritage Collection
Built during 1943 as an Advanced Landing Ground (ALG), Staplehurst was used briefly by RAF fighter squadrons during August to October 1943 and then allocated to the Ninth Air Force. Developed and improved during the winter of 1943-44, the station eventually had two Sommerfeld Track runways with BRC intersections, 70 Sommerfeld Track and BRC hardstandings, one Butler combat hangar and four blister hangars. It was occupied by the 363rd Fighter Group, equipped with P-51s, from April to July 1944, but was then unused until the airfield closed in September 1944. Dismantled during the winter of 1944-45, the site was released by the Air Ministry in January 1945 and quickly returned to agriculture.
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: 363rd Fighter Group 381st Fighter Squadron
- Service Numbers: O-748820
- Highest Rank: Colonel
- Role/Job: Fighter Pilot
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 363rd Fighter Group 381st Fighter Squadron
- Service Numbers: 19100368 / O-749552
- Highest Rank: Second Lieutenant
- Role/Job: Pilot
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 363rd Fighter Group 382nd Fighter Squadron
- Service Numbers: O-748855
- Highest Rank: Second Lieutenant
- Role/Job: Fighter Pilot
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 363rd Fighter Group 382nd Fighter Squadron
- Service Numbers: 20420786 / O-1294757
- Highest Rank: Second Lieutenant
- Role/Job: Fighter Pilot
Aircraft
- Aircraft Type: P-51 Mustang
- Unit: 70th Fighter Wing 363rd Fighter Group 4th Fighter Group 336th Fighter Squadron 382nd Fighter Squadron
- Aircraft Type: P-51 Mustang
- Nicknames: Penny
- Unit: 363rd Fighter Group 4th Fighter Group 336th Fighter Squadron 382nd Fighter Squadron
- Aircraft Type: P-51 Mustang
- Unit: 10th Photographic Reconnaissance Group 363rd Fighter Group 162nd Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron 382nd Fighter Squadron
Revisions
Barry Anderson, Army Air Forces Stations (Alabama, 1985) / Roger Freeman, Airfields of the Ninth Then and Now (London, 1994)
Chris Ashworth, Action Stations 5: Military Airfields of the South-West (London, 1982)