| Summary : A military airfield site, now known as Marne Barracks. The airfield at Catterick is the only example of a First World War Home Defence Station with original built fabric relating to the original flying field (though the World War One aircraft hangars have been reclad, please see SE 29 NW 38). The airfield was opened in 1914 for pilot training and the defence of North East England. The initial unit at he base was "A Flight" of 76 Squadron, Royal Flying Corps. The airfield was remodelled in the interwar years, specifically in the late 1920s and latterly as part of the RAFs "expansion period" in 1935. The rebuilding was mostly concerned with the technical site and with domestic buildings (see SE 29 NW 39 to SE NW 43. By 1938 the airfield was a key fighter station, provided with an asphalt runway and defensive installations. During opening phases of the Second World War the base was used to protect convoys as well as protect the north east of England in general. During the battle of Britain as part of Group 13 Catterick repelled German attacks from occupied Denmark and Norway. Later in the war the airfield was transferred to 12 Group Fighter Command. Events in the war meant that it was relegated to a second line airfield. After the Second World War the site was used for ground based RAF units (including The RAF Regiment). The airfield was not considered suitable for jet aircraft because was not possible to extend the runway to the length required for jets. In 1959 it became the base for the RAF Regiment Fireman, Trade Group 22. In the late 1950s/ early 1960s the RAF Driver Training School was also based at RAF Catterick. In 1994 the site was transferred to Army use as an outstation of the main Catterick Garrison. The airfield site includes a scheduled Motte and Bailey Castle, (see SE 29 NE 3), upon which an RAF gun emplacement was constructed (see SE 29 NE 15) and Roman remains have been discovered in the barracks/ technical site area (see SE 29 NW 3). |
More information : RAF Catterick, now known as Marne Barracks. The airfield at "Catterick is the only Home Defence Station of the First World War period to havea retained original fabric relating to its original flying field" (though the World War One aircraft hangars have been reclad). The airfield was opened in 1914 for pilot training and the defence of North East England. The initial unit at he base was "A Flight" of 76 Squadron. Later in the First World War, the airfield was designated as a "Training Depot Station". The airfield was remodelled in the interwar years, specifically in the late 1920s and latterly as part of the RAFs "expansion period" in 1935. The rebuilding was mostly concerned with the technical site and with domestic buildings. By 1938 the airfield was a key fighter station, provided with a single runway and defensive installations. During opening phases of the Second World War the base was used to protect convoys as well as protect the north east of England in general. During the battle of Britain as part of Group 13 Catterick repelled German attacks from occupied Denmark and Norway. (1)
RAF Catterick was home to the following Squadrons during the Battle of Britain: No 219 Squadron from 4-OCT-1939, No 41 Squadron from 08-JUN-1940, No 54 Squadron from 28-JUL-1940, No 41 from 08-AUG-1940, No 504 Squadron from 01-SEP-1940, No 600 Squadron from 12-OCT-2004. (2)
Catterick Airfield: SE 250 968. The airfield was equipped with an asphalt landing surface. By December 1944 it was part of 12 Group Fighter Command. At that time 1430 men and 518 women were stationed there. Use in 1985 was by the RAF. (3)
RAF Catterick: Airfield centered at SE 2490 9680. See OS 1:10000 sheets SE 29 NW (1978) and SE 29 NE (1977). (4-5)
RAF Catterick: In 1944 the airfield was relegated to a second line airfield. At the end of the war it became a crew allocation centre. From 1946 it was used by the RAF Regiment. The airfield was considered unsuitable for jet aircraft because it was impossible to extend its runway. The RAF continued to use the site for ground based activities until in 1994 it was transferred to Army use as an outstation of the main Catterick Garrison. (6)
The following features were visible as structures and earthworks on historic vertical photographs and lidar-derived images: aircraft hangar, armament depot, blast pen, blast wall, building, hard standing, military building, Nissen hut, pillbox, runway, slit trench, taxiway, wall and weapons pit. The single runway ran near east to west between SE2438 9687 and SE2542 9681 and was approximately 1km long. The airfield was encircled by an irregular perimeter track. The technical sites and domestic accommodation, including a group of hangars were located on the north side of the airfield around SE243 970. At least eleven E-shaped and V-shaped fighter pens, in the form of embanked blast walls were located along and offset from the eastern side of the airfield. A selection of these have been scheduled and these examples are recorded in UID 1395950. There are further aircraft hangars dispersed around the south-east side of the airfield eg at SE2520 9653 and SE2505 9603 and clusters of Nissen huts at SE2529 9646 and SE2544 9696. There are mounded features at SE2470 9733 and SE2506 9712 that may have been armament depots and possible weapons pits at SE2449 9756. There was a network of slit trenches around SE246 972. Although some of the earthwork features such as the slit trenches have now been levelled and several of the hangars and Nissen huts have been removed many other elements were extant on 1994 Ordnance Survey photographs and many can be detected on the 2006 lidar-derived images. (7-13)
Historic vertical photographs dating to the early 1940s show the wartime camouflaging employed at this airfield.(14-16)
Additional source describing the action against German bombers made by fighter aircraft from Catterick during the Battle of Britain on 15th August 1940 (17)
In 1959 the Fire Fighting School was moved from RAF Sutton-on-Hull to RAF Catterick and became known as the Fire Fighting and Special Safety Squadron. In 1989 the Fire and Rescue Training Squadron in RAF Catterick moved to RAF Manston to combine with the Central Training Establishment to create the Royal Air Force Services Central Training Establishment (RAF FSCTE). The RAF Driver Training School was also based at Catterick in the late 1950s/early 1960s. (18-19)
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