RAF Upper Heyford was a Royal Air Force station located 5 miles (8 km) north-west of Bicester near the village of Upper Heyford, Oxfordshire, England. In the Second World War the airfield was used by Bomber Command. During the Cold War, Upper Heyford was one of the former RAF bases chosen to house the United States Air Force Strategic Air Command (SAC) strategic bombers on 90-day TDY deployments until 1965, from 1966 United States Air Forces in Europe (USAFE) tactical reconnaissance aircraft, and from 1970 F-111 strike aircraft.
Royal Air Force
Work on clearing the site began on 1st June 1918 when a detachment of the Canadian Forestry Corps arrived after completing similar work at RAF Hooton Park, near Ellesmere Port. The station was opened in July 1918 by the Royal Air Force. In November the Canadian Air Force was formed at Upper Heyford, by renumbering two RAF squadrons and posting in Canadian pilots and observers, and groundcrew trained at RAF Halton.
By 1920 the aerodrome had closed, and the land returned to the owners, New College Oxford, to lease out for agricultural use. In 1923 there were concerns over the French occupation of the Rhineland after Germany had defaulted on the payment of war reparations. Upper Heyford was one of the sites chosen for a new strategic bomber force capable of attacking targets in France. Upper Heyford was intended to be the blueprint for the other bases. Land for the new airfield and technical site was purchased in 1924, and for the domestic site in 1925. Rising costs and delays mean that the first aircraft (the Oxford University Air Squadron) did not arrive until October 1927. No. 99 Squadron RAF arrived from RAF Bircham Newton in January 1928.
Handley Page Hyderabad and Hinaidi biplanes were replaced by Hawker Harts and Hinds, and the trials of the Handley Page H.P. 38 resulted in a production order as the ‘Heyford’ bomber.
The rearmament of Germany in the 1930s led to a change in role for Upper Heyford, as German targets were beyond the range of RAF bombers then in service. As a result, Upper Heyford became a base to train newly formed squadrons or for squadrons re-equipping with new aircraft types. Bomber squadrons then moved to East Anglia or Yorkshire to aerodromes closer to Germany.
The Vickers Wellesleys of the RAF’s Long Range Development Unit trained at Upper Heyford in 1938.
When the Second World War broke out the two resident RAF Bristol Blenheim Squadrons deployed to France and did not return. Instead, Heyford trained bomber crews to fly, navigate and bomb at night. For this they used Handley Page Hampdens and Vickers Wellingtons, supported by Avro Ansons, switching to de Havilland Mosquitos in 1945. No. 1 Parachute Training School RAF arrived from RAF Ringway (Manchester Airport) in March 1946, expanding later to include glider training, and moving to RAF Abingdon in 1950. The airfield was used by many units of the Royal Air Force (RAF), mainly as a training facility between 1918 and 1950.
At the outbreak of Second World War, RAF Upper Heyford was the home to units of RAF Bomber Command, specifically No. 18 and No. 57 (Bombing) Squadrons, forming No. 70 (Bomber) Wing of No. 2 (Bombing) Group.
The following units have also been stationed at RAF Upper Heyford at some point (note that units moved out, from March to December 1942, while new runways were laid):
No. 1 Parachute Training School RAF – March 1946 to June 1950
including a Glider Training School – March 1949 to May 1950
No. 5 Group Pool RAF (a post-training school “training pool”)
No. 16 Operational Training Unit RAF (night bomber training) – April 1940 to January 1945
No. 1473 (Radio Countermeasures) Flight RAF – TBD to 1941
No. 1505 (Beam Approach Training) Flight RAF
No. 2738 Squadron RAF Regiment (airfield defence ground force) – 1942 to TBD
No. 1655 (Mosquito) Conversion Unit
renamed Mosquito Training Unit RAF
MTU RAF redesignated as (new) No. 16 Operational Training Unit RAF – January 1945 to March 1946
Experimental Section, Navigation Synthetic Training Development Unit RAF
Long Range Development Unit RAF – 1937 to TBD
Transport Command Parachute Servicing Unit RAF – during World War II
United States Air Force use
7509th Air Base Group
In response to what was perceived as a growing worldwide threat, Strategic Air Command decided to house a strong force of American bomber aircraft in England. It was decided to convert four airfields in and around Oxfordshire to serve as their regular stations. Upper Heyford was one of those selected, the others being RAF Brize Norton, RAF Fairford and RAF Greenham Common.
On 26th June 1950, men of the 801st Engineer Aviation Battalion started work on extending the 6,000 ft (1,829 m) runway to 8,300 ft (2,530 m). Also new hardstands were constructed for the very heavy bombers of SAC’s Intercontinental Bombing Force of B-36s and B-50s. A secure weapons storage facility was also added.
On 7th July 1950, the first group of United States Air Force personnel arrived on the station. The original organization consisted of one officer and 26 airmen. It was designated as RAF Station Upper Heyford, and used by the 7509th Air Base Squadron. The 7509th would act as the host organisation to support the temporary duty (TDY) aircraft and personnel detached from their home airfields in the United States of America.
Upper Heyford was formally handed over to the USAF 3rd Air Force on 15th May 1951. This was formalised at a special ceremonial parade on 1st June 1951.
Visiting TDY rotational units at Upper Heyford were: 93rd Bomb Wing, 97th Air Refueling Squadron, 509th Air Refueling Squadron, 301st Bomb Wing, 8th Air Sea Rescue Squadron, 2nd Bomb Wing, 5th Bomb Wing Detachment, and the 22nd Bomb Wing.
On 25th May 1951 the 7509th Air Base Squadron was re-designated the 7509th Air Base Group. Then on 10th January 1952, the 7509th Air Base Group at Upper Heyford became the 3918th Air Base Group. On the same day the Third Air Force, under United States Air Force Europe, relinquished control of the station and turned it over to the Strategic Air Command.
3918th Strategic Wing
The first SAC aircraft to be based at UH were the 15 B-50Ds of the 328th Bombardment Squadron, which arrived in December 1951, whilst the other three-squadrons of the 93rd Bombardment Wing were deployed to RAF Lakenheath.
By September 1952, Upper Heyford was ready to handle a full complement of 45 aircraft and when the 2nd Bombardment Wing arrived it deployed all three of its bombardment squadrons here with their B-50s Lakenheath. SAC Squadrons and Wings continued to be deployed to the base throughout the 1950s and 60’s.
One of the most notable events of 1954 was the arrival of the first of the truly massive RB-36s, a small number of which flew in for a brief stay in June and July by the 5th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing.
In 1958 the unit was redesignated the 3918th Combat Support Group.
Occasional visits by the huge B-52 commenced at the end of 1960 and became more and more frequent over the next five years. Meanwhile, following nuclear tests behind the ‘Iron Curtain’ in the summer of 1962, a detachment of top secret U-2 strategic reconnaissance aircraft operated from Upper Heyford in August to carry out air sampling and analysis at very high altitudes in order to determine the characteristics of latest Soviet weapons.
A third new aircraft type, the B-58 Hustler, was occasionally seen.
On 1st February 1964 the unit was redesignated the 3918th Strategic Wing.
In 1964, it was decided that regular detachments of SAC bomber aircraft to England would cease altogether, and both Fairford and Greenham Common were closed. At Upper Heyford ‘Reflex Alert’ continued until 1st January 1965, and the very last B-47 detachment was stood down at RAF Brize Norton on 1st March 1965.
As well as the bomber force, Brize Norton had regularly hosted small and highly secret detachments of reconnaissance aircraft such as the RB-47s of the 55th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing at Forbes AFB and later at Offutt AFB. In preparation for the transfer of Brize Norton to the RAF, these operations had to be relocated and since Upper Heyford was the only station of the four Oxfordshire bases to remain in American hands, it became the new advanced base for these special operations. A new Detachment was formed, designated as the Detachment 1, 98th Strategic Wing, supporting the RC-135 of the 55th and the 6th Strategic Wing, at Eielson AFB, Alaska and supporting KC-135A tankers from the 98th SW at Torrejon AB Spain. The 6985th Electronic Security Squadron, United States Air Force Security Service (USAFSS) at Eielson AFB also maintained Detachment 1, supporting Communications Intelligence Specialist flying on the RC-135’s.
When the 3918th Strategic Wing was discontinued in the summer of 1965, the base was transferred to the United States Air Forces Europe and assigned to the Third Air Force and the newly organized 7514th Combat Support Group.
66th Tactical Reconnaissance Wing
On 7thMarch 1966, French President Charles De Gaulle announced that France would withdraw from NATO’s integrated military structure. The United States was informed that it must remove its military forces from France by 1st April 1967.
Upper Heyford was now to serve as the new and urgently needed base for the RF-101 s of the 66th Tactical Reconnaissance Wing which had been stationed at Laon-Couvron Air Base, France. After rapid preparations had been made, the unforeseen transfer of this unit was completed by 1st September 1966.
The 66th TRW was composed of the 17th and 18th Tactical Reconnaissance Squadrons.
During 1968 it was announced that the 66th TRW was to convert to the RF-4C Phantom in the following year. On 27th March 1969, the first two Phantoms flew into Upper Heyford. and the 66th became a mixed reconnaissance force. The RF-101C’s were assigned to the 18th TRS and were limited to the daylight role. The RF-4C’s were assigned to the 17th TRS and were capable of an all weather day and night operation.
The advent of the RF-4 gave the 66th TRW a longer arm in terms of target access. In the event of a ‘hot’ war the longer reach of the wing’s aircraft would have made many previously inaccessible targets behind the iron curtain easily acquired from the bases in West Germany to which they would have been deployed.
The Phantoms did not stay for long, however, as in January 1970 the inactivation of the 66th TRW commenced, the RF-4Cs of the 17th TRS going to the 86th TFW at Zweibrücken in Germany, and the RF-101s of the 18th TRS to the 363rd TRW at Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina.
Base Flight Section of the 66th Field Maintenance Squadron maintained C-54, C-47, VT-29 (for the Commander 322d AD), supporting 3d Air Force operations and air transport requirements. The Wing also operated Detachment 1 at RAF Northolt supporting VIP operations outside of London.
Since the early 1950s, the 20th Tactical Fighter Wing had been operating from the USAF station at RAF Wethersfield, but this base had a limited potential for development and was awkwardly close to the expanding civilian airport at Stansted. Now with more aircraft on the base than there had been for some time, it was necessary to transfer the 98th Strategic Wing detachment as well as Detachment 1st, 6985th Security Squadron to RAF Mildenhall, thus bringing to an end the SAC/USAFSS presence on 31st Mar 1970.
The 66th Tactical Reconnaissance Wing at Upper Heyford was inactivated and 66th Combat Support Group and assigned squadrons (Without Personnel or Equipment) were relocated to RAF Wethersfield.
20th Tactical Fighter Wing
Headquarters, 20th Tactical Fighter Wing relocated from RAF Wethersfield to RAF Upper Heyford on 1st June 1970.
Shortly after arriving at Upper Heyford, the 20th TFW began converting to a new aircraft – the General Dynamics F-111E Aardvark (unofficially). On 12th September 1970 the first two F-111Es arrived at RAF Upper Heyford. The last of the 20th’s F-100s that it brought from Wethersfield were transferred to the Air National Guard on 12th February 1971. In November 1971, the wing’s F-111s were declared operationally ready.
The 20th TFW participated in F-111 NATO and US unilateral operations Shabaz, Display Determination, Cold Fire, Ocean Safari, Datex, Priory, Reforger, Dawn Patrol, Highwood, Hammer, Open Gate (1982 at Ovar Air Base, Portugal) and others from January 1972 to October 1993.
Upper Heyford gained a fourth flying squadron on 1st July 1983, with the activation of the 42nd Electronic Combat Squadron. In February 1984, the first Grumman (General Dynamics) EF-111A Ravens of that squadron arrived.
Parental responsibility over the 42nd by the 20th TFW was short-lived, however, and on 1st June 1985, operational control of the squadron shifted to the 66th Electronic Combat Wing at Sembach Air Base, West Germany.
Operation El Dorado Canyon
In March 1986, the 66th Electronic Combat Wing detached the 42nd ECS to the 20th TFW to take part in El Dorado Canyon, the raid on Libya.
On 14th April 1986, 5 EF-111As and 20 F-111Es took off from RAF Upper Heyford as part of the attack force. They were used as an airborne reserve for the F-111Fs of the 48th TFW, RAF Lakenheath. Three EF-111s (two were spares and turned back) formed up with the 48th’s F-111Fs and provided electronic defense during the attack on Tripoli.
Operation Desert Storm
On 25th January 1991, the wing was once again up to four flying squadrons when the 42nd Electronic Combat Squadron was reassigned to the 20th from the 66th Electronic Combat Wing.
On 17th January 1991, 20th TFW aircraft launched combat missions from both Turkey and Saudi Arabia and continued flying combat missions until the cease fire. The F-111Es flying from Turkey flew night missions throughout the war, using the TFR to penetrate the dense anti-aircraft artillery (AAA) environment at altitudes around 200 feet (61 m) for the first few nights.
Crews who flew those first few terrifying nights said that the illumination from the AAA was so bright that they didn’t need the TFR to avoid the ground. After the missile threat was suppressed, crews flew their attacks at altitudes around 20,000 feet (6,096 m), above the range of most Iraqi AAA systems.
During the war, the F-111Es attacked a range of targets, including power plants, petroleum refineries, airfields, nuclear-biological-chemical processing and storage facilities, and electronics sites throughout northern Iraq,
When Desert Storm ended, the wing had deployed 458 personnel, flown 1,798 combat sorties without a loss, and dropped 4,714 tons of ordnance.
Post Cold-War era
With the end of the Cold War, the presence of the 20th TFW was deemed no longer necessary in the United Kingdom. The USAF presence at RAF Upper Heyford was gradually run down (phased down).
The 20th Tactical Fighter Wing, along with the associated 55th, 77th, and 79th Tactical Fighter Squadrons were officially re-designated the 20th Fighter Wing and 55th, 77th and 79th Fighter Squadrons on 1st October 1991.
On 19th October 1993, aircraft 67-120 went to the Imperial War Museum in Duxford where it is now on display. It retains the 55th Fighter Squadron, 20th Fighter Wing markings it carried when stationed at RAF Upper Heyford. It flew 19 Desert Storm missions and flew into Duxford on 19th October 1993.
The last of the wing’s three F-111E aircraft departed from Upper Heyford on 7th December 1993. The flagship of the 55th Fighter Squadron, aircraft 68-055 Heartbreaker, departed first. It went to Robins AFB, Georgia, where it is now on display. The next aircraft, 68-061 The Last Roll of Me Dice, departed for the Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Center at Davis Monthan AFB Arizona, in the USA. Finally aircraft 68-020 The Chief, flew to Hill AFB, Utah, where it is now on display at the Hill Aerospace Museum in the USA.
Closure
On 15th December 1993 the flight line at RAF Upper Heyford was closed. On 1st January 1994 the 20th Fighter Wing at RAF Upper Heyford was transferred without personnel or equipment to Shaw AFB, South Carolina, United States, where it inherited the personnel and F-16s of the inactivated 363rd Fighter Wing.
At that time RAF Upper Heyford came under the 620th US Air Base Wing until 30th September 1994, when the U.S. Air Force returned the airfield to the British Ministry of Defence.
The runways are now home to a variety of wildlife including the scarce lowland calcareous grassland and bird species such as peregrine falcon, Eurasian skylark and common buzzard. Some of the buildings are used as an automotive storage compound for new and used vehicles. Other functions include police driving activities such as training. There is a boat builders called Kingsground Narrowboats located at building 103, this building is the oldest on the airfield and used to be the fire department originally, outside the boat-building workshop there are still parking spaces road marked as “FD”. The majority of the residential buildings are now let out as rented accommodation and some of the shops and services have been re-opened to service the community.
There are however many buildings which are still boarded up and it is currently unclear what the future of those will be. It seems that many of the buildings such as the hospital have been targeted by vandals who have smashed glass and walls in as well as internal fittings. Graffiti has also occurred, as well as the whole hospital suffering from damage from leaking rainwater that has subsequently caused extensive mould, damp floors and a flooded cellar. The building, however has now been secured as it is rumoured to be sold. The disused buildings have also become popular with local urban explorers.
Several of the hardened aircraft shelters were placed on the English Heritage list of scheduled monuments in 2010. A bid was made in 2011 for the site to receive World Heritage Site status but it did not make the UK shortlist.
In May 2012, the residential section was leased to First And Only Airsoft for a short period of use as an airsoft site. This lease ended in January 2013.
In March 2020, several of the hangers were converted into temporary morgues during the Covid-19 pandemic.
General Dynamics EF-111A Raven USAF 66th ECW, 42nd ECS RAF Upper Heyford, England, 1987 available from Flying Tigers !
Check out the EF-111A Raven based at Upper Heyford, England. Sure to be a quick seller… don’t miss out and order yours today. Simply click on the photo/link to go straight to the model page to order.
Hobbymaster new model arrivals due middle of next week.
New Hobbymaster models are due to arrive next week and are available to pre-order at Flying Tigers today. If you want any of these models get your order in quick as quantities are very limited.
Don’t forget NO DEPOSIT necessary with Flying Tigers and if you order with your debit or credit card your payment is not taken until your model is available to dispatch.
Flying Tigers will also consolidate your orders to save on postage costs across all brands !
Please click on the images / links below to go to the model of your choice, or CLICK HERE to see them all in the Future Models section.
Hobbymaster Re-stocks !
Limited quantities are available on the following models. Please order ASAP to avoid disappointment. Please click on the images / links below to go to the model of your choice.
Hobbymaster Updated Photo Gallery.
Check out the latest photos from Hobbymaster that have now been added to the Flying Tigers website. Please click on the image of your choice to go straight to the model page to order.
Corgi Aviation Archive Models due soon !
New Corgi Aviation Archive models are due to arrive in May and June are available to pre-order at Flying Tigers today. If you want any of these models it is always safer to pre-order as quantities are very limited.
Don’t forget NO DEPOSIT necessary with Flying Tigers and if you order with your debit or credit card your payment is not taken until your model is available to dispatch.
Flying Tigers will also consolidate your orders to save on postage costs across all brands !
Please click on the images / links below to go to the model of your choice, or CLICK HERE to see them all in the Future Models section.
Coronovirus: Flying Tigers Dispatch Information.
Due to Covid-19 there is still some disruption to service times from Parcelforce and the Royal Mail who have now suspended their service delivery time guarantees. The situation is patchy with some customers getting models next day whilst others are waiting 10 days or so. Please be patient … all carriers and postal services are working round the clock to catch up, and so are Flying Tigers.
At Flying Tigers, family and friends have always been the most important thing to us. During these unprecedented times we want to reassure you that the health and safety of our customers, employees and their families continues to be our number one priority. Now is the time for us to come together and support one another more than ever.
We will continue to follow all World Health Organisation, Government and Public Health England advice and act accordingly. Currently, our small showroom is closed to the public and we will continue to monitor the rapidly changing situation closely and respond as advised by those experts.
Whilst we’ve always been a clean and tidy bunch, we are doing everything to ensure even higher standards of hygiene and cleanliness.
We’d like to say a huge thank you to all our customers, for continuing to support us. It’s not been easy for anyone and we’re lucky to have fellow collectors that understand that in these difficult times, small family businesses such as Flying Tigers need your business and support to stay alive.
If you have supplied Flying Tigers with your mobile number and/ or your email address, Parcelforce will notify you by way of text message or email on anticipated delivery day/time.
For Royal Mail delivered parcels these can be tracked through the Royal Mail parcel tracking service. The tracking number will be emailed to you on the “Your order is completed” notification upon dispatch of your order.
If you had requested a delivery to your place of work or to a neighbour, and you would now like your Parcel delivered to your home/billing address please email us and we will make the change. If we do not receive this instruction we will continue to dispatch to your original delivery address.
We are still working hard processing and despatching orders on a daily basis.
You, our loyal customers will be the first to know in the event of any changes or updates in the coming weeks.
For more information on COVID-19 and current Government stance please follow these links below:
Coronovirus: Royal Mail and Parcelforce Update
Royal Mail have issued an update with regards to the Coronavirus…
Public Health England (PHE) has advised that people receiving parcels are not at risk of contracting the coronavirus. From experience with other coronaviruses, we know that these types of viruses don’t survive long on objects, such as letters or parcels. This complements the highly publicised guidance from PHE for people to wash their hands more often than usual using soap and hot water.
We are actively monitoring this rapidly evolving situation. We take the health and safety of our people very seriously. We have provided guidance to our people, our customers and the communities in which we operate, to help prevent the spread of any infection. We are doing so in line with preventative guidance from Public Health England.
Signing for and receiving items
In order to protect both our people and customers as much as possible, we will not be handing over our hand-held devices to customers to capture signatures. Postmen and women will instead log the name of the person accepting the item. This will apply to all deliveries that require a signature.
Additionally, for all customers (including those who are self-isolating) where we need to deliver any parcel that won’t fit through your letterbox, we will place your item at your door. Having knocked on your door, we will then step aside to a safe distance while you retrieve your item. This will ensure your item is delivered securely rather than being left outside.
In order to protect both our people and customers as much as possible, we will not be handing over our hand-held devices to customers to capture electronic signatures. Our drivers will instead log the first and last name of the person accepting the item then put ‘XP1’ in the signature field, and we will record the geolocation of the delivery. This will apply to all deliveries that normally require a signature.
If you are unable to come to the door at all we will issue a ‘Something for You’ card, advising of other ways you can arrange to get your item. For example, by getting a friend or family member to collect the parcel from our local Customer Service Point on your behalf. In this situation, and to keep your mail as secure as possible, they will need to bring along the card we left you and a form of ID in the name of the person to which the item is addressed.
For full information on our response to this global situation, please visit parcelforce.com/coronavirus
Contingency plans
In the event we need to close one of our units, this decision would be made in line with Public Health England guidance. Royal Mail has many years’ experience of contingency planning for a number of different scenarios. We will follow the Government’s advice and work closely with the relevant authorities.
We have extensive experience in being able to quickly deploy business contingency plans so we continue to provide customers with access to our services and their mail.
Coronovirus International Shipment Updates
As you may know from the media recently, a number of countries are cancelling flights between Europe and themselves, and countries within the EU are shutting borders and some are or have gone on lockdown.
Unfortunately, this means that almost all international mail and parcels will be delayed wherever they go as many pass-through EU countries etc onto other destinations. Some freight also piggybacks onto commercial flights, like Royal Mail use BA to inject into the USA. These flights have recently been cancelled.
We will do our utmost to work with our carrier partners to ensure mail/parcels are stored safely in periods they are held and we will move the freight as quickly, safely and as smooth as possible.
Please note this may cause big breaks within the tracking where parcels haven’t been scanned and we expect we will see delays of up to 4/6 weeks to some destinations. This prediction is based on today’s activities.
Governments are making decisions on a daily basis so it is difficult to pinpoint exactly where or when delays will occur.
I would ask our customers to be mindful of this when contacting our customer services team.
We will try to keep you informed wherever possible.
Service and Parcels to USA
Parcelforce are pleased to tell you that we have been able to secure capacity to allow us to continue to operate the service to USA.
Over the last few days the number of flights to USA has reduced dramatically. This has resulted in a significant reduction in airline capacity for parcels and freight from UK to USA. We have been working very closely with our airline partners to maintain service.
You can continue to receive parcels in these countries via our globalexpress service, however there is a suspension of delivery time guarantee in place.
Services and Parcels to New Zealand and Kuwait
Due to the ongoing situation and attempts to limit the spreading of COVID-19, which has impacted airline capacity into the New Zealand and Kuwait, Parcelforce have suspended our globalpriority service to these countries with immediate effect, until further notice.
You can continue to receive parcels in these countries via our globalexpress service, however there is a suspension of delivery time guarantee in place.
Parcel deliveries in France
Our European parcel delivery partner GLS has informed us that they will not be making deliveries on Fridays in France, until further notice, due to operational issues. The services affected by this are europprioritybusiness and europriorityimport only. GLS hubs, depots and customer services will therefore be closed on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays in France.
Services and Parcel deliveries to Australia, China and Canada
In the rapidly evolving situation regarding Coronavirus (COVID-19), we are continuing to work very closely with our airline partners to maintain our overseas delivery services.
We are pleased to tell you that we are able to secure capacity to operate the service to Australia, China and Canada. However, as passenger numbers reduce, the number of available flights to these destinations has also reduced significantly, impacting capacity for parcels and freight.
You can continue to receive parcels in these countries via our globalexpress service, however there is a suspension of delivery time guarantee in place.
Thank you for reading this week’s Newsletter.
Stay safe, well, and look after each other.
Richard.
Flying Tigers.