RAF Croft

Royal Air Force Croft or more simply RAF Croft is a former Royal Air Force station located 4.6 miles (7.4 km) south of Darlington, County Durham, England and 8 miles (13 km) north east of Richmond, North Yorkshire. The site is also known locally as Croft Aerodrome or Neasham. Constructed at the same time as many other airfields, it was originally named RAF Dalton-on-Tees after the nearby village Dalton-on-Tees. However, it was quickly renamed RAF Croft (after Croft-on-Tees) after initial confusion with the also newly opened RAF Dalton near Thirsk, just 25 miles away.

RAF Croft Croft Aerodrome
A building at Cockleberry Saw Mill which was part of RAF Croft during the Second World War
IATA: none ICAO: none
Summary
Airport type	Military
Owner	Air Ministry
Operator	Royal Air Force (RAF) Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF)
Location	Dalton-on-Tees, North Yorkshire, England
Built	1941
In use	1941-1946
Elevation AMSL	180 ft / 55 m
Coordinates	54°27′09″N 001°33′11″W
Map
RAF Croft Location in North Yorkshire
Runways
Direction Length Surface ft m 00/00 0 0 Concrete 00/00 0 0 Concrete 00/00 0 0 Concrete

The airfield was opened in 1941 for use by the Royal Air Force (RAF) but by 1942 the aerodrome had been taken over by the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) for training as part of No. 6 Group RCAF.

The station is now more famously known as the site of Croft Circuit, a motor racing circuit which hosts various car championships including the British Touring Car Championship.

History

The first squadron to join the airfield was No. 78 Squadron RAF which arrived on 20 October 1941 flying both the Armstrong Whitworth Whitley Mk.V and the Handley Page Halifax Mk. II before leaving on 10 June 1942[1] when no units were stationed during the summer but on 1 October 1942 No. 419 Squadron RCAF has arrived with their Mk. III Vickers Wellingtons before re-equipping with the Halifax II and leaving on 10 November 1942. During this time on 7 November 1942 427 Squadron RCAF was formed at the airfield with a mixture of Mk III's and Mk X's Wellington before leaving on 4 May 1943.[2]

In 1943, Croft became a sub-station of RAF Middleton St. George which was allocated to No. 6 Group, Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF).[3]

The airfield also hosted No 1664 (Royal Canadian Air Force) Heavy Conversion Unit RAF starting from 10 May 1943 which trained new pilots to fly the new heavy bombers using the Mk II and the Mk IV Halifax before leaving on 7 December 1943.[3] When three days later on the tenth 431 Squadron RCAF began using the airfield with the Halifax Mks V and III and the Avro Lancaster Mk.X before leaving on 7 June 1945 going to Canada.[2] This squadron was joined by 434 Squadron RCAF which had joined on 11 December 1944 also flying the Halifax and the Lancaster before leaving on 15 June 1945 to also go to Canada.[4]

After the RCAF left in 1945, Croft saw little wartime activity. Later in 1945 the aerodrome became a satellite of No. 13 Operational Training Unit RAF based at Middleton St. George flying de Havilland Mosquitoes. The station was closed in the summer of 1946.[3] [5] [6]

Incidents

On 22 March 1945, a Royal Canadian Air Force Lancaster aircraft was taking off from Croft when it was caught in a crosswind and blown off the runway where a punctured tyre led to it crashing and the port engine catching fire. The crew extricated themselves and as the 4-pound (1.8 kg) incendiary bombs were exploding in the fire, the base and local residents were evacuated to shelter in a cutting of the nearby railway line. At 11:27 am, the 4,000-pound (1,800 kg) blockbuster bomb on board the Lancaster exploded and took the roofs off of several buildings in the immediate vicinity.[7]

Croft Circuit, North Yorkshire.

Current use

The Croft aerodrome is now better known as a Croft Circuit, a regular venue for the British Touring Car Championship and British Superbike Championship. It is located near the North Yorkshire villages of Dalton Gates and Dalton-on-Tees.

See also

• List of former Royal Air Force stations

References

Citations

1. Jefford 1988, p. 78.
2. Jefford 1988, p. 91.
3. "RAF Croft". Air of Authority - A History of RAF Organisation. Retrieved 16 June 2012.
4. Jefford 1988, p. 92.
5. Moyes 1976, pp. 240, 246, 249 and 251.
6. Sturtivant & Hamlin 2007, p. 99
7. Lloyd, Chris (26 July 2019). "Turning Point in History". Darlington & Stockton Times (30–2019). p. 54. ISSN 2516-5348.

Bibliography

• Halley, James J. The Squadrons of the Royal Air Force & Commonwealth, 1981-1988. Tonbridge, Kent, UK: Air-Britain (Historians) Ltd., 1988. ISBN 0-85130-164-9.
• Jefford, C G (1988). RAF Squadrons. A comprehensive record of the movement and equipment of all RAF squadrons and their antecedents since 1912. Shrewsbury: Airlife. ISBN 1-85310-053-6.
• Moyes, Philip (1976). Bomber Squadrons of the RAF and their Aircraft (2 ed.). London: Macdonald and Jane's. ISBN 0-354-01027-1.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
• Sturtivant, Ray; Hamlin, John (2007). RAF Flying Training And Support Units since 1912. Tonbridge, Kent: Air-Britain. ISBN 0-85130-365-X.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
• Todd, A.A.B. Pilgrimages of Grace: a history of Croft aerodrome. Alan Todd Associates, Durham, UK: 1993. ISBN 0-9520177-0-9.

External links

• RAF Croft on RafWeb