RAF Dallachy

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RAF Dallachy
Ensign of the Royal Air Force.svg
Elgin, Moray, Scotland
RAF Dallachy is located in Moray
RAF Dallachy
RAF Dallachy
Coordinates57°39′14″N 3°04′05″W / 57.654°N 3.068°W / 57.654; -3.068
TypeRoyal Air Force station
Site information
OwnerAir Ministry
Controlled byRoyal Air Force
Site history
Built1942 (1942)
In use1943-1945 (1945)
Battles/warsSecond World War
Garrison information
GarrisonRAF Coastal Command

Royal Air Force Dallachy or more simply RAF Dallachy, is a former Royal Air Force station situated east of Elgin, Moray, Scotland.

During the Second World War it was a fighter station, used by 18 Group RAF Coastal Command.[1]

History[]

Opened in March 1943, it was originally used as a training station by No. 14 (Pilots) Advanced Flying Unit RAF, using Airspeed Oxfords.[2] In September 1943, it was reorganised for operational use by several squadrons, including No. 144 Squadron RAF,[3] No. 404 Squadron RCAF[4] and No. 455 Squadron RAAF.[5][2][6] Towards the end of 1944, it was reorganised again with No. 489 Squadron RNZAF, flying Bristol Beaufighters[7] on shipping strikes, and No. 524 Squadron RAF with radar-equipped Vickers Wellingtons.

The airfield was closed in June 1945, becoming a Territorial Army training centre until 1958.[2]

Units[]

Unit Aircraft Variant From To To Notes
No. 144 Squadron RAF Bristol Beaufighter X 23 October 1944 25 May 1945 Disbanded [3]
No. 281 Squadron RAF Vickers Warwick I 27 February 1944 7 February 1945 RAF Mullaghmore As a detachment.[8]
No. 404 Squadron RCAF Bristol Beaufighter
de Havilland Mosquito		 X
VI		 22 October 1944 3 April 1945 RAF Banff [4]
No. 455 Squadron RAAF Bristol Beaufighter X 20 October 1944 25 May 1945 Disbanded [5]
No. 489 Squadron RNZAF Bristol Beaufighter X 24 October 1944 16 June 1945 RAF Banff [7]
No. 618 Squadron RAF de Havilland Mosquito IV September 1944 September 1944 Australia [9]
No. 14 (Pilots) Advanced Flying Unit Airspeed Oxford [10]
No. 21 Air Crew Holding Unit N/A [10]
No. 1542 (Beam Approach Training) Flight RAF [10]

A memorial now stands in the nearby village of Bogmoor to remember the air crews and soldiers who lost their lives in the Second World War.

Current use[]

The site is largely intact. However, most of the former airfield is now used by a waste recycling company. The control tower is in a ruinous state and no other buildings exist. Dallachy Aeromodellers, an active radio control model flying club, use a section.

References[]

  1. ^ "The Wartime Memories Project". Retrieved 17 April 2009.
  2. ^ a b c "Dallachy". Control Towers. Retrieved 17 April 2009.
  3. ^ a b Jefford 2001, p. 61.
  4. ^ a b Jefford 2001, p. 89.
  5. ^ a b Jefford 2001, p. 93.
  6. ^ "Memories of RAF Dallachy". Retrieved 17 April 2009.
  7. ^ a b Jefford 2001, p. 94.
  8. ^ Jefford 2001, p. 83.
  9. ^ Jefford 2001, p. 101.
  10. ^ a b c "Dallachy". Airfields of Britain Conservation Trust. Retrieved 13 June 2013.

Sources[]

  • Jefford, C.G. (2001) [1988]. RAF Squadrons: A Comprehensive Record of the Movement and Equipment of all RAF Squadrons and Their Antecedents Since 1912 (2nd ed.). Shrewsbury, UK: Airlife Publishing. ISBN 1-85310-053-6.

External links[]

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