MDP Wethersfield
| MDP Wethersfield | |||||||||||||||||||
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| Summary | |||||||||||||||||||
| Airport type | Military airfield, private airfield | ||||||||||||||||||
| Owner | Ministry of Defence | ||||||||||||||||||
| Operator | MoD Police | ||||||||||||||||||
| Location | Finchingfield, Essex, England | ||||||||||||||||||
| Elevation AMSL | 322 ft / 98 m | ||||||||||||||||||
| Coordinates | 51°58′26.0754″N 000°30′21.64″E / 51.973909833°N 0.5060111°ECoordinates: 51°58′26.0754″N 000°30′21.64″E / 51.973909833°N 0.5060111°E | ||||||||||||||||||
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MDP Wethersfield is a Ministry of Defence facility in Essex, England, located north of the village of Wethersfield, about 6 mi (9.7 km) north-west of the town of Braintree. Originally a military air station, the original accommodation areas have now been converted to become the headquarters and training centre of the Ministry of Defence Police.
Formerly known as RAF Wethersfield, it opened in 1944. During World War II, it was used by the Royal Air Force and United States Army Air Forces. It was closed in 1946, and was reopened in 1951 as a result of the Cold War. Used until 1970 as a United States Air Force fighter base, it was held as a reserve airfield until 1993, when it came under control of the Ministry of Defence Police.
Wethersfield was allocated by the RAF to the United States Army Air Forces Ninth Air Force in August 1942. For security reasons, it was known as USAAF Station AAF-170 rather than its location during the war. Its station ID was "WF".
The 416th Bombardment Group (Light) arrived at Wethersfield from Laurel Army Airfield, Mississippi, on 1 February 1944, flying the twin-engine Douglas A-20G "Havoc" aircraft. Its operational squadrons and fuselage codes were:
On 21 September the 416th moved to their Advanced Landing Ground at Melun/Villaroche France (A-55). On the continent, the 416th BG used the following Advanced Landing Grounds:
The group returned to the United States in July 1945 and was inactivated at Camp Myles Standish, Massachusetts, on 23 October 1945.
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