RAF Andrews Field

RAF Andrews Field RAF Great Saling USAAF Station 485
Great Dunmow, Essex
Wartime photo of Andrews Field, taken on 4 September 1943. Numerous B-26 Marauders of the 322d Bomb Group are on the hardstands surrounding the airfield.
RAF Andrews Field Location in Essex
Coordinates	51°53′51″N 000°27′37″E / 51.89750°N 0.46028°E / 51.89750; 0.46028Coordinates: 51°53′51″N 000°27′37″E / 51.89750°N 0.46028°E / 51.89750; 0.46028
Site information
Owner	Air Ministry
Operator	Royal Air Force United States Army Air Forces
Controlled by	Eighth Air Force (1943-1944) Ninth Air Force (1944) RAF Fighter Command (1945-1946)
Site history
Built	1942 (1942)-43
In use	1943-1945 (1945)
Battles/wars	Second World War Air Offensive, Europe Normandy Campaign Northern France Campaign
Airfield information
Elevation	88 metres (289 ft) AMSL
Runways Direction Length and surface 02/20 1,280 metres (4,199 ft) Asphalt 08/26 1,830 metres (6,004 ft) Asphalt 14/32 1,280 metres (4,199 ft) Asphalt

Second World War

Royal Air Force Andrews Field or more simply RAF Andrews Field (also known as RAF Andrewsfield and RAF Great Saling) is a former Royal Air Force station located 4 miles (6.4 km) east-northeast of Great Dunmow Essex, England.

Originally designated as Great Saling when designed and under construction, the base was renamed "Andrews Field" in honor of United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) General Frank M. Andrews, who was killed in an airplane crash in Iceland in May 1943. Andrews Field was primarily the home of the USAAF Ninth Air Force 322d Bombardment Group during the Second World War, which flew the Martin B-26 Marauder medium bomber. After being transferred to the Air Ministry in late 1944, it was used briefly by RAF Fighter Command for Gloster Meteor jet fighter testing before being finally closed in late 1945.

Today the remains of the airfield are located on private property, being used as agricultural fields, with a small portion used by the Andrewsfield Flying Club.

Andrews Field was the first of fourteen "Type A" airfields built by the United States Army Air Fores in the United Kingdom during the Second World War. Originally designated as "Great Saling", the facility was built by the United States Army 819th Engineer Battalion (Aviation), which began work on the field during July 1942.

Andrews Field had three runways, a main of 1,830m aligned 09/27 and two crosswind secondary runways of 1,280m aligned 02/20 and 15/33. It had an enclosing perimeter track that had three separate dispersal areas totaling 50 loop type hardstands and one "frying pan" type. Barracks facilities for about 3,000 personnel were constructed along with a technical site that had two T-2 type hangars for aircraft maintenance. Main construction was supposed to be completed in early January 1943, and it continued until March.