RAF Coleby Grange

RAF Coleby Grange
The original airfield control tower at RAF Coleby Grange still stands
IATA: none ICAO: none
Summary
Airport type	Military
Owner	Ministry of Defence
Operator	Royal Air Force
Location	Coleby, North Kesteven, Lincolnshire
Built	1938
In use	1939-1963
Elevation AMSL	200 ft / 61 m
Coordinates	53°07′47″N 000°29′55″W / 53.12972°N 0.49861°W / 53.12972; -0.49861Coordinates: 53°07′47″N 000°29′55″W / 53.12972°N 0.49861°W / 53.12972; -0.49861
Map
RAF Coleby Location in Lincolnshire
Runways
Direction Length Surface ft m NE/SW 6,000 1,800 Grass NW/SE 4,200 1,280 Grass W/E 2,898 880 Grass
Statistics
Battles/Conflicts World War II Cold War
The stations ID during flying operations was CG and was later redesignated WC2 during its IRBM role. The airfield was returned to agriculture when decommissioned. The site now contains a roadside café, several farm buildings and the derelict control tower.

Royal Air Force Station Coleby Grange or more simply RAF Coleby Grange was a Royal Air Force station situated alongside the western edge of the A15 on open heathland between the villages of Coleby and Nocton Heath and lying 7.4 mi (11.9 km) due south of the county town Lincoln, Lincolnshire, England.

Opened in 1939 and operated as a fighter and night fighter airfield during World War II, occupied at various times by UK, US, Canadian and Polish fighter squadrons, the station briefly switched to a training role post-war before being placed on a care and maintenance basis.

Reopened in 1959 as an RAF Bomber Command Intermediate Range Ballistic Missile (IRBM) launch facility and placed on a high DEFCON 2 launch alert during the Cuban Missile Crisis, the station was finally closed and decommissioned in 1963. The site has been returned to agricultural use and now has little evidence of its former use, other than several lengths of perimeter track and the original air traffic control tower.

The station was constructed during late 1938 and opened early in 1939 initially as a relief landing ground (RLG) for the training facility at RAF Cranwell although quite quickly. In early 1940, two squadrons No. 253 Squadron RAF and No. 264 Squadron RAF took up residence at Coleby Grange.

The station was destined never to be upgraded with concrete or tarmac runways and throughout its operational life used three grass runways. Aircraft remained parked outdoors on permanent flight readiness and initially only a single Type T1 hangar was constructed for use during aircraft repairs. Much later one blister type hangar and seven extended over-blister hangars were added.

The station’s technical and communal accommodation sites were located on the northern rim of the station with a vehicle access from Heath Road and the headquarters site was on the eastern edge adjacent to the A15 Lincoln to Sleaford road.