RAF Honington

RAF Honington USAAF Station 375
Near Thetford, Suffolk in England
Station Crest
EGXH Shown within Suffolk
Coordinates	52°20′33″N 000°46′23″E / 52.34250°N 0.77306°E / 52.34250; 0.77306Coordinates: 52°20′33″N 000°46′23″E / 52.34250°N 0.77306°E / 52.34250; 0.77306
Type	Royal Air Force station
Site information
Owner	Ministry of Defence
Operator	Royal Air Force 1937-1942 United States Army Air Forces 1942-1946 Royal Air Force 1946-present
Site history
Built	1935 (1935)/6
In use	1937-Present
Garrison information
Occupants	Wings RAF FP Force Headquarters Jt CBRN Regt Support Wing Training Wing Squadron 1 Sqn RAF Regt 2 Sqn RAF Regt 15 Sqn RAF Regt 26 Sqn RAF Regt 27 Sqn RAF Regt 2623 Sqn RAuxAF Regt 611 volunteer gliding squadron RAF
Airfield information
Identifiers	IATA: BEQ, ICAO: EGXH
Elevation	53 metres (174 ft) AMSL
Runways Direction Length and surface 09/27 2,747 metres (9,012 ft) Asphalt

Royal Air Force Honington or more simply RAF Honington (IATA: BEQ, ICAO: EGXH) is a Royal Air Force station located 6 mi (9.7 km) south of Thetford near Ixworth in Suffolk, England. Although used as a bomber station during the Second World War, RAF Honington is now the RAF Regiment depot.

Construction of Honington airfield, which was undertaken by John Laing & Son, began in 1935, and the facility was opened on 3 May 1937. Squadrons of RAF Bomber Command using the airfield prior to the Second World War were:

IX Squadron flew the first RAF bombing raid of the Second World War on 4 September 1939 flying a mission against the Kriegsmarine in the Baltic resulting in the loss of two Wellingtons. The squadron lost 79 Wellingtons flying from Honington before moving to RAF Waddington.

In July 1940, No. 311 (Czech) Squadron RAF formed at Honington with Wellingtons, later moving to RAF East Wretham in November 1940.

The Luftwaffe made several attacks on the airfield one of which killed about twenty airmen who were crossing the old parade ground on their way to tea. Another bomb demolished part of Barrack Block 76, which was rebuilt between 1993 and 1996.

In 1941, a Junkers Ju 88 was shot down by ground fire from Honington. The aircraft crashed at the east end of E Hangar.