RAF Ibsley
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RAF Ibsley USAAF Station AAF-347  .png) 
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Aerial Photo of Ibsley Airfield, January 1944. Note the runway extension to the 01 runway at the south side of the airfield, with the perimeter track extension.
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| Summary | |||||||||||||||||||
| Airport type | Military | ||||||||||||||||||
| Owner | Air Ministry | ||||||||||||||||||
| Operator |
Royal Air Force United States Army Air Forces |
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| Location | Ibsley, Hampshire | ||||||||||||||||||
| Built | 1940 | ||||||||||||||||||
| In use | 1940-1947 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Elevation AMSL | 164 ft / 50 m | ||||||||||||||||||
| Coordinates | 50°52′46″N 001°46′50″W / 50.87944°N 1.78056°WCoordinates: 50°52′46″N 001°46′50″W / 50.87944°N 1.78056°W | ||||||||||||||||||
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 RAF Ibsley
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Royal Air Force Station Ibsley or more simply RAF Ibsley is a former Royal Air Force station in Hampshire, England. The airfield is near the village of Ibsley, about 2 miles (3 km) north of Ringwood and about 85 miles (137 km) southwest of London.
Opened in 1941, it was used by both the Royal Air Force and United States Army Air Forces. In the Second World War it was used primarily as a fighter airfield. After the war it was closed in 1947.
Today the remains of the airfield are mostly quarry lakes, with an abandoned control tower overlooking the water.
Ibsley was known as USAAF Station AAF-347 for security reasons by the USAAF during the war, and by which it was referred to instead of location. It's USAAF Station Code was "IB".
USAAF Station Units assigned to RAF Ibsley were:
Regular Army Station Units included:
The first USAAF unit to use Ibsley was the Eighth Air Force 1st Fighter Group, equipped with Lockheed P-38 Lightnings. The 1st FG arrived from RAF Goxhill on 24 August 1942. Tactical squadrons of the group and squadron fuselage codes were:
The stay of the 1st FG was short, being assigned to Twelfth Air Force for duty in the Mediterranean theater in support of the Operation Torch North African landings.
On 16 October 1943 RAF Ibsley was allocated to the Ninth Air Force.
With construction completed, on 29 March 1944 the Ninth Air Force 48th Fighter Group arrived at Ibsley from Waterboro AAF, South Carolina (32°55′19″N 80°38′00″W / 32.921817°N 80.633297°W). The 48th flew the Republic P-47 Thunderbolt and had the following fighter squadrons and fuselage codes:
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