RAF Newcastle

RAF Blakelaw
Near Kenton Bar, Tyne and Wear in England
Plaque commemorating the bunkers at Kenton and Blakelaw
RAF Blakelaw Shown within Tyne and Wear
Coordinates	55°00′03″N 001°39′45″W / 55.00083°N 1.66250°W / 55.00083; -1.66250Coordinates: 55°00′03″N 001°39′45″W / 55.00083°N 1.66250°W / 55.00083; -1.66250
Type	Royal Air Force station
Site information
Owner	Air Ministry
Operator	Royal Air Force
Site history
Built	1939 (1939)
In use	1939-1945 (1945)
Battles/wars	Second World War
Garrison information
Occupants	No. 13 Group RAF

RAF Blakelaw (sometimes known as RAF Newcastle) was a Royal Air Force station which acted as headquarters for No.13 Group during the Second World War and which was located in Blakelaw, Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear, England.

The station was established in Spring 1940 to act as headquarters for No.13 Group whose area encompassed North of the Humber and all of Scotland. The Operations Centre of No. 13 Group was housed there in three buildings (Operations Room, Filter Room and Communications Centre), which were partially buried for protection, in a similar way to buildings for No. 9 Group RAF at RAF Barton Hall, No. 10 Group RAF at RAF Box, No. 11 Group RAF at RAF Uxbridge, No. 12 Group RAF at RAF Watnall and No. 14 Group RAF at Raigmore House. No.13 Group merged with No. 14 Group in July 1943.

Operations room (55°00′04″N 1°39′47″W / 55.001°N 1.663°W / 55.001; -1.663 (Operations room))
The operations room, responsible for directing RAF aircraft in the No. 13 Group area, was located in a bunker at Kenton Bar. It was fully operational by December 1939. When No.13 Group merged with No. 14 Group in July 1943 the operations room was converted for use as a sector operations room and continued in that use until Summer 1945. The operations room was used as a regional war room from the early 1950s until the early 1960s.