RAF Woodbridge

RAF Woodbridge Rock Barracks Woodbridge Airfield
Located near Woodbridge, Suffolk, England
Map showing the location of RAF Woodbridge within Suffolk
Coordinates	52°05′16.08″N 001°24′02.97″E / 52.0878000°N 1.4008250°E / 52.0878000; 1.4008250
Type	Air Force Base
Site information
Owner	Ministry of Defence
Controlled by	Royal Air Force (1943-1948) United States Air Force (1952-1993) British Army (2006-)
Site history
Built	1943, remodeled in 2006.
In use	1943-1948,1952-1993, 2006-present
Battles/wars	European Theatre of World War II Air Offensive, Europe July 1942 - May 1945
Garrison information
Garrison	RAF Fighter Command United States Air Forces in Europe
Occupants	81st Tactical Fighter Wing

Royal Air Force Woodbridge or more simply RAF Woodbridge, is a former Royal Air Force station located east of Woodbridge in the county of Suffolk, England.

Constructed in 1943 as a Royal Air Force (RAF) military airfield during the Second World War to assist damaged aircraft to land on their return from raids over Germany it was later used by the United States Air Force during the Cold War, being the primary home for the 79th Tactical Fighter Squadron and the 78th Tactical Fighter Squadron and squadrons of the 81st Fighter Wing under various designations until 1993. For many years, the 81st Fighter Wing also operated from nearby RAF Bentwaters, with Bentwaters and Woodbridge being known as the "Twin Bases".

Since 2006, it has been split up and the two parts officially renamed as Woodbridge Airfield and Rock Barracks. Woodbridge Airfield is used by Army Air Corps aircraft for training and Rock Barracks are home to the newly formed 23 Engineer Regiment (Air Assault) of the Royal Engineers. Of late, Woodbridge Airfield is also regularly used to host Track Days, managed by companies such as Javelin Track Days.

In 1943, Woodbridge was constructed in the south-east as one of three airfields set up to accept distressed aircraft returning from raids over Germany, and was therefore fitted with extra-long, heavy-duty runways (the other two being at RAF Manston in Kent and RAF Carnaby in Yorkshire). These airfields were intended for use by returning bombers suffering from low-fuel and suspected damage to their pneumatic (wheel brake) and/or hydraulic (Control surface) systems. All three airfields were equipped with a single runway, 9,000 ft (2,700 m) long and 750 ft (230 m) wide. (5 times the normal width) There was a further clear area of 1,500 ft (460 m) at each end of the runway. At each of the three airfields, the runway was divided into three 250 ft (76 m) lanes. The northern and central lanes were allocated by flying control, while the southern lane was the emergency lane on which any aircraft could land without first making contact with the airfield. It was initially called RAF Sutton Heath. The site at Woodbridge was chosen as it was 'nearly fog-free and had no obstructions for miles', although more than a million trees had to be cleared from Rendlesham Forest to take the new base. Its first use, however was in July 1943, when it was used by an American Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress bomber.