| RCAF Station Claresholm | |
| Location: | Claresholm, Alberta |
| Country: | Canada |
| Coordinates: | 50.0047°N -113.63°W |
| Pushpin Map: | Canada Alberta |
| Pushpin Map Caption: | Location in Alberta |
| Ownership: | Royal Canadian Air Force |
| Fate: | Became Claresholm Industrial Airport |
| Footnotes: | Airfields |
| Elevation: | 2950feet |
| R1-Number: | 2/20 |
| R1-Length: | 3000feet |
| R1-Surface: | Hard Surface |
| R2-Number: | 2/20 |
| R2-Length: | 2970feet |
| R2-Surface: | Hard Surface |
| R3-Number: | 16/34 |
| R3-Length: | 2950feet |
| R3-Surface: | Hard Surface |
| R4-Number: | 16/34 |
| R4-Length: | 3270feet |
| R4-Surface: | Hard Surface |
| R5-Number: | 11/29 |
| R5-Length: | 3180feet |
| R5-Surface: | Hard Surface |
| R6-Number: | 11/29 |
| R6-Length: | 2930feet |
| R6-Surface: | Hard Surface |
RCAF Station Claresholm was a British Commonwealth Air Training Plan station that trained pilots for World War II service. The station was located near Claresholm, Alberta, Canada.
No. 15 Service Flying Training School (SFTS) opened on 9 June 1941, and closed on 30 March 1945.[1] The school used Anson and Cessna Crane aircraft, and its relief airfields were RCAF Woodhouse, a few kilometers east at, and RCAF Pulteney, a few kilometers north.No. 2 Flying Instructor School (FIS) was established as a sub unit of No. 15 SFTS on 27 April 1942 but relocated in September 1942 to Vulcan.[2] Student pilots at No.2 FIS flew Tiger Moths and Cessna Cranes.
In approximately 1942 the aerodrome was listed at 50°N -151°W with a variation of 23 degrees east and elevation of 3325feet. Six runways were listed as follows:[3]
| Runway Name | Length | Width | Surface | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2/20 | 3000feet | 100feet | Hard surfaced | |
| 2/20 | 3100feet | 100feet | Hard surfaced | |
| 14/32 | 3100feet | 100feet | Hard surfaced | |
| 14/32 | 3100feet | 100feet | Hard surfaced | |
| 8/26 | 3000feet | 100feet | Hard surfaced | |
| 8/26 | 3200feet | 100feet | Hard surfaced |
The primary Relief Landing Field (R1) for RCAF Station Claresholm was located southeast of the community of Claresholm. In approximately 1942 the aerodrome was listed at 50°N -140°W with a variation of 23 degrees east and elevation of 3300feet. Three runways were listed as follows:[4]
| Runway Name | Length | Width | Surface | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2/20 | 3020feet | 100feet | Hard surfaced | |
| 14/32 | 3020feet | 100feet | Hard surfaced | |
| 8/26 | 3020feet | 100feet | Hard surfaced |
A more accurate set of coordinates can be found at [5] at this location the outline of the three runways is still visible on Google Earth. The site is presently used for agricultural purposes.
Claresholm was placed on care and maintenance status until reactivated in 1951 as a NATO training centre run by No. 3 Flying Training School (flying Harvards). The station closed again in 1958 when the school was relocated to Gimli, Manitoba. It is now the Claresholm Industrial Airport., hangars 2 to 4 are derelict and deteriorating.