RAF Wyton explained

RAF Wyton
Ensign:Ensign of the Royal Air Force.svg
Ensign Size:90px
Nearest Town:St Ives, Cambridgeshire
Country:England
Image2 Size:90px
Pushpin Map:Cambridgeshire
Pushpin Label:RAF Wyton
Pushpin Map Caption:Shown within Cambridgeshire
Pushpin Label Position:top
Type:Royal Air Force station
Ownership:Ministry of Defence
Operator:Royal Air Force
Controlledby:Strategic Command
Condition:Operational
Used:1916 – present
Current Commander:Wing Commander Jim Doyle
Occupants:
Elevation:40.2m (131.9feet)
Iata:QUY
Icao:EGUY
Wmo:03566
R1-Number:08/26
R1-Length:799m (2,621feet)
R1-Surface:Grass
Footnotes:Source: RAF Wyton Defence Aerodrome Manual[1]

Royal Air Force Wyton or more simply RAF Wyton is a Royal Air Force station near St Ives, Cambridgeshire, England. The airfield is decommissioned and the station is now under the command of UK Strategic Command.

RAF Wyton is home to the National Centre for Geospatial Intelligence (NCGI), which provides Open Source Intelligence (OSINT).and Geospatial Intelligence (GEOINT) support to HM Armed Forces. It also contains the Ministry of Defence Police Headquarters, the Defence Infrastructure Organisation Regional Headquarters, 42 Engineer Regiment (Geographic), and several other UK and Allied capabilities, authorities, and departments.[2]

Located within the station, the Pathfinder Building is described as the "operations centre of Defence Intelligence" and the “largest Top Secret, Five-Eyes by design, military intelligence fusion and assessment facility in the world."[3] [4] [5]

History

Flying station

Wyton has been a military airfield since 1916, when it was used for training by the Royal Flying Corps and then its successor the Royal Air Force (RAF).[6]

The following squadrons were posted to Wyton between 1916 and 1935:

Second World War

During the Second World War it was used primarily as a bomber base, flying Bristol Blenheim, de Havilland Mosquito and Avro Lancaster aircraft.[7] In 1942 it became the home of the Pathfinder Force under the command of Group Captain Don Bennett.[6]

The following squadrons were posted to Wyton between 1935 and 1939:

The following squadrons were posted to Wyton between 1939 and 1945:

Cold War

After the war Wyton became home to the English Electric Canberras of the Strategic Reconnaissance Force.[8] Vickers Valiants arrived for No. 543 Squadron in 1955 and a Handley Page Victor arrived for the Radar Reconnaissance Flight in 1959.[8]

In 1974, three Nimrod R1s belonging to No. 51 Squadron arrived for use in the Elint and Sigint role, and in 1975, the T17 and T17A Canberras of No. 360 Squadron arrived: this was a joint RAF and RN Squadron specialising in Electronic countermeasures training.[8]

The following squadrons were posted to Wyton between 1946 and 2011:

Post-Cold War

In the early 1990s one of its pilots was rugby union player Flight Lieutenant Rory Underwood.[9]

During a four-month period in 1989, two squadrons of U.S. Air Force Fairchild Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II jets were operated out of RAF Wyton while the runway at their base, nearby RAF Alconbury, was resurfaced.[10]

In May 1995 both RAF Wyton and RAF Alconbury airfields were decommissioned and Wyton was formally amalgamated with RAF Brampton, and later with RAF Henlow to make all three locations a single RAF Station under a single station commander for administrative purposes.[11] The airfield continued to host light aircraft for the Cambridge and London University Air Squadrons until they both moved to RAF Wittering in 2015.[12]

On 25 March 2013 it was decided to relocate all flying units from Wyton due to the high maintenance costs of the airfield.[13]

Following the 2010 Strategic Defence and Security Review the RAF Brampton Wyton Henlow formation was disbanded: RAF Henlow subsequently became a separate station again and RAF Brampton was demolished.[14]

Intelligence station

The Joint Forces Intelligence Group (JFIG), a unit which was responsible for the collection of signals, geospatial, imagery and measurement and signature intelligence,[15] moved from Feltham in Middlesex to RAF Wyton in 2013.[16] [17] 42 Engineer Regiment relocated from Denison Barracks in Hermitage to RAF Wyton to co-locate with the Joint Forces Intelligence Group in July 2014[18] and No. 1 Intelligence Surveillance Reconnaissance Squadron moved from RAF Marham to Wyton in April 2017.[19]

In 2016, JFIG disbanded, and the bulk of its former units and capabilities were re-rolled to establish the National Centre for Geospatial Intelligence. The NCGI is a 1-star commanded organisation[20] which in recent years has monitored military and terrorist activities taking place in real time, such as:

It is also involved in homeland security and played a vital part in the Salisbury poisoning investigation by tracing the Novichok trail.

Former units

Other units moved (now disbanded)

The following other units were posted to Wyton at some point:[21]

Currently operational units moved

On 25 March 2013 it was decided to relocate the following flying units from Wyton due to the high maintenance costs of the airfield.[22]

Based units

Notable units based at RAF Wyton.[23] [24]

Strategic Command

Defence Intelligence

Defence Digital

Royal Air Force

No. 1 Group (Air Combat) RAF

No. 22 Group (Training) RAF

British Army

Royal Engineers

Ministry of Defence

United States Department of Defense

See also

References

Bibliography

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: RAF Wyton Defence Aerodrome Manual (DAM). 31 March 2016. RAF Wyton . Military Aviation Authority. https://web.archive.org/web/20170828012212/https://www.raf.mod.uk/rafbramptonwyton/rafcms/mediafiles/8DF5BB74_5056_A318_A8FE6BCD8C615076.pdf. 28 August 2017. dead. 27 August 2017.
  2. Web site: 24 May 2024 . RAF Wyton Royal Air Force .
  3. News: Nicholls . Dominic . 2024-02-08 . RAF Wyton: Inside the ‘jewel in the crown of British Defence Intelligence’ . 2024-05-24 . The Telegraph . en-GB . 0307-1235.
  4. Web site: Inside the UK's top-secret spy base preparing for war . 2024-05-24 . Sky News . en.
  5. News: Sengupta . Kim . 2024-02-08 . Drones, missiles and white Russian horses: The UK intelligence agency you haven’t heard of . 2024-05-24 . The Independent . en.
  6. Web site: RAF Wyton. Royal Air Force. 26 November 2021.
  7. Web site: Avro Lancaster B.Mk.1 R5868/7325M Museum Accession Number 74/A/12. 3. RAF Museum. 26 November 2021.
  8. Web site: RAF Wyton. Vulcan to the Sky Trust. 26 November 2021.
  9. Web site: Sport. Rugby Union. pic: January 1989. RAF. Wyton, Cambridgeshire. England wing Rory Underwood, a pilot flight-lieutenant in the RAF, poses in the cockpit his Canberra jet.. 15 January 2008 . Getty Images. 26 November 2021.
  10. Web site: A-10A Thunderbolt of 511th Tactical Fighter Squadron/10th Tactical Fighter Wing on detachment to RAF Wyton in May 1989. Airport Data. 26 November 2021.
  11. Web site: Air Officer Scotland: Air Vice Marshal Ross Paterson. Royal Air Force. 26 November 2021.
  12. Web site: University of London Air Squadron. 26 November 2021.
  13. Web site: 2013-03-27 . RAF Wyton airfield to close as training flights are moved - but base still open for intelligence hub . 2024-05-24 . The Hunts Post . en.
  14. Web site: 13 January 2017 . Dramatic Footage Shows Demolition Of RAF Base .
  15. Web site: Joint Forces Intelligence Group Achieves Full Operating Capability. Ministry of Defence. 22 September 2014. 7 November 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20160304075857/http://www.raf.mod.uk/news/archive/joint-forces-intelligence-group-achieves-full-operating-capability-22092014. 4 March 2016. dead.
  16. Web site: New Defence Intelligence buildings handed over to MOD . Ministry of Defence . 16 March 2012 . 4 November 2014.
  17. Web site: UK JARIC Transitions to Defence Geospatial and Intelligence Fusion Centre . November 2012 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20130216175819/https://www1.nga.mil/MediaRoom/Publications/Documents/Pathfinder%20Magazines/2012/2012_nov-dec.pdf . 16 February 2013.
  18. Web site: 42 Engr Regt (Geo) arrive at RAF Wyton. Eagleeyeonline.vo.uk. 16 December 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20150201001431/http://www.eagleeyeonline.co.uk/42-engr-regt-geo-arrive-at-raf-wyton/. 1 February 2015. dead.
  19. Web site: Air Force: Military Intelligence:Written question - 120057. Ellwood. Tobias. 21 December 2017. UK Parliament. 29 December 2017.
  20. Web site: Drew . Rob . 2021-03-26 . The National Centre for Geospatial Intelligence. InstRE. . 2024-05-24 . The Institution of Royal Engineers (InstRE) . en-GB.
  21. Web site: Wyton . Airfields of Britain Conservation Trust. 10 February 2016.
  22. Web site: Defence Estate Rationalisation Update. Ministry of Defence (MoD). 26 March 2013.
  23. Web site: RAF Wyton. 25 April 2021. Royal Air Force.
  24. Web site: DCMA United Kingdom Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire. 25 April 2021. Defense Contract Management Agency.

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