RAF Crosby-on-Eden

Royal Air Force Crosby-on-Eden or more simply RAF Crosby-on-Eden was a former Royal Air Force station located 5.8 miles (9.3 km) north east of Carlisle, Cumbria and 3 miles (4.8 km) west of Brampton, Cumbria. It is nowadays Carlisle Lake District Airport.

RAF Crosby-on-Eden
IATA: none ICAO: none
Summary
Airport type	Military
Owner	Air Ministry
Operator	Royal Air Force
Location	Crosby-on-Eden, Cumbria, England
Built	1940
In use	1941-1947
Coordinates	54°56′15″N 002°48′33″W
Map
RAF Crosby-on-Eden Location in Cumbria
Runways
Direction Length Surface ft m 00/00 0 0 Asphalt 00/00 0 0 Asphalt 00/00 0 0 Asphalt

History

Civil use

In the early 1930s, Cumbria County Council opened Kingstown Municipal Airport, at the time outside the borough boundaries which later became the RAF Kingstown and is now Kingstown or Kingmoor Industrial estate. With the outbreak of war in 1939, RAF Kingstown's runway was too small for bombers, so the Royal Air Force developed a new airstrip at Crosby-on-Eden.[1] The new facility came into operation in February 1941 for training operations, designating the station RAF Crosby-on-Eden.

Military use

The airfield was originally under the command of RAF Fighter Command housing No. 59 Operational Training Unit RAF (OTU) which provided day training for Hawker Hurricane pilots.[2]

Coastal Command

The station was handed over to RAF Coastal Command, hosting No. 17 OTU during August 1942 for training long-range fighter crews on Bristol Beaufort and Bristol Beaufighter conversion squadrons, as well as air firing and night flying.[3]

Transport Command

In August 1944 the station came under the command of RAF Transport Command with Douglas Dakotas of No. 109 Operational Training Unit RAF.[4] 109 OTU was then renamed No. 1383 (Transport) Conversion Unit RAF, on 1 August 1945 disbanding at Crosby-on-Eden on 6 August 1946.

Post war

Crosby-on-Eden had little post war use and was closed in 1947 with the airfield returning to Carlisle City Council to continue as a municipal airport as what is now named Carlisle Lake District Airport with ownership passing to the Stobart Group.

See also

• List of former Royal Air Force stations

References

1. News & Star Archived 27 September 2007 at the Wayback Machine
2. Royal Air Force Milfield
3. RAF Carlisle airfield
4. History of Dakota KG651 Archived 28 September 2007 at the Wayback Machine and Sturtivant, Ray (2007). RAF Flying Training and Support Units since 1912. Air-Britain. pp. 198–206. ISBN 0-85130 365 X.