RAF Hawarden Battle of Britain Displays 1956, 1954 and more.

[jetdragon]

Hi All

Can anyone with a long memory recall the exact date of the Hawarden 1957 Battle of Britain Display?

MTIA

JD

[viscount]

Give me a few days as I know a man who might! If he does know, and if he was there should have a log of the day.

Coming at the question from a different angle, the MGAE magazine 'Northern Aeronews' list the Battle of Britain Air Display participants at: Turnhouse, Church Fenton, Thornaby, Gibraltar, Acklington, Hemswell, Binbrook, Valley, Dishforth, Colerne, Ternhill, Weeton - but no mention of Hawarden. The date is provided only once, as 14th September 1957. Likely correct as 14.09.1957 was indeed a Saturday - and the 15th is/was the official commemoration day selected as the day of the most decisive aerial battles of the 'Battle of Britain' phase of daylight attacks on Britain. The Battle of Britain Open Day and Air Display events on Saturday and the Sunday 'Battle of Britain Day' commemoration parades and church services were always held on the nearest weekend to the 15th.

[jetdragon]

Thanks Viscount - much appreciated

JD

[jetdragon]

Hi All

Apparently the last Battle of Britain display at Hawarden was on 15 Sep 1956 - therefore the 1957 display may not have been in September.

JD

[viscount]

That clearly explains why there is no report for a B of B display in the October MGAE 'Northern Aeronews' magazine.

Have now looked through all the 1957 magazines. While highlight movements for Hawarden are recorded for most months, nothing as regards mention of an air display. There was a peak of visitors for Chester Races 4th-9th May, and an official MGAE visit around the MU on 31st July. The de Havilland Sports and Social Club Day with brief factory open morning for 'families' in June and small air display were well established by 1965 (typically the second Saturday eg 12th June 1965) - but I have no idea when they started, and there is no mention of such an event in 'Northern Aeronews'.

[viscount]

Just to confuse the issue, nwan reader Eddie Quinn has sent me an e-mail with an illustration of a trial Vampire, the caption stating that the photo was taken at the "Hawarden Battle of Britain Airshow, September 1957" by R.L.Ward. The book is 'The History of the DH Vampire' by David Watkins.

Now that throws the cat among the pigeons !!

[viscount]

this thread is building to pantomime proportions

....."oh no it wasn't" .... "oh yes it was" .... "oh no it wasn't" ....

Phil Butler has contacted me by e-mail to categorically state that the last Battle of Britain Day Air Show at Hawarden was indeed 15th September 1956. Phil even provided the registration of the test Vampire in the static in 1956 - sure enough the same one as in the photo captioned 1957.

[jetdragon]

Very confusing I agree. Does Phil by any chance have a log from '56? I would be very grateful to see what was there if he's willing to share. I have seen photos of a few aircraft purportedly at a Hawarden display in '57 including Mossie TA719, a Balliol coded Z, a couple of meteors WA718, WH127, and a Shackleton WB861. I guess it's possible these were really 1956.

Thanks for your help in looking into this

JD

[viscount]

Oh no, this is now set to get even more confusing!

Phil tells me that those registrations don't match the 1956 Hawarden Display - BUT - do match the 1956 HOOTON PARK Battle of Britain Air Display, just down the road. By sheer co-incidence, thanks to a series of negatives loaned to me to copy and post by the late Ian Foster, the September 1956 Hooton Park display has a list of participants and some photos already on this forum:

derbosoft.proboards.com/thread/6279/hooton-park

Sorry Jetdragon, but it seems we have now changed not only the year but also the place of your memories!! Otherwise we have a successful outcome ..... well that is if the participation list below does not throw-up any further confusion.

HAWARDEN BATTLE OF BRITAIN AIR DISPLAY
15th SEPTEMBER 1956

This list appears in the first ever issue of the MGAE newsletter 'Merseyside Aeronews' (from which this forum can be considered a direct linear descendant) in November 1956. This list of participants compiled by Phil Butler and Alan Roach. I have not cross-checked the details with modern sources, this is the list as compiled (and subsequently corrected) in 1956.

STATIC DISPLAY
The RAF provided an excellent static display at Hawarden, the aircraft included:

VF547/B    Auster 6              663 Sqdn
XK408      Auster 9
VM370      Avro Anson C.19       173 Sqdn
WB850      Avro Shackleton 1     240 Sqdn ?
XB287      Blackburn Beverley
WN153/-    B-P Balliol
WG322      DHC.1 Chipmunk T.10
G-ANTE     DH.82 Tiger Moth
TH990      DH.98 Mosquito B.35
WL609      DH 100 Vampire FR.9   in dark and light green/silver camouflage
WP240      DH.113 Vampire NF.10  with a DH.110 type pointed radome
XK627      DH.115 Vampire T.11
VP953      DH.104 Devon C.1
WX944 & WX949  DH. Venom 3
XG671      DH.Sea Venom F.21
No.393     DH.114 Heron 3         for Royal Iraqi Air Force
WJ566      EE Canberra T.4      a conversion from B.2
WT337 & WT340  EE Canberra B(I).8
WM887      Fairey Firefly U.8   c/no F8942
WH182      G. Meteor T.7
WL256      G. Meteor FR.9
WB167      G. Meteor PR.10
WS841/X    G. Meteor NF.14      264 Sqdn
WJ342/U    HP.67 Hastings C.2   47 Sqdn
5500M      Hawker Hurricane
XG132      Hawker Hunter F.6
VS279      P. Prentice T.1
WV563/M:D  P. Provost T.1       1 FTS
XK884      P. Pembroke C.1
XE808      Kirby Cadet Mk.3     631 VGS
PS853      Spitfire PR.19
WZ293/831  S. Attacker 2        prob 1833 Sqdn, formerly 1831 Sqdn RNAS Stretton
WG257      V. Valetta T.3
WJ919      V. Varsity T.1       173 Sqdn
XB372/870:ST G. Avenger 4       1841 Sqdn RNAS Stretton
KF465      NA. Harvard
WX506      Neptune

ON THE AIRFIELD

VM363     Avro Anson C.19
SX927     Avro Lincoln B.2
WD373 & WD378  DHC.1 Chipmunk T.10
WG793/71  DH. Vampire FB.5      4 FTS
XG678     DH. Sea Venom F.21
WL481     G. Meteor T.7         RAF Flying College
VZ445, WE931, WF690 & WH361  G. Meteor F.8 all RAF Flying College
WN950/F   H. Hunter             257 Sqdn
XF447     H. Hunter     
XL664     SA Pioneer

'LURKING' IN THE HANGARS

WJ907/S   V. Varsity T.1
HJ994, RR299, TA698, TA702, TA723, TH977, TJ117, TJ121, TJ155  all DH.98 Mosquito
WR158     DH. 100 Vampire FB.9
WJ561     Avro Anson C.19       last Anson to be built
XA284 & XA311  Kirby Cadet 3
WB928 & WB986  Sedburghs

PLEASURE FLIGHTS

G-AGSH    DH.89A Dragon Rapide
G-AGTV & G-AJEW  Auster J/1 Autocrats

ADDITIONAL AIRCRAFT TAKING PART IN FLYPASTS etc

SZ560/D:L Short Sunderland GR.5
XK670     DH.106 Comet T.2      216 Sqdn
WH925, WJ648, WJ733 & WJ753 4 x EE Canberra of 18 Sqdn
8 x G. Meteor of 610 Sqdn RAuxAF, Hooton
G-ANBH    B.175 Britannia 102   B.O.A.C.
WG526, WG533 & WR958  believed to be the 3 x grey Avro Shackleton
4 x S. Attackers from RNAS Stretton
XF384     H. Hunter             landed after the display

[davecalveley]

The 610 Squadron Meteors in Additional Flypasts section do not show serials in opps diary....entry just shows "8 Aircraft performed a round the bases sortie for Battle of Britain day"

[jetdragon]

That's brilliant Viscount - thankyou for taking the time to type that lot in!! The serials I quoted were from photos I copied from some publication about 30 years ago which I have just discovered in the attic - I didn't come along until 1960!! To make life even more difficult I'm in Australia now so tracing my original contacts is a bit hard.

I will see if I can trace the source of them which might confuse matters even further.

Can I just ask also if the Alan Roach you quote is the guy who used to work as a despatch foreman at HSA/BAe (he had a son named Ian I recall)? If so I knew him well when I worked at Chester from '79 to '88. Also recall Frank Thomas and Jimmy Hanson and a couple of others - we were part of a very unofficial spotters club at Chester who used to convene each lunchtime at the fuel hut - or in the despatch shed if it was raining.

Thanks again

JD

[Beemer]

I hope you don't mind but I have up-dated the Air Display list with "where are they now". Many many have gone but a few remain.

STATIC DISPLAY

VF547/B    Auster 6              663 Sqdn      AAC WFU.
XK408      Auster 9.             AAC           w/o 18-12-1963 
VM370      Avro Anson C.19       RAF 173 Sqdn. Scr.
WB850      Avro Shackleton 1     240 Sqdn ?    Scr. Aldergrove 1963.
XB287      Blackburn Beverley                  Scr. Shawbury 09-1969  
WN153/-    B-P Balliol                         Sold as Scr. 23-03-1960 @ No. 22 MU Silloth
WG322      DHC.1 Chipmunk T.10.                Became G-ARMF. Marked as WG868. Stored at St Athan.
G-ANTE     DH.82 Tiger Moth.                   Current with G-ANTE Flyers Ltd.
TH990      DH.98 Mosquito 35.                  Unknown.
WL609      DH Vampire 9                        Sold as Scr. 20-10-1958 at No. 48 MU Hawarden.
WP240      DH.113 Vampire 10 (modified nose)   Sold as Scr. 24-02-58 at No. 19 MU St Athan.
XK627      DH.115 Vampire T.11.                Scr. Pod Preserved Davidstow Airfield/Cornwall Air Museum, ex Bournemouth Air Museum  
VP953      DH.104 Devon C.2.                   Burnt Manston 11-1992. Scr.
WX944      DH. Venom 3.                        Scr. 07-01-1958 at No. 48 MU Hawarden
WX949      DH. Venom 3.                        Scr. 15-04-1958 at No. 27 MU Shawbury 
XG671      DH.Sea Venom.                       W/O 16-04-1958.
No.393     DH.114 Heron 2C    Royal Iraqi A.F. Preserved Military Museum Muthenna AFB, Baghdad. Unlikely to have survived recent conflict 
WJ566      EE Canberra T.4                     Scr. Predannack.
WT337      EE Canberra B(I).8.                 Scr. RAF Bruggen
WT340      EE Canberra B(I).8.                 Sold to Peru.
WM887      Fairey Firefly U.8     c/no F8942.  W/O 02-11-1956
WH182      G. Meteor T.7.                      Scr. 06-11-1962 No.5 MU Kemble
WL256      G. Meteor FR.9                      For ground instruction No.20 MU Aston Down. Scr. 31-08-1959
WB167      G. Meteor PR.10                     Struck off charge 09-03-1960 Seletar
WS841/X    G. Meteor NF.14       264 Sqdn.     Struck off charge 12-03-1962 at No.389 MU Seletar, Singapore.
WJ342/U    HP.67 Hastings C.2    47 Sqdn.      W/O 23-01-1961. Also reported RAF Catterick 1968.
5500M      Hawker Hurricane IIb. (was PG499)   b/u at Coleys, Feltham 12-1960
XG132      Hawker Hunter F.6.                  As a T.67, became 804 with Royal Air Force Oman.Then 842. Preserved Masirah, Oman.
VS279      P. Prentice T.1                     d/d 16/08/1948to No.1 SoTT Halton 28/03/1957 as 7401M, s.o.c. 03/02/1959
WV563/M:D  P. Provost T.1        1 FTS.        Scr. 12-03-1962 No. 27 MU Shawbury.
XK884      P. Pembroke C.1                     Became G-BNPG then SE-BKH/83007 Swedish Air Force c/s at Swedish Veteran Wing Museum.  
XE808      Kirby Cadet Mk.3      631 VGS.      Sold in Ireland.
PS853      Spitfire PR.19.                     Became G-MXIX/ G-RRGN Rolls Royce. Damaged East Mids 07-01-2013, repaired & re-flown
WZ293/831  S. Attacker 2         1833 Sqdn?    Scr. 25-03-1958 Abbotsinch.
WG257      V. Valetta 3                        Scr. 04-1968 at Gaydon.
WJ919      V. Varsity T.1        173 Sqdn      Scr Finningley 1979
XB372/870:ST G. Avenger 4        1841 Sqdn     Became 21-39 Royal Netherlands Navy. Scr. 03-01-1959. 
KF465      NA. Harvard                         Sold to Avex Engineering for scrap 09-1957
WX506      Neptune.              ex 51-15932.  Scr.

ON THE AIRFIELD

VM363     Avro Anson C.19.                     Scr.
SX927     Avro Lincoln B.2                     Scr.
WD373     DHC.1 Chipmunk T.10.                 Now G-BXDI/WD373/12 in RAF c/s.
WD378     DHC.1 Chipmunk T.10.                 d/d 30/03/1951, sold as scrap 12/09/1973 at No.5 MU Kemble
WG793/71  DH. Vampire            7 FTS         d/d 29/08/1951, sold as scrap 29/02/1960 at No.49 MU Colerne
XG678     DH. Sea Venom.                       W/O 21-01-1959.
WL481     G. Meteor T.7          RAFFC         W/O 03-06-1959.
VZ445     G. Meteor F.8          RAFFC         d/d 22/06/1950, to Ministry of Supply 12/03/1959 for conversion to U16 drone
WE931     G. Meteor F.8          RAFFC         d/d 04/04/1951, scr. 29/06/1959 at No.20 MU Aston Down to H H Bushell & Co
WF690     G. Meteor F.8          RAFFC         d/d 07/09/1951, scr. 04/03/1958 at No.20 MU Aston Down to Enfield Rolling Mills
WH361     G. Meteor F.8          RAFFC         Struck off charge 08-05-1957 at Manby.
WN950/F   H. Hunter              257 Sqdn      Scr 1958.
XF447     H. Hunter                            Became G-9-299 then J-723 Chilean Air Force.   
XL664     SA Pioneer CC.1                      W/O 16-06-1961.

'LURKING' IN THE HANGARS

WJ907/S   V. Varsity T.1.                      Scr. Norwich 1987.
HJ994,TA698, TA702, TA723, TH977, TJ117, TJ121, TJ155 DH.98 Mosquitos. Of these RR299/G-ASKH survived until W/O near Barton 21-07-1996
WR158     DH. Vampire.                         Scr. 21-04-1961
WJ561     Avro Anson C.19        last Anson    Scr. 27-06-1960 at No. 23 MU Aldergrove.
XA284     Kirby Cadet 3                        became G-BNPF, on rebuild at Audley End
XA311     Kirby Cadet 3                        became OO-ZMQ, at Weelde, Belgium.
WB928     Sedburgh                             W/O 11-07-1963
WB986/ BGA3265  Sedburgh                       to WB986/BGA3265, was stored at East Kirkby, registration cancelled

PLEASURE FLIGHTS

G-AGSH    DH.89A Dragon Rapide.                Current, in BEA c/s.
G-AGTV    Auster J/1 Autocrat.      c/n 1838   to Eire 22-5-62 as EI-AMK Current
G-AJEW    Auster J/1 Autocrat.      c/n 2302   became D-EDIG 29-04-1957 then OY-DPJ 1967 Damaged by high winds and reg cancelled 1972..

ADDITIONAL AIRCRAFT TAKING PART IN FLYPASTS etc

SZ560/D:L Short Sunderland GR.5.               Struck off charge 15-10-1957. Scr.
XK670     DH.106 Comet T.2       216 Sqdn.     ex G-AMXF BOAC. Destroyed by fire RAF Lyneham 1968.
WH925     EE Canberra            18 Sqdn.      Scr. Catterick.
WJ648     EE Canberra            18 Sqdn.      Scr. Kemble.
WJ733     EE Canberra            18 Sqdn.      Scr. RAF Wroughton.
WJ753     EE Canberra            18 Sqdn.      W/O 19-06-1978.
8 x G. Meteor of 610 Sqdn RAuxAF, Hooton
G-ANBH    B.175 Britannia 102    B.O.A.C.      to BKS Air Transport. WFU 10-1968. Scr. 09-1969 Southend.
WG526     Avro Shackleton.                     Scr. Ballykelly 1961
WG533     Avro Shackleton.                     Scr. St Athan 1973
WR958     Avro Shackleton.                     Scr. Shawbury 1968
4 x S. Attackers from RNAS Stretton
XF384     H. Hunter                            Scr. RAF Valley 1975.

[jetdragon]

Thanks Beemer - some interesting info there

Cheers

JD

[viscount]

It seems some while since the 'debate' on a year for the final R.A.F. Battle of Britain Air Display at Hawarden was decided. Now that I've studied and indexed the b&w photo collection gathered by the late Don Stephens, I find that not only was he one of the MGAE spotters there that weekend, but he had his camera with him! True it was a very basic Box Brownie, but what the images lack in clarity they make up for in interesting subject matter. Some images had the date on the reverse of print, some the place, some both details, others just blank and have been traced by registration and background. So, some years on from the confused start to this thread, I can now illustrate the event for which I copied out the list for a few years back and am delighted that both the Hawarden and Hooton Air Displays in September 1956 now have images and participants listed on NWAN.

BATTLE OF BRITAIN AIR DISPLAY - R.A.F. HAWARDEN,
15th SEPTEMBER 1956

The Air Display was hosted by Nos 47 & 48 M.U.s and was the third and final Battle of Britain display to be held at Hawarden. Earlier ones being 15th September 1951 and 18th September 1954 (Dave Smith's 'Hawarden a Welsh Airfield 1939-1979'). The R.A.F. station closed on 31st March 1959 with No.48 MU moving to R.A.F. Sealand and the facilities being handed over to de Havilland.

One aspect of aircraft operation shown on many of these images is that they were quite happy to park the aircraft on grass, even the jets. Just the Attacker is shown to have parked on metal planking. With the exception of a front-line aircraft, there was no fencing to keep the public away - just an RAF Officer stood in front of the aircraft, so they get in the way of quite a few shots as a result.



HP.67 Hastings C.2 WJ342/U of 47 Sqdn with a number of other aircraft in the static beyond



A delightful image of Hooton based Auster AOP.9 VF457/B in 663 R.Aux.A.F. markings. In an Aldon Ferguson book, this exact image appears, credited to Phil Butler, but places the photo at Hooton Park. Subsequently Dave Smith notes that the church tower is quite certainly that of Broughton, so the location is indeed Hawarden.



XG132 Hawker Hunter F.6



DH.104 Devon C.1 VP953 in a rather plain paint-scheme, by 1956 it had already been in service for 8 years.



Gloster Meteor FR.9, WL256



WB167 a Gloster Meteor PR.10



WS841/X a Gloster Meteor NF.14



Harvard KF465 on the move. The Air Britain Harvard history File states that this aircraft was with Liverpool UAS at RAF Woodvale at the time, and shortly to be retired and scrapped.



Rather a short-lived type in RAF service, WN153 is a Boulton-Paul Balliol T.1,



Bet the MGAE enthusiasts were pleased to see this one fresh off the production line, a Royal Iraqi Air Force DH.114 Heron 2C '393' - it was officially handed over on 29.09.56 for delivery to Iraqi. Surprisingly, there is another image of Heron 393 in the collection, as Don also took a shot of it flying at Farnborough the weekend before!



P.56 Provost T.1 WV563/M:D of No.1 FTS.



Another type that did not serve for long with the RAF was the Percival Prentice T.1, this one is VS279.



WL609 DH.100 Vampire FR.9. The colour scheme was non-standard, the list of aircraft present produced in the MGAE magazine goes at length to describe the colours as being dark and light green with silver underneath. Mid grey and dark green would be more normal 'European' camouflage colours.



DH.113 Vampire NF.10, WP240 fitted with a pointed DH.110 (Sea Vixen) style pointed nose. It was a mis-accredited photo of this particular aircraft that re-awakened the confusion debated in initial posts on this thread. Mistakes now happily sorted out and proven by us to be errors.



Vickers Valetta T.3 WG257. The row of astrodomes along the cabin roof show that it was a flying classroom teaching the art of celestial navigation.



VS Spitfire PR.19 PS853 would have been considered a 'common' machine by the MGAE spotters, being with the Temperature and Humidity Flight at Woodvale and a regular at Speke. Alot more about this unit on another NWAN thread.



EE Canberra B(I)8, WT337 with night bomber black underside. Only the aircraft in these images to have a barrier erected around it to prevent close inspection by the public.



TH990 DH.98 Mosquito TT.35



WZ293/831/ST of 1833 Sqdn a Supermarine Attacker FB.2 from RNAS Stretton. While most of the static aircraft are parked on the grass, the Attacker is parked on steel planking. I would have that through that the thrust from the downward angled jet engine would have blown it all away once taxiing?





XB372/870:ST of 1841 Sqdn a Grumman Avenger AS.4 also from RNAS Stretton. Two images in the collection, fairly similar though.



WM887 a Fairey Firefly U.8. Capable of being flown pilotless



From Coastal Command came this Lockheed Neptune MR.1 WX506.



Nestling in the lee of the Neptune, DHC.1 Chipmunk T.10 WG322



There are two annon prints of this Short Sunderland GR.5, SZ560/D:L in the collection. Putting together the aircraft identification code and the Hawarden display list strongly indicate that this photo is taken as the aircraft overflew both the Hawarden and Hooton BofB Day displays in 1956. Note that the Sunderland, very much at the end of its service life is no longer armed, while its successor in the maritime patrol role, the Neptune is armed with guns in all turrets.



Hawker Hurricane 5500M, formerly PG499, looking quite smart in the static park. However, when the Hawarden MUs merged and moved in the late'50s, the historic value of such aircraft was zero, so it ended up being sold as scrap. Don Stephen's came across this aircraft again in August 1960 in Coley's Yard, as shown below.

[viscount]

R.A.F. HAWARDEN BATTLE OF BRITAIN DAY 18th September 1954
(& a few others)

Thanks to 'Jet Dragon' I now have a data-base listing of the participants in the 1954 Battle of Britain Air Display.

(PG499)	5500M	Hawker Hurricane IIC	-	        VV919		Avro Anson C.21  	-
DP200	B-Z	Short Sunderland	-	        VW165		Vickers Valetta C.1	-
EE521		Gloster Meteor F.4	-	        VW185		Vickers Valetta C.1	-
G-AJWS		Airspeed AS.65 Consul	5170	        VX121	A	Auster AOP.6    	-
G-AMXY		DH.104 Dove 2A	        4409            VZ123	A	DH.100 Vampire FB.5	-
HJ994		DH.98 Mosquito T.3	-               VZ271	H	DH.100 Vampire FB.5	-
KF466	U-M	NA. Harvard T.2B	-               VZ356	N-20	DH.100 Vampire FB.5	-
KF866		NA. Harvard T.2B	-               VZ876		DH.100 Vampire FB.5	V0747
KK129		C-47 Dakota C.4  	-               WA107		DH.100 Vampire FB.5	-
LX162		Airspeed Oxford 1	-               WA456		DH.100 Vampire FB.5	-
PH765		Avro Anson C.12 	-               WB818	V	Avro Shackleton MR.1A	-
PH823		Avro Anson C.12 	-               WB824		Avro Shackleton MR.1A	-
R5175		DH.82A Tiger Moth	-               WB861	T	Avro Shackleton MR.1A	-
RB139		Kirby Cadet 1   	-               WB944		Slingsby Sedburgh TX.1	611
RE324		Avro Lincoln B.2	-       	WB986		Slingsby Sedburgh TX.1	MHL013
RK989		DH.98 Mosquito NF.36	-        	WD130	A	Avro Lincoln B.2	-
RL202		DH.98 Mosquito NF.36	-         	WD300	U-D	DHC-1 Chipmunk T.10	C1/0241
RL243		DH.98 Mosquito NF.36	-         	WD351	U-A	DHC-1 Chipmunk T.10	C1/0289
RR303		DH.98 Mosquito T.3	-         	WD375	U-E	DHC-1 Chipmunk T.10	C1/0314
RS721		DH.98 Mosquito B.35	-        	WE289		DH.112 Venom FB.1	12048
TA655		DH.98 Mosquito B.35	-       	WE571	O	Auster T.7	        B.616
TA665		DH.98 Mosquito B.35	-        	WE612	L	Auster T.7      	-
TA690		DH.98 Mosquito TT.35	-       	WG185	P	BP. P-108 Balliol T.2	-
TA698		DH.98 Mosquito TT.35	-            	WG207		BP. P-108 Balliol T.2	-
TA702		DH.98 Mosquito TT.35	-           	WH194		Gloster Meteor T.7	-
TA723		DH.98 Mosquito TT.35	-          	WH666		EE Canberra B.2 	-
TB752	F	VS. Spitfire Mk.XVI	-          	WH668		EE Canberra B.2  	-
TC-HUN		DH.114 Heron 2B 	14066    	WH672		EE Canberra B.2 	-
TG349		DH.100 Vampire F.1	-             	WH718		EE Canberra B.2 	-
TG581		HP. Hastings C.1	-            	WH727		EE Canberra B.2  	-
TH976		DH.98 Mosquito B.35	-           	WJ821		EE Canberra PR.7	-
TH977		DH.98 Mosquito TT.35	-            	WJ858		EE Canberra T.4 	-
TH990		DH.98 Mosquito TT.35	-          	WK361	U-C	DHC-1 Chipmunk T.10	-
TJ117		DH.98 Mosquito TT.35	-           	WK437		DH.112 Venom FB.1	12572
TJ121		DH.98 Mosquito TT.35	-           	WK508	26	DHC-1 Chipmunk T.10	C1/0544
TJ155		DH.98 Mosquito TT.35	-         	WK649	28	DHC-1 Chipmunk T.10	-
TK595		DH.98 Mosquito B.35	-           	WM268	W	Gloster Meteor NF.11	-
TK624		DH.98 Mosquito B.35	-           	WN114		Hawker Sea Hawk 3	-
TK631		DH.98 Mosquito B.35	-           	WR158		DH.100 Vampire FB.9	V0967
TW117	Z	DH.98 Mosquito T.3	-             	WR257		DH.100 Vampire FB.9	-
TX184		Avro Anson C.19 	-            	WR263		DH.100 Vampire FB.9	V1038
VF344		DH.100 Vampire F.3	-           	WR265		DH.100 Vampire FB.9	V1033
VL354		Avro Anson C.19/2	-            	WR335		DH.112 Venom FB.1	12982
VM370		Avro Anson C.19  	-            	WR365		DH.112 Venom FB.1	121083
VM634		Kirby Cadet 1   	-          	WR791		DH.112 Venom NF.2	-
VM656		Kirby Cadet 1   	-           	WW388		Percival Provost T.1	217
VM681		Kirby Cadet 1   	-            	WW603		Hawker Hunter F.1	-
VP522		Avro Anson C.19/2	-          	WX205		DH.100 Vampire FB.9	-
VP523		Avro Anson C.19/2	-        	XA164		DH.113 Sea Vampire T.22	15506
VP552		Avro Anson C.19/2	-           	XA284		Kirby Cadet Mk.3	826
VR294		Percival Prentice T.1	-         	XA311		Kirby Cadet Mk.3	853
VR922	106	Hawker Sea Fury 11	-       	XB810	D 	NA Sabre F.4    	-
VT621		DH.98 Mosquito T.3	-         	XD390		DH.115 Vampire T.11	15253
VT812		DH.100 Vampire F3	-           	XE820		DH.115 Vampire T.11	15369
VV217		DH.100 Vampire FB.5	-        	XE830		DH.115 Vampire T.11	-

HAWARDEN B of B DISPLAY, SEPTEMBER 1 9 5 4

NA F-86 Sabre F.4 XB810/D in RAF service





KK129 C-47 Dakota with the RAF, according to the Air Britain book, this was with 22 MU at the time, presumably in use as a transport rather than stored.
This aircraft was broken-up at Bovingdon 5.57.





P.56 Provost T.1 WW388/ -





WJ858 EE Canberra T.4





TH977 DH.98 Mosquito TT.35





WR158 DH.100 Vampire FB.9





TB752/F Spitfire XVI. Anyone got the 'big' Spitfire book to know what unit this one was with in 1954 and how it ended up?





WN114/ -, Hawker Sea Hawk FB.3, Royal Navy



DH.115 Vampire T.11 XE830 looking very pristine, likely straight off the production line.



EE521 Gloster Meteor F.4, clearly with squadron insignia recently removed.





Hawker Hurricane IIc, 5500M (formerly PG499) kept by the RAF MU brought outside for the display. Two somewhat similar shots.



WG207 BP Balliol T.2, with Harvard KF466/U:M behind.

A FEW FURTHER HAWARDEN IN THE '50s

WL826 DH.113 Venom NF.3 taken on 31st May 1958.



This is a shot of a church youth group visiting Hawarden, dated Saturday 10th September 1955 (but so are other shots that are clearly another date)



DH.80A Puss Moth being erected outside at Hawarden. Another dated 10th September 1955. The immediate candidate is G-AAZP, but this was only purchased by the DH Sports and Athletic Club in September 1961 (as per G-INFO site).



There are three images of 5500M Hurricane II. Two the same, one labeled 10th September 1955, the other (correctly) as 18th September 1956 air display. This one is also dated 10th September 1955, so may be correct, however given what looks like a static park in the background, this could well be the September 1954 display. On close examination, the Provost looks something like WV542? which does not appear in the 1954 list now that I have one, so Sept '55 could be right (or still maybe wrong!)



This photo clearly of RE316/V Lincoln, is labeled on the back: Hawarden 19th September 1955. Nothing further known.

HAWARDEN AIRFIELD FROM ABOVE (date unknown)

I just love examining overhead photos of airfields. No date given, nor any source for the photo (although likely via Dave Smith?). In the foreground fields, outside the airfield boundary are what look like dispersed Wellingtons. Indeed, the field furthest left could be location of the scrapping field on the photos below - the slight elevation of the photographer above the very flat land is the embankment as the minor road twists and rises to cross over the railway line. The runways are a mess. So, either mid-War when laid in a hurry, or I suspect more likely during a total relaying with better foundations in the late 40s/early 50s to enable newer heavier aircraft to operate safely.

Added a week later:Well I'm wrong! Dave Smith tells me that he discovered this photo on the internet and must have forwarded the location to Don. It is actually 1941 when the surfaced hard runways were under construction. The Wellingtons were dispersed just off the airfield, in an area known Cop Farm Dispersal, between leaving the Vickers factory production line and delivery to the Royal Air Force. He states the MU Mossies being scrapped are almost certainly on the area by the current entrance to the general aviation area and the Chocks Away cafe, and that he can just about recall seeing them.

To MAKE YOU WEEP

In 1961 and again in 1963, Don Stephens compiled the first two editions of the long running 'Wrecks and Relics' books (now at Ed.26). As a result, there are a fair number of images of wrecks, dumps, scrapyards and abandoned aircraft in his collection, some of his own and others sent into him and collected. Here are those taken in the vicinity of Hawarden and near-by, in North Wales.







Unfortunately, these prints are not dated. The scrapping field at Hawarden with at least 6 Wellingtons, Codes N-A, -M, H-A and H-O can be made out on zooming in. Photos seem to be on two different occasions.







Regrettably, also not dated, this would appear to be the same field at a later date, now filled with Mosquitos. Difficult to make out
through the grass, but the TT.35 coded 6 could be ··786?

. . . . AND FINALLY ... SOME WRECKS AND RELICS ENTRY MATERIAL

This is labeled 'Horsa glider in a field near Hawarden', 24th July 1953. Indeed some hangars can be made out in the background









These 4 shots show several Horsa gliders converted into sheds, behind a property at Ruallt Hill on 6th August 1963.