Blackbushe Airport
| Blackbushe Airport | |
 | |
|---|---|
| Code | IATA: BBS, ICAO: EGLK |
| County | Hampshire |
| Private-owned, Public-use | |
| Operator | Blackbushe Airport Ltd |
| Location | SU806592 51°19’35"N, -0°50’39"W |
| Website | blackbusheairport.co.uk |
Blackbushe Airport (IATA: BBS, ICAO: EGLK) is an operational general aviation airport just north-east of Hartfordbridge, in the parish of Yateley in the north-east corner of Hampshire, north of the A30 road between Camberley and Hook.
The airfield was built during the Second World War. For a time, it straddled this road with traffic having to wait whilst airliners were towed across. The south side was used for aircraft maintenance, using wartime-built hangars. Today, only the part of the airfield that lay north of the A30 remains in active use. The historical name for the flat piece of land on which it is sited is Hartford Bridge Flats.
Blackbushe Aerodrome has a CAA Ordinary Licence (Number P693) that allows flights for the public transport of passengers or for flying instruction as authorised by the licensee (Blackbushe Airport Limited). The aerodrome is licensed for night use.
Blackbushe was once a significant airport for passenger and cargo charter flights for the London area; it is one of several airfields eclipsed since 1958 by the growth of Heathrow Airport in Middlesex and Gatwick Airport in Surrey.
Currently based aircraft include several corporate jets, two flying schools, a helicopter training facility, as well as Aerobility, a flying charity. The airport is open to the general public and is also popular for walks around its perimeter and to see the wildlife in Yateley Common and Castle Bottom National Nature reserve.
Royal Air Force
The airport started life in 1942 as RAF Hartford Bridge, and it was used by RAF squadrons throughout the remainder of Second World War for reconnaissance, defence and strike operations using Spitfires and Mosquitoes. It was also the home of the ree French Squadron (Lorraine).
A number of important people landed at the airport including King George VI and Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon|Queen Elizabeth, Supreme Allied Commander General Dwight D. Eisenhower and Field Marshal Montgomery.
RAF Hartfordbridge was also the home of a new system known as Fog Investigation and Dispersal Operation|"FIDO" (Fog Investigation and Dispersal Operation) built by the Airforce Construction Unit. Pipes were laid down both sides on Runway 26, and fed with fuel. The pipes had small holes, and if the airfield was shrouded in fog, the fuel was ignited. The heat created would cause the fog to rise and disperse.
On 18 November 1944, the airfield was renamed to RAF Blackbushe, due to confusion over a similar area in Norfolk. On 15 November 1946, the RAF had moved out, and the airport was handed over to the Ministry of Civil Aviation, becoming Blackbushe Airport. The A30 was reopened to traffic.
Ministry of Civil Aviation
In February 1947 the airfield was opened as Blackbushe Airport under the control of the Ministry of Civil Aviation. Full customs facilities were provided for both air transport operators and the private owners of light and executive aircraft.
Over the next few years, airlines such as Britavia, Westminster Airways, Airwork, and Silver City all moved in operating Lancastrians (passenger aircraft derived from Lancaster bombers), DC-3s, and Bristol Freighters. Movements by 1950 had risen to 11,000 per year, with 16,000 passengers.
The 1950s saw further expansion, Air Contractors started a scheduled service to the Channel Islands, and Eagle Aviation launched several routes to Europe on DC-3s and Viking airliners. Britavia and Airwork also brought in the Hermes airliner, flying charters to Africa and Australia. Blackbushe became a robust diversion airport for London Heathrow, and as a home for aircraft visiting the Farnborough Airshow. The facilities were constantly being upgraded with new buildings, runway extensions, and new navigational aids and lighting.
Overseas-based charter airlines often used Blackbushe for their flight to the UK, normally finding that the airfield was open for operations, even when other airports in the London area were closed by fog. The airfield's hilltop position helped in this respect. The Avro Yorks of Tropic Airways of Johannesburg visited for several years.
On film
Blackbushe was used as a major location for the 1956 film The Crooked Sky, in which the former RAF station buildings and then current commercial aircraft are seen.
The airport was also used as a filming location in the making of the 1951 film No Highway in the Sky directed by Henry Koster, starring James Stewart, Marlene Dietrich and Jack Hawkins.
From the early 1950s, the United States Navy had a facility on the north-east edge of the airport which frequently handled visiting naval aircraft. These included patrol types such as the Lockheed P2V Neptune and the Martin P4M Mercator. Large USN transports that used the airport regularly were the Douglas R5D Skymaster and Douglas R6D Liftmaster. In 1955 USN UK-based communications and liaison aircraft of FASRON 200, previously attached to RAF Hendon, in north London, were switched to Blackbushe.
By 1955 the airport was handling 36,000 movements per year. The US Navy also set up a base as a communications headquarters. This brought new aircraft such as Beech Expediters, Dakotas, DC-7s and Super Constellations. In the late 1950s, BOAC launched operations of the Comet airliners. Other operators such as Pan-Am, SAS, and BEA were using Blackbushe regularly as a diversion from Heathrow. However, with the newly built Gatwick airport, the lease on Blackbushe was not granted, and these operators were forced to start using Gatwick.
On 31 May 1960 the airport closed. All of the infrastructure, fixtures, and fittings were auctioned off. Parts of the runways were dug up. The airport remained closed until 6 October 1962 when it was formally reopened as a general aviation field. During the closure, many light aircraft continued to use the airfield.
Private ownership
The airport passed into private ownership and was formally reopened as a general aviation field on 6 October 1962. There had been a fight to reopen the airport, as there were many objections; however the reopening was due to one man and his resolve, Air Vice Marshal Don Bennett, CB, CBE, DSO. Born in Toowoomba, Australia and best known for his RAF Pathfinder exploits in the Second World War and his escape after being shot down during the raid on the German battleship Tirpitz, he evaded capture and escaped to Sweden, from where he was able to return to Britain.
The council strongly objected, but AVM Bennett battled the red tape and finally owned and opened the aerodrome in 1962.
The airport became a base for a large collection of historic Second World War aircraft, including four Junkers Ju 52s, six Douglas DC-3s and a number of smaller planes, such as Spitfires, which were rarely seen on the tarmac. The finest was, perhaps, a Heinkel bomber, but this was sold in order to purchase a replacement which then crashed soon afterwards.
On 15 July 1978, the airfield hosted an all-day open-air concert, the Picnic at Blackbushe Aerodrome, which was attended by some 200,000 people. Bob Dylan headlined, with Eric Clapton, Joan Armatrading, Graham Parker and the Rumour, Lake, and Merger also appearing.[1]
From 1985 to 2015, the airport was owned by British Car Auctions (BCA), who refurbished the terminal building, and replaced the tower in 1992.
From 1998 to 2009 The Queen's Helicopter was based there.
In 2008, the newly formed Blink launched their European air-taxi service from Blackbushe to over 600 destinations using a fleet of Cessna Citation Mustang aircraft. These were a regular sight at Blackbushe until Blink was closed by its new French owners in 2018.[2]
In 2014, PremiAir, who had been based at Blackbushe since the early 2000s, and who operated light jets and executive helicopters from Blackbushe, went into administration. They were evicted from the 40,000 sq ft of hangars on the north side, and BCA repurposed them as part of their auction facilities.
In 2015, the airport was sold to a group of investors led by Sir Peter Ogden. These investors had previously founded Blink in 2008. The north side hangars were not included in the sale, so Blackbushe currently has no hangar facilities.
Outside links
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("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Blackbushe Airport) |
References
- ↑ "The Picnic at Blackbushe Aerodrome 1978". https://www.ukrockfestivals.com/blackbushe.html. Retrieved 2022-10-08.
- ↑ "Corporate Jet Investor" (in en-US). 2 July 2018. https://www.corporatejetinvestor.com/articles/wijet-files-for-administration-587/.