RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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Plan of the airfield site and all the dispersed sites.
Situated south of the A64 below York, I drove from Copmanthorpe junction south to the huts I found were near the village and not part of the airfield but were RAF style Laing huts.

Ground crew.

 

Oxford cockpit.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

 

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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Laing Hut.
I found these huts back near the village and they may have nothing to do with the airfield.
History : Laing huts were first designed in 1940 and made of timber framed, plaster board and covered in tarred felt sheeting. Inside was just plaster board. The roof is corrugated asbestos. This small camp has about 5/6 huts left and some have been re-clad with modern materials.

Plan possibly a supply camp?.

Plan possibly a supply camp?.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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Another hut and it looks as if these have been used for chickens and now as small factory units.
History : RAF Acaster Malbis opened in 1942 as a fighter station for No.12Group, Fighter Command and a satellite to RAF Church Fenton as a fighter base for one squadron. The first unit to arrive was No.601 with American P-39 Airacobra, not a very popular aircraft at all. They proved useless and were discarded in favour of Spitfires by March 1942.

Airacobra with 601Sqn.

Airacobra with 601Sqn.

Spitfire with 601Sqn.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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Site 12 Sewage Disposal
Its 2025 and I am updating this page, going back on my photos of March 2008 and I see this is the first photo in the sequence. I missed it the first time. I think its from one of the two sewage sites that were here and it looks like 457- Tool House - Local. The shed to store tools and not made to any Air Ministry plan (local).

There would have been.
457- Tool House - Local.
458 - Humus Tanks - Local.
459 - Filter Bed Rotary - Local.
460 - Sedimentary Tank - Local.
461 - Sludge Drying Beds - Local.

 

RAF Grove.

RAF Grove tool shed.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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Site 10 'Quarters'.
Picket post of this small domestic site with several huts remaining.

Plan of the site today. I see from the air photo that the field 'B' across the road from where I took this photo also had some huts and a roadway, now all removed?

Site plan 10 quarters.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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Site 10 Quarters.
406 - Picket Post - TB - 7900/4014509/41 with attached toilet.

Inside the main room.

 

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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Site 10 Quarters.
406 - Picket Post - TB - 7900/4014509/41 with attached toilet.
Inside one of the rooms.

 

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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Site 10 Quarters.
407 - Latrines Officers - TB - 9026/41, a standard latrine block found on all wartime airfields.

Plan of a 9026/41 latrines, there could be several combinations for urinals, Elsan buckets or flush toilets.

 

 

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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Site 10 Quarters.
407 - Latrine Officers - TB - 9026/41.

Site 10 plan.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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Site 10 Quarters.
409to411 - Quarters Officers - N - 2965/42.
This one is arraigned with a brick face, door, two windows and an air vent. There are many combinations that can have been used with this type of hut, wooden ends or just open for general storage.

Nissen hut internals.

Site 10 plan.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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Site 10 Quarters.
409to411 - Quarters Officers - N - 2965/42.

Looking into its quite spacious interior.

Nissen hut internals.

Site 10 plan.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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93 - Sub Station - PB - 11274/42.
A protected electrical substation with a pitched roof and blast walls.

History : April 1942 Acaster Malbis was turned over to 21Group Flying Training Command as No.15 (Pilot) Advanced Flying Unit with Oxfords.

Oxford training.

Crews under training.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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93 - Sub Station - PB - 11274/42.
Inside there are two ducts sunk into the floor running L/R and set into the walls are four vents with adjustable covers.

Where the best bricks come from (Quote 'Wallis & Gromit').

'Wallis & Gromit'.

 

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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93 - Sub Station - PB - 11274/42.

A Yorkshire Brick from Castletown.

The yellow square is the sub station.

Plan of 1942 airfield with six fighter pens and five Blister hangars.

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6 - Machine Gun Range - TB - 4pts/25Yrd.
Set behind this house is the 25yd machine gun range now a garden.

The butts are in the red square.

25yd range from above.

Plan of a rifle range.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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Airfield Site.
History : in 1943 all flying ceased and the airfield was re built as an 'A' class heavy bomber station. This included three runways, two T2 & one B1 hangar, 12 dispersed sites and a perimeter track with 36 of the later spectacle aircraft dispersals.

The yard circled in white and where I parked to walk the airfield.

On the original airfield it was designed as a fighter base with six double pens and that meant it could hold one squadron of 12 aircraft.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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Airfield Site.
7 - Crew, Restroom, Locker & Drying Room - TB - 1191/43.
A place where crew could meet, receive orders, call their own room. Also a room to rest and a third room with a heating plant to run a central heating through pipes, where crew could hang their clothing to dry. Flying cloths would become damp/wet when flying and needed a steady heat to dry out.

Crew rest room.

Crew, restroom, locker & drying room 1191/43.

Bomber crew.

Drying room.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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Airfield Site.
Marston sheds could be clad with tin (as in this one), asbestos sheeting and brick. A very flexible building. Portable easy to dismantle & assemble. This one is NOT on the plan and may have been moved here at a later date?

Marston Shed at RAF Enstone.

Another Marston shed.

Inside one.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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Perimeter Track.
I walked the perimeter track in a clockwise direction.

History : The only problem here is that the airfield was built on low lying land close to a river which creates fog on too many occasions. This caused many flying accidents and the airfield was never used as an operational base. Several local airfields used Acaster Malbis as a training field by.

Perimeter track.

Oxford crew.

Oxfords.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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NW/SE Runway heading 16,150ft wide.

Plan.

Three runways 150 feet wide.

Airfield construction.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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97 - Battle Head Quarters - 1108/41.
In the event of an attack by paratroopers the airfield defence commander would go straight here and run the battle via his viewing slits, his telephones and his runners to deliver messages.

Home Guard

Fallschirmjaeger.

Plan of a battle HQ.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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97 - Battle Head Quarters - 1108/41.
The steps down to the underground part of the bunker. Now full of water.

Plan.

Escape man hole cover.

View through the cupola.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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97 - Battle Head Quarters - 1108/41.

A Wing Commander would have had his HQ here in battle.

Home Guard defenders.

Defender of the nation.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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97 - Battle Head Quarters - 1108/41.
The view into the cupola.

Manhole cover for the escape out of the bunker.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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95 - Petrol Installation Aviation - 72,000gal - 3022A/42.

Inside a pump house.

Fuel tanks.

USAAF tanker bowser fueling up at an RAF P.I.A.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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95 - Petrol Installation Aviation - 72,000gal - 3022A/42.

AEC Matador fuel bowser.

Plan.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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98 - Mechanical & Electrical Plinth to transform high voltage electricity down to the power used in this area This was used to power the fuel pumps in the bulk fuel installation and the several huts in this area.

The top of the wall, glass was set into soft cement and was a security to stop anybody getting ins.

History : W/O Bertram Pinner DFM (pictured) received his investiture notification whilst at RAF Station Acaster Malbis (holding unit) 27th October 1945.

X on the plan.

M&E gate.

The gate hinge.

Armoured electrical cable.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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Perimeter track north side.

X on the plan.

History : W/O Bertram Pinner DFM (pictured) received his investiture notification whilst at RAF Station Acaster Malbis (holding unit) 27th October 1945.

Lancaster's moving around a perimeter track.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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Main runway heading 22.

Remains of drainage around the perimeter track.

Trees have been planted on the runway now so it will soon be woodland.

Perimeter track running around to the wood and the bomb store.

Lancaster's taking off.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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Brick Slit Trench.
This is the first part of the woodland, a barrier of concrete drains from the runways bars a small entrance into the wood where there is a road way, a small square bomb store and two brick slit trench defences.

History : These defences must have been part of the earlier airfield of 1940 vintage when defences were put in against the threat of German parachutists. By the time the second airfield was being built that threat had gone.

Concrete drains removed from the runways.

The red line is the roadway.

Small bombs on trolley.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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1940's 'L' Trench.
These trenches may have been part of the pre 1942 bomb store.

Another view.

1940's plan.

Home guard defence.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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139 - Fuzed & Spare Bomb Store - Earth - 4780/42.

Fuzed & Spare bomb store.

An earth travers running around the store with access for the road to come through.

A fused bomb store at RAF Keevil.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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Main entrance off the Perimeter Track to the Bomb Store.
A full 'A' class bomb store with four main storage areas and three fuzing points.

Airfield plan.

Plan of the bomb store.

Bomb train loading.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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Roadway to Fuzing Points.
There were 2 fuzing points along the entrance track on the right and on the left an A.I.S. Laboratory.
140 - Fuzing point building - N - Ultra Heavy - 7900/42+4176/43.
142 - Fuzing point bldgs - N - Heavy light - 4773/41.
144 - Sea Marker&Flame Float Store - N - 12725/41.
145 - Small Arms Ammu. [aircraft] store - N - 12725/41.
146 - Component Store,TB - 4733,42.
54 - A.I.S. Lab. - S - 6211/43.

N - Nissen.
S - Steel.

Plan.

 

 

 

Jane type I.A.S Laboratory [54 on plan] 6211/43 steel. Aeronautical Inspection Service inspectors to check I presume quality. 'They were a nit picking bunch of job's worth at 16MU- most of them incapable of checking what they were tasked to do', from AIX.

Fuzing Point building, Nissan, Ultra Heavy.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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Looking in to the woodland
At the base of the trees is a brick trench looking south.

The trench.

Home Guard defenders.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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142 - Fuzing point bldgs - N - Heavy light - 4773/41.
History : Bomb trailers would pass through the huts and fuses fitted in. Paperwork would come down to the bomb store to say what bombs were needed, what fuze's and what settings. Then they would be collected, fuzed then driven around to the aircraft dispersed around the airfield.

142 on the plan is a 4775/42 fuzing point.

Inside s Nissan hut fuzing point.

How it would have looked.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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Bomb Store roadway.
History : A circular loop roadway with four main stores for heavy bombs and then different storage and hut for incendiaries and fuses, etc.

We are now here on the plan.

Plan.

Bomb storage.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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Bomb Store Loops to left & right.
If bombers had or were used here, this would have been a very busy area.

Bomb store crew.

Bomb train.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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Bomb Store.
There was a brick wall with a concrete cap and a slope down. On the wall would be several iron rings to trammel the bombs off the lorries.

Trammeling bombs off of their delivery lorries.

Trammel rings.

Concrete ramp.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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151 - Incendiary Store - Earth Travers - 4734/42
There would have been a drive through earth traversed wall all the way around.

Incendiary store at RAF Keevil.

Incendiary bomb.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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Perimeter Track & a Spectacle Aircraft Dispersal.
Originally this was a grass airfield of 1939/40 period the runways were added at a later date and built to an 'A' class bomber station it had 36 spectacle aircraft dispersals instead of the circular aircraft dispersals .

Spectacle dispersals.

Spectacle dispersals.

Dispersed Halifax.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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45 - Floodlight Trailer & Tractor Shed - TB - 12411/41.
49 - Aircraft Shed - S - (23bays) - 3653/42.
57 - T2 - St - 23bay - 3653/42.
T2 hangar, floodlight shed & control tower across the airfield.

Landing light concrete holder.

An electrical ducting tile.

Runway drainage.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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Broken runway foundations.
In this pile are pieces of lamp fittings.

Cabling that ran around the airfield had these brick went over the top of the cable trench.

Cast iron lamp fitting.

Another lamp fitting.

One of the many manholes.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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Stanton air-raid shelter.

This is the area where the shelter is and its right out on its own, one hell of a run from the dispersals. 107 was an M&E plinth to bring electricity to the area.

Runway drain with cover now scrapped.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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50ft Perimeter Track running off to the B1 Hangar Base.
Bomber bases usually had two T2 hangars and one B1 Ministry of Aircraft Production (MAP) repair hangar. They repaired badly damaged aircraft with civilian workforce to take pressure of the RAF repair teams.

 

B1 MAP Hangar.

Wellington being repaired.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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The site of the B1 hangar, now a barn sits in its place.

Eight aircraft dispersals & the base of a B1 hangar and one Nissen hut armament & equipment store.
The barn is modern.

Inside a B1 Ministry of Aircraft Productions hangar.

Civilian workers.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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Perimeter track to B1 hangar.

The B1 hangar and the armament & equipment hut, two huts general purposes, two technical latrines, thank you Terry.

B1 hanger.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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Base of the B1 hangar (how it would have looked).
113 - Aircraft Shed - St - B1 - MAP.

Halifax being repaired.

Halifax's moving around a perimeter track.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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114 - Armament Equipment Store - N - 14420/41.
Next to the B1 hangar were several huts, two sets of latrine and three Nissen huts.

Browning 303 machine guns.

 

 

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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120 - Petrol Installation Aviation - 72,000gal - 3022/42.
The second petrol installation.

 

120 - Petrol Installation Aviation - 72,000gal - 3022/42. 121 is the Picket Post a sort of guard room.

Fuel bowser.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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York Minster in the distance.
There were three landmarks for pilots to use when landing here, York Minster in the north, the York to Selby railway line in the west and the river Ouse that flows SE of the airfield.

Oxford pilot.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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Base of the first T2 Hangar.
57 - T2 - St - 23bay - 3653/42.

ST - Steel.

Hangar door runner.

T2 door runner.

T2 doors and runners.

Plan of the e technical area.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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The second T2.
57 - T2 - St - 23bay - 3653/42.
Re-clad with the doors replaced and now used as a potato store.

The original doors laid out behind.

T2 doors.

T2 roof.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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57 - T2 - St - 23bay - 3653/42.

T2 hangar.

T2 hangar.

T2 hangar.

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T2 hangar.

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Roadway behind the control tower.

With the T2 on the right and a road leading along behind the control tower.
50 - fire tender shelter, Nissen, 12410/41.
51 - signals apparatus building, Steel, 4701/43.
52 - control tower [watch office], perm. brick, 345/43.

53 - Balloon Filling Hut - PB.

Fire tender.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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92 - Combined Instructional Building - TB - 1191/43, right behind the second T2.

This is a plan of crew drying and rest room which was No.7 on the plan but here it is being used as an instructional building.

There would be a heating plant on the end of this building like this one.

 

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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Two blast air-raid shelters.

The second shelter.

2360/41 32 man type shelter.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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Pathway to 90 - Squadron Maintenance Block - N - 12777/41.

24ft Nissen at RAF Marston Moor it may have looked like this.

The blue hut in the middle.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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Works Service Buildings No's. 68 to 74 on the plan.
68 - Wrks. Store - N - 10024/41.
69 - Wrks. Latrine - TB - 5538/42.
70 - Wrks. Store - N - 10024/41.
71 - Wrks. C of Wrks. & Station Engs. Off - TB - 5538/42.
72 - Wrks. Mess Room Carpenters & Fitters Shops - TB - 5538/42.
73 - Wrks. Store - TB - 5538/42.
74 - Wrks. DSWO's Off. & AG'L Imp. Shed - TB - 5538/42.

Temp. brick hut 5538/42.

Another temp. brick hut 5538/42

Red square on the plan.

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Floodlight Trailer & Tractor Shed.

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45 - Floodlight Trailer & Tractor Shed - TB - 12411/41.

TB - Temporary Brick.
N - Nissen.
St - Steel.

Chance floodlight.

Telephone connectors.

RAF David Brown Tractor.

45 - Fl. & Tr.Shed., 12411/41
46 - Sig's. & Int. Bldg., 4699/43,
47 - M&E Plinth [Transformer].

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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50 - Watch Office for All Commands - PB - 343/43.

PB - Perminent Brick.

Plan top floor.

Plan ground floor.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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50 - Watch Office for All Commands - PB - 343/43.

Control room.

Halifax doing a touch and go in training.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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50 - Watch Office for All Commands - PB - 343/43.

 

 

Oxford crews training.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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50 - Watch Office for All Commands - PB - 343/43.
Corridor from rear door to watch office.

A - met off.
B - duty pilots rest.
C - watch office.
D -switch room.
E - toilets.

Duty pilots rest room & toilet

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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50 - Watch Office for All Commands - PB - 343/43.
Met office with a toilet in left corner, rear left room.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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50 - Watch Office for All Commands - PB - 343/43.
The watch room.

The cupboard on the left is for Very pistol & flair cartridges store.The doors are now bricked up.

1941 British No3 mk1 Very pistol.

Flair cartridges.

Flair store steel door.

Flair store steel door.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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50 - Watch Office for All Commands - PB - 343/43.
Stairs up to landing.

 

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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50 - Watch Office for All Commands - PB - 343/43.
Controllers rest room middle right.

Plan.

Duty pilots restroom.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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50 - Watch Office for All Commands - PB - 343/43.
Signals office, middle left.

Plan up.

Plan down.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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50 - Watch Office for All Commands - PB - 343/43.

Plan up.

 

 

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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50 - Watch Office for All Commands - PB - 343/43.
View across the airfield. I believe its now been turned into a house.

How it would have looked. (Thanks to Terry for the Flight Sim image).

Signals office hatch.

Radio room.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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50 - Watch Office for All Commands - PB - 343/43.
There has been some modern alterations to the control room.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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These are the little things I like to see. A boot scrapper. The airfield would be very muddy and scrapping our boots clean, would be very necessary.

Crew and flying boots..

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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Signal Square.
It would have had a large AM stating Acaster Malbis. Signs laid out here tell a pilot wind direction and runway to use.

Signal Square.

Ridgwells signal square.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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23 - Speech Broadcasting - PB - 10786/41.

RAF speech broadcast speaker, messages could be passed through this building and sent out to speakers all over the camp.

Yellow circle.

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RAF Acaster Malbis, Yorkshire.

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