RAF Tain, Ross-shire, Scotland.

RAF Tain

Details

The airfield was started in 1940 with three runways. It was built on the edge of the pre war Tain Bombing Range. The airfield was opened as a Fighter Sector Station on September 16, 1941 with RAF Lossiemouth.
There were Bellman, Blister and 'T2' hangars used here, (I do not have a site plan so, I am guessing what some of buildings were used for).
Occasionally Tain was designated as a forward base for bombers, attacking the battleship Tirpitz in the fjord at Trondheim in Norway. In October 1942 the USAAF arrived to extend the runway, and use the station as an Advanced Strike Base. In 1943 a Torpedo refresher school was formed to keep crew up to date with the torpedo training and both RAF and FAA crews used the facilities. In May 1944 the NE-SW runway was extended in preparation for the arrival of the RAF Liberators. One of the first actions by 66 squadron Liberators from Tain was fought on 26th June 1944 when a U-boat was spotted on the surface. Two attacks were made, and on the second, three depth charges exploding on the starboard side of the U-boat caused it to turn over and sink. The Liberator had been damaged by gunfire and had to land at Stornoway where it was found that a shell had gone through the main spar. After six years of flying operations Tain reverted to its original role as a weapons range and now it is one of the busiest ranges in the UK, used by RAF, USAAF and NATO planes.

(from SecretwikiScotland)

I only had a fleeting look around and so I have had to use Google and Bing screen shots to add to the content.

 

 

 

 

RAF Tain

Details

RAF Tain

Details

Watch Office with Met section 518/40.
All building numbers are guess work on my part, as I do not have a plan.

Watch Office with Met section 518/40.

Ground floor plan.
Front to rear:
Watch office.
Forecast, Off. lav., switch room.
Met store, airmens lav.
Teleprinter, cylinder store, Duty pilots rest room.

First floor plan.
Front to rear:
Control room.
Sign. off. Cont. Off. rest room.

Store, Met Off. bedroom.

RAF Tain

Details

1940's reconnaissance photo taken by a Germans fighter/bomber.
During World War II, the German Air Force (Luftwaffe) used aerial reconnaissance to photograph Britain, Ireland, and other European countries for targeting and intelligence. The Luftwaffe's reconnaissance efforts were less sophisticated than the Allies'.

 

The Blohm & Voss BV 141.

RAF Tain

Details

Wartime air photo of RAF Tain airfield site with dispersed sites on the low hill behind.

 

 

Temporary brick hutting.

RAF Tain

Details

My plan of the airfield.
Opened 1941.
Closed 1946.
2 x T2 hangars.
3 x Bellman hangars.
8 x Extra Over Blister hangars.
17 x Spectacle dispersals.
3 x Frying pan dispersals.
12 x Fighter Pens.
11 x Fighter hard stands.
Accommodation for 2000 personnel.

Fighter Pen 11070/41 plan.

Frying pan dispersal.

Spectacle dispersals.

Bellman hangars.

T2 hangars..

Extra Over Blister hangar..

RAF Tain

Details

25yd Machine gun butte 127/41.

Plan.

127/41 plan.

 

 

RAF Tain

Details

Air-raid shelter, presuming they are all Stanton types.

RAF Tain

Details

50 foot perimeter track.

Lancasters waddling along a perimeter track.

Plan.

RAF Tain

Details

Watch Office with Met section 518/40.

Plan.

Watch Office with Met section 518/40.

Ground floor plan.
Front to rear:
Watch office.
Forecast, Off. lav., switch room.
Met store, airmens lav.
Teleprinter, cylinder store, Duty pilots rest room.

First floor plan.
Front to rear:
Control room.
Sign. off. Cont. Off. rest room.

Store, Met Off. bedroom.

RAF Tain

Details

Main entrance.

Plan.

 

 

RAF Tain

Details

Main entrance.

RAF Tain

Details

Gymnasium and fire tender house.

Plan.

RAF Tain

Details

Fire tender house.

RAF Tain

Details

Fire tender house.

Bedford fire truck.

Trailer pump.

 

RAF Tain

Details

Main store - TB - 8199/40 on Google with the right hand building in tact.
.

Main store TB - 8199/40 my picture and the right hand building has collapsed.

Plan.

Plan.

 

RAF Tain

Details

Main store 8199/40.

RAF Tain

Details

Main store 8199/40 the centre section is the fabric store, aircraft fabric would be hung from the roof. the two side sections, were for general stores and aircraft stores.

 

Fabric store.

 

RAF Tain

Details

Main store 8199/40 the double doorway on the left, the floor is higher to allow lorries to unload over their tailgate.

Store man.

Collecting stores.

 

RAF Tain

Details

Main gate with the guard room and fire party on the right and the Fire tender engine house on the left

 

 

 

RAF Tain

Details

Gymnasium probably a TB - 16428/40.

Vents like this would have been on the roof.

Plan.

 

RAF Tain

Details

Main gate with the guard room and fire party.

Plan.

RAF Tain

Details

This I am very unsure, I thought a fuel store, but it only has one entrance?

Plan.

RAF Tain

Details

This I am very unsure, I thought a fuel store, but it only has one entrance?
The entrance.

Google air photo.

RAF Tain

Details

This I am very unsure, I thought a fuel store, but it only has one entrance?

RAF Tain

Details

Another view of the control tower.

RAF Tain

Details

Stanton air-raid shelter. It would have had earth heaped up over the top.

Stanton air-raid shelter.

Stanton air-raid shelter.

Stanton air-raid shelter.

RAF Tain

Details

Crittall window in the gymnasium.

 

RAF Tain

Details

Another Stanton air-raid shelter.

The escape exit would have had a steel door.

 

RAF Tain

Details

RAF Liberator PPW-K 898 No. 311 (Czechoslovak) Squadron RAF. in 1945.

 P/O Joe Hubricka and B. Vaverka of No. 311 (Czechoslovak) Squadron RAF.

A bomber crew of No. 311 (Czechoslovak) Squadron RAF study a map, while sitting on 250-lb GP bombs which are about to be loaded into their Vickers Wellington Mark IC at East Wretham, Norfolk.

This is Liberator IIIA, LV343 at RAF Beaulieu.

No. 311 (Czechoslovak) Squadron RAF.

RAF Tain

Details

No. 86 Squadron and RAF Tain.
Extracts from Memories of No 86 Squadron and RAF Tain by Peter D F Drummond-Hay. An article on Tain museums website, very interesting.

No. 86 Squadron and RAF.

RAF Tain

Details

Tain Air Gunnery and Bombing Range 1938, Bye-Laws.
Ashley Walk, New Forest, Critchel Down, Dorset and many other ranges were bought War Office just prior to the war.

RAF Tain

Details

Tain Air Gunnery and Bombing Range with low flying wild life.

Tornado bombing.

Strafing attack.

RAF Tain

Details

Operations Block.

Plan.

 

 

 

RAF Tain

Details

Operations Block.
The air vent inlet, chimney and water tower.

Senior RAF Officers would plan for operations from the airfield, there were several missions from here to bomb the Battleship Tirpitz in Norway.
Attack the Tirpitz!! In a Halifax?? John Knifton.

Teleprinter room.

Gas tight doors.

Water tank in the tower.

Air conditioning plant.

RAF Tain

Details

Operations Block.

Tirpitz.

Halifax bomber.

 

RAF Tain

Details

Intelligence office RAF North Coats 1944.

 

RAF Tain

Details

Air men's dinning room pos. - TB - 8221/40.
If you count the blast shelters, multiply them by 32men, you have the amount of men that could be accommodated in that area. 8x32=256.

A nice picture of the dinning room.

In the plan view, you can see the kitchen end and both sides for dinning.

Plan.

Kitchen.

Staff,

blast shelter plan [2360-41] for 32men.

Staff,

Staff,

RAF Tain

Details

Picket Post.

Plan.

RAF Tain

Details

Unknown.

Plan.

RAF Tain

Details

Bulk Petrol Instillation (Aviation).
36,000 or 72,000 gal.

Bulk Petrol Instillation (Aviation).
Pump house it could be a 9843/41 type.

Plan.

 

 

 

 

 

RAF Tain

Details

Sewage Site.

Plan.

 

Sewage tool shed.

RAF Tain

Details

This looks like an M&E plinth, plus a small electrical cabinet.

Plan.

M&E plinth.

 

Ring main cable.

RAF Tain

Details

Tarbat Ness Lighthouse.

© 2013 Richard Drew