The airfield was situated 1.7 miles [2.7 km] South West of Driffield, East Riding, and 10.7 miles [17.2 km] North West of Beverley, East Riding of Yorkshire, England.
This is 280 km North of London.
The Station was first opened in 1918 under the name of RFC Eastburn, before closing in early 1920.
In 1935 a new Station was built on the site for the RAF, initially training bomber crews. The Station was closed in 1977 and the site was passed over to the British Army for use as a driving school, it was renamed Alamien Barracks.
The first tenants of the Station were No 21 Training Depot, on 15th July 1918.
Made up of No 3 and 27 Training Squadrons.
No 202 and No 217 Squadrons, joined the Station strength from March 1919, however by early 1920 these Squadrons had been disbanded and this left an empty airfield, which was closed shortly after.
During the early 1930’s Driffield was selected for one of the RAF’s expansion scheme airfields, with construction work commencing in 1935 and was officially opened in July 1936.
This new Station consisted of 5 large hangers, curved around the grass runways that stretched towards the North West.
Placed neatly behind these hangers were the many buildings that made up the Station.
RAF Driffied became home to a number of bomber Squadrons including No 58 and No 215 Squadrons, both flying Vickers Virginia Bombers under control of No 3 Group, Bomber Command.
When No 4 Group Bomber Command was formed in April 1937, Driffield was taken over by the new command.
The RAF expanded rapidly, and 215 Squadron’s B Flight was used to form No 75 Squadron [at this time it was still a RAF Squadron], formation date 15th March 1937.
Posted to Honington in July 1938, flying Vickers Virginia’s until August 1937,
Avro Ansons until November 1939, and Handley Page Harrows from September 1937 until September 1939, when they converted to Vickers Wellingtons.
Image Spurce
Avro Anson
Handley Page Harrow.
Vickers Wellington
No 58 Squadron had to move off the airfield in early spring 1937, only a few days after its B Flight was used to form No 51 Squadron.
Driffield was not large enough to house 4 Bomber Squadrons.
The remaining Squadrons converted to the Handley Page Harrow by the end of Summer 1937.
In 1938 the Squadrons were traded to RAF Honington to consolidate bomber types with No 3 Group
The former RAF Honington Squadrons came to Driffield, No 77 Squadron flying Welesleys and No 102 Squadron flying Heyfords.
Vickers Wellesley
By the end of the year they had both converted to Armstrong Whitley 111’s
Armstrong Whitworth Whitley
On the morning of the 4th of September 1939 bought great activity to the Station, 3 aircraft from No 102 Squadron were to drop leaflets during the second night of the war.
The fuselages of these aircraft were loaded with large bundles of leaflets, wrapped in brown paper.
Access that was normally difficult because of the retracted ventral turret was now extremely challenging through the narrow gaps between the bundles on either side of the turret.
Flying at 15,000 ft, the 3 aircraft crossed the enemy coastline, and, maintaining strict radio silence, flew down the Ruhr Valley and into France, dropping the leaflets through the flare chute as they flew.
The following night, No 77 Squadron was given the opportunity to drop leaflets using 2 of their aircraft.
On the night of 15/15 March 1940 two aircraft of No 77 Squadron alone dropped 6,000,000 leaflets during a raid over Warsaw.
This was followed on the 19th March by the first deliberate bombing on German soil.
Both Driffield Squadrons were joined by aircraft from RAF Dishford and together they bombed the mine laying seaplane base at Hornum, on the Island of Sylt.
On Thursday 15th August 1940, there was a German air raid on the Station.
At approximately midday 50 Junkers Ju 88 aircraft attacked the airfield, killing 15 military personnel, 1 civilian and destroying 12 Whitley aircraft.
Junkers Ju 88
The 169 bombs dropped caused extensive damage, with many buildings, including all five hangers, being either damaged or destroyed.
The death toll included the first fatality among the WAAF’s [ Women’s Auxiliary Air Force].[AGW M Hudson]
Part of a report given by Steward Cooney from Leeds, who was a gunner with No 295 Heavy Anti-Aircraft Battery.
During the war, RAF Driffield boasted a number of defenses against air attack.
Buildings were camouflaged and air-raid shelters erected in large numbers.
The aerodrome was protected by a number of .303 Lewis light machine gun posts and two 3 in anti-aircraft gun sites, one situated on the north side, the other on the south side of the airfield.
Mr Cooney who was in the Command Post manning the height finder said:
"We also had a RDF (Radio Detection Finder) set, an early form of radar, consisting of a transmitter and receiver.
"Geoffrey Turner, the transmitter operator, as soon as the alarm sounded dashed to put the transmitter on the air and made sure it was working, then went for his steel helmet.
He was returning when a stack of bombs fell and exploded.
Shrapnel practically severed his hand from the wrist and badly cut his thigh.
"In spite of his injuries, he returned to the transmitter trailer and carried out his duties.
Before collapsing, he sent a message through to the command post saying he was hurt.
The raid over, I was called to give first-aid and was shocked by the extent of his injuries and frankly could do little for him except try and stop the bleeding.
”I have never seen such bravery and calmness, as he instructed us as to the best way to get him out of the trailer and into the waiting ambulance.
Unfortunately, he died that evening."
The anti-aircraft fire directed against the bombers resulted in one being brought down.
Altogether, six Ju 88s were shot down, representing about 10% of the force sent over.
A Blenheim from No.219 Squadron based at RAF Catterick in North Yorkshire was hit by return fire from enemy aircraft engaged off Scarborough, but managed to crash-land at Driffield.
One of her crew, Sgt 0 E Dupee was wounded in the right arm.
The German High Command wasted no time in turning RAF Driffield's misfortune into propaganda.
Written by Hans E. Seidat, a German war correspondent who flew with the Luftwaffe that day,
the following report was published two days later:
For three days we have been reading and bearing about the great air battles over England. Airports, harbours and armaments factories are being destroyed by our squadrons.
Our fighters are having unbelievable success in downing enemy planes.
We wonder how long it can go on.
We are eager to get into action, and almost fear that the victory will be over before we get to do anything.
But when we least expect it, the orders come.
After a short talk with the crew, fully-loaded trucks take us to the planes.
Alt around, the yellow swim vests and colorful scarves of the eager crew are evident.
Soon, plane after plane takes off toward England. Our target is Driffield Airfield on the east coast of central England, one of the most important bases of the enemy air force.
Our mission is to destroy it.
The sky is blue as we fiy over land ready for harvesting.
Further formations join us at the coast. Soon we are over the water.
There are planes as far as the eye can see.
We have been waiting for this day! We sing the England Song and others.
We near the English coast, and can be attacked at any moment by enemy fighters.
We watch the skies. There they are! Fighters to the left! Keep calm! I am behind a machine gun, and keep a careful eye on the enemy.
Now they attack. Our planes manoeuvre to make the attack difficult.
We start shooting.
Now there is a second fighter. It goes around is in a wide curve.
Before he dares attack us, I fire a burst across his nose.
The warning is enough.
Tommy does not seem to feel comfortable in the midst of all our planes, He is being fired at from ail sides.
Our comrades are defending themselves. Five of the enemy are shot down within a few minutes.
An intense defense is not enough to stop our attack on the air base.
A tongue of land extends into the sea. We are over England, Several clouds kindly give us cover.
A few minutes more and we are over Driffield Airfield. What an attack!
We dive through an opening in the clouds directly above the base. We dive toward the ground.
We can see the details clearly. We see airplanes, buildings, and there, that is the large hangar.
That is our target. We release our bombs, which plunge rapidly to the ground.
They seem to be magnetically attracted to the target. Now I cannot see them any more.
l watch the ground; there have to be explosions soon. Will they hit the target? Four huge clouds rise into the air.
Yes! Direct hits! Nothing is left of the hangar. Powerful clouds of smoke billow up.
We were the fourth plane to attack. Plane after plane follows us, bomb after bomb brings destruction down below.
They hit the rows of two-engined planes, the hangars and barracks, and tear huge holes in the runways.
Thick smoke is everywhere. To the right down below, l see a heavy flak battery. But their fuses are set too low.
I've long since exchanged the machine gun for a camera, to capture the complete destruction of the airfield.
As we leave, we see the munitions depot go up in flames.
Far out to sea we can still see smoke and flames over the Driffield Airfield. We have completed our mission.
There once was an airfield at Driffield…
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Another extract from a German airman's account of the attack on Driffield airfield is given below.
Oberleutnant Rudolf Kratz flying a Junkers Ju 88 of Stab/KG 30 stationed at Aalborg in occupied Denmark and it is taken from the book
’The Luftwaffe in the Battle of Britain' by Armand van lshoven:
The coast - the initial point. No time left for thinking - there lay England, the lion's den.
But the eagles were going to attack the lion in his lair and wound him grievously.
”Fighters to starboard... "
Three specks overflew us, disappeared to the rear, and after a diving turn, hung behind us.
”Your turn now".
The words disappeared in the rattle of our machine guns. In short bursts the volleys few towards the first fighter.
He turned away and the second one took his place.
This one's fire is ineffective as well and both passed below and were shot at by our ventral gunner.
Like hornets they swooshed through our formation, the roundels on their fuselage looking like eyes.
"Five fighters to port above." reported the wireless operator calmly.
"Dammit," the pilot said, but did not get agitated.
We kept on flying towards our target. Staring before us we tried to locate the airfield, amidst the ragged Clouds.
"There, the field, below us.”......
The target - at last - the fighters were beginning to be a real nuisance.
The time had come now. I did not give a single Pfennig for the life of those below - drop the HEs, away with the blessing!
The aircrew went into a dive, speed rapidly building up, and the wind roared and howled around us.
The hangars grew and grew. They were still standing. The AA guns were firing away at us, but they were too late.
A jolt - the bombs were free, the steel bodies out whistling down. Below all hell was let loose.
Like an inferno, steel hit steel, and stones. Bomb upon bomb exploded, destroying and tearing apart what they hit.
Hangar walls and roofs crumpled like tin sheets, pieces flying through the air. Aircraft were shattered by a hail of splinters.
Barracks tumbled down, enormous smoke and dust clouds rose like mushrooms.
Here and there explosions and flames shot up. The airfield and the hangars were already badly hit but bombs kept falling from the bombers that followed us, kept raining down in a horrible shower.
Fire from exploding ammunition burst upwards like torches.
The English AA artillery had been eliminated, their firing positions turned into craters.
The sun shone into our cabin. The enemy fighters had been got rid of. Below us lay the wide sea.
How beautiful the earth can be. Hands loosened their grip on the machine guns.
What happened just a few minutes ago lay behind us and we relaxed.
The engines were running evenly, we ware flying home.
The airfield didn’t exist any more; that was the result…
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The Whitleys left Driffield to enable repair work to be done.
In very early 1941 No 13 Group, with fighters, arrived to replace the bombers.
Included were No 485 [NZ] Squadron flying Spitfires, from 1st March to 21st April 1941, when they went to Leconfield.
No 485 [NZ] Squadron
No 213 Squadron and No 1 [RCAF] Squadron flying Hurricanes
The three Squadrons on the Station and patrolled the North Sea.
April 1941 saw the return of the bombers as No 4 Bomber Command formed two new Squadrons there, No 104 and No 405 [Canadian] Squadron, both flying Vickers Wellingtons.
This was the first Royal Canadian Air Force bomber Squadron formed.
The 9th May 1941 was the first operation by No 104 Squadron, when 6 Wellington aircraft were dispatched to bomb Bremen.
One aircraft turned back with a jammed rear gun turret, flying at 16.000 ft, four aircraft managed to release their bombs over Bremen, but were unable to see the result due to the bright glowing haze of the already burning City.
The sixth aircraft failed to reach the target due to intercomm failure, but was able to bomb the secondary target of Wilhelmshaven.
Despite both targets being heavily defended all aircraft returned safely.
In 1943 Driffield was temporally closed for the construction of three concrete runways of 6.000 ft, linked by a perimeter track, along which the aircraft dispersal's were situated.
The airfield returned to operational used again in June 1944 with No 466 Squadron RAAF, now equipped with the four engined heavy bomber Handley Page Halifax.
They began operations supporting the Allied invasion of Europe by bombing targets in the Normandy area.
On the 12th August 1944 No 462 Squadron RAAF was formed and with its sister Squadron continued the assault on various targets in Europe.
On 10th September 1944 a small force of 30 aircraft from Driffield joined 39 other aircraft from different airfields to target the garrison and coastal defence battery at Le Havre.
This was immediately followed by some 930 other aircraft, that between them, dropped 47,000 tons of bombs on the target.
The following day the raid was repeated when 22 aircraft from Driffield combined with 196 other Bomber Command aircraft to again attack the target.
Ten hours later the German garrison surrendered to Allied ground forces.
RAF Driffield was put on ‘care and maintenance’ very soon after VE Day,
This lasted for a year, then the Station was used by Flying Training Command in the Autumn on 1946.
They installed a Navagation School and the Station supportd various training units until.
In September 1977 Fighter Command took over the airfield and stationed De Havilland Venoms there.
They remained for 2 years and the Fighter Weapons School remained 6 months longer, leaving in March 1958.
In October 1958 the Station became the Thor Missile formation Head Quarters.
This unit closed in June 1963, putting the Station back into ‘care and maintenance’
Flying did not conpletely cease however. The nearby Hawker Siddely plant had its runway at the former RAF Holme on Spalding Moor, reworked, and needed an alternative for the test flying of the new Buccaneer Strike Aircraft they were producing.
They diverted to Driffield to do their test flying.
The Station has also been used by various exercises over the years.
The station was handed over to the British Army who changed the name to Alameim Barracks and training site.
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