Full WW2 control tower details and photos for this wartime airfield are coming soon. Please check back later as this is work progress. If you would like to contribute information or photos please get in touch.
Overview
RAF Wymeswold, in Leicestershire, was built as a bomber-style airfield during the Second World War but became most closely associated with training and support rather than sustained front-line operations. Opened in 1942, it formed part of the dense Midlands air station network that fed Bomber Command and the wider RAF with trained crews and serviceable aircraft. Wymeswold’s contribution was therefore practical and persistent: training sorties, continuation flying, and the kind of flexibility that allowed the RAF to keep expanding output even when weather, accidents or enemy action disrupted other bases.
Wartime role
The airfield’s wartime layout reflected standard bomber-station planning – runways capable of taking twin-engined bombers, perimeter track, dispersals and technical facilities. That infrastructure made it suitable for Operational Training Unit and conversion work, as well as for visiting aircraft and diversions. Training and conversion stations were often among the busiest in the RAF, because they flew continuously in all seasons. In many ways, the ‘risk’ at Wymeswold was not enemy action but fatigue, weather and mechanical failure – factors that made training accident rates tragically high across Britain.
Units, squadrons and aircraft
Wymeswold is best described through the typical training and support units that used such airfields. OTU detachments and advanced flying organisations used the station for navigation exercises, bombing practice, circuits and instrument work. Aircraft commonly seen in this environment included Vickers Wellingtons (as OTU bombers), Airspeed Oxfords and Avro Ansons (for multi-crew and navigation training), and a variety of trainers such as the Miles Master and North American Harvard. It was also common for maintenance and support sections to operate from the station, handling aircraft movements and servicing.
- Operational Training Unit / advanced flying detachments (bomber and multi-crew training)
- Support and communications flights (liaison, calibration, ferry movements)
- Typical aircraft: Wellington, Oxford, Anson, Master, Harvard, Tiger Moth
What happened here
On an everyday level, Wymeswold’s wartime life would have been defined by training cycles: briefings, navigation legs, bombing and gunnery practice, then the repetitive circuit work that refined take-offs and landings until they became second nature. Because training had to continue regardless of wider operational headlines, such stations developed strong procedures and a disciplined approach to flying control. The ground organisation – fuel, spares, armament handling for practice bombs, radio and signals support – also had to function reliably, because training delays echoed downstream into squadron manning levels.
Legacy
RAF Wymeswold represents the ‘hidden half’ of air warfare: the relentless production of competence. Many wartime airfields are remembered for raids or famous pilots. Wymeswold is remembered for the volume of flying that happened without fanfare, and for its place in a network that ensured operational squadrons could be replenished. For researchers, the richest detail often sits in accident reports, training logs and ORBs that record the steady, sometimes dangerous work of turning trainees into crews capable of surviving and fighting in operational aircraft.
Research tip for RAF Wymeswold: start with the station ORB (Form 540/541) for the months you are interested in, then cross-reference squadron ORBs and movement cards. Those sources usually reveal exact unit arrival/departure dates, aircraft serials, and the operational tasks being flown.