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.
RAF Podington in Bedfordshire became best known as an American heavy bomber station, designated USAAF Station 109. Built as a Class A airfield with concrete runways and a perimeter dispersal system, it was handed to the United States Army Air Forces as the Eighth Air Force expanded in Britain. Its most famous resident was the 92nd Bombardment Group (Heavy), one of the earliest USAAF bomber groups to operate from the UK and a unit closely associated with the Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress.
The 92nd arrived at Podington in September 1942, bringing with it four operational squadrons (the 325th, 326th, 327th and 407th Bomb Squadrons) and the hard-won experience of the Eighth Air Force’s formative period. From Podington, B-17 crews took part in the daylight strategic bombing campaign against targets in occupied Europe and Germany – airfields, industrial plants, rail yards and shipbuilding facilities – flying in tight formation to concentrate defensive fire and improve bombing results. The group’s early period was marked by experimentation and heavy losses as tactics evolved to cope with fighter opposition and flak, and Podington therefore sits in the story of how the Eighth Air Force learned to fight and then scaled into a formidable force.
Podington also had a wider cast of wartime users, reflecting the fluidity of USAAF basing. Early in 1942 the 28th Troop Carrier Squadron operated Douglas C-47 Skytrains from the airfield, and in September 1942 the 15th Bombardment Squadron (Light) arrived flying the British Boston III (the RAF’s name for the Douglas A-20 Havoc family). At other times, photographic reconnaissance, anti-submarine and replacement/training elements used the station, underlining how American airfields could be repurposed quickly to meet changing demands.
The day-to-day life of a B-17 station centred on routines built for scale: early morning briefings, mass take-offs, assembly into combat wings, long transits to targets and tense recoveries with damaged aircraft. The ground support burden was immense – engines, turrets, oxygen systems, radios, de-icing equipment, bomb loads and fuel. The station’s dispersal areas, hardstands and bomb dumps were designed to keep aircraft serviceable while minimising vulnerability. When aircraft did not return, empty hardstands became the most visible reminder of the cost of strategic air war.
After the war, Podington’s story took a distinctive turn in peacetime, but its wartime identity remains anchored to the B-17 era and the experience of the 92nd Bomb Group. For visitors today, Podington is a site that connects Bedfordshire directly to the wider European air offensive and to the daily reality of daylight bombing from England.
WW2 units, roles and aircraft:
- USAAF Station 109 – Eighth Air Force
- 92nd Bombardment Group (Heavy) – B-17 Flying Fortress operations; squadrons 325th, 326th, 327th, 407th
- Other users: 28th Troop Carrier Squadron (C-47); 15th Bombardment Squadron (Light) with Boston III/A-20 family
Podington’s wider significance also comes from its place in the Eighth Air Force learning curve. Early operations forced changes in tactics, formation discipline and maintenance practice. Stations like Podington became laboratories for improvement, where every mission produced lessons that were fed back into training, equipment checks and operational planning, gradually increasing effectiveness across the whole bomber force.