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 Deenethorpe, in Northamptonshire near Corby, was a purpose-built ‘Class A’ heavy bomber airfield completed in 1943. Although built by the Air Ministry, it is best remembered as a USAAF Eighth Air Force base, designated Station 128, during the height of the Combined Bomber Offensive.
USAAF heavy-bomber operations
From November 1943, Deenethorpe became home to the 401st Bombardment Group (Heavy), part of the 94th Combat Bombardment Wing (1st Bomb Division). The group operated Boeing B-17 Flying Fortresses and comprised four bomb squadrons: the 612th (code SC), 613th (IN), 614th (IW) and 615th (IY). Their aircraft carried the group identifier ‘Triangle-S’, a marking still widely associated with the station today.
The 401st’s role was strategic bombing: attacks on aircraft production, industrial plants, submarine facilities and shipyards, missile sites, marshalling yards and airfields. As the campaign evolved, the group’s target set shifted with wider Eighth Air Force priorities – particularly from autumn 1944, when oil production and fuel infrastructure became a central focus. Two particularly notable operations brought the group Distinguished Unit Citations for hard-fought strikes against German aircraft production on 11 January 1944 and 20 February 1944.
Supporting major campaigns
Deenethorpe’s B-17s also contributed to the air plan for the Normandy invasion. In the months leading up to 6 June 1944, the 401st hit airfields, transportation chokepoints and fortifications to weaken German mobility and air response. On D-Day itself the group attacked coastal and inland objectives linked to the landings, then continued to support the build-up by striking bridges, rail junctions and supply depots. Later in 1944, the station’s crews supported the breakout at Saint-L√¥, the siege of Brest and the airborne assault in the Netherlands (Operation Market Garden). During the Battle of the Bulge, the group shifted to communications and transport targets in the battle area, and in March 1945 it supported the airborne crossing of the Rhine.
A local disaster remembered
Like many wartime stations, Deenethorpe’s danger was not confined to enemy action. On 5 December 1943 a B-17 failed to get airborne, crashed into a cottage at the edge of Deenethorpe village and – after surviving crew members evacuated and warned local residents – its bomb load detonated. The blast damaged homes and was reportedly felt miles away, leaving a profound impression on the local community and adding another layer to the airfield’s wartime story.
Legacy
The 401st flew around 255 combat missions from Deenethorpe before leaving after Victory in Europe. Post-war, the station saw varied uses and then returned largely to agriculture. Today, remnants of runways and dispersals, along with memorials and local research, continue to connect the landscape to the men and machines that operated from this important Eighth Air Force station.