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 Docking, in Norfolk, was a satellite station built in 1939-40 to support RAF Coastal Command operations from nearby RAF Bircham Newton. As a grass airfield with multiple blister hangars and an A-type hangar, it provided extra capacity for squadrons tasked with the hard, unglamorous work of guarding Britain’s sea lanes – convoy escort, anti-shipping strikes and anti-submarine patrols across the North Sea and approaches to the east coast.
Coastal Command operations
The first squadron to operate from Docking was No. 235 Squadron, initially flying Bristol Blenheims for convoy escort and anti-shipping work before the station saw Lockheed Hudsons in the same maritime patrol role. The tactical problem was constant: German surface raiders, U-boats and aircraft sought to disrupt merchant traffic, while Coastal Command tried to find targets in vast search areas, often in poor weather and at the limits of range.
Meteorological reconnaissance: ‘PAMPA’ flights
One of Docking’s most distinctive wartime roles was meteorology. A dedicated observation unit (initially No. 405 Flight) was established to gather weather data vital to planning operations. When meteorological units transferred to Coastal Command control, the detachment became No. 1401 (Met) Flight and later, in August 1942, expanded into No. 521 Squadron. Aircraft types varied widely – Blenheims, Spitfires, Gladiators, Hurricanes and later Hudsons, Hampdens, Mosquitos and Venturas – used to take precise readings of temperature and humidity from high altitude downwards. Some Mosquito sorties penetrated deep into occupied Europe to sample conditions over intended target areas, missions known as ‘PAMPA’.
This work was strategically significant. Accurate forecasts influenced everything from convoy routing to the timing of bombing raids, minelaying and special operations. Meteorological flights rarely attract the attention given to combat squadrons, yet their data could decide whether an operation launched or stood down.
Units and a busy satellite
As an overflow airfield, Docking hosted a wide mix of posted units over time, including Coastal Command and allied squadrons such as No. 304 (Polish) Squadron, Royal Canadian Air Force units, and other RAF squadrons associated with maritime patrol, armament practice and support flights. Naval aviation also passed through, with Fleet Air Arm squadrons recorded at the station. Training and support units – such as beam approach training flights and RAF Regiment detachments – reflect the infrastructure needed to keep a working airfield functional under wartime conditions.
After the war
RAF Docking remained in use into the post-war period, but like many satellite grass fields it eventually declined as aviation moved toward longer, harder runways and larger aircraft. The site later returned to agriculture, yet the station’s story remains important: Docking helped keep Coastal Command’s aircraft flying when capacity was stretched, and it played a quietly crucial role in the weather intelligence that underpinned major Allied operations.