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RAF Foulsham, in Norfolk, became one of the most important USAAF heavy bomber bases in East Anglia during the decisive mid-to-late years of the Second World War. Built as a ‘Class A’ airfield and opened in 1942, it was developed with the infrastructure needed for high-volume heavy bomber operations: long concrete runways, extensive dispersal hardstandings, perimeter tracks, and technical areas capable of supporting large aircraft and the complex maintenance they demanded.
The airfield is most closely associated with the United States Army Air Forces’ 446th Bombardment Group (Heavy), which operated Consolidated B-24 Liberators. The B-24 was a long-range, high-payload bomber with distinct handling and maintenance requirements, and a station operating Liberators was a deeply industrial environment. Crews and ground staff lived a routine defined by briefings, loading, engine testing, assembly, long missions and debriefing, with aircraft constantly cycling through maintenance and repair.
From Foulsham, the heavy bomber group attacked targets across occupied Europe and Germany. These missions were part of the Combined Bomber Offensive: destroying industrial output, disrupting transport, attacking oil infrastructure, and supporting major operations such as the invasion of Normandy by striking rail hubs and supply routes. Because Liberators could be used flexibly, raids included deep penetrations as well as shorter strikes against ports, airfields and coastal installations. The station also experienced the ongoing shift in air superiority: early missions could be brutally contested, while later raids increasingly benefited from stronger fighter escort and the weakening of the Luftwaffe.
The human cost was always present. Heavy bomber operations produced losses through flak, fighters and weather, and the return of damaged aircraft was part of daily life. Medical teams, crash crews and fire units were integral to the airfield’s functioning. Ground crews repaired battle damage, changed engines, patched control surfaces and dealt with the wear that long sorties imposed on airframes. Armourers handled large volumes of bombs and ammunition safely under time pressure – work that carried risk even on the ground.
Foulsham also sat within a dense Norfolk network of USAAF bases, which meant aircraft movement, shared logistics and occasional unit reshuffling were normal. This network effect mattered: it increased resilience and allowed groups to operate at scale, with neighbouring stations providing mutual support during weather disruptions or operational emergencies.
After 1945, the bomber force demobilised rapidly and Foulsham closed, its land returning largely to agriculture. Yet the airfield’s wartime story remains a strong East Anglian example of the USAAF presence: a Liberator base where the daily work of flying, maintaining and supporting heavy bombers contributed directly to Allied strategic pressure and the eventual defeat of Germany.
Liberator operations also required careful fuel and weight management, and ground crews became experts at balancing bomb loads, auxiliary tanks and equipment for different target distances. Those ‘invisible calculations’ were part of the station’s daily craftsmanship, shaping both mission success and the chances of a damaged aircraft making it home.