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 Twinwood Farm was a wartime airfield at near Bedford (Bedfordshire). During the Second World War it served as a training and operational-support station known for night-fighting/strike training and later diverse squadron use. active through the war, with a strong OTU identity and multiple visiting/short-stay squadrons.
Like most British wartime stations, RAF Twinwood Farm functioned as a small, self-contained town. Beyond the runways were technical areas for maintenance and armament, dispersed hardstandings to reduce losses during raids, and domestic sites where airmen, WAAFs or naval personnel lived, trained, and waited for the next tasking. On operational nights or intensive training days the routine revolved around briefings, meteorology, aircraft servicing, and a tight rhythm of take-off and recovery windows.
Units and aircraft
Aircraft commonly associated with wartime flying here: Blenheim, Beaufighter, Beaufort, Douglas Boston, Mosquito.
Records for RAF Twinwood Farm show a mix of operational and support activity. Some units were long-term residents with a stable identity, while others arrived as detachments – often for conversion training, gunnery work-ups, dispersal, or to cover a specific operational requirement. That pattern is typical of the RAF’s wartime system: stations were constantly re-tasked as the air war shifted from defence to offence, from the Battle of the Atlantic to the bomber offensive, and later to preparations for the invasion of Northwest Europe.
- No. 51 Operational Training Unit (used a mix including Blenheim, Beaufighter, Beaufort, Boston, Mosquito)
- Squadrons recorded at various times include Nos. 26, 164, 169, 239, 268 and 613 Squadrons
- Airborne Interception Conversion Flight and RAF Regiment presence (airfield defence)
- Postings also included 14 Service Flying Training School and aircrew holding/administrative units
Key moments
Twinwood illustrates the fluid wartime ‘training front’: OTUs trained crews for operational theatres while operational squadrons rotated in for rest, refit, or special tasks.
Night-flying, radar/interception training and multi-crew discipline were recurring themes, reflecting the RAF’s growing sophistication in nocturnal air warfare.
Research tip: if you’re tracing people connected to the airfield, look for unit Operational Record Books (ORBs), station diaries, and local newspaper reports. Squadron codes, aircraft serials and incident cards can often tie a single photograph to a precise date, aircraft and crew – turning a generic image into a documented historical moment.
What’s left today
Later civilian use doesn’t erase the wartime story: the mix of OTU and squadron postings makes Twinwood a rich, layered station to research.
Landscape and flying conditions: RAF Twinwood Farm’s geography influenced operations. Prevailing winds dictated runway selection, while local terrain and weather shaped training and safety. In winter, short daylight and low cloud increased the workload; in summer, longer hours enabled intensive training programmes and high sortie rates. These practical factors are often reflected in accident reports and ORBs, which mention crosswinds, icing, fog, and diversion landings.
Landscape and flying conditions: RAF Twinwood Farm’s geography influenced operations. Prevailing winds dictated runway selection, while local terrain and weather shaped training and safety. In winter, short daylight and low cloud increased the workload; in summer, longer hours enabled intensive training programmes and high sortie rates. These practical factors are often reflected in accident reports and ORBs, which mention crosswinds, icing, fog, and diversion landings.