RAF Marham

RAF Marham is a major Royal Air Force station located in Norfolk, England, and a cornerstone of the United Kingdom's deep strike and expeditionary air power. Operating as a Main Operating Base within No. 1 Group, it has been home to front-line Panavia Tornado and now Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II squadrons. The station's long history, dating to the First World War, and its critical role in operations from the Cold War to recent conflicts over Iraq and Syria, underscore its enduring strategic importance to NATO and national defence.

History

The airfield first opened in 1916 as a training site for the Royal Flying Corps during the First World War, before closing in 1919. Reactivated in 1937 as a permanent station for the expanding Royal Air Force, it became a key RAF Bomber Command base during the Second World War. Initially operating with Fairey Battle and Vickers Wellington aircraft, it later hosted the formidable Avro Lancasters of No. 617 Squadron RAF, the famous "Dambusters", and the pathfinder No. 139 Squadron RAF. In the postwar era, it transitioned to English Electric Canberra and then Avro Vulcan bombers during the height of the Cold War, before becoming the primary operational base for the Panavia Tornado GR1/GR4 from the 1980s onwards, seeing extensive action in the Gulf War, the Iraq War, and over Libya.

Based units

The station is the home of several front-line and supporting formations. The foremost is the Marham Wing, which encompasses the operational Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II squadrons, including No. 617 Squadron RAF and the Royal Air Force's first operational F-35B unit, No. 207 Squadron RAF. The station also hosts vital supporting units such as the No. 54 (Reserve) Squadron, responsible for F-35 training, and the RAF Marham Engineering Wing. Furthermore, it provides a base for detachments from the United States Air Force and other allied nations, particularly for exercises and joint operations with the British Armed Forces.

Role and operations

RAF Marham serves as the United Kingdom's Main Operating Base for the fifth-generation Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II, forming the spearhead of the nation's carrier strike and expeditionary air power capabilities alongside the Queen Elizabeth-class aircraft carriers. Its primary roles include deep strike, battlefield air interdiction, and Close air support, supported by a secondary air-to-air refuelling mission. The station's squadrons are routinely deployed on global exercises, contribute to NATO's Baltic Air Policing mission, and are on constant quick reaction alert for the defence of UK airspace, integrated within the wider UK Air Defence Region.

Facilities

The station features extensive modern infrastructure to support fifth-generation aircraft operations. Its facilities include two hardened operational runways, numerous reinforced aircraft shelters, and state-of-the-art hangars for the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II. A major £500 million investment programme completed in 2018 delivered the Strategic Facilities Project, which included a new F-35 Lightning II Integrated Training Centre, a Pilot Training Facility, and a Enterprise Zone for defence industries. The site also contains comprehensive engineering and maintenance complexes, weapons storage areas, and substantial accommodation for personnel and their families.

In popular culture

The station and its aircraft have featured in several films and documentaries, most notably in the 1955 war film "The Dam Busters", which dramatised the exploits of the station's famous No. 617 Squadron RAF. More recently, the base and its Panavia Tornado fleet were depicted in the 2011 documentary "Tornado: The Last Hurrah?". The iconic Avro Vulcan bombers formerly based at Marham have also been immortalised in numerous aviation documentaries and were famously flown by the Vulcan to the Sky display aircraft, Avro Vulcan XH558.

Category:Royal Air Force stations in Norfolk Category:Military installations established in 1916