RAF Upottery

RAF Upottery
Name	RAF Upottery
Location	Upottery, Devon, England
Coordinates	50.9450°N 3.0190°W
Type	Royal Air Force station
Used	1943–1948
Controlled by	Royal Air Force
Garrison	United States Army Air Forces, Royal Air Force

RAF Upottery was a Second World War airfield near Upottery in East Devon, England, constructed for use by the Royal Air Force and allocated to the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) during the Second World War. The station functioned as a tactical transport and troop carrier base supporting major operations including the Allied invasion of Normandy and operations across the Western Front. Postwar, the site reverted to civilian use and agriculture, with fragments of runways and buildings surviving as evidence of its wartime role.

History

Construction of the airfield began in 1942 as part of the expansion of airfields under the direction of Air Ministry planners responding to the strategic air expansion and the buildup for cross-Channel operations. The base was completed in 1943 and designated for transfer to the United States Army Air Forces under the Anglo-American cooperation that followed the Arcadia Conference and other high-level wartime agreements. During 1944 the station became active in preparations for Operation Overlord, hosting USAAF troop carrier units trained in airborne operations such as Operation Neptune and Operation Market Garden planning. After cessation of major combat in Europe, the airfield supported British Army of the Rhine logistics and demobilisation activities before final RAF handover and closure.

Design and construction

The airfield followed the standard Class A bomber/transport layout mandated by the Air Ministry and implemented by civil engineering firms contracted under wartime procurement programs. Runways were constructed with concrete and pierced steel planking to accommodate C-47 and C-53 Skytrooper types from the I Troop Carrier Command, with perimeter tracks serving dispersal pans, maintenance hangars, and technical site installations. Support buildings included Nissen huts adapted from Ministry of Supply stock, an operations block similar to that at RAF Membury and RAF Exeter, and fuel storage conforming to War Department petroleum guidelines. The layout provided hardened aircraft pens, control tower, and living quarters for personnel drawn from units such as the 101st Airborne Division ground liaison and USAAF technical detachments.

Role in World War II

Upottery played a direct role in airborne and tactical transport operations supporting Operation Neptune during the Allied invasion of Normandy and subsequent airborne operations tied to the Battle of Normandy. It facilitated mass glider and parachute deployments that involved coordination with airborne divisions including the 82nd Airborne Division and 101st Airborne Division. Crews trained in formation flying, night navigation, and radio navigation procedures alongside units from the IX Troop Carrier Command and worked in concert with tactical commanders from the 21st Army Group and Twelfth Army Group. The airfield contributed to resupply missions for frontline formations such as the British Second Army and the US First Army, and later supported movement of wounded and prisoners between forward medical units and established hospitals like No. 2 Canadian General Hospital and Base Hospital 5. Its operational tempo reflected the shifting logistics of the Western Allied invasion of Germany as air transport assets pivoted to continental support.

Units and aircraft

USAAF troop carrier groups based at the station included squadrons equipped primarily with C-47 and C-53 Skytrooper aircraft, supplemented by glider-towing variants used to deliver Airborne forces such as the British 6th Airborne Division. Notable units worked alongside elements of the IX Troop Carrier Command, with squadron numbers and group designations rotating as operational needs dictated during 1944–45. RAF elements provided liaison, maintenance, and air traffic control, and engineering units from Royal Engineers maintained runway integrity. Maintenance and overhaul facilities handled airframes and Pratt & Whitney engines similar to those in the Lockheed P-38 Lightning logistical pool, while armament sections serviced defensive machine guns and radio equipment consistent with USAAF standards.

Postwar use and closure

Following the end of World War II in Europe, flying operations diminished as troop carrier units were redeployed to continental bases or inactivated under United States Air Forces in Europe reorganisation. The station was returned to British control, used briefly for storage and demobilisation tasks under the Air Ministry before placed on care and maintenance. Agricultural requisition and local authority decisions accelerated the dispersal of temporary buildings; many Nissen huts were sold off or repurposed. Official closure came in the late 1940s as part of a broader reduction of former wartime airfields such as RAF Harrowbeer and RAF Exeter, with land reverting to private ownership and local parish management.

Current status and preservation

Today much of the former airfield has been returned to arable farmland and pasture, with surviving remnants including sections of the concrete perimeter track, a fragmentary runway, and dispersed wartime service buildings repurposed for industrial and agricultural use. Local heritage groups and the Imperial War Museums network have catalogued artefacts and oral histories related to the station’s role in Operation Overlord and later transport tasks, while aviation enthusiasts connect the site’s legacy to broader narratives involving the United States Army Air Forces and Royal Air Force. Occasional commemorative events involve veterans’ associations linked to units like the 101st Airborne Division and local councils working with Historic England to record wartime infrastructure. The site remains of interest to historians studying airborne operations and the logistics of the Western Front (World War II), and its landscape continues to bear the imprint of mid‑20th-century military engineering.

Category:Royal Air Force stations in Devon