RAF Daws Hill | |
|---|---|
| Near High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire in England | |
 A communications mast at RAF Daws Hill during 2008. | |
  RAF Daws Hill Shown within Buckinghamshire | |
| Coordinates | 51°37′08″N 000°44′45″W / 51.61889°N 0.74583°W |
| Type | Non-flying station occupied by US Visiting Forces. |
| Area | 190 hectares[1] |
| Site information | |
| Owner | Ministry of Defence (MOD) |
| Operator | |
| Condition | Closed |
| Site history | |
| Built | 1942 |
| In use | 1942–2007 |
| Fate |
|
RAF Daws Hill was a Ministry of Defence site, located near High Wycombe and Flackwell Heath, in Buckinghamshire, England, close to the M40 motorway.
The station was established in 1942 on land owned by Wycombe Abbey School, for use by the United States military. Initially used by the United States Army Air Forces, RAF Daws Hill was used in its later years by the United States Navy. It became an important part of US defence in the United Kingdom during the 1980s, housing a nuclear bunker with a control centre for the direction of nuclear bombers and cruise missiles. As a result of this and the wider presence of US nuclear weapons on British soil during the 1980s and 1990s, the site became home to a peace camp between 1982 and 1985.
Following a review of Ministry of Defence properties in the south-east of England, the station closed in 2007 and the site was sold to a property developer in 2011.[2] The station's nuclear bunker received Grade II* listed status from English Heritage in October 2013,[3] and much of the remaining site was cleared for redevelopment as housing during 2015.
- ^ "Defence Estates Development Plan (DEDP) 2009 - Annex A" (PDF). GOV.UK. Ministry of Defence. 3 July 2009. p. 33. Retrieved 19 November 2017.
- ^ "Daws Hill area". Wycombe District Council. 2012. Retrieved 10 May 2012.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
Heritagewas invoked but never defined (see the help page).