RAF Marston Moor | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tockwith, North Yorkshire in England | |||||||||||
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.svg)  RAF Marston Moor Location in North Yorkshire | |||||||||||
| Coordinates | 53°57′42″N 001°18′16″W / 53.96167°N 1.30444°W | ||||||||||
| Type | Airfield | ||||||||||
| Site information | |||||||||||
| Owner | Air Ministry | ||||||||||
| Operator | RAF | ||||||||||
| Site history | |||||||||||
| Built | 1940–1941 | ||||||||||
| In use | 1941–1949 | ||||||||||
| Garrison information | |||||||||||
| Past commanders | Leonard Cheshire | ||||||||||
| Airfield information | |||||||||||
| Identifiers | IATA: None, ICAO: None | ||||||||||
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RAF Marston Moor was a Royal Air Force airfield at Tockwith, North Yorkshire, during the Second World War. It was originally called RAF Tockwith, but confusion with RAF Topcliffe led to the name change.[1][2]
RAF Marston Moor was opened on 11 November 1941,[3] the airfield and RAF Church Fenton were the closest airfields to West Yorkshire and would act as a defence should Leeds be attacked. As it happens Leeds was seldom bombed.
In 1943, Group Captain Leonard Cheshire was made the station commander. He requested to be transferred to the command of 617 Squadron in November 1943, a vacancy created by the loss of George Holden in July of that year. The move required him to voluntarily step down in rank from group captain to wing commander, which he did.
Marston Moor was also in control of RAF Rufforth and RAF Riccall.[1]
- ^ a b "RAF Marston Moor". Atlantik Wall. Retrieved 8 April 2012.
- ^ "RAF Marston Moor". The Wartime Memories Project. Archived from the original on 28 February 2012. Retrieved 8 April 2012.
- ^ Otter, Patrick (1998). Yorkshire airfields in the Second World War. Newbury: Countryside Books. p. 200. ISBN 978-1-85306-542-2.