RAF West Malling | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| West Malling, Kent in England | |||||||||
 PORTAM CUSTODIMUS (We Guard the Gate) | |||||||||
  RAF West Malling Shown within Kent | |||||||||
| Coordinates | 51°16′16″N 000°24′09″E / 51.27111°N 0.40250°E | ||||||||
| Grid reference | TQ680555[1] | ||||||||
| Type | Royal Air Force station | ||||||||
| Code | VG[2] | ||||||||
| Site information | |||||||||
| Owner | Ministry of Defence | ||||||||
| Operator | Royal Air Force | ||||||||
| Controlled by | RAF Fighter Command 1940- * No. 11 Group RAF | ||||||||
| Site history | |||||||||
| Built | 1930 | ||||||||
| In use | 1930 - 1969 | ||||||||
| Battles/wars | European theatre of World War II Cold War | ||||||||
| Airfield information | |||||||||
| Identifiers | IATA: | ||||||||
| Elevation | 94 metres (308 ft)[2] AMSL | ||||||||
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Royal Air Force West Malling or more simply RAF West Malling is a former Royal Air Force station located 1.6 miles (2.6 km) south of West Malling, Kent and 5.2 miles (8.4 km) west of Maidstone, Kent, England.
Originally used as a landing area during the First World War,[3] the site opened as a private landing ground and in 1930, then known as King Hill, home to the Maidstone School of Flying, before being renamed West Malling Airfield, and, in 1932, Maidstone Airport.[4]
During the 1930s many airshows and displays were held by aviators such as Amy Johnson and Alan Cobham, flying from a grass runway.
As war approached, the airfield was taken over by the military, to become RAF West Malling in 1940, serving in the front line against the Luftwaffe. The station saw further service after the war, first with some of the RAFs first jet squadrons, and later as a US Naval Air Station.
After closure as an operational air station in the 1960s, West Malling acquired a more civilian guise, hosting several major Great Warbirds Air Displays during the 70s and 80s, until eventually closing completely as an airfield. The site is now occupied by Kings Hill, a community of mixed residential, commercial, and civic amenities, but still retains several features of its military aviation heritage.
- ^ Birtles 2012, p. 56.
- ^ a b Falconer 2012, p. 207.
- ^ RAF West Malling Memorial Group From memorial plinth Retrieved 11 July 2007 Archived 10 October 2004 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Murray, Dave. "A Short History of Kings Hill". Kingshill Parish Council. Archived from the original on 29 September 2007. Retrieved 29 September 2007.