Chickerell

[martinburney]

Hi

Was there ever a bombing range at or near chickereill in the 1930's, with a relief landing ground close by.

Regards Martin Burney

[Richard Drew]

Martin

Page 57 Action Stations SW, Chickerell SY655796
http://wikimapia.org/#lat=50.6227929&lo ... chickerell
Shaun has the AA site on his website http://worldwar2airfields.fotopic.net/ under Fleet, Weymouth.
I still have some cannon shells fired on the range somewhere.
I hope the links work ok.

Richard
www.atlantikwall.co.uk

[Daveg4otu]

Chickerell page...

http://daveg4otu.tripod.com/dorset/chi.html

[Daveg4otu]

Visited Chickerell today (14th Mar 2009) to see if there was anything at all to show there was ever an airfield there.....

Sad to say the answer is NO.

If it was not for the road name (see picture) at the entrance to a rather seedy looking housing estate - you would never know.

[Daveg4otu]

Just added some new photos to my Chickerell page ...not of the airfield itself but of the first S-55(What we later knew as "Whirlwinds" to be used by the Navy ..

Used here , according to my contributor , for early dunking SONAR trials.

http://daveg4otu.tripod.com/dorset/chi.html

[Carnaby]

[Daveg4otu]

The map is interesting - comparing that and the 1940s vertical shot on my webpage it seems that sometime between 1936 and the 1940s the triangular field(X on your map ) was added to the aerodrome.

[Daveg4otu]

Yesterday I received an eMail from a gentleman who was stationed at Chickerell in 58/59 immediately before the final closure.
He was with an RAF contingent servicing the Chesil Bombing Range.

He says .." We had a control tower near the Moonfleet and a radar unit which was later moved onto the beach at Abbotsbury.
We also had manned observation units on Chesil Bank with boats kept in a boathouse which were used to cross the inland water."

Does anyone know the location of the " Control Tower"? Is there anything remaining?

[norwichpaul]

It was there I think in the early 80s and I did photograph it (though I only presume its the same building). It is going to take a long time locating the neg though.

[Daveg4otu]

Can you remember the actual location Paul?

I'm guessing it was across the Fleet (seaward side)somewhere in the vicinty of the present day Moonfleet Manor Hotel.