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RAF Valley
Royal Air Force Valley or more simply RAF Valley (Welsh: Llu Awyr Brenhinol Y Fali) (IATA: VLY, ICAO: EGOV) is a Royal Air Force station on the island of Anglesey, Wales, which is also used as Anglesey Airport. It provides both basic and advanced fast-jet training using the Beechcraft Texan T.1 and BAE Systems Hawk T.2 and provides mountain and maritime training for aircrew using the Airbus Jupiter HT.1 helicopter.
The airfield was constructed to the south of the village of Valley (Y Fali) or Y Dyffryn in the latter part of 1940 and opened for operations on 1 February 1941 as a Fighter Sector Station under No. 9 Group RAF with the task of providing defence cover for England's industrial north-west and shipping in the Irish Sea. Initial detachments were made by Hawker Hurricanes of 312 (Czechoslovak) Squadron RAF and 615 (County of Surrey) Squadron AAF. A detachment of Bristol Beaufighters of 219 (Mysore) Squadron provided night fighter cover.
No. 456 Squadron Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) formed at Valley on 30 June 1941 and became operational on 5 September flying Boulton Paul Defiants. By November the squadron had been completely re-equipped with Beaufighter IIs, and these provided defensive night patrols over the Irish Sea until March 1943, when the unit moved to RAF Middle Wallop.
As a result of many accidents in the Irish Sea, due to the number of training aircraft active in the area, 275 Squadron formed at Valley in October 1941, equipped with Westland Lysanders and Supermarine Walrus amphibians and these performed Air-sea rescue (ASR) missions until the unit moved to RAF Warmwell in April 1944.
The runways and taxiways were extended in early 1943, and on 19 June 1943 the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) Ferry Terminal became operational. This handled American aircraft arriving from transatlantic flights and on European sorties. Eleven Consolidated B-24 Liberators of the United States Navy arrived from Iceland on 17 August. During the winter of 1943/1944, the ferry route was switched to a southerly route via the Azores and Marrakesh and on 18 February, 62 Douglas C-47 Skytrains arrived from North Africa. One of Valley's busiest days was on 17 September 1944 when 99 USAAF Boeing B-17 Flying Fortresses and Liberators were ferried in from Iceland. In the middle of 1944 there was a daily transatlantic Douglas C-54 Skymaster service from Stephenville bringing airmen of all ranks, who continued their journeys to London on the LMSR Irish Mail train from Holyhead.
Because of the large scale USAAF activities at Valley, RAF operations were scaled down, but on 1 November 1944, No. 1528 BAT Flight re-formed here operating Airspeed Oxford twin-engined aircraft which were used in the Beam Approach training role until moving out on 17 December 1945.
RAF Valley's USAAF ferry role was reversed as soon as the European War ended, and over 2,600 bombers passed through on their way back to the US for redeployment, each carrying 20 passengers and crew. The USAAF Movement Section closed in September 1945, and in June 1947 the airfield was put on a care and maintenance basis.
During 1950 many improvements were made to the hangars and buildings at Valley, and on 1 April 1951 No. 202 Advanced Flying School was reformed here within No. 25 Group to train fighter pilots on de Havilland Vampire and Gloster Meteor jet aircraft. Vampire FB.5 and T.11 and Meteor T.7 marks were used until the unit was redesignated No. 7 Flying Training School (FTS) on 1 June 1954. On 15 August 1960 the unit was renumbered No. 4 FTS RAF which is still based at the airfield.
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RAF Valley
Royal Air Force Valley or more simply RAF Valley (Welsh: Llu Awyr Brenhinol Y Fali) (IATA: VLY, ICAO: EGOV) is a Royal Air Force station on the island of Anglesey, Wales, which is also used as Anglesey Airport. It provides both basic and advanced fast-jet training using the Beechcraft Texan T.1 and BAE Systems Hawk T.2 and provides mountain and maritime training for aircrew using the Airbus Jupiter HT.1 helicopter.
The airfield was constructed to the south of the village of Valley (Y Fali) or Y Dyffryn in the latter part of 1940 and opened for operations on 1 February 1941 as a Fighter Sector Station under No. 9 Group RAF with the task of providing defence cover for England's industrial north-west and shipping in the Irish Sea. Initial detachments were made by Hawker Hurricanes of 312 (Czechoslovak) Squadron RAF and 615 (County of Surrey) Squadron AAF. A detachment of Bristol Beaufighters of 219 (Mysore) Squadron provided night fighter cover.
No. 456 Squadron Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) formed at Valley on 30 June 1941 and became operational on 5 September flying Boulton Paul Defiants. By November the squadron had been completely re-equipped with Beaufighter IIs, and these provided defensive night patrols over the Irish Sea until March 1943, when the unit moved to RAF Middle Wallop.
As a result of many accidents in the Irish Sea, due to the number of training aircraft active in the area, 275 Squadron formed at Valley in October 1941, equipped with Westland Lysanders and Supermarine Walrus amphibians and these performed Air-sea rescue (ASR) missions until the unit moved to RAF Warmwell in April 1944.
The runways and taxiways were extended in early 1943, and on 19 June 1943 the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) Ferry Terminal became operational. This handled American aircraft arriving from transatlantic flights and on European sorties. Eleven Consolidated B-24 Liberators of the United States Navy arrived from Iceland on 17 August. During the winter of 1943/1944, the ferry route was switched to a southerly route via the Azores and Marrakesh and on 18 February, 62 Douglas C-47 Skytrains arrived from North Africa. One of Valley's busiest days was on 17 September 1944 when 99 USAAF Boeing B-17 Flying Fortresses and Liberators were ferried in from Iceland. In the middle of 1944 there was a daily transatlantic Douglas C-54 Skymaster service from Stephenville bringing airmen of all ranks, who continued their journeys to London on the LMSR Irish Mail train from Holyhead.
Because of the large scale USAAF activities at Valley, RAF operations were scaled down, but on 1 November 1944, No. 1528 BAT Flight re-formed here operating Airspeed Oxford twin-engined aircraft which were used in the Beam Approach training role until moving out on 17 December 1945.
RAF Valley's USAAF ferry role was reversed as soon as the European War ended, and over 2,600 bombers passed through on their way back to the US for redeployment, each carrying 20 passengers and crew. The USAAF Movement Section closed in September 1945, and in June 1947 the airfield was put on a care and maintenance basis.
During 1950 many improvements were made to the hangars and buildings at Valley, and on 1 April 1951 No. 202 Advanced Flying School was reformed here within No. 25 Group to train fighter pilots on de Havilland Vampire and Gloster Meteor jet aircraft. Vampire FB.5 and T.11 and Meteor T.7 marks were used until the unit was redesignated No. 7 Flying Training School (FTS) on 1 June 1954. On 15 August 1960 the unit was renumbered No. 4 FTS RAF which is still based at the airfield.