RAF Church Fenton | |||||||||
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| Church Fenton, North Yorkshire in England | |||||||||
 The RAF Church Fenton control tower during 2001. | |||||||||
.svg)  RAF Church Fenton Location in North Yorkshire | |||||||||
| Coordinates | 53°50′04″N 001°11′44″W / 53.83444°N 1.19556°W | ||||||||
| Grid reference | SE530380[1] | ||||||||
| Type | Sector Station (1939–59)[1] | ||||||||
| Code | CF[2] | ||||||||
| Area | 199 hectares[3] | ||||||||
| Site information | |||||||||
| Owner | Ministry of Defence (MoD) | ||||||||
| Operator | Royal Air Force | ||||||||
| Controlled by | RAF Fighter Command (1937–59) * No. 11 Group RAF * No. 12 Group RAF * No. 13 Group RAF * No. 81 (OTU) Group RAF[2] RAF Flying Training Command (1959–)[4] | ||||||||
| Condition | Closed | ||||||||
| Site history | |||||||||
| Built | 1936/37 | ||||||||
| In use | June 1937 – 2013 | ||||||||
| Fate | Sold by the MOD and became Leeds East Airport. | ||||||||
| Battles/wars | European theatre of World War II Cold War | ||||||||
| Airfield information | |||||||||
| Identifiers | ICAO: EGXG, WMO: 03355 | ||||||||
| Elevation | 9 metres (30 ft)[2] AMSL | ||||||||
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Royal Air Force Church Fenton or more simply RAF Church Fenton (ICAO: EGCM) is a former Royal Air Force station located 4.3 miles (6.9 km) south-east of Tadcaster, North Yorkshire, England and 6.3 miles (10.1 km) north-west of Selby, North Yorkshire, near the village of Church Fenton.
The station was opened in 1937 and during the Second World War was home to air defence aircraft, a role retained by the Station until the 1960s when it became a training station.
The last Station Commander of a self-determining RAF Church Fenton was Sqn Ldr David Morris, who had trained on Chipmunk aircraft at RAF Church Fenton in 1973. Sqn Ldr Morris returned to RAF Church Fenton in 1991 as the Officer Commanding Station Services Squadron, to prepare the as then autonomous station for yet another closure, and transfer into the control of RAF Linton on Ouse as a satellite airfield and Enhanced Relief Landing Ground.
The gates of the fully independent RAF Church Fenton were closed at 12:00 on 31 December 1992, However, with its assets such as the Officers' Mess subsequently razed to the ground to save on maintenance, and the married quarters and other buildings sold off piecemeal by the MoD, RAF Church Fenton's runways and aviation infrastructure were alienated from the remainder of the administrative site and remained operational until 2013. The satellite airfield Enhanced Relief Landing Ground was sold in 2013 and is now a civilian airfield known as Leeds East Airport.
- ^ a b Birtles 2012, p. 29.
- ^ a b c Falconer 2012, p. 65.
- ^ "Defence Estates Development Plan (DEDP) 2009 – Annex A" (PDF). GOV.UK. Ministry of Defence. 3 July 2009. p. 2. Retrieved 3 May 2018.
- ^ a b c Birtles 2012, p. 30.