RAF Carnaby
Carnaby,East Riding of Yorkshire in England
Site information
Type	Emergency Diversion Runway
Code	KQ[1]
Owner	Ministry of Defence
Operator	Royal Air Force
Controlled by	RAF Bomber Command *No. 4 Group RAF[1]
Location
RAF Carnaby Shown within East Riding of Yorkshire Show map of East Riding of Yorkshire RAF Carnaby RAF Carnaby (the United Kingdom) Show map of the United Kingdom
Coordinates	54°03′39″N000°15′42″W / 54.06083°N 0.26167°W /54.06083; -0.26167
Site history
Built	1943 (1943)/44
Built by	John Laing & Son Ltd
In use	March 1944 – 1945 1959 – 1963 (1963)
Battles/wars	European theatre of World War II Cold War
Airfield information
Elevation	10 metres (33 ft)[1]AMSL
Runways Direction Length and surface 09/27 2,700 metres (8,858 ft) Bitumen and sea sand[2]

Royal Air Force Carnaby or more simplyRAF Carnaby is a formerRoyal Air Force emergencylanding strip that offered crippledbombers a safe place to land near the English coast during theSecond World War. It was situated 2 miles (3.2 km) south-west ofBridlington,East Riding of Yorkshire.

RAF Carnaby opened in March 1944 under the control ofNo. 4 Group Royal Air Force.^[3] Unlike most RAF airfields, there was a single runway, five times the width of a standard runway and 9,000 ft (2,700 m) long, lying approximately east-west to enable bombers crossing the coast an easier landing.^[4] Two similar airfields were either constructed or further developed along the east coast of England, atManston andWoodbridge, all three providing an emergency option for wartime bomber crews.^[4] The three airfields were developed to the same pattern,Woodbridge being the first to open in November 1943. The runway atManston was brought into operation in April 1944.^[5]

These airfields were intended for use by returning bombers suffering from low fuel and/or suspected damage to their pneumatic (wheel brake) and/or hydraulic (undercarriage) systems.^[6] All three airfields were equipped with one runway, 9,000 ft (2,700 m) long and 750 ft (230 m) wide. There was a further clear area of 1,500 ft (460 m) at each end of the runway.^[5] At each of the three airfields, the runway was divided into three 250 ft (76 m) lanes. The northern and central lanes were allocated by flying control, while the southern lane was the emergency lane on which any aircraft could land without first making contact with the airfield.^[7] Over 1,400 bombers made an emergency landing at Carnaby by the end of the war.^[4]

Air Chief MarshalBasil Embry inMission Completed believed that the three emergency runways were constructed as a result of the success of the 3 mi (4.8 km)-long landing strip and flarepath atRAF Wittering in accepting over 70 damaged aircraft from Bomber Command.^[8] The runway had been lengthened in 1940 to reduce landing accidents toBristol Beaufighternight fighters returning at night and in bad weather.

Carnaby was one of fifteen airfields operating the fog dispersal system known asFog Investigation and Dispersal Operation (FIDO).^[9] The system consisted of two rows of pipes emitting burningpetrol, one on each side of the runway; the heat from this fire raised the air temperature above the runways, cutting a hole in the fog and providing crews with a brightly lit strip indicating the position of the runway.^[4]

The station closed in 1946 but was re-activated in 1953 due to the need to train pilots for theKorean War. The airfield was used as a Relief Landing Ground forNo. 203 Squadron (then based atRAF Driffield)^[10] but closure to flying came soon after in 1954.^[5]

RAF Carnaby was aPGM-17 Thor missile base from 1959 to 1963 controlled byNo. 150 Squadron RAF.^[11]

RAF Carnaby was for many years used for the storage of newLada cars and a parts distribution centre.^[12] The runway and other paved areas were also used to hold motorcycle racing events throughout the 1970s and 1980s, some of which were televised.^[13] Today it has been developed into Carnaby Industrial Estate.^[11]

• Bowyer, Michael J F.Action Stations 1; Military airfields of East Anglia. Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, UK: Patrick Stephen Publishing, 1979.ISBN 0-85059-335-2.
• Falconer, J (2012).RAF Airfields of World War 2. UK: Ian Allan Publishing.ISBN 978-1-85780-349-5.
• Halpenny, Bruce.Action Stations 4; Military airfields of Yorkshire. Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, UK: Patrick Stephen Publishing, 1982.ISBN 0-85059-532-0.
• Otter, Patrick (2003).Yorkshire Airfields in the Second World War (4 ed.). Newbury: Countryside Books.ISBN 1-85306-542-0.

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• Royal Air Force stations of World War II in the United Kingdom
• Royal Air Force stations in Yorkshire
• Buildings and structures in the East Riding of Yorkshire

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