RAF Digby

From Free net encyclopedia

RAF Digby is about 15 miles south of Lincoln and 8 miles north of Sleaford.

Although nominally an RAF station, over the last thirty years it has been used by the Army, Navy, Air Force and more recently, by United States military personnel. Home to two Signals Units, Joint Service Signals Unit (nee 399 Signals Unit), 591 Signals Unit and the Aerial Erector School. With no airfield its main function now is a communications base.

In 1942 it was used by the Royal Canadian Air Force but previous alumini include Douglas Bader and Guy Gibson. It remembers this era with a Supermarine Spitfire replica as a gate guard.

There is a bunker dating back to the Second World War when RAF Digby was a Sector operations HQ, which has been restored and is now a museum.

The station gymnasium is excellent, and is probably the size of a football pitch, all undersprung and with a 200 m running track around the outside. There is also an out-door astroturf pitch. The station has football, hockey, rugby and cricket teams all willing to host visiting sides. Students at the aerial erector school include some entrants to the civilian electricity supply and broadcasting industries.

The station is the oldest RAF station, being called RAF Scopwick on march 31st 1918 the day before the official founding of the RAF and the naming of other stations. Its name was changed because of a similar name on another RAF station RAF Shopwick. For radio communications reasons both station's names were changed.Template:RAF-stub