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{{Short description|Former Royal Air Force station in Somerset, England}}
{{underconstruction}}
{{Cleanup bare URLs|date=August 2022}}
]
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2019}}
'''RAF Merryfield''' was a ] airfield in ] a mile north of Isle Ahhotts just east of the Tauntonlllminstcr rail line in low lying meadows not far from the River Isle in ]. It was origionally known as RAF Isle Abbotts.
{{Use British English|date=November 2017}}
{{Infobox military installation
| name = RAF Merryfield<br />RAF Isle Abbots<br />USAAF Station AAF-464
| ensign = ]]
| ensign_size =
| native_name =
| partof = <!-- for elements within a larger site -->
| location = ], ]
| nearest_town = <!-- used in military test site infobox -->
| country = England
| image = ]
| alt =
| caption = Merryfield airfield in 1943, having just been turned over to the USAAF by the contractors, shown with the village of Ilton.
| image2 = <!--secondary image, major command emblems for airfields -->
| alt2 =
| caption2 =
| type = ]
| coordinates = {{coord|50.97|-2.94|type:landmark|display=inline,title}}
| pushpin_map = Somerset
| pushpin_map_caption = Shown within Somerset
| pushpin_label = RAF Merryfield
| pushpin_label_position =
| ownership = ]
| operator = ]<BR>]
| controlledby = ] 1943<BR>] 1943-44<BR>] 1944<BR>] 1944<br />] 1944
| open_to_public = <!-- for out of use sites/sites with museums etc -->
| site_other_label = <!-- for renaming "Other facilities" in infobox -->
| site_other = <!-- for other sorts of facilities – radar types etc -->
| site_area = <!-- area of site m2, km2 square mile etc -->
| code = HI, MF
| built = {{Start date|1942}}/43
| used = April 1943 - {{End date|1971}}
| builder = John Laing & Son Ltd
| materials =
| height = <!-- height of tallest part, not above sea level -->
| length = <!-- for border fences or other DMZs -->
| fate = <!--changed from demolished parameter-->
| condition =
| battles = ]<BR>]
| events =
| past_commanders = <!-- past notable commander(s) -->
| garrison = <!-- such as the 25th Bombardment Group -->
| occupants = <!-- squadrons only -->
| designations =
| website =
| footnotes = <!-- catchall in case it's needed to preserve something in infobox that doesn't work in new code -->
<!-- begin airfield information -->
| IATA =
| ICAO =
| FAA =
| TC =
| LID =
| GPS =
| WMO =
| elevation = {{Convert|33|m|0}}{{sfn|Falconer|1998|p=63}}
| r1-number = 00/00
| r1-length = <!-- {{Convert||m|0}} -->
| r1-surface = Concrete/Bitumen
| r2-number = 00/00
| r2-length = <!-- {{Convert||m|0}} -->
| r2-surface = Concrete/Bitumen
| r3-number = 00/00
| r3-length = <!-- {{Convert||m|0}} -->
| r3-surface = Concrete/Bitumen
| h1-number =
| h1-length = <!-- {{Convert| |m|0}} -->
| h1-surface =
| airfield_other_label = <!-- for renaming "Other facilities" in infobox -->
| airfield_other = <!-- for other sorts of airfield facilities -->
<!-- end airfield information -->
}}
]
]


'''Royal Air Force Merryfield''' or more simply '''RAF Merryfield''' (also known as '''Isle Abbotts''') is a former ] ] in the village of ] near ] in southwest ], England. The airfield is located approximately {{convert|7|mi|km}} north of ], about {{convert|130|mi|km}} southwest of ]. It is now ''']''' and serves as a satellite to the larger ]; it is used mainly as a training facility for helicopter pilots.
During the war the ] ] used the station as a Troop Carrier airfield. It was also known as USAAF station 464.


== Overview == ==History==


===Site===
Merryfield airfield was to he built to the Class "A" bomber standard, John Laing Ltd being the main contractors. Work commenced late in 1942 and on 11 November the airfield was listed as one of 16 to he made available for the USAAF to meet the number of troop carrier groups projected for the UK.
The airfield was built on or near the historic estate of ] (''alias'' Merrifield, Murefeld, Merefeld, Muryfield, Merifield, Wadham's Castle, etc.), the former fortified ] of which was situated about 1 mile west-north-west of the parish church of Ilton,<ref>Moated site: OS Map Grid Reference: ST33981779
Latitude 50.95575° Longitude −2.94131°</ref> and immediately south of the present airfield, and of which only a moated site remains, in the middle of farmland.<ref>http://www.gatehouse-gazetteer.info/English%20sites/3869.html</ref> The estate was the seat, from mediaeval times until 1609, of the ] which founded ] in 1610, and whose monuments survive at the ]. Today a large ] 19th century mansion called Merryfield House<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.britishlistedbuildings.co.uk/en-263979-merryfield-house-ilton-somerset|title=Merryfield House, Ilton, Somerset}}</ref> is situated immediately south of St Peter's Church, Ilton.


===Airfield===
The main runway was 6,000 ft and aligned 10-26, the secondaries 4,200ft at 17-35 and 3,660ft at 04-22. All 50 hardstandings were loop types in concrete with bituminous surfaces. Hangars were two T-2s which had become the standard specification for all new airfields (except those having a special purpose) by the beginning of 1943. The technical site was on the south side and the dispersed domestic sites for 3,214 persons lay mostly in the parish of Ilton.
Opened in 1944, the airfield was used by both the ] and ]. During the Second World War it was used primarily as a transport airfield. After the war it was provided to the ].


==Overview==
Work proceeded slowly as there was a problem with the drainage of waterways crossing the site. In September 1943, the official name was changed from Isle Ahbotts to Merryfield, such changes being usually connected with contractural alterations or where another airfield had a similar sounding name which might cause confusion. In this case, however the change is puzzling as the same contractors were involved and Isle Abbotts appears singularly distinctive.
Merryfield airfield was to be built to the ] standard for bomber use, with a set of three converging concrete runways for takeoffs and landings, optimally placed at 60-degree angles to each other in a triangular pattern. ] was the main contractor.<ref name=fwr>{{cite web|title=Unit History: RAF Merryfield|url=http://www.forces-war-records.co.uk/Unit-Info/1852|publisher=Forces War Records}}</ref> Work commenced late in 1942 and on 11 November the airfield was listed as one of 16 to be made available for the USAAF to meet the number of troop carrier groups projected for the UK.<ref name="berryman">{{cite book |title=Somerset airfields in the Second World War |last=Berryman |first=David |year=2006 |publisher=Countryside Books |location=Newbury |isbn=1-85306-864-0 |pages=105–123 }}</ref>


Work proceeded slowly as there was a problem with the drainage of waterways crossing the site. In September 1943, the official name was changed from Isle Abbotts to Merryfield,<ref name=stephens>{{cite web|title=Merryfield (Isle Abbots), Somerset|url=http://www.trasksdad.com/PopsProgress/Mfldhistory1.html|publisher=Patrick Stephens Ltd|access-date=17 March 2013}}</ref> such changes being usually connected with contractual alterations or where another airfield had a similar-sounding name which might cause confusion. In this case, however the change is puzzling as the same contractors were involved and Isle Abbotts appears singularly distinctive.
== USAAF Use ==


The airfield's main runway was 6,000&nbsp;ft and aligned 10–28, the secondaries 4,200&nbsp;ft at 17–35 and 3,660&nbsp;ft at 04–22. All 50 hardstands were loop types in concrete with bituminous surfaces connecting to an enclosing perimeter track, of a standard width of 50 feet.<ref name="berryman"/>
Formerly opened by the RAF on 9 February 1944, US engineers arrived to lay Pierced Steel Planking at the main runway ends for glider marshalling while the necessary facilities. beds, etc., arrived for accommodating paratroops in the hangars.


==USAAF use==
=== 441st Troop Carrier Group ===
After the formal opening by the RAF on 9 February 1944, US engineers arrived to lay pierced steel planking at the main runway ends for ] marshalling while the necessary facilities for accommodating paratroops in the hangars arrived.<ref name=stephens/>


Merryfield was known as '''USAAF Station AAF-464'''<ref>{{cite web|title=Merryfield (Isle Abbotts)|url=http://www.abct.org.uk/airfields/merryfield-isle-abbotts|publisher=Airfields of Britain Conservation Trust|access-date=17 March 2013}}</ref> for security reasons by the USAAF during the war, and by which it was referred to instead of location. Its USAAF Station Code was "MF".
The 441st Troop Carrier Group moved in from Langar on 25 April there were over 70 C-47s dispersed on the airfield. For the ] operation, the group dropped ] paratroops near ], then carried out re-supply and glider delivery missions the following day. For its efficiency and achievements during these two days it was, like other troop carrier groups, awarded a ]. During these missions, three C-47s and two CG-4A gliders were missing in action.


===441st Troop Carrier Group===
The group's aircraft flew supplies into ] as soon as suitable landing strips were available and evacuated casualties to Merryfield. On 17 July the air echelons of the 99th, 100th and 302nd Troop Carrier Squadrons new to Grosseto airbase in ] to prepare for operations connected with the ] returning to Merryfield on 24 August.
The 441st Troop Carrier Group moved in from ] on 25 April, with over 70 ]s dispersed on the airfield. The group's squadrons and fuselage codes were:
* ] (3J)
* ] (8C)
* ] (Z4)
* 302d Troop Carrier Squadron (2L)


The 441st was a group of Ninth Air Force's 50th Troop Carrier Wing, ].<ref name=stephens/>
Meanwhile, the 301st TCS remained active on the Normandy shuttle while supplies were urgently needed for the advancing Allied armies, although operating from Ramshury from 7 August until the other squadrons returned.


'''D-Day'''
Soon afterwards word was received that the 50th Troop Carrier Wing would move to France, the 441st being one of the first two groups, with headquarters leaving Merryfield on 6 September The station was retained by IX TCC for another two months while C-47s regularly ferried supplies and personnel before being handed over to the RAF at the cad of October, thus ending the Ninth Air Force's association with Merryfield.


During May 1944 1500 American troops of the 101st Airborne Division arrived in preparation for D-Day. These were part of the 24,000 airborne troops destined for Normandy. On the fateful day the airfield contributed fifty-seven C-47's, some towing gliders, to the 1900 aircraft flying across the channel from 22 airfields; creating an air armada 300 miles long. The operation kept the airfield busy, being used to fly reinforcements and support to France. On 10 July 1944 the airfield started to be used as 61st Field Hospital, staffed by 813rd Air Evacuation Squadron; the C-47's being used as air ambulances.<ref name="berryman" />
== RAF Use ==


Soon afterwards word was received that the 50th Troop Carrier Wing would move to France, the 441st being one of the first two groups, with headquarters leaving Merryfield on 6 September for its ] (ALG), ] (ALG A-63).
The C-47 in its British guise, the Dakota, still held sway at Merryfield but in much smaller numbers than when the 441st TCG was in residence. No. 238 Squadron of RAF Transport Command re-formed there with the type during the winter of 1944-45 and, when it departed overseas, No. 187 was also re-formed at Merryfield to fly Dakotas.


==RAF Transport Command/RAF Training Unit/Royal Navy use==
No. 53 Squadron with ] replaced No. 187 in September, and it too was replaced by the Stirlings of No. 242 Squadron in December. No. 242 later converted to Yorks but the long distance flights to the Middle and Far East locations on which most of these transport units had been engaged gradually subsided and the Yorks departed in May 1946. The airfield closing that October.


Merryfield was retained by the USAAF IX TCC for another two months while C-47s regularly ferried supplies and personnel before being handed over to the RAF at the end of October, thus ending the Ninth Air Force's association with the station.
Until the outbreak of the ] and a resurgence of air power, civilian caretakers looked after the otherwise deserted airfield. Late in 1951, Merryfield was re-opened as an advanced pilot training establishment with Vampire and Meteor jets. Some additional concrete was laid in front of the main technical site and other building work conducted before the station was again run down towards the end of 1954. During the following two years, a detachment front No. 231 Operational Conversion Unit, with Canherras, was often present. Then came the ] with Sea Venoms but they withdrew early in 1958 and by 1961 it appeared the airfield had finally been abandoned.


The C-47 in its British guise, the Dakota, still held sway at Merryfield but in much smaller numbers than when the 441st TCG was in residence. ] of ] re-formed there with the type during the winter of 1944–45 and, when it departed overseas, ] was also re-formed at Merryfield to fly Dakotas.<ref name="berryman"/>
== Current Status ==


] with ] replaced No. 187 in September, and it too was replaced by the ]s of ] in December. No. 242 later converted to ]s but the long distance flights to the Middle and Far East locations on which most of these transport units had been engaged gradually subsided and the Yorks departed in May 1946. The airfield closed that October.
Over the next few years, the airfield deteriorated and the hangars and some other buildings were sold off. A road that was closed when the airfield was built, was re-opened making use of part of the main runway.


Until the outbreak of the ] and a resurgence of air power, civilian caretakers looked after the otherwise deserted airfield. Late in 1951, Merryfield was re-opened as an advanced pilot training establishment (] (208 AFS)) with ] and ] jets. This unit was one of the first to be equipped, in early 1953, with Vampire T.11s. Some additional concrete was laid in front of the main technical site and other building work conducted before the station was again run down towards the end of 1954.<ref name=stephens/> During the following two years, a detachment from No. 231 Operational Conversion Unit, with ]s, was often present. It was also used by ] for flight tests of the ].<ref name="berryman"/><ref name=stephens/> Then came the Royal Navy with ]s but they withdrew early in 1958 and by 1961 it appeared the airfield had finally been abandoned.
Surprisingly, in 1971, part of the airfield was again taken over by the Royal Navy for use in assault helicopter training and exercises that would not conflict with fixed-wing traffic on the Navy's other stations. Merryfield was soon subject to naval tradition by being labelled HMS Heron. In the event, the Navy's occupation proved to be the most enduring of the airfield's half century of existence, for it was still being used by its helicopters.

Over the next few years, the airfield deteriorated and the hangars and some other buildings were sold off.<ref name=stephens/> A road that was closed when the airfield was built was re-opened making use of part of the main runway. In the early 1960s Ilminster Round Table organised an air display at Merryfield which featured a fly-past by an ] and a display by the then RAF display team, The Black Arrows, in ]s.
] landing at Merryfield]]

==Current use==
{{main|RNAS Merryfield}}

In 1971, part of the airfield was again taken over by the Royal Navy for use in assault helicopter training and exercises that would not conflict with fixed-wing traffic on the Navy's other stations. Merryfield was soon subject to naval tradition by being labelled ]<ref name=stephens/> {{Airport codes|N/A|EGDI}}. In the event, the Navy's occupation proved to be the most enduring of the airfield's half century of existence, for it was still being used by its helicopters.<ref name="berryman"/>

In the 1980s, the site was considered as a storage area for ], but this idea was rejected owing to local geology.<ref>{{cite web|title=Merrifield|url=http://www.nda.gov.uk/customcf/Nirex/pdfs/Merrifield.pdf|publisher=Nuclear Decommissioning Authority|access-date=17 March 2013}}</ref>

In more recent years the MoD has let out this airfield for the use of the ] for camping events. Local cycling clubs also hold races on the perimeter road circuit and runways, including Regional Championships.<ref>{{cite web|title=Somerset Road Club Circuit Races|url=https://www.britishcycling.org.uk/events/details/16856/Somerset-Road-Club-Circuit-Races|publisher=British Cycling|access-date=17 March 2013}}</ref> It is the principal site of the Royal Navy Model Aircraft Association.<ref>{{cite web|title=RNAS Merryfield|url=http://www.raf.mod.uk/rafmaa/clubs/rnas_merryfield.cfm|publisher=Royal Air Force|access-date=17 March 2013}}</ref>


Today, there is security on the gate as it is still an operational airfield and a restricted area. Today, there is security on the gate as it is still an operational airfield and a restricted area.
Line 45: Line 140:
==See also== ==See also==


* ] *]
*]
* ]
*]


==References== ==References==
{{Air Force Historical Research Agency}}

{{Reflist}}
* Freeman, Roger A., ''UK Airfields of the Ninth: Then and Now'', 1994


==External links== ==External links==
{{Commons category|Merryfield Airfield}}

*{{cite book |last1=Falconer|first1=J|title=RAF Fighter Airfields of World War 2 |year=1998 |publisher= Ian Allan Publishing|location= UK|isbn=0-7110-2175-9}}
* Freeman, Roger A. (1994) UK Airfields of the Ninth: Then and Now. After the Battle {{ISBN|0-900913-80-0}}
* Maurer, Maurer (1983). Air Force Combat Units of World War II. Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History. {{ISBN|0-89201-092-4}}.
*
*
* *


{{Royal Air Force}}
{{coor title dms|50|58|00|N|002|56|29|W|type:airport}}
{{USAAF 9th Air Force UK}}
{{Royal Navy bases}}


{{DEFAULTSORT:Merryfield}}
]
]
{{USAF-stub}}
]

Latest revision as of 05:56, 12 May 2024

Former Royal Air Force station in Somerset, England
This article uses bare URLs, which are uninformative and vulnerable to link rot. Please consider converting them to full citations to ensure the article remains verifiable and maintains a consistent citation style. Several templates and tools are available to assist in formatting, such as reFill (documentation) and Citation bot (documentation). (August 2022) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

RAF Merryfield
RAF Isle Abbots
USAAF Station AAF-464
Fivehead, Somerset in England
Merryfield airfield in 1943, having just been turned over to the USAAF by the contractors, shown with the village of Ilton.
RAF Merryfield is located in SomersetRAF MerryfieldRAF MerryfieldShown within Somerset
Coordinates50°58′N 2°56′W / 50.97°N 2.94°W / 50.97; -2.94
TypeRoyal Air Force station
CodeHI, MF
Site information
OwnerAir Ministry
OperatorRoyal Air Force
United States Army Air Forces
Controlled byRAF Army Cooperation Command 1943
RAF Fighter Command 1943-44
Ninth Air Force 1944
Air Defence of Great Britain 1944
RAF Transport Command 1944
Site history
Built1942 (1942)/43
Built byJohn Laing & Son Ltd
In useApril 1943 - 1971 (1971)
Battles/warsEuropean theatre of World War II
Cold War
Airfield information
Elevation33 metres (108 ft) AMSL
Runways
Direction Length and surface
00/00  Concrete/Bitumen
00/00  Concrete/Bitumen
00/00  Concrete/Bitumen
Douglas C-47A-80-DL Serial 43-15135 of the 302d TCS
Douglas C-47A-25-DK Skytrain Serial 42-93708 of the 301st TCS

Royal Air Force Merryfield or more simply RAF Merryfield (also known as Isle Abbotts) is a former Royal Air Force station in the village of Ilton near Ilminster in southwest Somerset, England. The airfield is located approximately 7 miles (11 km) north of Chard, about 130 miles (210 km) southwest of London. It is now RNAS Merryfield and serves as a satellite to the larger RNAS Yeovilton; it is used mainly as a training facility for helicopter pilots.

History

Site

The airfield was built on or near the historic estate of Merryfield (alias Merrifield, Murefeld, Merefeld, Muryfield, Merifield, Wadham's Castle, etc.), the former fortified manor house of which was situated about 1 mile west-north-west of the parish church of Ilton, and immediately south of the present airfield, and of which only a moated site remains, in the middle of farmland. The estate was the seat, from mediaeval times until 1609, of the Wadham family which founded Wadham College, Oxford in 1610, and whose monuments survive at the Church of St Mary, Ilminster. Today a large grade II listed 19th century mansion called Merryfield House is situated immediately south of St Peter's Church, Ilton.

Airfield

Opened in 1944, the airfield was used by both the Royal Air Force and United States Army Air Forces. During the Second World War it was used primarily as a transport airfield. After the war it was provided to the Royal Navy.

Overview

Merryfield airfield was to be built to the Class A airfield standard for bomber use, with a set of three converging concrete runways for takeoffs and landings, optimally placed at 60-degree angles to each other in a triangular pattern. John Laing & Son Ltd was the main contractor. Work commenced late in 1942 and on 11 November the airfield was listed as one of 16 to be made available for the USAAF to meet the number of troop carrier groups projected for the UK.

Work proceeded slowly as there was a problem with the drainage of waterways crossing the site. In September 1943, the official name was changed from Isle Abbotts to Merryfield, such changes being usually connected with contractual alterations or where another airfield had a similar-sounding name which might cause confusion. In this case, however the change is puzzling as the same contractors were involved and Isle Abbotts appears singularly distinctive.

The airfield's main runway was 6,000 ft and aligned 10–28, the secondaries 4,200 ft at 17–35 and 3,660 ft at 04–22. All 50 hardstands were loop types in concrete with bituminous surfaces connecting to an enclosing perimeter track, of a standard width of 50 feet.

USAAF use

After the formal opening by the RAF on 9 February 1944, US engineers arrived to lay pierced steel planking at the main runway ends for glider marshalling while the necessary facilities for accommodating paratroops in the hangars arrived.

Merryfield was known as USAAF Station AAF-464 for security reasons by the USAAF during the war, and by which it was referred to instead of location. Its USAAF Station Code was "MF".

441st Troop Carrier Group

The 441st Troop Carrier Group moved in from RAF Langar on 25 April, with over 70 Douglas C-47 Skytrains dispersed on the airfield. The group's squadrons and fuselage codes were:

The 441st was a group of Ninth Air Force's 50th Troop Carrier Wing, IX Troop Carrier Command.

D-Day

During May 1944 1500 American troops of the 101st Airborne Division arrived in preparation for D-Day. These were part of the 24,000 airborne troops destined for Normandy. On the fateful day the airfield contributed fifty-seven C-47's, some towing gliders, to the 1900 aircraft flying across the channel from 22 airfields; creating an air armada 300 miles long. The operation kept the airfield busy, being used to fly reinforcements and support to France. On 10 July 1944 the airfield started to be used as 61st Field Hospital, staffed by 813rd Air Evacuation Squadron; the C-47's being used as air ambulances.

Soon afterwards word was received that the 50th Troop Carrier Wing would move to France, the 441st being one of the first two groups, with headquarters leaving Merryfield on 6 September for its Advanced Landing Ground (ALG), Villeneuve-Vertus Airfield (ALG A-63).

RAF Transport Command/RAF Training Unit/Royal Navy use

Merryfield was retained by the USAAF IX TCC for another two months while C-47s regularly ferried supplies and personnel before being handed over to the RAF at the end of October, thus ending the Ninth Air Force's association with the station.

The C-47 in its British guise, the Dakota, still held sway at Merryfield but in much smaller numbers than when the 441st TCG was in residence. No. 238 Squadron of RAF Transport Command re-formed there with the type during the winter of 1944–45 and, when it departed overseas, No. 187 was also re-formed at Merryfield to fly Dakotas.

No. 53 Squadron with Consolidated Liberator replaced No. 187 in September, and it too was replaced by the Short Stirlings of No. 242 Squadron in December. No. 242 later converted to Avro Yorks but the long distance flights to the Middle and Far East locations on which most of these transport units had been engaged gradually subsided and the Yorks departed in May 1946. The airfield closed that October.

Until the outbreak of the Korean War and a resurgence of air power, civilian caretakers looked after the otherwise deserted airfield. Late in 1951, Merryfield was re-opened as an advanced pilot training establishment (No. 208 Advanced Flying School RAF (208 AFS)) with de Havilland Vampire and Gloster Meteor jets. This unit was one of the first to be equipped, in early 1953, with Vampire T.11s. Some additional concrete was laid in front of the main technical site and other building work conducted before the station was again run down towards the end of 1954. During the following two years, a detachment from No. 231 Operational Conversion Unit, with English Electric Canberras, was often present. It was also used by Westland Aircraft for flight tests of the Westland Wyvern. Then came the Royal Navy with de Havilland Sea Venoms but they withdrew early in 1958 and by 1961 it appeared the airfield had finally been abandoned.

Over the next few years, the airfield deteriorated and the hangars and some other buildings were sold off. A road that was closed when the airfield was built was re-opened making use of part of the main runway. In the early 1960s Ilminster Round Table organised an air display at Merryfield which featured a fly-past by an Avro Vulcan and a display by the then RAF display team, The Black Arrows, in Hawker Hunters.

A Merlin helicopter landing at Merryfield

Current use

Main article: RNAS Merryfield

In 1971, part of the airfield was again taken over by the Royal Navy for use in assault helicopter training and exercises that would not conflict with fixed-wing traffic on the Navy's other stations. Merryfield was soon subject to naval tradition by being labelled RNAS Merryfield (HMS Heron II) (IATA: N/A, ICAO: EGDI). In the event, the Navy's occupation proved to be the most enduring of the airfield's half century of existence, for it was still being used by its helicopters.

In the 1980s, the site was considered as a storage area for nuclear waste, but this idea was rejected owing to local geology.

In more recent years the MoD has let out this airfield for the use of the scouts for camping events. Local cycling clubs also hold races on the perimeter road circuit and runways, including Regional Championships. It is the principal site of the Royal Navy Model Aircraft Association.

Today, there is security on the gate as it is still an operational airfield and a restricted area.

See also

References

Public Domain This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency

  1. Falconer 1998, p. 63.
  2. Moated site: OS Map Grid Reference: ST33981779 Latitude 50.95575° Longitude −2.94131°
  3. http://www.gatehouse-gazetteer.info/English%20sites/3869.html
  4. "Merryfield House, Ilton, Somerset".
  5. "Unit History: RAF Merryfield". Forces War Records.
  6. ^ Berryman, David (2006). Somerset airfields in the Second World War. Newbury: Countryside Books. pp. 105–123. ISBN 1-85306-864-0.
  7. ^ "Merryfield (Isle Abbots), Somerset". Patrick Stephens Ltd. Retrieved 17 March 2013.
  8. "Merryfield (Isle Abbotts)". Airfields of Britain Conservation Trust. Retrieved 17 March 2013.
  9. "Merrifield" (PDF). Nuclear Decommissioning Authority. Retrieved 17 March 2013.
  10. "Somerset Road Club Circuit Races". British Cycling. Retrieved 17 March 2013.
  11. "RNAS Merryfield". Royal Air Force. Retrieved 17 March 2013.

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