Scampton
IF any airfield is the symbol of Lincolnshire’s wartime aviation history, then Scampton is it.
This stretch of land on the edge of the county’s limestone escarpment was the scene from which the famous Dambusters squadron - 617- set out on what turned out to be one of the most daring RAF missions of World War Two.
Three Victoria Crosses were won by airmen based here - including the first RAF VC of the war in a series of breathtaking and daring raids .
This is where the famous Dambusters raid was planned - and the ghosts of heroes still walk its pathways
Now it is home to the famous Red Arrows flying team - but the base, largely unused and non-operational, is constantly under the shadow of threats of closure. It would be a scandal to lose such an important part of Britain’s wartime history.
The airfield remains an attraction to groups of visitors, many of whom want to see the grave of Dambuster's legend Guy Gibson’s labrador Nigger who was run down and killed near the entrance to the airfield on the eve of the Dambusters raid, and who grieving Gibson ordered to be buried at midnight, the hour at which he would be over the target.
A section of the Mosquito in which Gibson died in Holland in September 1944 can also be seen at the museum in one of two original wartime hangars - one of which was 617's HQ.
This is the airfield where 617 squadron was formed in secret in the spring of 1943 to carry out a daring raid on the Ruhr dams using a rotating mine developed by Vickers Chief Engineer Barnes Wallis - and where the famous movie was made starring Richard Todd as Guy Gibson and Michael Redgrave as "bouncing bomb" inventor Barnes Wallis.
All the historic buildings are still there - including the briefing room where Gibson broke the news to his men about the raid and finally told them just why they had spent six weeks flying Lancasters at 240mph at only 60 feet.
It is a must-visit for anyone interested in the history of World War Two - and you should go before it's too late. The Ministry of Defence axe is constantly poised over this famous old airfield whenever it looks to cut its budget.
