Chingford Aerodrome, Essex

…and heaven only knows what that bloke’s doing up the flagpole. Some Navy tradition perhaps??? 😀

No. he was attaching the flag to the pulley and let go of it by mistake and as you know, it shoots up to the top of the pole. So, not realising that the Squadron photographer was taking pictures, he decided to shin up the pole before anyone noticed.:D

Guys, thanks for your help on this – I knew I could rely on you all!

According to some notes accompanying this print of a BE-2c, it was taken at RNAS Chingford in 1916/7, although I’d have placed the aeroplane markings a little earlier.

…and heaven only knows what that bloke’s doing up the flagpole. Some Navy tradition perhaps??? 😀

Thanks Dave
A confusing map until I reoriented it,I think it should be like below.
I guess they had to fit the text in somehow.
So the map refs appear a little misleading perhaps ,it looks like the airfield is indeed under the Girling reservoir.,maybe TQ367948 might be a reasonable map ref??
Hopefully ken will not mind me reproducing part of the page from his book.

Scan from “The Military Airfields of Britain – Northern Home Counties” by Ken Delve, published by Crowood Books. Reproduced with permission of Ken Delve.

I can highly recommend this series for anyone with an interest in military airfields

I will e-mail Ken Delve to see if he is ok for me to scan the airfield plan from the book

using the map refs puts us at approx Margaret Ave between Pole Hill and the river so could the aerodrome have been where the houses are now?
The map ref may be the main entrance!!
Does that tie up with the map in your book Thunderbird or was it further south west where the Girling reservoir is now?
The Northern of the 2 reservoirs I think was completed in 1913 so that was already there.
It could have been a fairly narrow/small field I guess between Pole Hill and the original reservoir.

I’ve just had another look at Action Stations but the photographs are all taken close to hangars so I can’t see much of the field itself. There looks like a possible embankment in one pic but I’m not certain.

Flat doesn’t surprise me as it’s right on the Lee flood plain, which is very wide for what is now a pretty insignificant river. Action Stations also says the field was on clay which I suppose is a good start for building a reservoir.

[QUOTE=dhfan;1163356]I worked just a couple of miles from Chingford years ago and always understood the airfield was under the William Girling reservoir.

That is also what I concluded,the map refs which myself and another poster quoted dont look quite right in relation to contour lines but I only ever use map refs as a guide because you never know if they relate to the centre of an airfield or on the perimeter(guardroom or main entrance ?).
I have seen old photos of Chingford aerodrome many years ago and I remember it looking very flat.

I worked just a couple of miles from Chingford years ago and always understood the airfield was under the William Girling reservoir.

I probably concluded that from Action Stations 8 which says it was off the A110 and the Chingford reservoir was at the northern edge.

Chingford Aerodrome

A satellite view of the former location can be seen at :
http://www.content-delivery.co.uk/aviation/airfields/Chingford.html

Those b****y Japanese motor manufacturers get everywhere 😀

😀 ROFL 😀 😀 😀

There used to be alot of nissan huts

Those b****y Japanese motor manufacturers get everywhere 😀

There used to be alot of nissan huts on the site of Wood Street railway station which is’nt too far away.Whether it was airfield related or not i’m not sure but they were still there until a few years ago.:)

There was Fairlop, but that was nearer to Hainault than Chingford.
http://www.ukcoldwar.org.uk/fairlop.htm

I lived in Barkingside as a kid, and we used to go over to Fairlop quite often. The old airfield was put back to farming and a gravel pit some time before that, but I remember seeing old pillboxes on the perimeter and a few intersting ‘mounds’ as we drove past. It became ‘Fairlop Waters’, a risible night spot and water park.

Anyone have any pictures of post-war Fairlop?

DS

There was Fairlop, but that was nearer to Hainault than Chingford.
http://www.ukcoldwar.org.uk/fairlop.htm

Also the Chingford Historical Society www.chingfordhistory.org.uk have a book available about some of the local airfield histories

Grid Ref OS Map 177 TQ380950 next to Chingfrod Reservoir

Used from 1916-1919

Site plan, details and photograph of FK8 in the following book

The Military Airfields of Great Britain Northern Home Counties by Ken Delve

Hi Aero
Yes there was an RNAS (Royal Naval Air Service) Aerodrome there during WW1 and I think it was used until the early thirties,maybe until the new reservoir was built.
the website www.homepages.mcb.net/bones/ gives the coordinates as N 51 38 E 00 00 so very close into town.
I notice there is an ARDRA road into the sewage works and also a golf course and caravan site just north of the tanks,not unusual to find that sort of thing on an old airfield site but that is conjecture on my part.
It was mostly used for training by the Navy in WW1.

Cheers Baz

the bones pages are excellent for airfields used to use em a lot!!

Chingford Aerodrome

I have taken a look at my rather ancient copy of British Isles Airfield Guide (MAAS 1973) which contains no reference to an aerodrome at Chingford nor any cross reference suggesting an aerodrome in that area known by an alternative name. Sorry! What was your source of information?