Obscure uses for airfields

Now more often than not you here about an airfield dissappearing and being forgotten about, while others like Duxford are turned into a museum, North Pickenham with its forest of Wind Turbines, West Malling now a housing estate and majority returning to agriculture. But what about some other uses for airfields, what bizzarre things are they being used for now? Any you can think of?

R

There is Oakington with its Immigration detention centre, and Stradishall with Highpoint prison.

Not so much unusual, quite predictable really!

Blyton - Rally Drive Blyton
Fulbeck - Fulbeck Kart Circuit
Grimsby (Waltham) - Chequered Flag Karting
Darley Moor - Darley Moor Motorcycle Road Racing Club
Melbourne - York Raceway
Snetterton - Snetterton Racing Circuit
Silverstone - the obvious one!
Wymeswold - Everyman Racing and Rally School
Dunsfold - BBC Top Gear, amongst other things
Manby - Manyby Motorplex
North Witham (now Twford Wood) - single venue used for rallying
Croft - Croft Racing Circuit
Hethel - Lotus
Boreham - For a long time used by Ford as their motorsport testing facility
Driffield - Off-road bike scrambles and trials and occasionally motor rallies

Not sure whether the following are still used but certainly have been in the past as part of either a multi-venue rally or a single venue in their own right.

Ludford Magna
Firbeck
Desborough (Wilbarston)
North Coates
Dunholme Lodge (the public road which crosses the site, following the N/S runway, is used on road rallies in the East Midlands)
Hibaldstowe

There are more but this is only a quick list!

Chris

Bovingdon airfield is now 'The Mount' prison and Podington is better known as Santa Pod 'The Home of European Drag racing'.

Thanks Excalibur - I'd forgotten about Poddington!

Of course, Lindholme is now also a prison.

Chris

Boreham is now Essex Police, and the helicopter is based in a new hangar next to the old tower.

Should also mention Bircham Newton - Construction Industry Training

Richard

The old airfield at Penrhos just outside Pwllheli is mainly a Caravan park, and some of the old huts are a Polish home.

One of the dispersed sites at Lissett in Yorkshire in now a caravan and camping site, as is the Communal Site at Ashbuorne, Derbyshire. Oh, also Caistor in Lincolnshire.

There are bound to be more.

Chris

RAF Aldermaston - Atomic Weapons Research Establishment www.flashearth.com/?lat=51.36783 ... =0&src="ggl "

RAF Acklington - Prison

RAF Ansty - Rolls Royce Factory

RAF Gaydon - Vehicle Test Track

RAF Greenham Common - Returned to heath land?? now that is obscure, LOL

RAF St Eval - radio and signals site, recycling centre and go karting
RAF Brawdy - radio and signals site
LLandow - trading estate and scrap yards
RAF Nuneaton - possibly one of the more interesting ones as it is the MIRA testing ground, still rertains its original tower aswell, but next to impossible to get in!