Swingate Down, Identification of Crop Mark

30 Sep 2019 18:47 #1 by Bunkertastic
Swingate Down, Identification of Crop Mark was created by Bunkertastic
I recently came across a very large crop mark on the site of Swingate Down airfield, Dover and beside the later radar station compound. Kent HER have spoken to someone who identified it as "a big identification ‘badge’ with the name of a nearby airfield on it that probably dates to the 1920s". The circle is 460ft (140m) across and there seem to be rings of dark dots both inside and outside of the circle. Does anybody have any evidence that such a thing existed? It seems rather large and I feel that it may be something much older.

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30 Sep 2019 19:31 - 30 Sep 2019 19:35 #2 by Paul Francis
Replied by Paul Francis on topic Swingate Down, Identification of Crop Mark
I am not sure it is in the correct place for the WWI aerodrome, which I think was further east and north of the old military prison, the eastern boundary being the the long-disused railway. Had it been associated with the aerodrome then I would expect it to be roughly in the centre of the field. The AIR 1 plan does not show it at all which includes the golf course to the west and beyond that, the Dover-Deal Road and Fort Burgoyne.

You can tell a builder from an archaeologist by the size of his trowel. Mine is a small one!
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03 Oct 2019 16:20 - 03 Oct 2019 16:53 #3 by Ossington_2008
Replied by Ossington_2008 on topic Swingate Down, Identification of Crop Mark
Airfield outline here: Boy did this take some finding-hence a month late. From AIR1/453/15/312/2 Vol. 6

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03 Oct 2019 18:06 #4 by Bunkertastic
Replied by Bunkertastic on topic Swingate Down, Identification of Crop Mark
Many thanks for the information. I had just decided that the mark probably showed something prehistoric when I came across this 1940 image of Manston which shows concentric circles of the same size. To add to the confusion this one IS recorded on Kent HER as a ring ditch at TR 3360 6610 (monument number TR 36 NW 245). Could they both possibly be connected with very early bombing practice, where the target itself was actually on the airfield? I have no idea what a target of this period might look like. If not then it could just be a coincidence that flat hilltop sites suit both uses.

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04 Oct 2019 08:40 - 04 Oct 2019 08:53 #5 by Peter Kirk
Replied by Peter Kirk on topic Swingate Down, Identification of Crop Mark
Airfield bombing targets tended to be much smaller with the late 1930s design being 40ft diameter. Earlier ones varied in design and size but were not as large as that to my knowledge. Having looked at that many times I suspect it was something to do with Manston's parachute school in the pre-war period.

Below is the pre war target at Scampton


No Amount Of Evidence Will Ever Persuade An Idiot (probably not Mark Twain)

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04 Oct 2019 09:49 - 04 Oct 2019 09:50 #6 by Peter Kirk
Replied by Peter Kirk on topic Swingate Down, Identification of Crop Mark
I knew I'd seen an aerial photo of St Margaret's aerodrome. This shows the aerodrome marking which probably doubled as a target but is definitely much smaller than the crop mark.

www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/205354017

No Amount Of Evidence Will Ever Persuade An Idiot (probably not Mark Twain)
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04 Oct 2019 10:12 - 04 Oct 2019 10:17 #7 by netcompsys
Replied by netcompsys on topic Swingate Down, Identification of Crop Mark

I knew I'd seen an aerial photo of St Margaret's aerodrome. This shows the aerodrome marking which probably doubled as a target but is definitely much smaller than the crop mark.

www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/205354017


And another (annotated)
www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/205354016

labeled as
A vertical aerial print of Dover Aerodrome. 6th Wing. Dated 30 April 1917.

kevin
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