RAF Bentwaters

RAF Bentwaters stands on flat Suffolk farmland 16 kilometres east-northeast of Ipswich, near Woodbridge. Built in 1943 on the site of two cottages called Bentwaters, it became a Royal Air Force bomber station in April 1944. During the Second World War the airfield hosted eight RAF squadrons flying Mustang and Spitfire fighters, including No. 64 Squadron and No. 129 Squadron. After the war the station briefly housed Gloster Meteor jets with No. 56 Squadron and No. 74 Squadron. In March 1951 control passed to the United States Air Force, which renamed it a primary NATO installation. The airfield played a central role in Cold War defence. From September 1951 the 81st Tactical Fighter Wing flew Sabres, Phantoms and later A-10 Warthogs from Bentwaters. Forward detachments of A-10s trained at German bases while the wing prepared for potential conflict in the 1980s. The base also hosted rescue and target-towing flights, including the 9th Air Rescue Squadron with its adapted B-29s. Two famous UFO sightings occurred near the airfield: the Lakenheath-Bentwaters radar-visual incident in August 1956 and the Rendlesham Forest event in December 1980. Today the site is called Bentwaters Parks. The Bentwaters Cold War Museum occupies the former USAF hardened command post, where the main operations room and battle cabin have been restored. Visitors can see the original BT telephone exchange, decontamination showers and airlock. Exhibition rooms trace the airfield’s history from wartime fighters to the 81st Wing’s A-10s. Other buildings on the 260-hectare site now house offices, warehouses and film studios.