RAF Charterhall

RAF Charterhall lies in the Scottish Borders between Greenlaw and Duns, on ground that once served as a First World War landing field. The airfield was rebuilt in 1942 and became a busy training base for No. 54 Operational Training Unit. Trainees arrived from across the Commonwealth to fly Bristol Blenheims, Beaufighters and later Mosquitoes. After the war the site returned to farmland before becoming a motor-racing circuit in 1952. Famous drivers such as Jim Clark, Jackie Stewart and Stirling Moss raced on its three-kilometre track. The airfield is remembered for its high accident rate during training, earning the grim nickname ‘Slaughterhall’. In January 1943 an Australian ace, Richard Hillary, died when his Blenheim crashed on approach. A memorial to Hillary and other war dead was unveiled in 2001 by the Duke of Kent. The wartime runways and taxiways still lie intact, though the control tower has gone and only two hangars remain. The longest runway is now used as a private airstrip, though without refuelling or maintenance. Visitors walk the old runways and taxiways that once guided wartime aircraft. The surviving hangars stand in poor repair, silent witnesses to the training flights. The memorial to Hillary and Sergeant Wilfred Fison marks the spot where they lost their lives. Beyond the airfield the working farm continues to graze livestock on the same land. On hot days the heat records set nearby remind travellers of the airfield’s place in local weather history.