Elvington Airfield has a unique, heroic past, and a mission to inspire Britain’s future in aviation. The 300-acre aerodrome, which celebrates its 66^th birthday this year, was home to RAF Halifax bombers and the Free French Air Force in the Second World War.

Today Elvington’s 3000-metre runway is one of the longest in Britain, and the airfield is used for aircraft exhibitions, Formula One racing, sports car and police driver training, land yachting, land speed record attempts, and corporate events.

 ..

The airfield, which is five miles south-east of the cathedral city of York, also hosts the largest air show in the north of England every August. Aviation enthusiasts travel from miles around to watch fly pasts by distinguished wartime aircraft, helicopter and jet display teams and graceful acrobatics by gliders.

... 

The aerodrome was built on boggy clay and running sand, and is a triumph of 1950s civil engineering, a fact in which the local community retains considerable pride.

The runway’s significant length, width and strength meant British Aircraft Corporation and Blackburn Aircraft Limited could use Elvington for heavyweight test and trials for the Buccaneer aircraft developed for the Royal Navy and the RAF.

Similarly, the aerodrome was earmarked as a possible diversion for Concord during test and trials flights, and NASA designated Elvington in its list of possible landing sites for shuttle.

The runway was completed on October 8, 1941, and accommodation was soon erected between the airfield and Elvington village for 2,800 personnel. In September 1942 the station was taken over by Bomber Command which had its headquarters two miles away at Heslington Hall.

The first operation was to Lorient in France on February 4 and 5, 1943, with 11 Halifax bombers. Later several bombing or mine-laying missions a week were being performed. The No 77 Squadron had on strength 18 Merlin-engined Halifax Mk5 aircraft, and suffered the average loss rate of about four per cent, or even higher when the target was Berlin.

By May 1944 there were enough Free French airmen in Bomber Command to form their own bomber squadron. They formed at Elvington and No 77 Squadron moved to a new airfield at Full Sutton.

After the war Elvington was rebuilt as a United States Air Force base for Supreme Allied Commander Europe’s massive B-47 aircraft of the nuclear force that did not, in the event, deploy.