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92 (Forward) Staging Post 1 Apr 1945-May 1946
HQ 126 Wing 14 Apr-13 May 1945
6401 (RCAF) Servicing Echelon 14 Apr–12 May 1945
HQ 39 Wing 15 Apr-26 Jun 1945
6411 (RCAF) Servicing Echelon 15–21 Apr 1945
6412 (RCAF) Servicing Echelon 15 Apr–13 May 1945
6441 (RCAF) Servicing Echelon 15–xx Apr 1945
401 Air Sores Park 16 Apr-13 May 1945
6400 (RCAF) Servicing Echelon 16–28 Apr 1945
6414 (RCAF) Servicing Echelon 16 – 28 Apr 1945
6430 (RCAF) Servicing Echelon 17–28 Apr 1945
83 Group Communication Sqn 27-29 Apr 1945
426 Refuelling and Re-arming Party Jul-Aug 1945
427 Refuelling and Re-arming Party May-Oct 1945
609 (West Riding) Sqn 27 May & 23 Jun-15 Sep 1945 (Aircraft type not known)
6609 Servicing Echelon 27 May–15 Sep 1945
HQ 123 Wing 30 May 1945-16 Apr 1946
6349 (Belgian) Servicing Echelon 29 Jun–30 Nov 1945
322 (Dutch) Sqn 2 Jul-7 Oct 1945 (Supermarine Spitfire XVIE)
6322 (Dutch) Servicing Echelon 2 Jul–7 Oct 1945
349 (Belgian) Sqn 4 Sep 1945-?? (Supermarine Spitfire XVI)
350 (Belgian) Sqn Jul 1945-?? (Supermarine Spitfire XIV)
6350 (Belgian) Servicing Echelon 13 Jul–1 Sep & 4 Sep–29 Nov 1945
6451 (RAAF) Servicing Echelon 27 Sep–28 Nov 1945 & 30 Dec 1945–21 Jan 1946
3 Sqn 21 Sep 1946 21 Sep 1946-?? (Hawwker Tempest 5)
6003 Servicing Echelon 24 Jan–27 Mar 1946, 19 Sep 1946–4 Jan 1947, 3 Feb–1 Oct 1947, 3 Nov 1947–5 Jan 1948
HQ 124 Wing 30 Jan-Apr 1946
41 Sqn 30 Jan-1 Apr 1946 (Hawker Tempest 5)
6041 Servicing Echelon 31 Jan-1 Apr 1946
6026 Servicing Echelon 1–13 Apr 1946
183 (Gold Coast) Sqn 27 Apr 1945-?? (Hawker Typhoon 1B)
6183 Servicing Echelon 27 Apr-16 Jun 1945
164 (Argentina-British) Sqn 26 May 1945-?? (Hawker Typhoon 1B, Spitfire IXE)
198 Sqn 27 May-15 Sep 1945 (Hawker Typhoon 1B)
6198 Servicing Echelon 27 May–15 Sep 1945
80 Sqn 30 Jan 1946-?? (Hawker Tempest V)
6080 Servicing Echelon 31 Jun 1946–7 Jan 1948
2 Sqn 15 Apr 1947-?? (Supermarine Spitfire XIX)
6002 Servicing Echelon 15 Apr–22 Nov 1947, 11 Dec 1947–7 Jan 1948
27 Sqn 9 Jul 1948-?? (Dakota C Mk4)
53 Sqn 7 Oct 1949-?? (Hastings C Mk 1)
297 Sqn 7 Oct 1949-?? (Hastings C Mk 1)
26 Sqn Jan 1950-?? (Vampire FB5)
Wunstorf Wing Oct 1947-1 Apr 1953
4 Sqn Jul 1950-??
11 Sqn 14 Aug 1950-??, 11 Oct 1955-15 Nov 1957 (Vampire FB5, Venom FB4)
5 Sqn 1 Mar 1952-12 Oct 1957 (Venom FB5, Vampire FB 1 and 4)
541 Sqn Nov 1955-6 Sep 1957 (Gloster Meteor PR Mk10)

The Fliegerhorst Wunstorf was built in 1934/1935. In the following years there were mostly HE 111 and JU 52 stationed there. The most famous squadron during the time until 1945 was the Boelke Geschwader. On 7 April 1945 the Fliegerhorst was occupied by the British Army. The same day the first planes of the RAF landed. In the following years there were Typhoon, Tempest, Hastings and Spitfire squadrons based there. Later in 1950 came the Vampire as the first jet plane to land at Wunstorf. It was followed by Venoms, Hawker Hunters and Meteors. For the protection of the airfield there were an Armoured Car Squadron and an AA-Squadron from the RAF Regiment.

From June 1948 until August 1949 RAF Station Wunstorf was used as an important base for the Berlin Air Lift. Mostly Yorks started and landed, day and night, bringing more than 310,000 tons of goods in 38,663 sorties to Berlin.

1950/1951 Little London (red bricks) was built for the airmen and their families (Tilsiter, Danziger and Breslauer Straße).Later in the Saarstraße, Wilhelm Raabe Straße, Emil Fricke Straße and Gustav Freytag Straße Great London was built. In this area was the NAAFI. The station had its own Malcolm Club and a school.

On 7 March, 1958 the Fliegerhorst was handed over to the German Air Force. Even after this date there was RAF personne teaching the Luftwaffe pilots to fly the Pembroke. During the Cold War there were Air Traffic Liaison Officers stationed in Wunstorf.

When there were construction works at the runway in Gütersloh, again a small detachment of the RAF was stationed in Wunstorf, these being mostly VC 10 and Hercules C 130. During 3 April 1978 and 18 September 1979 more than 87,000 passengers were transported from or to Wunstorf.

The Fliegerhorst is still used today by the GAF. Since years the Lufttransportgeschwader 62 (LTG 62) is stationed in Wunstorf flying the Transall. Only when there is an open day or a special event, an RAF plane can be seen to pay a visit to the former RAF Station.

On the internet you can see Venoms from RAF Station Wunstorf and other pictures concerning RAF Wunstorf by clicking here.

For all those who are interested and who wanted to have more information about the RAF time in Wunstorf there is a well illustrated book from Heiner Wittrock called : Von der Royal Air Force zum Lufttransportgeschwader 62. The email address of the author is hw@heiner-wittrock.de

Herr Jürgen Balke

Just down the road from Wunstorf, there is a lake called Steinhuder Meer. Its very shallow with wooden dock running out about 40 feet into the water. They had a sixty foot launch docked there. We were racing to be first in the water. I won and dived in. I sank into mud to my waist, they told me later all they could see was my legs from thighs to my feet sticking out of the water. I expected the boat to have a big keel. Unfortunately, it was flat bottomed especially made for shallow water. It took me weeks to live that down.

Now about my incursion into the red zone (this stems from one of the accounts left by Ed in the RAF Jever section). In those days there were no barriers between us and them. We were allowed two weeks leave every six months back to the UK and ten days leave within the British zone, once in two years. I booked to go somewhere and was sitting on the bus when the alarm went off. All leave had been cancelled as Joe’s boys were visiting somewhere.

Anyhow when things were back to normal, I went to Bad Harzburg. A lovely little town at the foot of the tallest part of the Harz mountains. There was a bergbahn (cable car) but it wasn’t working. Fortunately there was a path zigzagging to the top, so I walked up. On the other side was a valley with two rows of hills going off in a V-shape. There was nobody in sight. I walked down the zigzag path to the valley below. Suddenly this man came out of the trees and he looked like someone out a Disney film. Long socks, leather shorts and broad leather braces over his shirt. At that time I couldn’t speak German. He was waving his hands sideways and saying “nein nein nein hier verbotten für englander“. Me being a Scot, I started to try and explain the difference then I heard “hier ruskies nicht englander“. At that time if reds caught you in their zone they kept you for six months. On release, you were then charged with desertion. I think I would have beaten Roger Bannister back up mountain. Even at the top I didn’t stop and slid down on my backside from path to path until safe again.

Just down the road from Bad Harzburg is a town called Goslar. A Scottish regiment was stationed there. I don’t know why but the Canadian government decided to send some troops to Germany. Being a dominion at that time,they were not allowed in the American zone.

We had a small scale black market going with Germans at the time. Just enough to give us a free day out once a week. When the Canucks came, they swamped the market leaving us out in the cold. The idiots in charge had put them in Goslar beside the Scots. To cut a long story short, after about three or four weekend battles leaving some dead and many injured on both sides, an agreement was made for a week each for the Scots and Canucks. The Germans were amazed that allies could fight so bitterly. I was glad I was at Wunstorf.

For almost the first year I didn’t smoke or drink and when the boys finished work at 12 o’clock Saturday, I would go to the hanger and do maintenance on my trucks or on the planes. I even did harmonisations on my own. Normally a five man job. I suppose I was the original nerd. There is one in every squadron. Then I started going out to Hanover. I now had a life.

I forgot to mention that an American squadron joined us for a couple of months in 1952. They had Thunderjets that is before the Sabre E. They were good blokes but very wasteful. Nothing got fixed just cut up and, dumped. Even when they left, huge boxes of tools, drop tanks, spare parts. You would not believe the brand new equipment they cut up with oxy. They apologised but said they would be in big trouble if they gave them to us. I guess that was the start of the throwaway system.

Ed, ex LAC 4036996