Royal Air Force College Cranwell
140pxpx
Alitum Altrix Latin:"Nurture The Winged"
IATA: none – ICAO: EGYD
Summary
Airport type		Military
Operator		Royal Air Force
Location		Cranwell
Elevation AMSL		218 ft / 66 m
Coordinates		53°01′49″N 000°29′00″W / 53.03028°N 0.4833333°W / 53.03028; -0.4833333Coordinates: 53°01′49″N 000°29′00″W / 53.03028°N 0.4833333°W / 53.03028; -0.4833333
Map
EGYD Location in Lincolnshire
Runways
Direction	Length		Surface
	ft	m
01/19	4,793	1,461	Asphalt
08/26	6,827	2,081	Asphalt
08R/26L	2,497	761	Grass

RAF College Cranwell (ICAO: EGYD) is a Royal Air Force station in Lincolnshire close to the village of Cranwell, near Sleaford. It is currently commanded by Air Commodore Paul Oborn. The main building of RAF College Cranwell is noted for its distinctive dome, visible from most of the surrounding roads.

Origins[link]

The history of military aviation at Cranwell goes back to November 1915,^[1] when the Admiralty requisitioned 2500 acres (10 km²) of land from the Earl of Bristol's estate.^[1] And on 1 April 1916, the Royal Naval Air Service, Training Establishment, Cranwell was officially born.^[1] The first commander was Commodore Godfrey M. Paine.

As the naval personnel were held on the books of HMS Daedalus, a hulk that was moored on the River Medway, this gave rise to a misconception that Cranwell was first established as HMS Daedalus.^[2]

With the establishment of the Royal Air Force as an independent service in 1918, the RNAS Training Establishment became RAF Cranwell.^[3] T. E. Lawrence, perhaps better known as Lawrence of Arabia, was stationed at RAF Cranwell just after the war, in 1926, where he wrote a revised version of his Seven Pillars Of Wisdom.^[4][5] He mentioned the nearby village of Navenby in a letter to a friend at the time, saying: "I'm too shy to go looking for dirt. That's why I can't go off stewing into the Lincoln or Navenby brothels with the fellows. They think it's because I'm superior: proud, or peculiar or 'posh', as they say: and its because I wouldn't know what to do, how to carry myself, where to stop. Fear again: fear everywhere."^[6][7]

Cranwell became the entry point for all those who wished to become permanent officers in the RAF, and the selection process was extremely stringent. Initially the course took two years, but by the 1950s this had expanded to three. Until 81 Entry, arriving in September 1959, all flying training took place at the College; basic training on Percival Provosts and advanced training on either De Havilland Vampires or Gloster Meteors. With the arrival of 81 Entry, the academic syllabus was improved to allow cadets to gain degrees in humanities, or AFRAeS. To enable this to happen in the three year course, only basic training was carried out at Cranwell on the new Jet Provosts Mks 3 and 4. Cadets still received their wings on passing out of Cranwell, but went on to advanced flying courses at either RAF Oakington or RAF Valley. In 1962 Whittle Hall was built to support the new syllabus, opened by Sir Frank Whittle. This meant that the old East and West Camps, which had been used for lectures, were re-deployed for other activities.

From 1917 RAF Cranwell was served by its own dedicated railway station on a single track branch line from Sleaford. The spur line was closed in 1956 and all the track removed. However, the original station building still stands and today remains in use as RAF Cranwell's main guardroom.

The motto - Altium Altrix - translates roughly to Nurture the highest, and this motto can be found in gold print above the main doors of CHOM (College Hall Officers Mess). Also on the top of the dome of the Mess is a connection to the RNAS past life of the station, that makes Cranwell unique in RAF history and a record holder as well; RAF Cranwell has the furthest lighthouse from the sea in the UK, and the only RAF station to have a permanent lighthouse on its grounds.

Jet engine history[link]

Sir Frank Whittle attended RAF Cranwell in the late 1920s. It was here that he formulated many of his ideas for the jet engine, and it was at Cranwell on 15 May 1941 that the first flight of the Gloster E.28/39 took place. When Whittle died in 1996, his ashes were buried in a church at RAF Cranwell.

Current functions[link]

Royal Air Force College[link]

College Hall at the Royal Air Force College, Cranwell

Cranwell is home to the Royal Air Force College (RAFC), which trains the RAFs new officers on a 32-week course. It is thus the RAF equivalent of Sandhurst or the Britannia Royal Naval College, and is considered by some to be the spiritual home of the RAF.

The Royal Air Force College was also an engineering school offering HND and CNAA degrees courses. The students are mostly commissioned officers from RAF as well as those from the Commonwealth countries. The class sizes were very small (25), and the students had very close attention from their lecturers and instructors. RAF College also offered Non-MOD courses especially customised for air force officers from the Commonwealth countries.

RAF recruitment[link]

The station is home to the Officer and Aircrew Selection Centre (OASC), where all applicants to the RAF as Officers or non-commissioned aircrew, are put through a 4 day rigorous selection process. The OASC is currently commanded by Group Captain Tom McWilliams. The selection process features aptitude testing, medical examinations, interviews, plus a number of challenging individual plus team planning and initiative exercises.

It is also home to the Inspectorate of Recruiting (IofR) - the division of the RAF responsible for providing recruiting and outreach services via the network of Armed Forces Careers Offices (AFCOs) around the UK.

Around the 1970s the RAF introduced the Direct Entry Scheme, in which a fresh graduate from any university could be admitted into RAF after a short training period at RAFC Cranwell. Originally titled the Professionally Qualified and Re-entrant Course (PQRE) since 1978 the course has been known as the Specialist Entrant and Re-entrant Course (SERE). The course has trained RAF Chaplains, officer ranked nurses joining the PMRAFNS from the NHS, officers transferring to the RAF from the Army or Navy, former officers re-joining the RAF and, until 1992, Royal Observer Corps wholetime officers. Most entrants emerged with the rank of Flight Lieutenant with chaplains being commissioned as Squadron Leaders.

Headquarters Central Flying School[link]

HQ CFS has been located at RAF Cranwell since 1995 when it moved from RAF Scampton. Central Flying School is the longest established military flying school in the world and currently trains all RAF QFI flying instructors.

Air Training Corps[link]

Since the mid-1990s, Cranwell has been home to Headquarters, Air Cadets, and the Air Cadet Organisation's Adult Training Facility.

Sea Cadet Corps[link]

Since 2011 the Eastern Area Sea Cadets Heaquarters have been based on site.

Flying Squadrons[link]

RAF Cranwell is home to three RAF flying squadrons. 16 (R) Squadron conduct Elementary Flying Training on the Tutor, 45(R) Squadron conduct multi-engined pilot training with the King Air, and 55(R) Squadron conducts Airmen Aircrew Initial Training and General Service Training.

Other[link]

No.3 Flying Training School (FTS), training navigators and non-commissioned aircrew, is also based there. Cranwell is also home to two of the RAF bands, namely The Band of the Royal Air Force College and The Band of the Royal Air Force Regiment.

See also[link]

• RAF Harlaxton

Notes[link]

References[link]

• Halpenny, Bruce Barrymore. 1981. Action Stations Vol.2: Wartime Military Airfields of Lincolnshire and the East Midlands ISBN 978-1-85260-405-9

External links[link]

• Official website
• Airport information for EGYD at World Aero Data. Data current as of October 2006.
• Airfields & Aviation Memorials

This article may contain original research. Please improve it by verifying the claims made and adding references. Statements consisting only of original research may be removed. More details may be available on the talk page. (July 2011)

Coordinates: 53°02′12″N 0°27′43″W / 53.0367°N 0.4619°W / 53.0367; -0.4619

Cranwell
Cranwell village centre, view of the medieval Buttercross base with later addition
Cranwell  Cranwell shown within Lincolnshire
Population	3,000
OS grid reference	TF034502
- London	123 miles (197 km) S
District	North Kesteven
Shire county	Lincolnshire
Region	East Midlands
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	SLEAFORD
Postcode district	NG34
Dialling code	01400
Police	Lincolnshire
Fire	Lincolnshire
Ambulance	East Midlands
EU Parliament	East Midlands
List of places: UK • England • Lincolnshire

Cranwell is a village situated in the North Kesteven district of Lincolnshire. It is part of the Civil Parish of Cranwell and Byard's Leap and is located 3.95 miles (6.3 kilometres) north-north-west of Sleaford and 16.3 miles (26.2 kilometres) south-east of the county town of Lincoln. The principal through road, the B1429 between the A15 to the east and the A17 to the west, joins the village to RAF Cranwell.

History[link]

During the medieval period the parish was originally governed as part of the ancient Flaxwell Wapentake in the North Kesteven division of Lincolnshire. The name Cranwell is thought to mean the spring where cranes are found.^{[citation needed]}

The village centres on the remains of the village cross. The cross is a 14th century market cross (or Buttercross) from which important matters of public moment were announced. The base, which is original, and the undisturbed ground beneath are listed as a national monument. A later replacement pillar and cross have been added, probably during the Victorian period.^{[citation needed]}

Cranwell manor was held by the Thorold family from the 16th century for over three hundred years. The manor house was demolished in 1816 and the Hall Farm's farmhouse was erected on the site. The Thorold family relocated to a new mansion at Syston Park. In 1871 Sir John Thorold is recorded as owning all the land in Cranwell with the exception of the church glebelands and a single farmstead that was under the ownership of St John's College, Cambridge.^{[1][unreliable source?]}

In 1682, Sir William and his wife Lady Anne Thorold are recorded as establishing a charity that gave about £8 and 2 shillings per year for the poor, to be distributed on Lady Day (25 March and then considered to be New Year's Day). The parish also benefited from the will of Lady Margaret Thorold who granted £15 a year to apprentice four boys from the village. With the Poor Law Amendment Act reforms of 1834, the parish became part of the Sleaford Poor Law Union group of parishes.^{[2][unreliable source?]}

The population of the village in 1801 was recorded as being just 88 people and even by 1911 had only risen to 184. The village only grew and has continued to expand since the opening of the aviation training facility and now stands in the region of 3,000 residents.^{[citation needed]}

Cranwell railway station, on a single track branch line from Sleaford, opened in 1917 and served the naval aviation training facility then known as RNAS Daedalus, later to become RAF Cranwell. The branch line was closed in 1956 and the track removed. However, the original station building still stands and is in use as the current RAF main guardroom. Engine sheds in a small goods yard area closer to the village were demolished and the land re-used for housing.^{[citation needed]}

Religious sites[link]

Standing near to the cross is the village's parish church. Dedicated to St Andrew, the church originates circa the 10th century, the village possibly dates from the time of King Alfred (849-899). The church consists only of a nave and chancel with, above the former, a bellcote, much of the masonry is Norman but parts date back to Saxon times. The fittings include 17th century bench-ends and a Perpendicular rood screen.^{[citation needed]}

Mounted on corbels in the north aisle are the remains of a hogsback grave. The carvings on these stones are either Saxon or Norse (Ringerike). The stones are unique to Lincolnshire and are probably the finest of their type in the country.^{[says who?]} In the stonework in the porch is the incised outline of a pilgrim's shoe and the year 1728, and on the right-hand door pillar are six carved figures believed to depict ancient May King and Queen ceremonial costumes. The churchyard includes a Commonwealth War Graves Commission cemetery with over 200 military graves.^{[citation needed]}

Education[link]

As early as 1682, Sir William and Lady Anne Thorold funded a charity that provided £3 each year for the education of poor children from within the parish. The first true school built in Cranwell opened in 1850 by public subscription and provided facilities for up to 35 children.^{[citation needed]}

The current Cranwell Primary School is housed in a modern building and has approximately 300 children on the roll between the ages of 4 - 11. The school is a Foundation school and is non-denominational.^[3]

There are no secondary schools in the village and children instead travel to Lincoln, Grantham or Sleaford.

RAF College Cranwell[link]

Gates of College Hall, RAF Cranwell

Just over one mile to the west of the village is Royal Air Force College Cranwell, and RAF Cranwell with its two associated airfields. The northern airfield is the older, being used for light aircraft and airships from 1916 and remains as a grassed field used occasionally by gliders and light aircraft. The southern airfield is much larger with two paved runways and abuts the A17 road, this was first used as a flying training base in 1917. The paved runways were built in 1954, to make way for the jet aircraft, Meteor and Vampire.^{[citation needed]}

Cranwell does not have a public house. It does, however, have a members only social club. This dates back to when the cadets training at RAF Cranwell during World War II used to come into the village to try and buy alcohol. The members only club was introduced as a deterrent to them, being only temporary residents in the area they were therefore unable to gain membership. To this day, no pub has ever opened its doors to the public, even though the reasons for not having one have long since become obsolete.^{[citation needed]}

Other uses of the name Cranwell[link]

The surname Cranwell occurs in Buckinghamshire and Essex (at least), it appears in the Domesday Book. A few very small farms/hamlets are named Cranwell in Bucks.

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Cranwell

• RAF Cranwell Home Page
• Location map of Cranwell village
• "Cranwell", genuki.org.uk. Retrieved 20 July 2011