# R.A.F Speke/Speke airport.



## philpridd (Jul 6, 2010)

Building commenced in 1930,though the site had much earlier aviation links.Officially openedon IN -33,the airport soon became one of the busiest in the country.The first military connection was in 1936 when 611
squadron R.A.F. moved in.They were soon joined by other units,and by 1939 the military prescence was so large that the airport was requisitioned by the air ministry.One of 611 squadrons Hurricanes scored the first
'kill' of the Speke units when the Czech pilot shot down a German Ju 88 bomber.As the war progressed.a shadow factory was built near the airport, with the Rootes group building Blenheim and later Halifax aircraft.
Additional runways were built to make a total of 3,and extra hangers and other buildiings added.The 2 main hangers were now being used by the American Lockheed and Douglas companys to assemble Mustang and 
P38 Lightning aircraft.In 1946,the airport reverted back to civilian use.By the early 1970s,it was deemed that it would soon be unsuitable for the increased demands of larger airliners,and it was closed when the 'new' John Lennon airport was built.Most of the airfield site is now a business park with the 2 main hangers converted for commercial use.The main terminal building is now a hotel,though it retains its original appearance.Though not much remains from its R.A.F. days, the aircraft firing butts where the guns were tested and aligned still stands,complete with bullet damage on one side,and several buildings are hidden in the woods,including an unusual pillbox with a long entrance corridor.Now (hopefully) to the pics.





AIRCRAFT FIRIG BUTTS.THE INSIDE WOULD HAVE BEEN FILLED WITH SAND.







ARMOURPLATE PARTITION AT REAR.THERE IS A VOID BEHIND WITH ACCESS HATCHES IN THE SIDE AND REAR WALL.WHAT LIES BEHIND?








REAR WALL VOID ACCESS HATCH,ANOTHER IN SIDE WALL.BOTH RUSTED SOLID.




BULLET DAMAGE FROM MISALALINED GUNS.




UNEXPECTED SUPRISE HIDDEN IN WOODS.




























HAD HIGH HOPES FOR THIS,TURNED OUT TO BE A SEWER!








GUN PIT?








COULD NOT END WITHOUT A SHOT OF THE OLD MAIN TERMINAL BUILDING,
NOW A HOTEL.




GOT THERE IN THE END, THANKS FOR LOOKING.


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## scottyg100 (Jul 6, 2010)

Interesting report and exciting pictures thank you for sharing


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## philpridd (Jul 6, 2010)

*thanks*

glad you liked it ,taken me 2 weeks to get the pictures on!


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## skeleton key (Jul 6, 2010)

Fair play to you and your determination
We knew youd get there in the end and the result was worth it.
:jiggy::notworthy::jiggy::notworthy::jiggy:
That deserves a mexican.


SK


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## philpridd (Jul 6, 2010)

Cheers, better get out and do another one before I forget how to do it!


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## skeleton key (Jul 6, 2010)

LOL Its all worth it in the end 

SK


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## Foxylady (Jul 6, 2010)

Excellent, Phil. Interesting site and fab pics. Glad you made it.


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## cptpies (Jul 6, 2010)

Thanks Phil. It was worth the wait to see the section post, have you got a grid ref for it, I suspect it's not in the DoB database.


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## night crawler (Jul 7, 2010)

That turned out to be a good report and I like the way people can park their planes outside the hotel as well


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## philpridd (Jul 7, 2010)

*thanks*

aircraft shown is part of a permanent static display.though the ;new' John Lennon airport is just up the road, there is no access for aircraft to the old airport.


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## night crawler (Jul 7, 2010)

Err I was jokeing but I do like the way they have used the old airport building


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## kevsy21 (Jul 7, 2010)

Was by here last week,passed and looked at it close many times over the yrs but it was only a few days ago, i found out what it was used for.Good history behind it and well done for getting out there.


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## philpridd (Jul 7, 2010)

thats ok, suspected as much,gets me used to using the site anyway,cheers.


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## philpridd (Jul 7, 2010)

thats ok, suspected as much,gets me used to using the site anyway,cheers.


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## Richard Davies (Jul 7, 2010)

A similar thing has been done with the terminal buildings at Croydon, as reported elsewhere in this site.


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## hydealfred (Jul 8, 2010)

Glad you managed to get your pics posted up. Good report and history - well done.


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## philpridd (Jul 8, 2010)

Thanks,itching to get out and do another one now,could not have done it without everyones halp,cheers.


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