# RAF KENLEY - Part 2 Update



## godzilla73 (Apr 8, 2009)

Went back to Kenley recently - in daylight this time, and spotted a few other things that are interesting. First of all the gun range (as correctly identified by Seahorse!). On closer inspection, there were a load of bullet holes in it. Didn't find any casings or anything, but still proved to be an interesting find.






The thing that had me confused was the scale of it. I was thinking about rifle ranges, but clearly this was intended for something bigger. The back of the range is about 15 metres high.






Behind the gun range though, are the remains of a building which has two distinct parts. Firstly are the remains of a walled outline, which you should be able to make out in the picture below.





Next to this is what looks like a large concrete slab with a smaller block on top. This smaller box has metal fixings on top of it. It sort of looked like the top of a bunker, but there was no obvious entrance to be found, so I wondered if it was an emplacement or mount of some kind. Its difficult to tell as it is really overgrown, but it is on the edge of the airfield in a wooded area.






In this building I found this; don't know what it is but it looks old, so I took a front and back picture of it.








A wander down the airfield bought me back to the dispersal bays again, and behind the most easterly one is this circular concrete area 




Don't know what this area is but there seems to be the remains of a load of pipework and other metal fittings . Something to do with refuelling or cleaning maybe?












Also, there are a shed load of metal fixings on top of the edges of the dispersal bays which I didn't notice before. If anyone knows what these are for,(or any of the other stuff for that matter, let me know.





Finally, according to the Defence of Britain survey, there's meant to be the remains of a Hamilton-Pickett Fort on the grassed area between the runways. Unfortunately, the day I went the gliders were flying and I couldn't get out to inspect it. Next time maybe...

GDZ


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## jonney (Apr 8, 2009)

Nice pics godzilla some interesting finds there. I've no idea what the metalwork was though.


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## tom83 (Apr 8, 2009)

Cool Post, love the pics of the Rifle range


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## krela (Apr 8, 2009)

tom83 said:


> Cool Post, love the pics of the Rifle range



It's not a rifle range.

It's a gun butt for planes to empty out their machine guns and zero their sights. A very different thing indeed.


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## Trinpaul (Apr 8, 2009)

The piping may possibly be for underground fuel storage.


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## godzilla73 (Apr 8, 2009)

krela said:


> It's not a rifle range.
> 
> It's a gun butt for planes to empty out their machine guns and zero their sights. A very different thing indeed.




Thanks Krela - how would that emptying have worked , bearing in mind that the range is some way from the dispersal bays and the rest of the airfield? 

Thanks everyone else for their comments - its certainly an interesting site and I'm sure I'll turn up a few more things


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## Foxylady (Apr 8, 2009)

The fixings on top of the concrete block look like a mast mount. Maybe a wind sock mast? 
It's a fabulous site with some really interesting stuff there, GDZ.


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## krela (Apr 8, 2009)

godzilla73 said:


> Thanks Krela - how would that emptying have worked , bearing in mind that the range is some way from the dispersal bays and the rest of the airfield?
> 
> Thanks everyone else for their comments - its certainly an interesting site and I'm sure I'll turn up a few more things



They always are.

They taxi the planes up to the range, you don't really want live firing anywhere near the rest of the site do you?


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## godzilla73 (Apr 8, 2009)

krela said:


> They always are.
> 
> They taxi the planes up to the range, you don't really want live firing anywhere near the rest of the site do you?



Doh! Walked into that one.....thanks!


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## japchris (Apr 23, 2009)

The round metal object you found is an old car or motorcycle horn and may well date from the 1940's - see similar here -
http://images.google.co.uk/imgres?i...olt+car+horn&ndsp=18&hl=en&sa=N&start=18&um=1


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## Black Shuck (Apr 23, 2009)

krela said:


> It's not a rifle range.
> 
> It's a gun butt for planes to empty out their machine guns and zero their sights. A very different thing indeed.



There is a large gun butt at Raf Ludham which was used to empty the machines on the Spitfires that were based there.


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## Badoosh (Apr 23, 2009)

I'd say the fixings where the dispersal pens are, were posibly for Bellman or Blister hangars. The site looks similiar to RAF Harrowbeer. Pipes possibly to undergound fuel bowser. Good pics m8, some well spotted stuff there!


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## spaceinvader (Apr 23, 2009)

hi all the reason for the big butts ! was to "harmonise" the guns.On a fighter eg spitfire the guns were spread out along the wings,to max the effect they were all "tweaked" in to hit in the same place at a fixed range.the tail wheel was lifted on to a block,boxes etc,to get the plane level and the guns adjusted to hit one place.The range was dependant on the type of mission,expected targets etc.i will try to find an old foto of my father doing this in the 40s.


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## godzilla73 (Apr 25, 2009)

japchris said:


> The round metal object you found is an old car or motorcycle horn and may well date from the 1940's - see similar here -
> http://images.google.co.uk/imgres?i...olt+car+horn&ndsp=18&hl=en&sa=N&start=18&um=1



Thanks JapChris - a real interesting find then - it would make sense as I think that building might have been a garage of some kind.


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## godzilla73 (Apr 25, 2009)

Badoosh said:


> I'd say the fixings where the dispersal pens are, were posibly for Bellman or Blister hangars. The site looks similiar to RAF Harrowbeer. Pipes possibly to undergound fuel bowser. Good pics m8, some well spotted stuff there!



Cheers Badoosh - I know that there were at least 12 blister hangars at Kenley, so that seems about right.


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