Wolverhampton Airport

History

World War II

The airfield was constructed between mid-1940 and early 1941 for use by the Royal Air Force, being initially named RAF Bobbington. The name was changed on 1 September 1943 to RAF Halfpenny Green, to avoid confusion with RAF Bovingdon in Hertfordshire. The first RAF unit to be based was No. 3 Air Observer & Navigator School which flew Blackburn Bothas and later Avro Ansons. The unit disbanded on 13 November 1945.

The 1945 film The Way to the Stars was set on a fictional RAF Halfpenny Field, but despite the similar name RAF Halfpenny Green was not used in any way for this film.

After a lengthy gap, flying at RAF Halfpenny Green resumed on 5 May 1952 by No. 2 Air Signallers School, again equipped with Avro Ansons, the unit disbanding on 13 September 1953. A ground-based equipment sub-unit of No. 25 Maintenance Unit occupied much of the airfield from 1 March 1946 until 15 November 1956. Following closure of this unit, the airfield lay disused for several years before civil aviation use commenced in 1961.

The following units were also here at some point:

• No. 3 Air Observer School RAF
• No. 3 (Observers) Advanced Flying Unit RAF
• No. 1545 (Beam Approach Training) Flight RAF
• No. 2795 Squadron RAF Regiment
• Pilot-Navigation Instructors Course

Recent developments

Wolverhampton Airport is located 5 mi from the edge of the West Midlands conurbation and operates a number of general aviation services including facilities for private aircraft; business jets; helicopters; flying schools; and training and maintenance facilities.

The majority of aircraft operating from the airport are light aircraft, such as the single engine Cessna 182 and twin engine Piper PA-34 Seneca.

The small-airfield image the airport has retained was under threat until late 2006 as previous owner CityHopper Ltd had ambitious plans to expand the airport for airline usage, initially by up to 500,000 passengers a year which would necessitate construction of a new longer runway; plus intended open-air facilities to test jet engines for Boeing 737s. The Wolverhampton Airport Action Group is a local group which was set up in late 2002 to fight against the expansion.

New owner MAR Properties Ltd announced on 24 November 2006 that such plans had been dropped and it had no intention to expand to allow scheduled passenger services, its intention being to expand on the current general aviation and flying school activity which had been in steady decline at the airport since the late 1990s. MAR confirmed that the previously mooted runway extension was no longer necessary and had also been dropped from the plans.

The airfield is also becoming more popular with flex-wing and three-axis microlight pilots, and a microlight flight school has been on-site for some time. In support of short field operations, an unlicensed grass runway, measuring approx 355 x has been provided which runs parallel to and to the left of Runway 28. As of January 2009, Runway 16/34 has high-intensity bidirectional edge lighting along its length (with low-intensity omnidirectional components) and high-intensity threshold and stop end lighting. Full precision approach path indicator (PAPI) lights are installed for both ends. Recent developments involve the potential of a GNSS Approach, which would allow aircraft to land in bad weather, without the need for expensive ILS equipment.

Up until 1 January 2016, the Central Counties Air Operations Unit police helicopter operated from Halfpenny Green. It was withdrawn under a rationalisation scheme operated by the National Police Air Service that would see air operations not being restricted to force boundaries and thus the availability of cross working when necessary.

Incidents and accidents

• On 12 November 1943 a Royal Air Force, Handley Page Halifax Mk II (BB326) crashed shortly after taking off from Bobbington airfield due to a mechanical failure, killing seven of the eight crew.
• On 28 August 1972, a Piper Cherokee that was taking part in a race event, hit a tree, flipped over and crashed into an earthen bank outside the airfield's boundary. The pilot, Prince William of Gloucester, a cousin of Queen Elizabeth II, and his passenger were killed.
• On 30 April 2017, a de Havilland Vampire aircraft, participating in an airshow, damaged runway 10/28 during takeoff as its jet tore up some of the asphalt surface. The aircraft was unaffected and landed later on an alternate runway. Repairs to the surface were complete by 3 June.
• On 23 May 2017, a Piper PA-28 Cherokee Warrior II overshot the runway and collided with a tyre wall. The pilot and two passengers received minor injuries, the third passenger was unharmed.

References

Citations

Bibliography

References

1. (9 January 2013). "Wolverhampton – EGBO".
2. (9 January 2013). "History".
3. "Halfpenny Green (Bobbington)".
4. "Halfpenny Green (Bobbington)".
5. "Halfpenny Green (Bobbington)".
6. (2013). "100 Years of Wolverhampton's Airports". Amberley.
7. "Halfpenny Green (Bobbington)". [[Airfields of Britain Conservation Trust]].
8. (January 2007). "Wolverhampton Airport Policy Area Development Plan Document Issues and Options Paper". South Staffordshire Council.
9. (January 2007). "Wolverhampton Airport Policy Area Development Plan Document Issues and Options Paper". South Staffordshire Council.
10. (18 February 2008). "Residents fear new Wolverhampton Airport expansion bid".
11. (20 February 2015). "The National Police Air Service has confirmed plans to move to a 15-base model".
12. "Halifax II BB326 [Royal Air Force Aircraft Serial and Image Database]".
13. (24 January 2022). "Village's day of horror as mighty bomber came down".
14. "Military crashes in the north west Midlands - 1943".
15. (28 August 1972). "On This Day, 28 August 1972: Prince William killed in plane crash". BBC News.
16. (12 June 1973). "Piper PA-28R Series 200, Cherokee Arrow G-AYPW. Report on the accident at Six Ashes Road, Halfpennt Green, Staffordshire on 28 August 1972". Her Majesty's Stationery Office.
17. "Repairs complete after plane ripped up runway at Wolverhampton Halfpenny Green Airport". Express & Star.
18. "Serious injuries avoided as plane crashes at Wolverhampton Airport". Express & Star.