Story and illusions from an ‘abandoned’ airfield

Gamlingay historian, Bernard O’Connor, has written a new book about the Second World War airfield.

Tempsford Academy: Churchill and Roosevelt’s Secret Airfield has been published by Fonthill Media.

Bernard has used diaries, memoirs and first-hand interviews to create a vivid picture of life for the young US crews trained at Tempsford, the exploits of the first American agents to be parachuted into France and the first Office of Strategic Services agents to be sent into Germany.

He describes the initial difficulties in procuring a site for the airfield.

Work on the area, on the eastern bank of the River Ivel near Tempsford and Everton, began in 1940.

To maintain the airfield’s secrecy, illusionist Jasper Maskelyne was employed to hide the site from the Germans using deceptions, Bernard explains.

The book says: “RAF Tempsford was built to resemble a disused airfield. A local man ...recalled sitting on the roof of Gibraltar Farm ...taking slates off and throwing them into the farmyard below.

“To make the building look even more derelict the glass in the windows was deliberately broken, sacks were draped across the inside of the window frames in front of the black-out curtains, some of the doors were left rickety, hanging from only one hinge.

“All the hangers and domestic buildings were camouflaged to blend in with the surrounding farmland and some new ones were said to have been thatched to give the impression they were farm buildings. Nissen huts resembled pig sties or cow sheds.”

Tractors were parked on the airfield and moved around occasionally and cattle were even grazed on the runways when they were not in use.

Tempsford Airfield became the home of the RAF’s Special Duties Squadrons.

The aircrews flew low and without lights to deliver supplies and arms to resistance groups in occupied countries. They also returned stranded people to the allied lands so they could continue to aid the war effort.

Bernard has already written several books about RAF Tempsford including Churchill and Stalin’s Secret Agents: Operation Pickaxe at RAF Tempsford and Women of RAF Tempsford.

He is also a local expert on coprolites. He has written extensively on the subject and he regularly gives talks and lectures.

Tempsford Academy has a recommended retail price of £18.99. It is available as a hardback with ISBN number 978-1-78155-003-8 or as an e-book with ISBN number 978-1-78155-154-7