Lost UK airfield that was once home to flying circus and war hero pilot

10 February 2024 , 11:07

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There were flying events and fairs held at this meadow as the world was gripped by the excitement of flight (Image: Shutterstock / Tom Gowanlock)

An unassuming meadow deep in the UK countryside was once home to a bustling airfield that played hosts to some of the UK's greatest leaps in aviation.

In 1910, residents of Huntingdonshire, Cambridgeshire flocked to a large meadow to watch as a plane flew circuits over them - just seven years after the first powered aircraft to fly was built by the Wright brothers. The famous duo's plane flew for 12 seconds at Kitty Hawk in North Carolina in 1903. But Brit James Radley made his first flight on April 19, 1910, lasting 23 minutes as he made 16 circuits over crowds of spectators.

If you visit Portholme today, it is hard to imagine it being used as an airfield. Depending on the time of year, it can be quite muddy and boggy, since it is a floodplain. The meadow is very flat, which made it ideal first for a racecourse and later for aviation. And so Radley and a friend named William Rhodes-Moorhouse set up a company named Portholme Aerodrome Limited in 1911, according to the Godmanchester Museum website.

Furthermore, the first aircraft to be designed and built in the area was flown from Portholme in 1911. But Radley and Rhodes-Moorhouse sold the business in 1912 to cover debts they had accrued. The company supplied four aircraft to the Admiralty, but did not complete an order of 20 since the planes did not fly very well. The firm eventually went into receivership in July 1922.

William Rhodes-Moorhouse, who set up Portholme Aerodrome Limited, was the first airman to be awarded a Victoria Cross in 1915. He died in April 27, 1915, the day after sustaining serious injuries while bombing a railway junction.

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There's more history to this normal looking meadow than meets the eye (Google)

In 1918, the meadow was briefly used by the Royal Air Force as a Training Depot Station. The aircraft were moved to RAF Scopwick, near Lincoln, in October 1918. In the 1930s, the meadow was used as a venue for flying circuses. It was the venue for Alan Cobham's tour of the UK in 1933 and 1935.

Fast forward to modern times and Portholme is now a biological Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). You wouldn't think it had such a rich historical past to look at its vast expense of grass – but there's more history to the meadow than meets the eye.

Joseph Gamp