Lat/Long N50.20.50/W03.36.01

RUNWAYS: Grass .

At some point in the early 1960s the Navy constructed a Hangar on a site outside Dartmouth and set up a small helicopter facility. The prime purpose was to handle for flights on behalf of then Britannia Royal Naval College in Dartmouth . Details are scarce , however what is known is that a substantial small control tower was built at some later date ...this still remains - see pictures below .

In the 70s the BRNC (Britannia Royal Naval College ) Flight kept a single Wasp and pilot with ground support crew there . The principal role was to provide "air experience" to the all the OUT's - introducing them used to an aviation environment, dangerous rotating blades, noise and so on.source (A graduate of Britannia College) said all OUTs were given a short trip in the Wasp as part of this training.

Pre-Wasp the BRNC (Britannia Royal naval College ) Flight may have used a Dragonfly......Dragonfly HR.1 VZ962 was used as an instructional airframe at Norton Helicopter Station- in the hangar in 1974/78,also the front end of an unidentified Wessex.

Wasp(XT442) crashed there on take of 12 Dec 1973, Wasp XS535 was used in 1977 and helicopters still occasionally visit the site using the Park and Ride car park..

The hangar was gone by 1999.(Google Earth historical shows an empty space for 99).The land is now occupied by a supermarket, a heath club and a large car park.However the tower, still there is easily accessable and stands almost on the road side opposite the entrance to Sainsburys

It has also been said that there was a short N-S grass runway- and that Plymouth based Chipmunks were rumoured to have visited ....This is difficult to believe as the longest possible run in the adjacent grass field would have been 330 yards...however maybe someone can confirm or deny this? However visits by RN Tiger Moths - also reported - seem a lot more viable.

The exact date of opening, and of closure....and the ICAO code (if any ) are all unknown- any additional info would be most welcome

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