Building record MAB3915 - KINLOSS AIRFIELD

Airfield, still in use, built in 1938-9 for use during World War II.

Airfield, still in use, built in 1938-9 for use during World War II. The airfield was laid out with three runways, surrounded by a perimeter track and hard standings. The landing area was on the level Kinloss plain, hangars and technical buildings on the south side, and domestic and office buildings further south where the ground sloped upwards. It was home to a mixture of permanent buildings, including three 'C' type hangars, and temporary buildings, mostly in the form of wooden huts. It opened in 1939, as home base of 14 Flying Training School (FTS), flying Oxfords and Harvards. In 1940, 14 FTS unit moved to Cranfield and a new unit, 19 Operational Training Unit (OUT) took up home here training for day and night bombing using Whitleys and Ansons. Kinloss was also used as a base by 50, 77 and 102 Squadrons during this period, operating Hampdens and Whitleys, along with 45 maintenance Unit. Kinloss was used as the base for an attack on the German battleship 'Admiral Von Scheer' in September 1941 which was anchored in Oslo. It was also used as one of the bases for the 1942 attacks on the German battleship 'Tirpitz', which was at anchor in Asen Fjord. The airfield was immediately behind the Findhorn-Burghead beach anti-invasion barrier (NJ16NW0075, NJ06SW0104), and the airfield was provided with at least nine Type 27 pillboxes, and another 20 other firing positions. Kinloss reached its peak of manpower in April 1944, when 3000 servicemen were operating out of the airfield. Numerous accidents and several crashes are recorded in and around the airfield from the Second World War period. In 1951, Kinloss became the base of the Shackelton, an anti-submarine aircraft, used as part of Coastal Command. The last Shackleton departed in December 1970, after which time the Nimrods took over. The airfield has been much extended since the war. The accommodation and facilities for airmen have been extended and upgraded; hangars have been refurbished; a new runway has been built parallel to the old main runway; and one of the subsidiary runways has been converted into a huge parking apron. In 1997, RAF Kinloss became the Aeronautical rescues Co-ordination Centre for the UK. Today (2010), there are about 1,800 RAF personnel stationed at Kinloss, along with 300 civilians and 300 contractors. Watching brief carried out in 2004 when a series of engineering test-holes were excavated across the airfield. No archaeological remains were encountered. At the barracks is a memorial dedicated to the crew of a Nimrod which crashed in Afghanistan in 2006. A photographic survey was carried out in 2022 prior to proposed redevelopment and demolition of Barracks Building 7. A watching brief was carried out by Wessex Archaeology in November 2022 during groundworks associated with construction of new accommodation blocks and a car park at Kinloss Barracks (NJ06SE0139). See also NJ06SE0083 for remains of dispersal areas now outwith the airfield boundary.

Author unknown, , PRESS & JOURNAL, 11/10/04 (Bibliographic reference). SAB1416.

Author unknown, , PRESS & JOURNAL, 28/04/1989 (Bibliographic reference). SAB1416.

SMITH, D, 1983, ACTION STATIONS 7, 117-20 (Bibliographic reference). SAB3237.

GUY, JA, 1992, WORLD WAR I & II DEFENCES, 3/12/92 (Bibliographic reference). SAB662.

FARRELL, S., 2004, ARCHAEOLOGICAL WATCHING BRIEF, RAF KINLOSS (Bibliographic reference). SAB561.

WATCHING BRIEF

FARRELL, S, 2005, DES VOL5, 2004, P.86 (Bibliographic reference). SAB2492.

NORTHERN SCOT, 2009, RAF 70TH ANNIVERSARY SUPPLEMENT- 70 YEARS IN MORAY, P.5-8 (Bibliographic reference). SAB1316.

BARCLAY, G, 2013, IF HITLER COMES. PREPARING FOR INVASION: SCOTLAND 1940, pp177-9 (Bibliographic reference). SAB3792.

ARCADIS, 2020, CULTURAL HERITAGE APPRAISAL: KINLOSS BARRACKS (Bibliographic reference). SAB7941.

WESSEX ARCHAEOLOGY, 2022, KINLOSS BARRACKS, RAF KINLOSS, MORAY: WSI FOR ARCHAEOLOGICAL WATCHING BRIEF AND PHOTOGRAPHIC RECORDING, WSI (Bibliographic reference). SAB3461.

Jul 9 1976 , NJ06S 2633267, NJ06S 2633267 (Air-vertical Photograph). SAB31684.

Nov 14 2022 , 21/.01265/APP, 21/.01265/APP (Ground Photograph). SAB36573.

Oct 9 1997 , AAS/97/12/CT, AAS/97/12/CT (Air-oblique Photograph). SAB31369.

Oct 18 2022 , 21/02001/APP, 21/02001/APP (Ground Photograph). SAB36488.

Record last edited

Jun 2 2025 12:49PM