Building record MAB42961 - SCHOOLHILL

Remains of a World War II Radar station, now largely demolished.

Remains of a World War II Radar station, now largely demolished. RAF Schoolhill opened in 1940 as an East Coast Chain Home Radar Station (no. 46), part of a network established from 1938, and was in use throughout the war. It had steel radar towers which were 350ft high. Two of these were taken down in 1942 and replaced by two masts which were guyed. After the war it was put on care and maintenance until it was selected to be used as a 'readiness chain home' when it was re-equipped with Type 1 radar. It became redundant in 1955. It was again used in 1964 when the Home Office acquired the transmitter block for temporary use for the UK early warning and monitoring organisation (UKWMO) Caledonian Sector Control until 1976. Internally it was completely rebuilt. It was taken over by the Fire Brigade in 1978 as a training centre. Part is used as poultry houses and eastern part used as Fire Brigade Training Centre. The concrete bases of some of the masts still remain as does the central control bunker or transmitter block. There are also the remains of two unusual lozenge shaped pill-boxes on the field boundary. The stand-by set house was demolished in 2003, but a number of aerial mast bases remain. The domestic camp lay south of the transmitter block, alongside the modern Grampian Fire Brigade building which stands on the site of the combined living accommodation huts. The warden married quarters stands alongside the short drive, and at the end of the drive is the Seco guard house. The receiver block stood to the southeast on the opposite side of the road (centred NO 91134 97891), now removed, the site later occupied by warehouses. The receiver site also included a watch house and another pair of wardens' cottages all of which have been removed. A pillbox stands to the rear of the warehouses. Two buried equipment reserves lay in farmland to the east of the transmitter block, accessed through concrete covers mounted on steel rollers and rails. Close to the covers are rendered brick ventilators (three for each reserve) and close to each reserve are four concrete bases for the 120ft high reserve masts. One of these underground reserve bunkers was later filled with water and used by the Police as a diving training centre (NO9120 9817). Access was not possible during a site visit in 2007, (see NO99NW0077). A trial trenching evaluation was carried out by CFA in December 2018 on the receiver site prior to development. Three trenches targeted three structures, but although very fragmentary remains of the watch house and receiver station were recorded there was no trace of the receiver mast building.

MP112-24, MP112-24 (Ground Photograph). SAB20027.

MP58-72, MP58-72 (Ground Photograph). SAB20022.

GUY, JA, 1992, WORLD WAR I & II DEFENCES, 10-28-7-92 (Bibliographic reference). SAB662.

CFA ARCHAEOLOGY, 2018, SCHOOLHILL, PORTLETHEN, ABERDEENSHIRE: ARCHAEOLOGICAL EVALUATION, Evaluation report (Bibliographic reference). SAB7971.

CFA ARCHAEOLOGY, 2018, SCHOOLHILL, PORTLETHEN, ABERDEENSHIRE: ARCHAEOLOGICAL EVALUATION: WRITTEN SCHEME OF INVESTIGATION , WSI (Bibliographic reference). SAB8005.

Dec 5 2000 , GR/00/CT548-71, GR/00/CT548-71 (Ground Photograph). SAB17603.

Dec 5 2000 , NZ1-37, NZ1-37 (Ground Photograph). SAB17556.

Dec 5 2000 , YZ 1-37, YZ 1-37 (Ground Photograph). SAB33475.

Jul 28 1992 , 10-28-7-92, 10-28-7-92 (Ground Photograph). SAB16214.

Nov 9 2007 , GR/07/CT4-19, GR/07/CT4-19 (Ground Photograph). SAB19289.

Record last edited

Nov 13 2025 3:37PM