Smith's Lawn
Did you know?
"Another instrumental person in the development of Smith's Lawn during the 1930s was airfield genius Colonel John Turner, later the godfather of Britain's decoy airfields.
"Also known as: | RAF Smith's Lawn / Smith's Lawn Aerodrome / Windsor Great Park |
County: | Windsor and Maidenhead |
Current Status: | Leisure activity / Parkland |
Date: | 1920s - 31 July 1945; minor use December 1952 - February 1953 |
Current Use: | Disused |
Used By: | RAF / Civil / USAAF |
Landing Surface Types: | Unpaved |
Aircraft Roles: | Aircraft production / General aviation / Trainer / Transport |
By the early months of 1945 activities were noticeably winding down and the derequisitioned airfield was handed back to official ownership of King George VI in the summer of that year. As had been previously arranged, the hangars and other facilities created during wartime had been mostly demolished by the end of the 1940s to leave an open L-shaped area of grassland aside from the portion long used for polo. The person who instigated this sport was the Duke of Edinburgh, who briefly revived flying at Smith's Lawn long after the airfield closed when he flew here during the early 1950s, thus becoming the last person to officially fly from this place.
The following organisations are either based at, use and/or have at least potentially significant connections with the airfield (as at 01/09/2011):
- Guards Polo Club Holdings Ltd
- Old Windsor Parish Council
Main unit(s) present:
- No 18 EFTS
- 31st Transport Group
- 316th Air Transport Sqn
- No 2780 Sqn RAF Regiment
- Vickers-Armstrongs
Photographs and video from the memorial unveiling by HRH The Duke of Edinburgh on 11/04/2016:
© Gill Aspel
© Gill Aspel
© Gill Aspel
© Gill Aspel
© Gill Aspel