Dumbarton
| Also known as: | Barge Park |
| County: | West Dunbartonshire |
| Current Status: | Housing |
| Date: | October 1941 - 8 November 1945; previous minor use |
| Current Use: | Disused |
| Used By: | Civil |
| Landing Surface Types: | Water |
| Aircraft Roles: | Aircraft manufacture |
Dumbarton, more famous for its shipbuilding links, was also home to the Blackburn Aircraft factory from 1938. The facility built a few different types of aircraft but most famously the Short Sunderland flying boat, of which around 250 examples were built at the site. Frequent flying at Dumbarton did not begin until October 1941 but at its peak, the site employed around 4,000 people. The factory also enjoyed links with the Marine Aircraft Experimental Establishment (MAEE) at nearby Helensburgh. The last Sunderland left on 8 November 1945, after which other non-aviation forms of manufacture continued until the Blackburn factory closed in 1960, the site subsequently being used by the whisky industry.
A large number of buildings still remained into the 2000s but most were demolished around 2007. The slipway does however still survive.
The following organisations are either based at, use and/or have at least potentially significant connections with the airfield (as at 01/01/2020):
- Dumbarton East and Central Community Council
- Dumbarton Heritage Centre
- Dumbarton Library
Notable Past Associated Organisations:
- Blackburn Aircraft Limited
The last Blackburn-built Short Sunderland V flying boat passing Dumbarton Rock on 19 October 1945 after launch. It was the 250th Sunderland built at Dumbarton. Courtesy of Donald John Chisholm
The last Short Sunderland flypast at Dumbarton Airfield, beside Dumbarton Rock and Castle, on its way to a Squadron, November 1945. Courtesy of Donald Chisholm
The former Blackburn Aircraft Factory at Dumbarton, 8 August 2005.
The site of the former Blackburn Aircraft Factory at Dumbarton, 26 June 2009.