RAF Davidstow Moor

RAF Davidstow Moor stood on high ground a few miles northeast of Camelford in Cornwall, opening in October 1942. At roughly 970 feet above sea level it is often described as the highest operational airfield used by the Royal Air Force in Britain during the Second World War, a distinction that brought frequent low cloud and difficult flying conditions to the windswept moor.

The station belonged to RAF Coastal Command, under No. 19 Group, and its squadrons were tasked chiefly with maritime work over the Western Approaches and the Bay of Biscay. A long and varied list of units passed through, among them No. 53 and No. 269 Squadrons with Lockheed Hudsons, No. 304 (Polish) and No. 547 Squadrons with Vickers Wellingtons, No. 404 (RCAF) and No. 144 with Bristol Beaufighters, and No. 206 with Liberators and Fortresses. Their duties spanned anti-submarine patrols, anti-shipping strikes, E-boat sweeps off the French coast, and air-sea rescue, and the airfield helped guard the western flank of the Normandy landings in 1944.

Flying wound down and the station closed around December 1945. In the early 1950s the wartime runways served as the Davidstow motor-racing circuit, hosting Formula One events, and the site later supported light aviation. Surviving structures and two local museums now preserve its memory.