{{Short description|Former Royal Air Force flying base in Gloucestershire, England}} {{Use dmy dates|date=November 2017}} {{Use British English|date=November 2017}} {{Infobox military installation | name = RAF Moreton Valence | ensign = Ensign of the Royal Air Force.svg | ensign_size = 90px | native_name = | partof = <!-- for elements within a larger physical site --> | nearest_town = Moreton Valence, Gloucestershire | country = England | image = | alt = | caption = | image2 = <!--secondary image, major command emblems for airfields --> | alt2 = | caption2 = | type = Royal Air Force station | coordinates = {{coord|51.787|-2.296|type:airport_region:GB|display=title,inline}} | gridref = | pushpin_map = Gloucestershire#UK | pushpin_map_caption = Shown within Gloucestershire | pushpin_label = RAF Moreton Valence | pushpin_label_position = | ownership = Ministry of Defence | operator = Royal Air Force | controlledby = RAF Flying Training Command | open_to_public = <!-- for out of use sites/sites with museums etc --> | site_other_label = <!-- for renaming "Other facilities" in infobox --> | site_other = <!-- for other sorts of facilities – radar types etc --> | site_area = <!-- area of site m2, km2 square mile etc --> | code = <!--facility/installation code --> | built = {{Start date|1939}} | used = 1939-{{End date|1962}} | builder = | materials = | height = <!-- height of tallest part, not above sea level --> | length = <!-- for border fences or other DMZs --> | fate = <!--changed from demolished parameter--> | condition = | battles = | events = | past_commanders = <!-- past notable commander(s) --> | garrison = <!-- such as the 25th Bombardment Group --> | occupants = <!-- squadrons only --> | designations = | website = | footnotes = <!-- catchall in case it's needed to preserve something in infobox that doesn't work in new code --> <!-- begin airfield information --> | IATA = | ICAO = | FAA = | TC = | LID = | GPS = | WMO = | elevation = <!-- {{Convert| |m|0}} --> | r1-number = | r1-length = <!-- {{Convert| |m|0}} --> | r1-surface = | h1-number = | h1-length = <!-- {{Convert| |m|0}} --> | h1-surface = | airfield_other_label = <!-- for renaming "Other facilities" in infobox --> | airfield_other = <!-- for other sorts of airfield facilities --> <!-- end airfield information --> }}
'''Royal Air Force Moreton Valence''' or more simply '''RAF Moreton Valence''' is a former Royal Air Force station located {{Convert|9|km}} southwest of Gloucester, Gloucestershire and {{Convert|24|km}} northwest of Cirencester, Gloucestershire, England.
==History== RAF Moreton Valence opened in 1939 and was closed in 1962. The airfield was situated between the A38 and B4008 roads east of the village of Moreton Valence, and was also known as Haresfield airfield. During the Second World War, it had three concrete runways and associated aircraft hangars including A1, blister, B1 and B2 types. It was a satellite of RAF Staverton and was used by an Advanced Flying Unit of Royal Air Force Flying Training Command. During the Second World War, it also hosted secret tests of the Armstrong Whitworth Albemarle bomber.
Beginning in October 1943, it was also used by Gloster aircraft for testing Meteor jet aircraft. Moreton Valence's runway had been extended to 6,000 feet to allow testing of the Meteor. Peter Cadbury flew as a test pilot for Glosters during the Second World War, and fondly remembered his first flight in a jet, at Moreton Valence. There were no two-seat versions, so his first solo in a Meteor would also be his first flight in one:
<blockquote>"When [check pilot] Michael Daunt was satisfied that I knew enough about the Meteor to be trusted to fly it, I was put in the cockpit . . .'Line up, set the rpm at 14,000, watch the jet pipe temperature and good luck,' he said, slapped the side of the aeroplane and walked away. I did as I was told and released the brakes . . . It was a thrill I shall never forget, as the aircraft accelerated down the runway . . . My immediate reaction was the lack of noise or vibration . . . The Meteor project was Top Secret and we were told not to fly out of the Moreton Valence area and avoid having to force-land anywhere else."<ref>Peter Cadbury, "Test Pilot," in High Flyers: 30 Reminiscences to Celebrate the 75th Anniversary of the Royal Air Force, Michael Fopp (ed.), Greenhill Books in Association with the Royal Air Force Museum. London, 1993. p. 66</ref></blockquote>
In the post-war period, it was used by Glosters for further testing of the Meteor, and was also used for final completion of Javelin fighters which were built in Brockworth and flown the short distance to Moreton Valence, the runway at Brockworth being too short to safely allow a completed Javelin to take off. The airfield site has been subsequently bisected by the M5 and some areas are used for industrial parks.
The following units were posted here:<ref name="ABCT">{{cite web|url=http://www.abct.org.uk/airfields/moreton-valence-haresfield |title=Moreton Valence (Haresfield) |publisher=Airfields of Britain Conservation Trust|accessdate=21 February 2015}}</ref> * No. 3 (Pilots) Advanced Flying Unit RAF * No. 6 Air Observers Navigation School RAF * No. 6 Air Observers School RAF * No. 6 (Observers) Advanced Flying Unit RAF * No. 6 (Pilots) Advanced Flying Unit RAF * No. 12 (RNZAF) Personnel Reception Centre * No. 83 Gliding School RAF * Pilot Refresher Training Unit
==References== {{Reflist}}
{{Royal Air Force}} {{Royal Air Force stations in Gloucestershire}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Moreton Valence, RAF}}
Category:M5 motorway Category:Royal Air Force stations in Gloucestershire Category:Military airbases established in 1939 Category:Military airbases closed in 1962