A look back at proud history as RAF Wyton marks 100 years since becoming a military base
Group photo of station personnel at Wyton spelling 100 to mark 100 years of Wyton Airfield - Credit: Archant
Personnel at Royal Air Force Wyton have celebrated 100 years since the station first became a military base
To mark their special centenary, on April 19, the station’s service personnel, civil servants and contractors turned out in force to take part in a centenary photograph.
With April showers failing to dampen spirits, more than 300 station personnel stood side by side to form the figure 100, thought to be a fitting way of both celebrating such an auspicious moment in the station’s history, and to commemorate all who have gone before.
Originally established as a Royal Flying Corps Station in 1916, the station was renamed RAF Wyton in 1918 following the formation of the Royal Air Force. The station has a proud aeronautical history and, though military flying has now stopped, the Pathfinder Flying Club continues the flying tradition at RAF Wyton.
Wing Commander Phil Owen said: “The RAF’s centenary will take place in 2018. However, it won’t occur to many people that Wyton’s history predates the formation of the RAF by around two years, and I’m immensely proud to celebrate the station’s centenary.
“Station Commanding Officers the world over are custodians of their station’s histories, and while custodianship feels more intense at an anniversary, RAF stations are more than the sum of their histories; they are living places which evolve according to whatever needs are placed upon them. RAF Wyton’s history proves that this station is no different.
“From the arrival of the Royal Flying Corps at Wyton in 1916, through the Second World War, the Cold War, the defence equipment and support years, and Wyton’s latest transition into a Joint Forces Command unit; home to the Joint Forces Intelligence Group, the station has a very proud heritage.
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“With the men and women of RAF Wyton continuing to nurture an excellent relationship with our local community, and the Station’s foreseeable future secure, together we can look forward to the next chapter in RAF Wyton’s history.”
