This cache along with Leiston Airfield: Memorial Micro and
Leiston Airfield: 357th 'Yoxford Boys' are a set of 3 caches around
what was Leiston Airfield, an American airfield during the second
world war.
Construction began on Leiston Airfield in September 1942, the
airfield became station F373 and was the most easterly airfield in
the UK. The airfield consisted of 3 concrete runways and 14 metal
hangars and was completed in September 1943.
In November 1943 came the 358th fighter group of the 9th USAAF
flying republic P47 Thunderbolt aircraft. Leiston Airfield was now
equipped to join the fight for freedom.
The first operational mission took place on 20th December 1943, a
shallow penetration of the Dutch coast with 48 Thunderbolts
escorting the returning bomber stream home to their bases.
Only 17 missions later, the 358th moved at the end of January 1944
to Raydon, just south of Ipswich. Leiston Airfield now became home
for the duration of the war to the 357th Fighter group’s 3
squadrons who were assigned to the 8th USAAF and equipped with the
North American P51 Mustang aircraft. Nicknamed the ‘Yoxford
Boys’ the 357th and their Mustang aircraft powered by the
Rolls Royce Merlin engine were soon escorting bombers deeper into
territory that had previously not been possible.
‘Kit’ Carson was the top scoring pilot of the 357th
with 18.5 aircraft destroyed and only 5 other US pilots scored
more. One of the other ‘aces’ was Chuck Yeager, who
named his P51 aircraft ‘Glamorous Glen’ after his
girlfriend. He later became the first man to break the sound
barrier.
Today, little is left of Leiston Airfield, a few huts can be
seen collapsing in the undergrowth and part of the runway and
taxiway can be viewed from Harrow Lane. The best preserved area is
now used by the nearby caravan and camping park where the holiday
homes are set around the original taxiway. The park office and
‘Yoxford Boys’ bar is on the site of one of the fuel
dumps and the 3rd scale Mustang outside is in the markings of the
top ace of the group – Leonard ‘Kit’
Carson.
The memorial in Harrow Lane was set up in 1997 by Friends Of
Leiston Airfield to honour the 82 men who lost their lives
operating from Leiston Airfield. (find out more at
friendsofleistonairfield.co.uk)
There is a small museum situated in the caravan park a short
distance from this cache which holds more information on the
airfield.
This cache is a reincarnation of an old cache of the same name
that I archived back in 2007 which was situated elsewhere within
the boundaries of the old airfield –
Archived Leiston Airfield: 358th
This is a cache n dash 35mm film canister situated not far from
where the end of the main runway once was. There is parking at GZ
for 1 car in a farmers field entrance and it won’t take you
long to find the cache, if you continue north along this road for a
short distance until you go around the corner at the barn you will
see how large, open and flat this field is and why it made such a
great area for the airfield to be based back during WW2.
Enjoy the caches. Please bring a pen with you.