Places of Interest

A group is shown the wartime control tower at North Witham airfield

Outside the wartime control tower at North Witham airfield, a tour group learns about the history of the airfield and the US Airborne Pathfinders who trained and flew from there.

Follow in the footsteps of heroes

In 1944, Lincolnshire and South Kesteven played a pivotal role in the preparation and execution of two of the most daring Allied Airborne operations: D-Day (Operation NEPTUNE) and Operation MARKET GARDEN.

The region served as a strategic hub for Airborne forces from the United Kingdom, the United States and Poland, offering vital infrastructure, training areas and departure airfields.

See the Airborne Heritage Trails
A runway at North Witham airfield
British paratroopers next to their aircraft at Saltby

Men of ‘B’ Company, 2nd Parachute Battalion, at Saltby airfield on Sunday, 17 September 1944.
They are preparing their kit and parachutes prior to boarding USAAF C-47s of the 314th Troop Carrier Group for the flight to Arnhem. (Via Bob Hilton, still from a film by Sgt CM Lewis, British Army Film and Photographic Unit)

Airborne Locations in South Kesteven

Click the button to see at a glance the locations where Allied Airborne Forces were based in South Kesteven during World War II.

List of Airborne Locations in South Kesteven
View down runway at Saltby airfield
Saltby airfield memorial stones

Saltby airfield memorial stones. (Brian Riley)

Memorials

Discover the memorials to Allied Airborne Forces in South Kesteven and nearby.

Airborne Memorials
Polish Airborne memorial in Easton on the Hill

Museums

C-47 Dakota at Metheringham Airfield Visitor Centre

The C-47 Dakota at Metheringham Airfield Visitor Centre.

Landmarks

Metheringham Airfield Visitor Centre
The Metheringham Airfield Visitor Centre, which lies just a few miles to the north of South Kesteven, is dedicated to those who served at RAF Metheringham from November 1943 until the end of World War II, and to the British and US Airborne Forces who were based locally.
A C-47 troop-carrier aircraft - like those based in the area during World War II - is on permanent display and visitors can climb on board and sit in its cockpit and paratrooper seats.
Museum
Arnhem in Lincolnshire displays at Thorpe Camp

Arnhem in Lincolnshire displays at Thorpe Camp. (Thorpe Camp)

Landmarks

Thorpe Camp, Tattershall Thorpe
Although not in South Kesteven, the Thorpe Camp Visitor Centre has displays on wartime British Airborne Forces and is a great addition to a sightseeing tour of the Airborne sites in South Kesteven.
Museum

Airfields

Wartime treat for local children

American forces treated local childten

Airfield

RAF Barkston Heath
RAF Barkston Heath. USAAF Station 483 housed US Troop Carrier Command C-47 aircraft flying US 82nd Airborne to D-Day and British troops to Arnhem.
Airfield
C-47 aircraft and Horsa gliders lined up at Bottesford in 1944

C-47 Skytrains and Horsa gliders line up at Bottesford for take off on a practice mission in 1944. The C-47s belong to either the 436th or 440th Troop Carrier Group. (American Air Museum in Britain, FRE3358)

Airfield

RAF Bottesford
Opened for the RAF in 1941, the airfield was used by US Troop Carrier aircraft in early 1944 before being returned to RAF use for heavy bomber crew training in the summer of 1944. It continued with this role until the end of the war, after which the RAF used it for explosives' storage until 1959, when the airfield was closed and returned to agriculture.
Airfield
C47 aircraft at RAF Folkingham

C-47 tug aircraft and Waco CG-4a gliders lined up at RAF Folkingham, ready for operation MARKET GARDEN in September 1944. (US Army)

Airfield

RAF Folkingham
RAF Folkingham (USAAF Station 484). Home to 9th Troop Carrier Command flying the 82nd Airborne Division on D-Day and to Nijmegen for Arnhem.
Airfield
Paratroopers next to a C-47 at Fulbeck

Paratroopers of the 82nd Airborne Division with a C-47 Skytrain of the 95th Troop Carrier Squadron, 440th Troop Carrier Group, at Fulbeck in September 1944, before Operation MARKET GARDEN. (American Air Museum in Britain, FRE3364)

Airfield

RAF Fulbeck
RAF Fulbeck. US Station 488 was the US 9th Troop Carrier Command, flying 82nd and 101st Airborne Divisions to D-Day and Arnhem.
Airfield
Paratroopers and airmen next to their C-47 shortly before flying to Normandy

Pathfinder aircrew with Pathfinders of the 507th Parachute Infantry Regiment, US 82nd Airborne Division, at North Witham airfield on 5 June 1944, just hours before flying to Normandy. Kneeling at the far right of the front row is the pilot, Lieutenant David Hamilton, who was the last surviving Airborne Pathfinder pilot from World War II until he passed away in January 2025, aged 102. (US Army)

Airfield

RAF North Witham
RAF North Witham was USAAF IX Troop Carrier Command's central maintenance site for C-47s and gliders, and launched the vital D-Day US Airborne Pathfinder mission.
Airfield
British paratroopers next to their aircraft at Saltby

Men of ‘B’ Company, 2nd Parachute Battalion, at Saltby airfield on Sunday, 17 September 1944.
They are preparing their kit and parachutes prior to boarding USAAF C-47s of the 314th Troop Carrier Group for the flight to Arnhem. (Via Bob Hilton, still from a film by Sgt CM Lewis, British Army Film and Photographic Unit)

Airfield

RAF Saltby

RAF Saltby (Station 538). USAAF Troop Carrier Command flew the US 82nd Airborne Division for D-Day and British and Polish airborne troops for Operation MARKET GARDEN.
Airfield

Landmarks

Easton Hall in the 1890s

Easton Hall in the 1890s. (Easton Walled Gardens)

Landmarks

Easton Hall Estate
Easton Hall housed 2nd Parachute Battalion with men of the Battalion’s ‘A’ Company holding the road bridge at Arnhem for more than three days.
Landmark
Fulbeck Hall
Landmarks

Fulbeck Hall
Fulbeck Hall was used by the British First Airborne Division as part of its Divisional HQ. It is now a private home and not accessible but the village echoes with history.
Landmark
Fulbeck Manor

Within the 1st Airborne Division, the Headquarters of the Royal Army Ordnance Corps and Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers were housed in Fulbeck Manor during 1944-45.

Landmarks

Fulbeck Manor
Fulbeck Manor was part of British First Airborne Division’s Divisional HQ and mess facilities. Former engineering workshops now house Fulbeck Craft Workshops.
Landmark
Grimsthorpe Castle House

Grimsthorpe Castle

Landmarks

Grimsthorpe Castle
Grimsthorpe Castle house the Headquarters of the 1st Parachute Battalion HQ, with troops billeted in the grounds; after Arnhem, the 1st Battalion absorbed the survivors of the 156th Parachute Battalion, which had been decimated at Arnhem.
Landmark
Harlaxton Manor

Harlaxton Manor. (Mike Frankel/photos4you)

Landmarks

Harlaxton Manor
Harlaxton Manor boasts both British and US Airborne heritage with different units, including a visit from King George VI.
Landmark
Memorial
Marston Hall

Historic Marston Hall

Landmarks

Marston Hall
Major General Paul Williams, Commander of the US IX Troop Carrier Command, lived at Marston Hall in 1944.
Landmark
Rock House, Stamford

Rock House, Stamford. (South Kesteven District Council)

Landmarks

Rock House
Home to General Sosabowski and the Headquarters of the Polish 1st Independent Parachute Brigade.
Landmarks
Ropsley Heath

Walk in the footsteps of heroes across Ropsley Heath... (Brian Riley)

Landmarks

Ropsley Heath
Wide-open agricultural land near Ropsley village was used extensively in practice drops by paratroopers of the British 1st Airborne Division.
Landmark
St Vincent's Hall

St Vincent's Hall, Grantham.

Landmarks

St Vincent's Hall, Grantham
St Vincent’s Hall, Grantham, was the Headquarters of the US IX Troop Carrier Command, under Major General Paul Williams, in 1944.
Landmark
St Vincent's Church in Caythorpe

St Vincent's Church is a shrine to Airborne forces

Landmarks

St Vincent's Church, Caythorpe
St Vincent’s Church in Caythorpe is the spiritual home of 216 Parachute Signals Squadron, based in the village in 1944 with links still celebrated.
Landmark
Memorial
Stoke Rochford Hall

Lieutenant General (Retd) Andrew Harrison, former Colonel Commandant of the Parachute Regiment, in front of Stoke Rochford Hall, where the 2nd Parachute Battalion's assault on the Arnhem bridges was planned

Landmarks

Stoke Rochford Hall
Stoke Rochford Hall was 2nd Parachute Battalion Headquarters under the leadership of the legendary Lt Col John Frost.
Landmark
Hare & Hounds

Where to Stay

South Kesteven has many wonderful places to visit and stay. During World War II, troops were billeted at every significant property across the district, from stately homes to castles and manor houses.

Some, echoing with history, are still welcoming visitors today, many remarkably unchanged from what Airborne forces would have called their temporary homes in 1944.

Stay where they stayed
Marston Hall

All Places of Interest (alphabetical order)

A group of British paratropers at Barkston Heath airfield

Men of Headquarters Company, 1st Parachute Battalion, at Barkston Heath aerodrome on Sunday, 17th September 1944 - shortly before flying to Arnhem. (Paradata/Airborne Assault Museum)

Place
Stay where they Stayed
Wartime accommodation that still welcomes visitors today...
  • Landmark
  • Accommodation

Other Resources

Men of the 1st Parachute Battalion at Barkston Heath, 17 September 1944

Men of the 1st Parachute Battalion at Barkston Heath, 17 September 1944. (Paradata/Airborne Assault Museum)

Useful Online Resources

Airborne History on the Internet
Various links to useful websites to take your journey further.
A group of Pathfinders next to their aircraft on 5 June 1944

Pathfinders of the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division, on 5 June 1944. (US Army photo)

Useful Online Resources

Airborne Videos and Articles on the Internet
Useful links to online videos and stories from the Internet.