Places of Interest | Soldiers from the Sky

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

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

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

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. (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

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

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 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

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 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

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

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

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. (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

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. (South Kesteven District Council)

Landmarks

Rock House

Home to General Sosabowski and the Headquarters of the Polish 1st Independent Parachute Brigade.

Landmarks

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, 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 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

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

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

All Places of Interest (alphabetical order)

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

Men of the 1st Parachute Battalion enjoy a cuppa before the flight to Arnhem, 17 September 1944. Sadly, Lance Corporal Walter Lewis (kneeling) was killed in action later that day, and three others were killed during the Arnhem battle or shortly afterwards. (Paradata/Airborne Assault Museum)

Place

RAF Barkston Heath

RAF Barkston Heath was home to the US 61st Troop Carrier Group.

Airfield
Memorials

Aerial photo of Bottesford airfield in May 1945

Aerial photograph of Bottesford airfield looking east, the technical site with seven T2 hangars, control tower and airfield code are top left, 30 May 1945. Photograph taken by No. 544 Squadron, sortie number RAF/106G/LA/203. (English Heritage [RAF Photography], via American Air Museum in Britain).

Place

RAF Bottesford

A brief history of RAF Bottesford, used by the RAF, RAAF and USAAF in World War II.

Airfield

C-47 aircraft line up for take off at Folkingham in September 1944

C-47 Skytrains of the 313th Troop Carrier Group line up for take off at Folkingham in September 1944. (American Air Museum in Britain/IWM FRE 3392)

Place

RAF Folkingham

RAF Folkingham was home to the 313th Troop Carrier Group.

Airfield

A C-47 of the 442nd Troop Carrier Group at Fulbeck. (assumed USAAF, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons)

Place

RAF Fulbeck

US troop-carrier aircraft flew from RAF Fulbeck on the D-Day and MARKET GARDEN operations.

Airfield

Pathfinders of the 82nd Airborne Division with their aircraft at North Witham

North Witham, 5 June 1944: Pathfinders of the 2nd Battalion, 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division, and aircrew of the C-47 that would fly them to Normandy just hours later. (US Army photo, public domain)

Place

RAF North Witham

RAF North Witham was home to the US Airborne Pathfinders and was the maintenance centre for C-47 and C-53 aircraft, as well as CG-4A and Horsa gliders.

Airfield

Place

RAF Saltby

First used by the RAF, Saltby became home to the US 314th Troop Carrier Group, flying missions on D-Day, Operations MARKET GARDEN and DOOMSDAY.

Airfield
Memorials

Other Resources

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.