RAF Folkingham
82nd Airborne paratroopers head towards British Grenadier Guards in their joint attack on the road bridge in Nijmegen on September 19. (Public domain)
RAF Folkingham was allocated to the 52nd Troop Carrier Wing of the US Ninth Air Force. The 313th Troop Carrier Group (TCG) arrived from Sicily in January 1944 and its D-Day accomplishments earned it a second Distinguished Unit Citation. Its role in Operation MARKET GARDEN included dropping troops and towing gliders to land near Nijmegen.
Wartime History
The airfield at Folkingham began life in 1940 as a decoy site established for RAF Spitalgate at Grantham. Early in 1943, work began on constructing an airfield to a Class A bomber airfield standard. When ready, it was allocated to the 52nd Troop Carrier Wing of the US Ninth Air Force.
The first personnel of the 313th TCG arrived from Sicily in January 1944, but it was March 1944 before the entire complement of its aircraft had arrived. On 6 June 1944, the 313th TCG dropped paratroops of the US 82nd Airborne Division as part of Operation NEPTUNE - the Allied assault on Normandy - for which it was awarded its second Distinguished Unit Citation (the first was for missions over Sicily). Over the next few weeks, it carried supplies to the troops in Normandy.
On 17 September 1944, during Operation MARKET GARDEN, 90 of its aircraft dropped over 1400 paratroopers and 480 parapacks near Nijmegen, losing two aircraft in the process. On the next day, the Group towed 79 gliders to the same area, followed by 98 more on 23 September. On 26 September, 36 aircraft flew in troops and supplies to an improvised landing strip near Grave. In 1945, the Group began converting to the C-46 aircraft and it had 90 of them when it moved to France in March 1945.
Folkingham airfield was closed in 1946 but part of it was used by the RAF between 1959-1963 as a launch site for Thor intermediate range ballistic missiles. Since then, the airfield has been returned to civilian ownership and it is currently used for agricultural and storage purposes.
On the Doorstep
The Georgian conservation village of Folkingham is proud of its wartime US Airborne heritage, and in 2024 turned the whole village over to an international commemoration: Folkingham Remembers MARKET GARDEN . For a touring stop-over, try Low Farm Park in the grounds of an 18th century farmhouse. To the south lies the market town of Bourne and nearby is the beautiful Bourne Wood. Grimsthorpe Castle to the west of Bourne is a must-see, and it is on the way to RAF North Witham, with The Woodhouse Arms in Corby Glen providing an opportunity for food and accommodation along the way.
Access
The airfield is strictly not accessible to the public, having returned to private ownership and agricultural use.