Hendon Aerodrome - The End of Aviation at Hendon

The End of Aviation At Hendon

The use of Hendon as an airfield was under threat even before the war, since it was considered that RAF Hendon would become a target for enemy bombing raids. After the war the base was increasingly unsuitable, particularly because the runways were too short, and the proximity of residential areas made matters worse. The RAF argued the military importance of the complex into the 1950s in case future developments in aviation technology might render the base suitable again, but eventually Hendon Borough Council and the London County Council were able to argue that houses were needed more than the aerodrome. The last flying unit, the Metropolitan Communication Squadron, left Hendon in November 1957. The entrance to the aerodrome can be seen in "the parade" scene in the 1967 film The Dirty Dozen, with at one point a Kirby Cadet glider of the then-resident 617 Volunteer Gliding School of the Air Training Corps launching in the background. Late in 1968, when two of the three runways had been removed, a Blackburn Beverley was flown in to be an exhibit at the new RAF Museum: this was the last aircraft to land in Hendon. The RAF base finally closed in 1987. The site of the aerodrome is now occupied by the Grahame Park housing estate, Hendon Police College and the RAF Museum which is situated on the south east side of the site.