RAF Down Ampney

Royal Air Force Down Ampney or more simply RAF Down Ampney is a former Royal Air Force station located 1.8 mi north east of Cricklade, Wiltshire and 3 mi south west of RAF Fairford, Gloucestershire. The airfield operated during the Second World War from February 1944 until February 1947.

Down Ampney was part of a group of airfields dedicated to air transportation, alongside RAF Broadwell and RAF Blakehill Farm.

Based units
No. 48 Squadron RAF and No. 271 Squadron RAF flew Douglas Dakotas on major missions. On D-Day they dropped the main elements of the 3rd Parachute Brigade in Normandy as well as towing Airspeed Horsa gliders across the English Channel. They were also active in Operation Market Garden (Arnhem) and the Rhine crossing. The same squadrons also flew Casevac flights to bring home wounded personnel from B landing grounds and airfields after the D Day landings. These flights took about 80 minutes and included RAF nurses.

Memorial
A memorial has been erected at the southern end of what was the main runway. which reads: "FROM THIS AIRFIELD IN 1944-5 DOUGLAS DAKOTAS FROM 48 AND 271 SQUADRONS RAF TRANSPORT COMMAND CARRIED THE 1ST AND 6TH AIRBORNE DIVISIONS UNITS OF THE AIR DESPATCH REGIMENT AND HORSA GLIDERS FLOWN BY THE GLIDER PILOTS REGIMENT TO NORMANDY – ARNHEM AND ON THE CROSSING THE RHINE OPERATIONS WE WILL REMEMBER THEM"