Royal Air Force Kimbolton or more simply RAF Kimbolton is a former Royal Air Force station located west of Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire, England.
History
USAAF use
The airfield was originally built in 1941 for RAF Bomber Command, then expanded to Class A airfield standards for use by American heavy bombers during 1942. Kimbolton was assigned to the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) Eighth Air Force. It was given the designation USAAF Station 117.
91st Bombardment Group (Heavy) The airfield was opened in 1942 and was first used by the USAAF Eighth Air Force 91st Bombardment Group (Heavy), arriving from Walla Walla AAF, Washington during September.
The 91st was assigned to the 1st Combat Bombardment Wing of the 1st Bombardment Division. Its tail code was Triangle-A. Its operational Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress squadrons were: 322d Bombardment Squadron (LG) 323d Bombardment Squadron (OR) 324th Bombardment Squadron (DF) 401st Bombardment Squadron (LL)
The 91st stayed at Kimbolton only a few weeks, because the runways at Kimbolton were not strong or long enough for the safe operation of Fortresses. The group transferred to RAF Bassingbourn on 14 October.
17th Bombardment Group (Medium) The next USAAF unit to use Kimbolton was the 17th Bombardment Group (Medium), arriving in October from Barksdale AAF Louisiana. The 17th was originally intended to use RAF Bassingbourn. However, with the move of the 91st, the unit utilized Kimbolton as its shorter runways could accommodate their smaller, twin-engined medium bombers.
The 17th consisted of the following squadrons: 34th Bombardment Squadron 37th Bombardment Squadron 95th Bombardment Squadron 432d Bombardment Squadron
The 17th flew the Martin B-26 Marauder medium bomber, and used Kimbolton as a transitory airfield on its way to the North African campaign. The Group departed in November for Telergma, Algeria, with its last elements leaving in early December. With the departure of the B-26s, extensions were made to the NW-SE runway to facilitate the operation of fully loaded B-17s.
379th Bombardment Group (Heavy)
On 21 May 1943, the 379th Bombardment Group (Heavy) arrived from Sioux City AAF, Iowa.
The 379th was assigned to the 41st Combat Bombardment Wing of the 1st Bombardment Division. Its tail code was Triangle-K. Its operational B-17 Flying Fortress squadrons were: 524th Bombardment Squadron (WA) 525th Bombardment Squadron (FR) 526th Bombardment Squadron (LF) 527th Bombardment Squadron (FO)
The 379th BG began operations with Eighth AF on 19 May 1943, and received a Distinguished Unit Citation for operations over Europe from May 1943 through July 1944. The group engaged primarily in bombardment of strategic targets such as industries, oil refineries, storage plants, submarine pens, airfields and communications centres in Germany, France, the Netherlands, Belgium, Norway and Poland.
Specific targets included a chemical plant in Ludwigshafen, an aircraft assembly plant in Brunswick, ball-bearing plants at Schweinfurt and Leipzig, synthetic oil refineries at Merseburg and Gelsenkirchen, marshalling yards at Hamm and Reims and airfields in Mesnil au Val and Berlin.
The Group received another DUC for flying without fighter protection into central Germany to attack vital aircraft factories on 11 January 1944. On several occasions the Group attacked interdictory targets and operated in support of ground forces. It bombed V-weapon sites, airfields, radar stations and other installations before the Normandy invasion in June 1944, bombed defended positions just ahead of the Allied landings on 6 June and struck airfields, rail choke points, and gun emplacements during the campaign that followed.
During the Battle of France, the Group bombed enemy positions to assist ground troops at St Lo during the breakthrough, 24–25 July 1944, attacked German communications and fortifications during the Battle of the Bulge, December 1944 - January 1945, and bombed bridges and viaducts in France and Germany to aid the Allied assault across the Rhine, February–March 1945.