Royal Air Force Swingate Down or more simply RAF Swingate Down is a former

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) an ...

Chain Home Chain Home, or CH for short, was the codename for the ring of coastal Early Warning radar stations built by the Royal Air Force (RAF) before and during the Second World War to detect and track aircraft. Initially known as RDF, and given th ...

Low radar station operational during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

located north of

Dover Dover () is a town and major ferry port in Kent, South East England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies south-east of Canterbury and east of Maidstone ...

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

, England. The site was situated on alongside RAF Dover, another Radar section together on the removed

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fig ...

landing ground of RAF Dover.

History

First World War

RAF Dover was first established during August 1913, initially as stopping-off point before flying over the

English Channel The English Channel, "The Sleeve"; nrf, la Maunche, "The Sleeve" ( Cotentinais) or (Jèrriais), ( Guernésiais), "The Channel"; br, Mor Breizh, "Sea of Brittany"; cy, Môr Udd, "Lord's Sea"; kw, Mor Bretannek, "British Sea"; nl, Het Kan ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...

and was used by the following units: * No. 2 Squadron RAF * No. 3 Squadron RAF *

No. 4 Squadron RAF No. 4 Squadron, normally written as IV Squadron, of the Royal Air Force operates the BAE Hawk T2 in the training role from RAF Valley. History Formation and First World War IV Squadron formed at Farnborough in 1912 as part of the Royal Fly ...

* No. 5 Squadron RAF *

No. 7 Squadron RAF No. 7 Squadron of the Royal Air Force operates the Boeing Chinook HC6 from RAF Odiham, Hampshire. History Formation and early years No. 7 Squadron was formed at Farnborough Airfield on 1 May 1914 as the last squadron of the Royal Flying Co ...

No. 9 Squadron RAF Number 9 Squadron (otherwise known as No. IX (Bomber) Squadron or No. IX (B) Squadron) is the oldest dedicated Bomber Squadron of the Royal Air Force. Formed in December 1914, it saw service throughout the First World War, including at the Som ...

* No. 12 Reserve Aeroplane Squadron RAF *

No. 13 Reserve Aeroplane Squadron RAF The numero sign or numero symbol, №, (also represented as Nº, No, No. or no.), is a typographic abbreviation of the word ''number''(''s'') indicating ordinal numeration, especially in names and titles. For example, using the numero sign, ...

became

No. 13 Reserve Squadron RAF The numero sign or numero symbol, №, (also represented as Nº, No, No. or no.), is a typographic abbreviation of the word ''number''(''s'') indicating ordinal numeration, especially in names and titles. For example, using the numero sign, ...

became No. 13 Training Squadron RAF * No. 15 Squadron RAF * No. 20 Reserve Squadron RAF *

No. 27 Squadron RAF No. 27 Squadron of the Royal Air Force operates the Boeing Chinook from RAF Odiham. History First World War 27 Squadron of the Royal Flying Corps formed at Hounslow Heath Aerodrome on , being split off from 24 Squadron. Initially using air ...

No. 49 Squadron RAF No. 49 Squadron was a bomber squadron of the Royal Air Force from 1938 to 1965. They were the first squadron to receive the Hampden in September 1938. The unit achieved fame through the Victoria Cross awarded to Rod Learoyd in 1940 and for its r ...

No. 50 Squadron RAF No. 50 Squadron was a squadron of the Royal Air Force. It was formed during the First World War as a home defence fighter squadron, and operated as a bomber squadron during the Second World War and the Cold War. It disbanded for the last time in ...

No. 58 Squadron RAF Number 58 Squadron was a squadron of the Royal Air Force. History First World War No. 58 Squadron was first formed at Cramlington, Northumberland, on 8 June 1916 as a squadron of the Royal Flying Corps from a nucleus split off from the Home d ...

No. 62 Training Squadron RAF The numero sign or numero symbol, №, (also represented as Nº, No, No. or no.), is a typographic abbreviation of the word ''number''(''s'') indicating ordinal numeration, especially in names and titles. For example, using the numero sign, ...

* No. 64 Reserve Squadron RAF * No. 65 Training Squadron RAF became No. 53 Training Depot Station RAF *

No. 110 Squadron RAF No. 110 Squadron RAF was a unit of the British Royal Air Force, initially formed as a bomber squadron during the First World War. Re-formed during the Second World War, again as a bomber squadron, it was re-formed twice more post-war, firstly as ...

* No. 212 Squadron RAF * Machine Gun School

Second World War

RAF Dover was re-established as a

radar station during 1938.Action Stations No. 9 - Chris Ashworth pg. 79 RAF Swingate Down was located to the east of RAF Dover but within the confines of the old landing ground as Chain Home Low radar station.

History

First World War

Second World War

Current use

References

Citations

Bibliography