World War II structures

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

Part of a group of eleven buildings to rear and SW of 102 Greencastle Road and rear of 104 Greencastle Road. These formed the instructional site of Greencastle’s WW2 Aerodrome. The largest structure is a Gunnery and Crew Procedure Centre, to the north of the site. To its south, in centre of group is a double Air Ministry Laboratory (AML) bombing teacher block (HB16/04/049A). South again is a similar single AML structure (HB16/04/049A). The remaining buildings are single storey temporary brick structures used for various purposes

'i & ii) Air Ministry Laboratory (AML) bombing teacher blocks.

iii)) Gunnery and Crew Procedure Centre.
A large structure approximately 17m x 35m, aligned NE-SW to north of group. Pitched corrugated asbestos cement roof with two large circular asbestos cement vents on each pitch. Asbestos cement rainwater goods (replaced with metal in places). Walls are smooth rendered permanent (200mm thick) red brickwork with buttresses at regular intervals.

SW gable is five bays wide. The middle one has a large pair of framed and sheeted painted timber sliding doors (wicket to right one). Each remaining bay has a blocked up window opening. In gable over doorway is a pair of square louvred timber vents.

Each side elevation is eight bays wide. All bays have blocked up windows but for third from left on NW elevation which is wider and contains a pair of double-leaf sliding doors.

SE elevation is detailed the mirror of the NW, but doorway has been infilled and buttressed to each end and is now only two leaves wide.

NE gable is four bays wide. Wall is blank to middle bays. Each end bay has a single (blocked up) window opening. There are two vents in gable apex as those on SW gable.

'iv) Single storey ‘Link trainer’ block aligned NW-SE to rear (NE) of block C.

Pitched corrugated asbestos cement roof with semicircular ridges and circular asbestos cement stops. Moulded asbestos cement bargeboards and no rainwater goods. Walls are temporary (100mm thick) red brickwork, smooth cement rendered with buttresses. Structure is six bays wide; fourth and sixth from left on SW elevation are half width.

Front (SW) elevation is abutted to centre (bays 2, 3+4) by a monopitched single storey return. Remaining bays (L-R) are as follows: bay one has is filled by a large pair of framed sheeted garage doors. The buttress to its right advances as a single brick deep screen wall. Bays two, five and six are blank. Remains of a former porch has a monopitched asbestos cement roof raised to right end. Its walls are rendered with a sheeted door on its left cheek. Front wall of porch has a three paned metal casement at left and a pair of sheeted timber doors at right. Right cheek of lean-to is blank.

Both gables to main block are three bays wide and blank.

Rear wall L-R: bays two, five and six have large blocked up window openings. Bays one and four (narrow) are blank. Bay three has a large 2x6 paned steel casement window without cill.

'v) Single storey / two bay latrine block, aligned SW-NE to south of block D.

Roof is monopitched corrugated asbestos cement with moulded asbestos cement bargeboards. Walls are smooth rendered temporary (100mm) red brickwork, with buttresses between each bay. Each end gable has a sheeted timber door. SE elevation has two small blocked up openings to bay one and three to bay two. NW elevation has two 2/2 top opening metal casements on each bay (now boarded over).

'vi) Small single storey / four bay structure aligned NE-SW.

Pitched corrugated asbestos cement roof (painted red) with semicircular ridges and circular asbestos cement stops at either end. Modern chimney to rear pitch. Semicircular plastic rainwater goods. Walls are pebble dashed temporary brickwork (100mm thick) over painted smooth rendered basecourse with buttresses at regular intervals forming the bays and supporting the metal roof trusses. Windows are all steel casements with no cills. Front elevation (SE facing) has a single window to bays one and three and a modern up-and–over garage door to bays two and four. Gables are three bays wide and blank. Rear elevation has the following openings (L-R): louvred modern door and pair of four paned casements; pair of four paned casements, and same to bays three and four.

'vii) Single storey / nine bay structure aligned NW-SE.
Pitched corrugated asbestos cement roof (painted red) with semicircular ridges and circular asbestos cement stops at either end. Semicircular plastic rainwater goods. Walls are painted wet-dashed temporary brickwork (100mm thick) with buttresses at regular intervals forming the bays and supporting the metal roof trusses. Windows are three paned modern plastic casements with no cills.

Front elevation (NE facing) has a single window to all bays with the exception of the following: bays three and four contain large three leaf metal vehicle doors, and bay seven has a sheeted door and a two paned window. NW gable has a pair of sheeted metal doors between two buttresses. Rear elevation has three paned window to each bay but bay three is blank. SE gable is blank.

'viii) Single storey / six plus two half bay building aligned NE-SW.

Pitched corrugated asbestos cement roof (painted red). Semicircular ridges and circular asbestos cement stops at either end. Semicircular plastic rainwater goods. Walls are painted rendered temporary brickwork (100mm thick) with buttresses at regular intervals forming the bays and supporting the metal roof trusses. All windows are now infilled and rendered over.
Front elevation (NW facing) has blank bays but for fifth which has a modern sheeted metal vehicle door. SW gable has three blank bays. NE gable has an infilled door to centre. Rear elevation formerly had window openings, all now infilled.

'ix) Single storey /two bay latrine block aligned NW-SE.

Monopitched corrugated asbestos cement roof. Semicircular plastic rainwater goods. Walls are temporary brickwork (100mm), cement rendered with buttresses separating each bays. Sheeted timber door on N and SE gables. Four paned steel casement window (top two panes are top hung) with no cill to each bay on SW elevations. NE elevation has two window openings to left bay and three to right bay, all infilled and rendered over.

'x) Single storey / nine (plus two halves) bay structure aligned SW-NE.

Pitched corrugated asbestos cement roof (painted red) roof vents to E end with semicircular ridges and circular asbestos cement stops at either end. Semicircular plastic rainwater goods. Walls are painted smooth rendered temporary brickwork (100mm thick) with buttresses at regular intervals, forming the bays and supporting the metal roof trusses. Windows are paired modern plastic casements and doors are sheeted abutted at W end of South elevation by modern brick building. Some openings are infilled. Right gable has a pair of sheeted doors to centre of three bays. Building is abutted at West end of South elevation by a modern brick building. The right gable has a pair of sheeted doors to centre bay.

'xi) Single storey / six and half bay structure aligned NE-SW.

Abutted by modern brick extensions to front and rear left, leaving only three and half bays exposed. Pitched corrugated asbestos cement roof (painted red) with semicircular ridges and circular asbestos cement stops at either end. Semicircular plastic rainwater goods. Walls are painted smooth rendered temporary brickwork (100mm thick) with buttresses at regular intervals forming the bays and supporting the metal roof trusses.

The end right hand three bays on façade (SE facing) contain (L-R): bay one has a door, bays two and three have two paned plastic casement windows; half bay is blank. All these openings were formerly 2x4 steel casements.

NE gable has a pair of corrugated metal sheeted sliding doors.

Rear elevation has to all exposed bays, a pair of 2x4 casement windows. The SW gable has been rebuilt and is abutted by a modern gabled shed.

Historical information

Owner’s father had the land compulsorily purchased during WW2 and bought it back afterwards. Building A was used by DoE roads service as a depot up until August 1998 and others were used as animal houses and stores, all are now vacant.

The 1946 map of the Greencastle Aerodrome shows this group of buildings to be an ‘instructional site’. All the buildings are intact but for a picket post (type B) which was demolished to accommodate the construction of the house (102 Greencastle Road).

(i & ii) The Air Ministry laboratory (AML) blocks match Air Ministry Drawing no. 6301 / 42 (double) and no. 1739/41 (single). These were invented at Imperial College London and contained projection equipment to simulate ground conditions from the air.

(iii) Gunnery and Crew Procedure Centre was constructed to house synthetic trainers.

(iv)Link trainer (two compartments)

(v) Latrine block.

(vi - xi) are all common structures, constructed on bases for a variety of uses. Although it is uncertain which function each performed, the following uses are listed on theMinistry site plan: lecture room, administration block, instructors block, armament classroom, intelligence & technical classroom, and latrine block.

This Combat Crew Replacement Centre (CCRC) was instigated at Greencastle on 20th December 1943. Veterans from European bombing raids would share their expertise with incoming inexperienced crews. One hundred crews are said to have passed through the CCRC every month until it was disbanded in the autumn of 1944.

There were over 600 airfields in Britain at the end of WW2, and 29 in Northern Ireland. Construction work began at Greencastle in spring 1942, the main contractor being Carmichael of Edinburgh. Kilkeel RAF Station (as it was known) was commissioned on 30th July 1942, and handed over to the United States Army Airforce (USAAF) on 3rd August 1943, becoming Station 237, one of 12 such American airfields in N. Ireland. Its principal building groups were of utility construction, and dispersed around the local area to avoid concentrated enemy bombing; its radar station being furthest away, located at Maghereagh to NE of Kilkeel. The station was a satellite to Langford Lodge (near Antrim), preparing aircraft for operational bases in East Anglia. Its second important role was as a training school for aircrews arriving from America. The base was handed back to the RAF on 31st May 1945, and decommissioned soon afterwards. The base remained in the ownership of the Air Ministry until its subdivision and sale in the early 1960s.

Primary Sources:
1. Mr E. Cromie, Ulster Aviation Society.
2. Air Ministry Map entitled; ‘Greencastle Record Site Plan’ (1946).

Secondary Sources:
1. G. B. Innes, ‘British Airfield Buildings of the Second World War’ (Leicester 1995) p. 66.67.72.
2. B. Lowery (ed.), ‘20th Century Defences in Britain, an introductory guide’ (British Council for Archaeology 1996)
3. L. Murphy, ‘Action Station: The story of Greencastle Aerodrome’, in 12 Miles of Mourne vol. 3 (Kilkeel 1989) pp. 33-50.

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

Not listed

Criteria for listing: historic interest

Not listed

Evaluation

Austerity architecture of the second world war attempted to simplify construction down to the minimal amount of materials and marry it with the maximum utility. These building are not architectural masterpieces. Their interest lies in the historical reasons for their construction (WW2), their short practical lifespan, and their austere ‘temporary’ construction. This site is the most intact of all the Greencastle Aerodrome.