Today we went to RAF Uxbridge. It was the headquarters for No11 RAF, responsible for the defence of London and south-east England. The Operations Room will be a familiar sight to anyone who has watched any WW2 docos/movies.
The bunker, 50 feet below, has been left as it was, and only recently been restored and opened to the public. It is operated by volunteers. Our very enthusiastic guide was over ALL the detail of RAF aircraft, BoB details such as dates, weather conditions, what happened each day and what the Germans did. He explained what all the numbers and boards and lights and those little blocks meant. Trust the Brits - no just going up and shooting German planes - but a very orderly and systematic chain of communication and decision making. (Reminds me of their church bells - you just don't pull the ropes and ring the bells!)
A few interesting things - and sad. With victory, we forget that the BoB was a close run thing. The Brits knew that they would lose a land operation. They were losing pilots, and had to train new ones as quickly as they could. The inexperienced pilots were put to the back of the formation, but the Germans figured this out. Oh dear.
VIPs, including Churchill visited. It was outside that he gave the first version of his "so much owed by so many to so few", which was later refined in his speech. I did wonder how he coped with the 76 steps. From the outside, you would never know there was so much below ground. According to our guide, many locals had no idea the bunker was there. Pic of the entrance below. (The plane and the flowers, are of course, post-war).
The bunker, 50 feet below, has been left as it was, and only recently been restored and opened to the public. It is operated by volunteers. Our very enthusiastic guide was over ALL the detail of RAF aircraft, BoB details such as dates, weather conditions, what happened each day and what the Germans did. He explained what all the numbers and boards and lights and those little blocks meant. Trust the Brits - no just going up and shooting German planes - but a very orderly and systematic chain of communication and decision making. (Reminds me of their church bells - you just don't pull the ropes and ring the bells!)
A few interesting things - and sad. With victory, we forget that the BoB was a close run thing. The Brits knew that they would lose a land operation. They were losing pilots, and had to train new ones as quickly as they could. The inexperienced pilots were put to the back of the formation, but the Germans figured this out. Oh dear.
VIPs, including Churchill visited. It was outside that he gave the first version of his "so much owed by so many to so few", which was later refined in his speech. I did wonder how he coped with the 76 steps. From the outside, you would never know there was so much below ground. According to our guide, many locals had no idea the bunker was there. Pic of the entrance below. (The plane and the flowers, are of course, post-war).
It was cold down in the bunker!
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