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17
Apr
Help sought to save First World War RAF building in Boroughbridge
A former member of the RAF is appealing for the public’s help to save a unique piece of First World War heritage in Boroughbridge.
Malcolm Reeves, who lives in the town, is looking for information about the building formerly occupied by Griffin Autos on Horsefair.
The structure, which is about 100 feet long and 30 feet wide, is believed to be one of the very few surviving First World War aircraft maintenance sheds – possibly the only one.
Mr Reeves told the Stray Ferret:
It’s really quite special. If there is another like it, I’d be surprised if it was in as good condition.
To actually find one that’s still intact and has been in the same place for over 100 years is quite remarkable.
He said part of what made the building special was the method of its construction:
It’s built with Belfast trusses, which were very strong, lightweight wooden lattices that were designed to be erected very quickly. They were quite commonplace in the First World War and could be knocked up by any woodworker.
They were dotted all around the country and after the war they were used for all kinds of purposes, including car garages, but they all seem to have disappeared over the years – apart from this one.
There are hangars made like this of a similar vintage at the Imperial War Museum at Duxford and at RAF Hendon, but this must be one of the last – if not the last – engine repair shed of its kind left in the UK. So it’s a very historic building.
Belfast trusses: strong, lightweight and easy to put up.
The building is thought to have originally stood five miles to the north-east at the Royal Flying Corps' airfield at Helperby, whose fighter aircraft were deployed from 1916 to intercept German Zeppelin raids over the east coast.
It is believed to have been transferred to its current site in around 1920, when the government closed the airfield and auctioned off its assets.
There are plans to relocate the building to a museum that has shown an interest in preserving it, but Mr Reeves, who is working with the Airfields of Britain Conservation Trust to save it, said:
We’re 99% convinced the building came from Helperby, but the museum wants to be sure and is actively trying to verify its provenance.
They know it’s a First World War shed, and they recognise that everything’s ‘right’ about it.
They’re really after a ‘Rolls-Royce’ solution, and what they’ve got now is a Ford Cortina – they just want that final proof.
Mr Reeves, who spent 36 years in the RAF as a helicopter pilot and is chair of the RAF 7 Squadron Association, is hoping that people living in the area may have some information that could conclusively tie the building to the airfield, and preferably also prove when it was relocated to its current site on Horsefair.
The matter has come to a head because the shed stands on land now owned by the Central England Co-op, which wants to redevelop the site and build a new mini-supermarket.
Mr Reeves said:
We approached the [Central England] Co-op to ask if the building could be sold, and they have been very – pardon the pun – cooperative. They’ve agreed that the building can be dismantled rather than bulldozed.
Anyone who has any information about the building’s history is urged to contact the Airfields of Britain Conservation Trust.
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