Shobdon

DispatchDragon · Post by **DispatchDragon** » 25 Jan 2007, 04:52

Anyway know anything about this little place - I was out playing with a certain twin engined beta the other day Bristol and using AsV6 got some horrendous weather including snow icing etc etc - finally decided to land somewhere anywhere - saw this little runway almost in the lee of the welsh mountain and landed - FS said is was Shobdon - cant find any history on it.

Leif

steve p · Post by **steve p** » 25 Jan 2007, 06:41

Leif,

I think that it was built during WW2 and was used as a glider training airfield. It is certainly used today for gliding. I'll dig into my weighty tomes and see if I've got anything else on it.

Best wishes
Steve P

Post by **Garry Russell** » 25 Jan 2007, 11:30

As Steve mentions it was built as a glider pilot training field in WWII

There are a few bits and pieces on Google but I have not come across a definitive history.

Quite a few of their residents are regular visitors to my local.

Garry

jamesstables · Post by **jamesstables** » 25 Jan 2007, 11:59

My Cessna project came to the museum via shobden.

Thats pretty much all I know about the place!

cstorey · Post by **cstorey** » 25 Jan 2007, 17:49

I had it in my logbook many times in the 60s/70s. It is a delightful place, and in years gone by there were some interesting a/c based there, including a Currie Watt and Tigers, Stampes etc, and I think at one time there was a Taifun or the French version thereof. It was run by Wing Commander Jimmy James who for a long time was the Chairman of AOPA. I don't remember gliding in tbose days, but there may be some there now. If my memories are correct, as a field it is slightly tricky in windy conditions, because there is a line of low hills to the N and W which tend to create turbulence and up/down draughts at anything above about 15 kts particularly if the wind is NW

Chris

DispatchDragon · Post by **DispatchDragon** » 26 Jan 2007, 00:27

Thanks Chris
Well the scenery was close right down to the hills

cheers everyone

Leif

Paul K · Post by **Paul K** » 26 Jan 2007, 02:05

Last time I heard of the place, it was a sport parachuting centre.

Rich · Post by **Rich** » 28 Jan 2007, 02:45

Shobden was indeed a glider training field during WWII, I lived in Hereford for 20 years before I moved to warmer climes, after finishing my time in the army I joined the Royal Observer Corps, our bunker was on top of a hill near RAF Credenhill who hosted us.

Back to Shobdon as respected and trusted personages we used to man 1 or 2 turning points in the Kings Cup ? air race, Shobdon was one of the stages, I remember a couple of occasions seeing the RN chippy in the line up.

There was another simmilar field just west of Hereford City which now houses the BT statelite comms station, no doubt it will show up on google earth, Madley I do believe.

Jetset · Post by **Jetset** » 28 Jan 2007, 19:49

Flown in there myself. Trees down one side of the runway. Used for microlights and helicopter training.