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    • united kingdom Boscombe Down

    Boscombe Down, Wiltshire, England

    United Kingdom





    Location


    Satellite and aerial maps of Boscombe Down with nearby locations

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    KmBearing
    2.8350 Solstice Park, England
    4.0069 Newton Tony, England
    4.3274 Salisbury Plain, England
    4.3121 Porton, England
    4.6009 Bulford Camp, England
    6.5203EGLS Old Sarum, England



    1917 to present

    51° 9' 8'' N - 1° 44' 50'' W
    1.5nm SE of Amesbury, Wiltshire
    ICAO: EGDMIATA:
    Elevation: 407 feet




    History of this Location

    Opened briefly in World War I but was closed by 1919. In the pre-WWII expansion, it was re-opened as an RAF base in 1930. At the outbreak of WWII, the Aircraft & Armament Experimental Establishment (A&AEE) was moved here from its more vulnerable site near the East Coast at Martlesham Heath. Almost every production aircraft for the British forces passed through Boscombe Down prior to delivery to units. A Test Pilot school was formed in 1943, to become the Empire Test Pilot School (ETPS) in 1944.
    Test flying became the major function of this base and after WWII, it became a UK Government airfield (rather than an RAF one). Like Fleetlands, the arrangements for managing the site have evolved. The A&AEE became DTEO and it then joined with DRA to become the Defence Evaluation and Research Agency (DERA) in Apr 1995. DERA spilt into a commercial arm (QinetiQ) and a government agency (DSTL) in Jul 2001.

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    List of units at Boscombe Down

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    YearsRotary Wing Aircraft Unitbold : Current Model
    normal: Unit no longer at this base
    2018/    744 NAS
    1995/01Defence Evaluation and Research Agency
    1992/93826 NASSea King 1988/93
    Sea King 1981/93
    1992/    A&AEE
    1968/    ETPS
    1943/45ETPS
    1939/92Aeroplane & Armaments Experimental Establishment
    ??/12BDACType 171 Sycamore 2007/   
    Wasp 1995/   



    Boscombe Down News

    Merlin Crowsnest AEW Delayed, 20-Jul-20 : #Crowsnest The Royal Navy new Airborne Early Warning (AEW) Merlin Crowsnest helicopter for the Queen Elizabeth class aircraft carriers is now expected to reach initial operational capability (IOC) in September 2021

    Royal Navy Reactivates 744 Squadron for Crowsnet Merlin, 28-Nov-18 : #744NAS Royal Navy’ 744 Naval Air Squadron was reactivated at Boscombe Down to introduce the new fleet AEW platform, Crowsnest Merlin, to front-line service over the next 18 months plus the RAF’s upgraded Chinook Mk5s and Mk6s

    QinetiQ H125 Arrived at Boscombe Down ETPS, 23-Mar-18 : QinetiQ’s first H125 / AS350B3e in the new UK MoD Empire Test Pilots School (ETPS) livery arrived at MoD Boscombe Down

    Lynx / Sea Venom Missile Compatibility Test, 05-Apr-17 : QinetiQ and the Royal Navy conducted trials at Boscombe Down between a Lynx Mk8 helicopter and the MBDA Sea Venom/ANL anti-ship missile

    QinetiQ Orders 4 H125 for UK MoD ETPS, 01-Mar-17 : QinetiQ ordered 4 Garmin G500-equipped H125 / AS350B3e helicopters to replace the Gazelle in use by the UK MoD’s Empire Test Pilots’ School (ETPS) from 2019

    02-Jun-16 - Cobham Bell 412 Support for QinetiQ
    07-Jul-09 - Modified Boeing Chinook Mk3 Completes 1st Test Flight





    List of aircraft and events at Boscombe Down

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    By Date | By Serial

    TypeSerialDates
    105CBB-67 13jun92
    105M80+03 13jun92
    105M8003 14jun92
    105P86+06 13jun92
    206L-1G-OSIB 13jun92
    212ZJ969 23mar05
    A109AZE410 15jul10
    AH.1XP849 86
    AH.1XX381 07jun04
    AH.1XX449 15jul10
    AH.1XZ335 aug19
    AH.1XZ340 06aug16
    AH.1XZ347 13jun92
    AH.1ZB673 / P 16mar04
    AH.1ZB691 15jul10
    AH.1ZZ393 29jan21
    AH1ZD273 15jul10
    AH7ZD560 13jul04 27apr05 15jul10 29aug12
    AH9ZG888 13jun12
    AS355FZJ635 dec99 30jun01 29sep03 16mar04 21nov05
    AS355F1ZH141 27sep05
    AS532U2S-454 13jul04
    AW109EZE416 09jul12
    CH-47CZA718 09jun90
    CH-47DZA670 30oct18
    CH-47DZA709 11mar05
    CH-47DZA710 oct18
    CH-47DZA710 / BC 26sep06
    CH-47DZA718 may93
    CH-47DZD575 21oct04
    CH-53E161988 09jun90
    CH-53G84+10 13jun92
    CH-53G85+08 13jun92
    EH101ZF641 aug97
    H125G-ETPE 18
    H125G-ETPF 18
    H125G-ETPG mar18
    H125G-ETPH 18
    HAR.3ZA105 13jul04
    HAR.3ZE370 13jun92
    HAS.1XM834 67
    HAS.1XV651 15jul10
    HAS.1XV714 09jun90
    HAS.2XZ575 oct16
    HAS.3XT255 may65
    HAS.3ZD249 13jun92
    HAS.3ZD252 13jun92
    HAS.3SZF558 jan17
    HAS.5ZA166 / CU-828 03sep04 23mar05
    HAS7XK906 jun57
    HC.2XR503 13jun92
    HC.2XS679 13jun92
    HC.2XS679 / WG 12jun92
    HC.2XT601 01jun92 13jun92
    HC.3ZJ137 / W 28jan05
    HC.4ZB506 13jun92 jul02 14apr04
    HC.4ZB507 25jun93
    HC.4ZF115 13jun92
    HC.4ZG829 13jun92 20aug92
    HM.1ZH830 may20
    HM.1ZH832 jul02
    HM.1ZH838 may20
    HM.1ZH848 may20
    HM.1ZH849 may20
    HM.1ZH852 may20
    HM.1ZH855 may20
    HM.1ZH858 may20
    HM.1ZH863 may20
    HT.2XW864 13jun92
    HT.2XW884 13jun92
    HT.2XW907 13jun92
    HT.2XX441 13jun92
    HT.2XZ939 92
    HT.2ZB647 13jun92
    HT.2ZB649 13jun92
    HT.3QinetiQ 11
    HT.3XW906 jun11
    HT.3XX396 13jun92
    HT.3XZ936 09jun90 13jun92 19may04 13jul04 22mar06 15jul10 02jun14
    HT.3ZB625 23apr04
    HU.5XS482 oct68
    HU.5XS509 13jun92
    LynxZD559 16mar04
    MH-47EZH898 16oct03 16
    MH-47EZH900 aug01
    MH-47EZH901 apr10
    MI-8TB94+12 13jun92
    MK4189+55 13jun92
    MK80S-175 13jun92
    MK81283 13jun92
    MK8883+15 13jun92
    MK88A8315 13jun92
    S-61A-1U-278 13jun92
    SA330EXW214 79 mar81
    SA330EXW227 13jun92
    SE3160A-324 13jun92
    SE3160A-343 13jun92
    SE3160A-350 13jun92
    SE3160A-390 13jun92
    SE3160A-398 13jun92
    SE3160A-453 13jun92
    SE3160A-465 13jun92
    SE3160H-20 13jun92
    Skeeter 3WF113 oct51 mar53
    Skeeter 4WF114 mar53
    Skeeter 5XG303 mar54
    Skeeter 6XJ355 aug55
    Skeeter 6XK773 21jun56
    Sycamore 3WT939 04jan58
    Sycamore 4XE308 03nov65
    Sycamore 4XJ919 27feb63
    UH-1D71+18 13jun92
    WAH-64ZJ183 25jan06
    WAH-64ZJ206 15jul10
    WaspXT414 sep65



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